2024-12-31-accounts

REGISTERED CHARtTY NUMBER: 1133346 Report of the PYdroc1￿AI Church Councjl And Unaudited Finan¢ial Statements For The Year Ended 31st December 2024 for THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PAtUSH OF ST OSWALD, KING AND MARTY￿ OSWESTRY R Harvey-Robson F.C.C.A. Adenhurst Abbey Road Llangollen LL20 8SS

THE PAROCHtAL CHiTRCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWAIJI. KING AND MARTYR, OSWESTRY for tht Yur Fdnded 31st Detember 2024 Pag¢ Report of th¢PatochiaJ ChU￿h COU￿11 Ito2 IndepeTJdent Ex3rnitk¢s Report Stst¢ment of Fittancial Activities Balance Sheet Notes to the Financial Stitem¢nts 6t015

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWAW KING AND MARTY￿ OSWE5TRY Report of the Ptot1￿#1 ch￿￿ts Counell for the Y¢4r Ended 31Jt Dtcenther 2024 The PatKhial Churcb C¢)un¢il present therreportwitb the finatt¢ia] 8tatements of the c?￿lty for thc y¢ar cndcd 31st D¢ecmbcr 2024. Th¢ Parochial Church Council bav¢ adOPt￿the provisions of the Stst¢m¢nt of R¢£orollKnd¢d PwtiG¢ ISORP)'A¢countin8 aNI R¢portiug by Chariti¢s' issued ill 2015. REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS Regtstered Charlty Dumber 1133346 Pr1th¢lp￿ addrtts The Pati5h Chut¢h of Si Oswald. King and MArtyr Church Strcet Oswestry Shropshir¢ Syl 12SY Parochlal Cbuttb Coutttll Rev H Gibbons Ichainllllu) mrDPEv￿D Mxss E J WilliatL8 MrP R Crosby Mrm WDonkiti Mrs L Clarke MrANeale Mr8 J Ch¢sworth Mrs M Jones Mrs F P¢orson Ms C Boultort Mrs MC Crosby MrJ Abram MrJ Abbatt Rev yitt.kn Che Rev J Castillo-Burley Mrs J Chippet.Williams Ms R Eva￿ Mr Rmaior M$ S Wrisbt Mr D Smith Ms S Bcst Ms S M¢rrony-Potton s A Pil$b Mrs S Hart Ms C FraseT Mrs A Earl Sadiq R¢5i8ned 3 1st Octo￿r2024 Relirtd 20th May 2024 Appointed 20th May 2024 Appoirtied 20th MAY 2024 Appoint¢d 20th May 2024 Appoillted 20th May 2024 AppOin￿d 20th M8y 2024 AppOin￿d 20th May 2024 Appointed 20th May 2024 Indtptnd¢nt EIamiDer R. H8TV¢y-Rob80tt F.C.C. Adenhursi Abb¢y Road LlaThgoll¢n LL20 8SS Page I

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCtL OF TRE ECCLESJASTJCAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD, laNC AND MARTY￿ OSWESTRY Rtport of the PAr￿bI&l Chur£h Conntll for th¢ Yt*r Ended Jlst Detember 1024 STRucfuRL GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT Governing dotumeDt PArwhial CknuTch Coullcil pTrwerstrth]re11956) as attxnded alld church r¢pr¢8¢ntstiOll TuI¢s. Risk mallagemtnt Th¢ PaTo¢hiaJ Chur¢h COW￿1] h&Ye 8 dllty to identify 2nd teview the risks to which the charity is ¢XPD5¢d andto ¢ll5ur¢ appropTial¢ ¢ontrols are in plaee to provide ￿¢￿t￿le agajnst fraud and ￿roT. $2fe8uardlng The Parochia] Church Council bas adoptedth¢ Di0￿￿n ¥Dd ChuEch ofEnglalld policies in this regard. ON BF.HAI,F OF THE BOARD: Rev H Gibbons l - Cburth co￿¢11 tymnber 17th March 202S Page 2

INDEPEliDENf EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE P.C.C. OF ST OSWALD KIYG AND MARTY OSWESTRY This report the fiDauciai of the P.C.C. for the year ended 31. D¢cemb¢r 2024, wllich ar¢ sd out on pages 4 15 is in respcci of all ¢xaminatiOll ¢arri¢d oui in with th¢ Cbwth ArcoulltillB Regulations 2006 r'tlke Regulatiots%'J alld $.43 ofthe cI￿liL¢S Aci2011 I'the Aci'l. RESPECTIVE RESPONSIBILITIES OFTHE P.C.C. A4ND tNDKPENDENT EXANItNER The member5 of the P.C.C ]ESPOll5ible for the p￿pa￿tioll of the &¢ourtty and ¢on$idcr th•1 an audjt is noi requirtd for this ycarundcr xcuon 144(21 of the Chariiies Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and thai aD indcpcndcnt ¢saminatioD is n¢¢dcd It is myrgsponsibility to examine the accounts utmkr 5ectioll 145 of the 201 l Act. followthe pnKeth]res laid down in the CTheral Dire¢tions giveTh by rhe Charity Commission¢rs ¥¢¢tion 14515Xbl of the 2011 A¢t', attd srate whttherpanicular matters have come to my attentiott. BASIS OF INDEPENDENT EXAMINERIS STATEMENT My ¢xamination wa8 cgxried out in ac(X)rda]￿ with the Genernl Directiotts ￿Vell by the Charilycomt￿ltsrt. An examinatiots iti¢ludes a teview of tbe accountin8 r¢£ords k¢pt by th¢ P.C.C. 8t￿ a compari50n of the accounts presett￿￿ with thox rcwrds. It alw illc14Mi¢s con5id¢ratioll of ally unusual items or disck)sures in the accowits. aJ)d s¢¢kirt8 explanations from thc manag¢nKni ¢onunitte¢ concerning ally such Jt)atteJs. The pro¢eduTe5 undertaken do tLOt provide all lh¢ ¢wdcn¢c that would be required in an audi¢ And ¢o]Jsequentiy tto opinioll 15 giv¢n as toivh¢thcrthe ar￿u￿tsPIeSenr * lrne and firview' and the report ts litijitsd to those D)atrer$ set out in th¢ n¢xt stattm¢n¢. INDEPENDENT EX4MtNER'S STATEMENT ID cl￿￿10￿ t))y exami￿0￿. no matters have come to myAttcntion which giv¢ m¢ reawnable Cause to be]ieve that ijj mateiialrespe¢tth¢ r¢4uir¢Tll¢tLts to k¢¢p Kcounting r¢cords in accordance $.130 of the 2011 A¢ or to pr¢p8r¢o¢¢0Ut￿ wlLi¢h accoTd with these accountill8 record¥ And comply with th¢ accwntingrequircments of th¢ 2011 Acthave nott￿ett meL or 2) To whi¢h. irt myopiiiitsty Attention thould k dr4wTh w orderto enable a proper UJhd¢rstanding of th¢ 8¢C4Mmts to be reach¢d. R Hary¢y-R AdeLhurst Abb¢y Road Uangolle LL20 8SS F.C.C. l?th March 2025 Page 3

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD. KING AND MARTY]L OSWESTRY SttsthÈxt of FlknAbcll Atd f•r the Year Ended 31st DeEémbÈr 2024 2024 Total 2023 Total Se¢ not¢ 10 for fvll compatttives UThrestricted Restti¢ted funds Notes Intomthg Rejources Donations and Ltgacies ch￿11#b]e A¢tivities Other Trading Activilies lllvesttnents 115.180 18,481 12.028 22.538 973 7,372 116.153 25,853 12,028 22,538 183,43J 26,933 12,943 21,290 2b 2d Total 168,227 8,345 176,572 244,599 Re50ur¢es Expended Rai5illE Ftsnd5 Charitablc Activities 6.629 3.112 6.629 162,368 8,8 157,706 3b 159.256 Tot 159,256 9.741 168,997 166,506 Nci gainlllo&w) on investment Depreciation on fixed &ssets, charitys own use 11,647 14,582) 1,647 (4,582) 10.622 14,5821 Net In¢omellExpendithTcI 16,036 (1.396) 14,040 84,133 TraDsferbemen funds 12,2931 2,293 13,743 897 14.64 84.l33 To¢￿ funds brought foThrd {15t J#tt 761,797 69.357 831.154 747,021 Tot1 flltsds earrled forward (31st De¢) 775,540 70,254 845.794 831,154 Page 4

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLEStASTICAL PARtSH OF ST OSWALD. KING AND MARTYJL 08wLsfRY R4l•tt¢e Sheet At 31st Dettmber2024 2024 Totsl fjJJJds 2(Y23 Tota] timds Not¢5 Fiied Assets Tan￿ble Auets Investsbelli Assets 13,745 678,604 18.327 666.957 5b 692.349 685,284 Current Awts Bank cu￿enT accounts B8ttk deposit acwuuts CBF d¢posit fund Ca5 Stocks Deblo 126,832 32.419 199 123.4102 25.983 125 10,358 16,119 176.080 159.985 L4abllltle$ dwe In one year 14,898} (17,7371 {l.2391 12.8761 crc4li￿rS CMrrt Assd￿{IJ1bllltleI) 153.445 J45.870 TOTAL NET ASSEIS 845,794 831.154 Partsh Ftsthds Urbrestricted fvnds Rc5ty1ctrd funds 775.540 70,254 761.797 69.357 TOTAL FU.NDS 845.794 831,154 The fi]L#h¢ittl stsrncDts w¢rc approved by the Parochial Church COU￿11 ¢)n 17th March 2025 and were signed ott it's behalf by.. Rev H Gibb (Ch } - Paroch￿1 Chur¢h Coulleii member - Ch#innan of FitwJceCommitt¢e and Tr¢asur¢r The att*l￿d thotes fonn partof fjnancial sratements Page 5

THE PAROClllAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD. KIPIG AND MARTYK OSWESTRY Notes to the Statements ftsr the Yelr End¢d 31$tDeeembtr2O24 Aecountin Polieits The fin￿cIal statements hav¢ bectt ptcpat¢d itt actor￿ with the Stalrnk￿t Lif RwOr[m¢￿ PT8thic¢ foT Ckniti¢s (SORPI and applicable a¢¢DUlltillg stattdaTrl FRSIO2. The financial st3t¢n]ents been prepared under the his￿rICal CO￿ ¢onveniion exeept for Iht vg]uation of inv¢stm¢nl asg¢ts, W￿ch are shown •t market va]ue. Th¢ finan¢ial 51at¢ments include all trdnsactiims, assEts aDd liabilitie5 fvr whi¢h tby PCC is Fe5POllsible in law. Th¢y do not include Iht accounts of church 8TQUP5 that owetheiT maill affiliatiott to anoiherFN)dy nor those that are infom￿1 gatheri[￿ of ChU￿h members. Cash Flow Sttenrtt The Charity has iakets advatttage of the exempiion in FRS102 from th¢ r¢quirement to prthe a cLsh flow staiemeiiton the grouttds th the income dots not exceed £5(￿,(￿￿). Dts¢rl tlokn of Funds Rtstrltted funds ctr]wise of M) elements.'- al Inco￿ from trusts or ¢ndOw[r￿Tht5 which ll￿ybe expended o￿lYOn those ￿str1eted obJxtsprovid¢d in the tenTLS of the trust or bequest bl dollation5 OT grants received tor a $￿tifIC obie¢l or Èllvitcd by th¢ PCC for * 8pccifi¢ object. The knttds mayonly b¢ exp¢nd¢d on tht 4>ecific object forwhich they wete given. Attybg]an¢e T¢maining llllspeDt at the end of eo¢h Y¢arM￿ be ¢attied forward as abalallc¢ on thAt f¥nd Th¢ FCC does not usually invest separat¢ly for ¢a¢h fund. Where there 18 no 5¢paral¢ itivesbneLL interest is apportioned io individual fiwds oll att overa8e balance basis. UnTe5trlcted furtds are iticome furtds which re to b¢ spelll 4)n the PCCS 8CDETal tW$¢. Incoujin Reyources Platmcd gi)Ing, ¢olle¢tions 8JbJ donation8 are r¢wgnis¢d wh¢n r￿e1ved. Tax refvllds areTe£O￿lstd wh¢rL th¢ incoming resourcc io thich they relate is r¢ffiv¢d. Grattts and Letd¢ies are accounted for wh¢Th the PCC is legally entiild to ihe a￿unt5 due. Dividends are accounted for when receivable, intuest 15 acctued. All other in¢om¢ is r¢cO￿ls¢d when it is receivable. All incoTning re50uTce5 ate ac¢ounted for gro$s. Resources E Qrants and donalioDS aTe atcouttied for when paid ov¢r, or when awarded, if that award ¢reatL¥ a binding or ¢on5tru¢tiv¢ obligwion on the PCC. The diocEsan parish $har¢ 1$ a¢¢owii¢d for when due. AmDunts T¢c¢ived speafi¢ally formi85ion are d¢ait as T¢$th¢lcd funds. Ail othcr¢xptndiDJre is gencr4llyrec0￿ISed whett it 18 incutted and is accounted for gross. Ffixed Assets Coll$wrat¢d aud Bthefi¢e Propcty is not illclud¢d in th¢ accouttts in xtordance with s.10 (21 l a l & I C l of the Chari¢ies Act 2011. Movable chutrh fitrnishin£s held by thc VL¢ar and Churchwardetks oll ￿¢18] tsust forthe PCC And thich require a foi disposal aT¢ inalienablt property, li¥t¢d in the Church's inventory. whicb Can b¢ Insp￿ lat 8iiyrea80Dable timel. For anything acquired prior to 2000 tbere 18 iLsuffi¢ient cost infornwtion available theTefore such ass¢ts 8r¢ not valued in the finan¢ial stst¢m¢tts. Depr#iation is charged as follows., Sound System- 21P/o Strai8hi Line Basi& Investment Inv¢stmellts aTe valutyj at matht Val￿ on 31st D¢ccmb£r. InY¢stm¢ni prorKty is Shown at the ]Jkntst recent valuation. kny aggtegate sutylus ordefi¢i14ris¢ng from in the market value is traLsfexred w a reva]uation r¢s¢rY¢. Stocks are valuedat th¢ iow¢r of ¢ost and net reaiisabIe ￿Ille. •ft¢r mBkin8 dueallowaj￿e for obsolete and slow rnoviTrg ltell￿. Th¢ charity is ex¢mpt from on its ¢haTitable aciivilies. tommitments Rentals paid under op¢rating Icase5 are charged to the sTatem¢nt of fiDwiai acliwties on astraigbt-Jin¢ bayis ov¢rthe P¢Tiod ofth¢ I¢￿. Page 6

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF TH ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWAL￿ KING Af4D MARTYIL OSThfSTRY Notes to tke Firtnti#l StteJlltllts- ¢ontlnued for the Yur Ended Jlsl Decemb¢r 21124 INCOME AND END0WMEr￿rS FROM: 2024 Total 2023 Totsl fiujds UnT¢Stri¢t¢d R¢stii¢t¢d 2 Donxllons Legaclt4 VolHt￿￿CoMléthece1pts T&x effici¢nt plaulled givin Otherplalllled 8iVill8 2 Coll¢¢lion5 at %TVi¢ts All other giving and voluntary eipts including spffial app¢a15 Gift Aid Recovered 55.960 7,504 13.907 55,960 7.504 13,907 56.217 S,410 16,836 17.429 3,544 973 17.809 17.429 3.544 13,821 18.017 75.447 115,180 973 116.153 183,433 l) An￿y$l$ of Tax effltkDt Pl￿ne￿ 8lvlng Bank Donations R¢8ulaT Env¢iopes 35.880 20,080 55.960 2} Anaty818 ofcollecdons It s¢nl¢ White Et)velopes Loose piBk collcctiotL4 Coll¢¢tions- Baptisms Collections- CollUll￿[L% Colle¢iions- Weddit CoU¢ciitiJJs- SpEcial 3,746 8.120 845 231 965 13,907 31 Att￿y$l9 of ￿ otker glvkng nd wol￿tIry r¢¢¢ipts including sPt¢tsl Appeal& [ki￿10Th5. Churcb tknnati008- Charitses Dottaiiotts. Organ Fund. R¢sth¢d DollatioDs- Or8Bll Fund. Unr¢8tri¢ted Donaiiolls- FlowerFund Wail safes Donations- Fun¢rA]s Donatsons- Pla¢¢ of Wel¢oTllC DoJJ&tions- B¢ll Trnitiittg- Re8tricted DonatioDS- Under 5,8 Donations. AnDiversary Evettts 4.180 800 68 1,492 195 4,313 3,073 338 905 2.165 17,809 Page 7

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD. KtIYG AND MARTYK OSWESTRY Notes to the Flnncll St4tements- contEDyed for the Yelr Ettded 31st De¢eTMbeT 2024 INCOME AND Ef4DOWMENTS CONTINUVD: 2014 2023 Total fimds Unrestrtcied R¢stti¢i¢d funds bjnds 2b Charftabl¢ A¢tiFitses ALy1￿leS St*iuiOry Fees {retaitJed byPCCI Summer Fete FundTaising Activities 11,693 400 I2,￿3 12,921 6.788 6.972 13.760 14,012 18,481 7,372 25,853 26,933 2c Other Traditht AttMtIt$ Church Hall Hire Church Lettings Lowcr Brook Street Rent Li¢hfitld DiC￿es8￿- Decorgtotrs Sch¢r P￿ish Mogwne & B(M)kBtall 246 2,170 336 1820 8,40D 2.170 8.400 1212 1.212 1,387 12.028 12.028 12,943 2d InvestmeDt Dividends Bthnk Inte]tst 19.407 3,131 19,407 3,131 19288 2.002 22.538 22.538 21.290 168.227 8,345 176,572 244.599 Page 8

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH Cou￿e1L OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWAtIJ, Kif4G AND MARTIIL OSWESTRY otes to the FSDAttdfil StatrmtMts-¢Olltlnued fr•r the Ye*T Ended 3lst Der¢mbtr 2024 ENDTfuRE ON: 2024 Tothl 2023 Total funds UorestriGted Restricted fi￿d$ fvuds ja RalsiDg Funds Costs &fGeMewdn¥lM¢we Fct¢s & Futkntraisins 6.629 6,629 s.8￿) 6,629 6,629 8,8(K) 3b Chxritsble Activltl Ch¥rch Activities Mi88ion 8ivillg and dottatiolls Diocesan Parith Sknar¢ SalaTieslWages Clergy and Staff Ex￿nge$ 6.125 46,672 29.660 12,001 125 46,672 29.915 12.(K)I 7,606 45.757 25.401 7,591 255 Ch¥wlJ ExpeNs¢y Church n]ntting tXP¢Dses ChuT¢h utility bills Cost of ttading 10,933 24.447 16.349 10.933 24.447 19206 18.026 20,114 16,165 2,857 M4JorC￿￿dExPe￿rf1Av¢ Major R¢pairs to th¢ Church 9,295 9295 13.493 3.774 3,774 3,553 159.256 162,368 157,706 TOTAL 159.256 9.741 168.997 166,506 Page 9

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COIJNCIL OFTH ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD, KJNG AND MAR￿ OSWESTRY Notes to the Fittxbtll Ststsmtnts- tothtlnued for the Year b4Dded 318t December 2024 41 STAFF COSTS 2024 2023 Salaries 29,915 25,401 Duringthe ￿arth¢ PCC employ¢d th¢ following members of the PCC.. 31.12.24 31.12.23 Mr M Th)nkin Ms C Boulton 7.78n 6.880 5,673 6,552 14,660 12225 There were no other tran￿¢¢10￿8 mad¢ in r¢sp¢¢t of PCC MeTllbets, rto PCC Member re¢¢iv¢dbenefit. or r¢iMbu￿￿ent of travelling orother expenses. S& FIXED A&SETS Fre¢hold Buildings Church Equipment Total At Cost As at 1st January 2024 Additions in the Ye#r Disposals in the Year 22.909 22.909 Value at 31st D¢cember 2024 22.909 21909 Atcumlllited D￿re¢lll0 As at 1st Jartuary 2024 Charge for th¢ Y¢ar DistM)sals 4,582 4,582 4,582 4,582 As at 31sr Decemb¢r2Q24 9,164 r4et B￿kvalue #t 31stDe¢ember 2024 13,745 13.745 Nrt Bookvalue at 31st D¢¢mibEr 2023 18,327 18,327 Pag¢ 10

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD. KLNG AND MARTYIi OSWESTRY Notss to the FIDaDthI Sts¢ements- for the YÈ4r Endtd 31rtDetember2024 Sb INVESTMENT ASSETS At 1.1.24 Additions '5posais Trathsfcrs Change i Matket Value 31.12.24 UDre$ttacted funds 385,580 220,IM)O 499 11,647 397,726 220,(K)O Inv£slm¢ntProp¢ty- 14 L(bw¢rBrook Str¢¢t Re5tri¢ted tulld IDves¢mA)ts 61,377 1499) 60,878 Totsl 666,957 11,647 678,604 There wer¢ no inYeslJJJvnt a55¢15 outsid¢ th¢ UK. The uuJi8t¢d inv¢strrMts 8r¢ mHd¢ up of th¢ following.. 3J.1224 31.12.23 Chur¢h of England Jnvc$tnKnt Fund Church of En810rJd Fixcd Jntere5t Fwmi M&G Charifi]nd Li¢hfieldDiocesthn TnLSt 160,217 26.153 188.735 83.51KI 156,632 25.386 183.940 81,0(K) 458.605 446.958 INVVSTMENT PROPERTY At 1st January 2024 Additional ExpeDdifuTe Chattge MaTket Valu¢ Ai 3181 D¢¢embeF2024 220.000 220.000 NET BOOK VALUE At 31$t Detember 2024 220,0( At 31s¢ Dt¢cJJJbBT 2023 220,000 During 2011 th¢ d¢ed8 ai 14 Lower Brook Street We￿ di4cov¢r¢d to have beeD tr•ns*eLred iLto The Pces DaTll¢. Itt li8h¢of this. the property has b¢en brought )Dto the ac¢ouDts in 2011 at the then currelll llwk¢rvalue of £160.IXJO.I)O. fj L￿BILITIEs ABJo¥JJtsfoUiwg dm¢ IM Oneyear 2￿4 2023 Awua15 of Uiiliiies Oth¢rCTcdilor5 2.083 15,654 1363 10,513 17,737 12,876 Page 11

TVIE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COiTrICIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD. KING Al￿ MARTTh, OSWESTrY Notu to the Fknanti418t•t¢mEnts-¢otitind for the Year Ended 318t December 2024 7 ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS General Unr¢stricted Restri¢l Total Fixed Assets TThve5tments Assets Currejjt A8sets CurMt Liabilities 13,745 617.727 166,706 {22,635 13.745 678,605 176.082 22,635 60.878 9,376 775,543 70,254 845,797 STOC]L 2024 2023 Stocks IPraycrCards & Not¢l¢ts c) 125 DEBTORS.. AMOUNTS FALLINC DUE WITIUN ONE I 2024 2023 1,482 1.600 8,063 4,974 16,119 1.430 3,500 4,336 1,092 10,358 Dividend In¢ome Gift Aid Othcrdebtors 8 FUNIY6 RECONCILJATION Re5eTves at 1.1.24 Ineoming Re5VUT¢¢S Resourc Exp¢txl¢d Invesbn¢nt Tr￿fer Reserves ainlLosscs between funds at 31.12.24 Unre5trirttd Ftynds ¢ncrttl Fund 761,797 171,149 1162.178) 7,065 (2293} 775,540 Rt5trlrttd Funds Organ Fund FlowerFund Morris Fund wilfr¢dow￿ Fu]Ml Vicarfs Discr¢tionaryFulld for People in N¢ed For the A5Si8tan¢e of the Sick or Ne¢dy P&Tishionets Fulld Oswesty St Antt's Fllttd Sunday Schwl Fund Vicarf5 Di5crthoDaryBpaulificatittl Fkn Boulion Trusi Fund Fri¢nd5 of Music I Choral Fo￿dation B¢llringuy Bellill￿trs-Bell Training LAth'&% Group C￿lstmaS Day Lunch Morda School Hou8t Trust 3,738 1.109 145 781 68 140 41 3.946 1.150 145 810 29 567 567 9,640 12,898 492 105 16,013 360 482 10,(¥)o 13.380 492 105 io 598 5.425 1.412 905 535 14,733) 11,069) 12 13 14 Is 16 3,110 937 1,713 905 17,195 69,357 3.453 1,842 (1,082) 905 14,981 70,254 (2,857) (9.741) 643 2,293 8,345 TOTAL FUNDS 831,154 179,494 1171,9J9 7,065 845,794 Page 12

THK PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE EcC[￿sIASTIcAL PAIUSH OF ST0SwAL￿ KING AND MARTYK OS1}￿sTRy Note8 to the FInan¢1￿ St•ternents- comthued fortht Year Ended 3At Dettmbtr 2024 Net movetnent in fund& included in the ab)ve aTe as follows.. Itt¢oming R¢sour¢es Gains and Movenktst i Funds UDrestTkted Funds GerKral Fund 171,149 1162.17¥1 7.065 16.036 Re8ttIctsd FUJKI Organ Fund Flower Fund Mom8 Fund Wi1fr¢4J (Iw¢u Fund VicarfsDiscretionaryFund for People in Need For the A55L5tan¢¢ of thc Sick or Needy Parithioners Futtd Oswestry St kn's Fund Sunday School Fund Vica¢s DiscreuoJMy BeAutifi¢ation Fu￿1 Boulioll TtU5t Fund Friends of Musidchoral Foundatlon B¢lirin8us 8ellnngers- Bell TrniniYJ8 Lad2¢s Qroup Morda School HO￿ TnL8t 68 68 5.425 1,4L2 905 535 14.7331 {1,0691 692 343 905 {547} 12.8571 113961 {1,0821 (2,857) (9.741) 8345 TOTAL NET MOVEMthT IN FU.NDS 179.494 7,065 14,640 N(bTKS TO THE FUNDS A} Org4A Fulld This is used to the organ itt Stoswaids churclL Zl Flowtr Fund Thts fund i8held to ejwble floww5 to be purciiased for the c]ll￿th thT0u0Lo￿ the yrar. 3) Morrls This fund is used for the upkeep of amenxjri￿. 4) Wllfr¢d Oweb Fund This fund is held forthe upk¢ep of th¢ Wilfr¢d Owen m¢morial. 5TrVl¢4r'8 DlI¢retlon￿ Fu￿d for P¢ Iu Need This ￿nd 16 fOr8M￿ gi£Ls for people in need at Vi¢aV8 dis¢retiO]L 6) Sltk or Ntt41y PaTishioneT5 Fuld This fi￿d is to bo u5¢d ￿ a&%ist parishiottets of StOswald'$ in titncs of poorh¢￿1￿ and Iwdship. Th¢ funds We￿ giv¢n to Si Ikwald'5 in a f¢llow pgrishioners will. 7) Oswutry St Alln's FuDd This was ge]￿ra[ed frvrn th¢ sal¢ oFSt Ann's ¢hapel aimorda atxl i$ h¢ld to be used forcapital projects. Page 13

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLL51ASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD, KING AND MARTYR, OSWESTRY Yotts to the FIDaAcl¥l StstemeTrts- ¢on¢thutd for the Ye#r Ettded 31st Dèeejttber 2024 8) Sunday Stbool Fund This fund is h¢ldto 8upportth¢ SuDd#y School It St Oswald's th￿￿lL 9) Vltar's Dls¢retlooory Btautlll¢atloD Fund This knid 15 held foi capital Pro)￿ts. lo} Boulton Trllst Fvnd This fifftd is held for ¢apital Projects. 111 Frlends of Mllsic I Chordl Fo￿ndItIOn FDDd Thi5 ￿nd is used forthe Friellds of Music GTOUP. 12} Btllrlngtrs Fwud This knd is used forthe Belltits8ers group. 13} Bellrlngtrs- BellTralnkne Fund Thi5 was established to assist B¢llring¢TS tr¥ining. 14} Ladie% Group This fi￿d is u5¢d for tht f¢llowship group. IS} Chrlstllws DIY Lunch This fund was ¢stablish¢d to provid¢ fwid5 for the Chii$lmas Day Lunch Projcct. 16} Morda Scknool HoTJ¥t Trn5t This fijnd is to be used for youth and family wod(withiTL ourP8TiSb. RELATED PARTY D￿CLOsuRE$ Mr D. P. F.C.A. is a parther in (larner Pugh & Sin¢lairwho ar¢ psid £3.145 pl￿8 VAT{£3.774) forA¢coutstittg aud AthDini5tr8ti0n setvices. Pagc 14

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST OSWALD, JaNG AND MARTYR, OSWTSTRY Notes ts th¢ FIDXDd&l Sttemettts- for theytar EDded 31¥t Decernber 21124 I• STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITILS COMPARATIVES (PREVIOUS YEAR) 2023 Totsl funds Unrcstricled Re51Ticl¢d fimds IDWmiDg R¢50Vf¢eS tknnaiioos and Legacies Charithble A¢iivi¢ies Other Trd(ling kntivities Invixttn¢nts 182.780 18.769 12,943 21,290 653 8.164 183.433 26.933 12.943 21.290 Total 235,782 8,817 244,599 Rewurces Expended Raising Funds Charitabl¢ A¢livitits 8,800 4.175 8,800 157.706 153,531 153531 12.975 166.506 ￿di]ll{lo￿) on inveslmenl Depre¢itition on fixed awts, charitys own use 10.622 14,582) 10,622 {4.5821 N¢r In¢oT[￿J(EXpcndlIurt1 88,291 14,158) 84,133 TtaD$fer between fi 122201 2.220 86.071 11,938) 84.133 TotAi fuDds b￿￿Ebt[1}rWat￿l Ilsl Jtt) 675.726 71,295 747.021 Tot*1 futtds ¢arried forward {31&t ljec) 761.797 69,357 831.154 Page 15

THE PARISH CHURCH OF ST OSWALD, KING & MARTYR, OSWESTRY The Parish Office, Church Stree( Oswestry, SY112SY ANNUAL REPORT OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL 2025 for Ihe year 2024 The PCC cooperates with the Incumbent in the whole mission of the church according to the call of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. As part of the Synodical structure of the Church of England, the PCC makes known and puts into effect any provision made by the Diocesan or Deanery Synods and gives advice to these synods on any matters the PCC considers appropriate. The PCC is responsible for the financial affairs of the church. the PCC draws up a budget and has the responsibility with the Incumbent of appointing, paying and dismissing paid officers of the parish. The PCC is responsible for the care, maintenan￿. preservation and insurance of the fabric of the Parish Church and the adIa￿nt Parish Centre,. a house at 14 Lower Brook Street, Oswestry is in the beneficial ownership of the Parochial Church Council. vested in the Di0￿san Trust and is normally let to tenants. As a parish within the Diocese of LiChf￿1d. it follows the Bishop's Three Primary Tasks of Discipleship, Evangelism and Vocation. Membership of the PCC is as follows: (a) Ex-OITIcio Incumbent: Vicar of St Oswald. King & Martyr, Oswestry- Rev'd H L Gibbons, M.A. LI￿nsed Ministers.. Rev Yin-An Chen (resigned 31$t October), Rev. Jassica Castillo- Burley. Churchwardens.. Miss E. J. Williams, Mrs M. Jones, MrA. Neale, Mr J. Abram Deanery Synod Representatives (elecÉed in 2024) Mrs M. Crosby, Mrs L. Clarke, Ms Fiona Pearson & Mr Jonathan Abbatt b} Elected Representatives To serve until 2025.. Mr D.P Evison. Ms C. Boulton. To serve until 2026.. Mrs J. Chesworth, Mrs Jenifer Chippet-williams, Mr Richard Major, Ms Sally Wright, Mr Paul Crosby, Mr M. Donkin To seNe until 2027.. Miss Chloe Fraser, MrsAnne Pilsbury, Mrs Samantha Hart, Miss Sigourney Merrony-Potton, Mr David Smith. Ms Sandy Best. Mrs Angela Earl-S8ddiq {c) Co-opted Representatives None Under arrangements in force Sin￿ the late 1980's and modified in 2002, five people are elected eath year, for a tenn of three years.

Officers of the Council The Vicar. as Incumbent is the legal Chaimian of the Council The Lay-co Chair of the Council is MrAlan Neale The Hon. Secretary to the Council is Ms Carron Boulton The Hon. Treasurer to the Council is Mr Paul Evison The Electoral Roll OffI￿r is Mrs Maureen Crosby Sub Committees of the Council The Vicar is ex officio on all sub committees listed below: standing Committee (the sole statutory Sub Committee) The Vicar, Two Churchwardens" Lay Co-chair,. Hon. Secretary. Hon. Treasurer- all ex officio Mr P Crosby. Mrs L Clarke. Other sub committees include representatives appointed by the PCC from among their number, nomially including one Churchwarden (at least) signified by"" Building and Fabric Committee- the full term of referen￿ is available on request and the membership is as follows: Mr P. Crosby (Chair), Mr P. Evison, Mr C. Tansley. MrA. Neale" Mr M. Clarke, Mr P. Walley. Mr D Smith. Finance Committee - the full terms of referen￿ are available on request and the membership is as follows: Mr P. Evison (Chair), Mr M. Donkin, Cdr M. Peters (GiftAid), MrA. Clarke, Mr E. Evans, J. Abram.. Parish Centre Management Committee to manage the daily running of the Centre and its staff - MrA. Neale" (Chair), Ms Carron Boulton (Booking Secretary), M. Imlson and Mrs E. Leek. Events Committee with a focus on fellowship- Miss J. Williams.. Mission and Giving Group - Rev. H. Gibbons, Mrs A. Pilsbury, Mrs L. Clarke, Mr H. Jones. Mission and Ministry Team - Rev. H. Gibbons, Mrs L. Clarke. Mrs P. Willing, Mrs G. Evison. Ms S. Wright. Rev'd J. Castillo-Burley. Sick and Needy Fund - Rev H. Gibbons, Mr P. Crosby, Mrs M. Jones. The PCC appoints represenlatives to the local ecumenical body Churches Together in Oswestry and District. A total of two including the clergy are allowed according to the revised ¢onstitLrtion of Churches Together adopted in 2012. Those nominated at the Annual Meeting were The Vicar and Mrs A Pilsbury who agreed to fill in when called upon to do so.

The Parish The population of Oswestry according to the 2021 Census is 17.509 of which 10,700 live in the parochial parish of St Oswald, King & Martyr. The Electoral Roll at 29 April 2023 stood at 255. Thanks are due to Mrs Maureen Crosby for encouraging membership of the electoral roll. Average Sunday Adult attendance for the year stood at 261. Underthe age of 16 years- 15. Incumbent's Review of the Year It has been another fascinating year, a mixture of extraordinary celebrations and some farewells. It would be fair to say that 2024 was shaped significantly by three significant events: my sabbatical from February until May, the 150th anniversary of the Victorian restoration of the church building, and the departure of the Rev'd Yin-An Chen, our curate. Unusually. my sabbatical included Easter, the first time I had been able to ￿lebrate it alongside my family for 25 years. From a personal perspective, the time away allowed me to refiect on a quarter of a ￿ntury'S ministry in seven benefI￿S along with di0￿San and national church roles. It also provided a time to reflect on lay ministry and my role as Warden of Readers in the DI0￿Se of Lichfield. My sabbatical also marked the beginning of the end of Rev'd Yin-An Chen's time with us as our curate" Yin-An and Tim left Oswestry for the diocese of London where Yin-An will continue his training. l am extremely grateful for the way the clergy team and the church wardens enabled worship, g0veman￿, and pastoral care to continue during my sabbatical. and particularly in dealing so well with Yin-An's sudden absen￿ from Easter. Pastoral care of church members and non-members alike continues to be a priority, and l am grateful for the support I re￿1ve from the clergy team and the dedicated pastoral care group. Naturally, there is always more we could do. Place of Welcome and Under-5's continued to provide a safe space and pastoral support to those who attended. The home-communion team continued to grow both in membership and in outreach to people in their own homes, and in residential care homes. The sesquicentennial (150th) anniversary of the Victorian renovation of St. Oswalds filled the summer with a variety of events. The anniversary is reported in more detail elsewhere in this annual report so I will not dwell on it here except to say an enonnous 'thankyou' to everyone who worked so hard to make it the huge Su￿sS that it was. Our work with local schools is an important element within our ministry to the wider cornmunty. As in previous years, it primarily involved working with Morda Primary School, Oswestry School and providing weekly 'Prayer & Praise, sessions at Derwen College. However, we also welcomed the Bishop of Shrewsbury who presided over our confirmakn'on Eucharist which included 6 Moreton Hall School pupils alongside 3 of our own candidates. Within our mission to the wider town, our relationship continues to grow with the Orthodox communities from Shrewsbury and Chester who use the Lady Chapel for a Servi￿ of Divine liturgy. The annual walk to, and blessing of, St. Oswalds Well in August proved very successful, and rt was a joy to hear the well blessed in the Orthodox tradition. Our civic ministry to the town of Oswestry included a setvice to

commemorate the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in June 1944 along with the usual Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day senil￿s. The placing of Remembran￿ crosses on the war graves in Oswestry Cemetery involved pupils from Woodside Primary School along with the Combined Cadets from Oswestry School. As usual, Christmas brought the year to an end, and it was a joy to welcome again local schools for their Christrnas services alongside our full array of Advent and Christrnas acts of worship. I will end as l a￿ayS do by stating my personal thanks to everyone who has worked so hard during the past twelve months; my clergy colleagues. the Church Wardens and PCC. our caretaker and Maintenan￿ team, the choir and music team, the flower arrangers and all who contribute to our worship, along with all those who quietly get on with things behind the s￿neS withoLrt making a fuss. Harvey Gibbons Churchwardens Report 2024 The first 3 months of the year were busier than ever for the Churchwardens who were left in overall charge as Vicar Harvey took a well-eamed 3 months Sabbatical. The year began with the Wardens having to resolve the difficutties arising from the decision not to allow the Parish Church to be used as a focus point for Oswestry's Pride Celebrations in June. However, attention soon retumed to planning the busy programme of events for lebrating the 150th Anniversary of the Restoration of the Church in 1874. An Opening Concert on the 6th Juty was followed by a Service on the 7th to rna￿ the start of the lebrations. A varied programme of events then followed throughout July, August, September and October. including well attended concerts, talks, bellringing, and a Teddy Bear Zip Wire event. In August we hosted the Knitted Bible display which drew in many visitors from near and far and was very well re￿Ived. A busy summer for all involved. Despite increases in postal charges our Charity Christmas Card Shop remained well supported by the public and income from sales once again enabled us to support over 20 local and nalional charities. We look forward to the implementation of the Building & Fabric Committee's maintenance and development programme planned to begin in 2025 which shoukl help ensure the long-temi viability of our Church and the Parish Centre. Congregation numbers continued to return to pre-covid levels and On￿ again we thank all the many hard-working volunteers who assist us to ensure things run smoothly and that we continue to be a welcoming Church for everyone. Juna. Muriel, Alan, John

Secretary's Report for the year 2024 Quarterly meetings have taken place in person in the Parish Hall. Overall attendan of PCC meetings has been very good. We have discussed many issues this year, with the150th anniversary celebrations being a big point. We also discussed finance, and our carbon footprint and what we can do to redu￿ it. Communion is still being dealt with effectively with sanitising of the servers hands before they offer communion to communicants. St Oswalds conducted only 3 wedding ￿remonieS this year, with another 3 having been cancelled for one reason or another. 22 Baptisms took pla￿ throughout this year as well as Moreton Hall School confirmation. The clergy registered 61 funeral seNices conducted either at St Oswalds or in a local crematoriumlcemetery and conducted by a member of the St Oswalds associate clergy team. This year, saw us have a record number of new PCC members join the committee all bringing unique qualities and skill sets. Our committee now stands with 24 members. Our Curate left us this year however our dergy leam remains strong. Carron Boulton - Secretary Annual report on Acolyte's I Servers Once again, l am delighted to be able to give a positive report on the strength of our committed team of Acolyte's I Servers. These are people who enjoy seniing our Lord at the Altar with reveren￿. I have a very loyal team who l find are a great pleasure to work WFth and are willing to give up their time on Sundays and other occasions. l am always looking for more people who feel that they may have this calling to Acolyte especially some of our young people. l am also looking for anyone who would be prepared to be trained to serve at the 8am service on the third Sunday of the month. Our team are: Samantha, Louise, Bridget, Carron. Chloe, Ruth. Sally W. Sally R. Crucifer: Gany. Reserve's: Bru￿, David. Choral evensong.. David. 8am Servers: Paul Chalice administer: Garry, Samantha, Bruce, Ruth, Carron, Mike, Sally W., Sally R. The Holy Eucharist is the ￿ntre of our Sacramental life and it is a privilege that we with reverence, joy and great gladness worship our blessed Lord at the Altar. Mike Jones

Altar linen report Last year I reported that much of Ihe Altar linen needed to be replaced and Ihat v had purchased two new Altar cloths for the Lady chapel. l also made an appeal for ￿rtain items that the Church required. l am extreme grateful to the response, a small Ciborium has been given in memory of the late Mair Bowen donated by Bill and his family. A set of green vestments and green altar panels for the Lady Chapel together with a restored red Frontal, a new purple frontal and also Iwo new white High Altar cloths were given in memory of Vera and Walter I￿asteneY donated by Christine and Peter Wasteney. The restoration and work done on the panels and frontals was created and made by Christine Wasteney. The Church is sts'll in need of a new set of white vestments which are not, I might add, cheap rf anyone would like to donate in memory of a loved one or a special anniversary please contact either myself or the vicar. on￿ again. I would like to thank Muriel for washing the purificators and other linen week by week. Thank you all for the love and support that you give to St. Oswalds Parish Church for the glory of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Mike Jones Sidespeople It is with gratefijl thanks from the church wardens to the team for their loyal support and assistance throughout the year. This years sides people are: Val Hamer, Olive Morris, Dilys Lloyd, Wendy and Mike Peters, Sue and Colin Tansley. Ann Sagar, Carol Burke. David and Margaret Smith, Fran Stocking, Sally Wright and Natasha Bell. If anyone else would like to join our fabulous team. please see June Williams June Williams Church Cleaning We have had another busy year keeping the churth clean and tidy. It was a challenging time when the renovation I repair work was carried out on the walls. We have had to new volunteers this year for whom we are very grateful. If there is anyone else interested in joining us, particularly to help with the brass cleaning, please let Natasha know. We have great support from Matt, Mike, Colin, Peter and David and we thank them all very much for this.

Finaly, we continue to have many lovely ￿Mrnents about the dean and tidy state of St Oswal(f8 Church. Natasha & Muriel Bulldlng And Fabrlc Committee Report Members of the committee are now Sue Tansley (Secretary), Colin Tansley. Peter Walley, David Smith, Paul Evison, Alan Neale, Rev'd Harvey Gibbons, Paul Crosby (Chairman). The committee has been very aclive throughout the year. The Church Architect advised that he was reducing his workload and has suggested that we appoint a new Architect before the next Quinquennial Inspection due in 2027. Mindful of the Church of England's target to be Carbon Neutral by 2030, the committee gained PCC approval to develop a programme of word( over the next 5- 6 years in an attempt to achieve this target date at St Oswald's. It was recognised thai there were limits to what could be achieved practically within Ihe ancient building of St Oswald and it was felt that focusing on the windows. roof and walls of the uninsulated Parish Centre would have greater impact in reducing our carbon footprint so it was agreed that the Parish Centre should have a higher priorty. It was also felt that, desptte the extra time taken to seek separate Facutty pemiissions forthe windows. roof and walls, it was a sensible approach in that any delay in seeking faculty permission for one would not delay the whole project. A Faculty has been sought to frt double glazed units in the windows. The roof of the Parish Centre has no insulation and, coupled with the number of leaks after heavy rain, a new roof with insulation is seen as yet another priority. Vve have been in discussion with contra¢tors and initially sought estimates for the windows and roof covering. The boilers in the church and the parish ￿ntre were servi￿d after some new parts had been frtted. However, further part failures have at times resulted in heating from only two of the five Church boiler modules working. The Church boilers are now 20 years old and have been less reliable. Maintenance is further complicated by some parts becoming obsolete and have had to be replace with non-standard parts. Three contractors have been approached to establish the level of costs involved in replacing the church boilers before there is a total failure during winter months. We hope to achieve this as a planned way during summer 2025 depending on the availabilty of funding. We had hoped that the Church Lighting would last until 202612027 however there was continued concern that switches on the lighting control panel had become obsolete and the new smaller repla￿ment panel was impractical because there was insufficient space in the smaller panels for the amount of wiring involved within the church. However, our church electrician devised a way of fabricating a new front panel to house the new smaller switches whilst retaining the existing control panel.

Additionally, the component parts of the SON (sodium) lights were also obsolete and following failures in both the Choirand the Lady Chapel on separate Sunday momings. Attempts were made to Introdu￿ LED lighting but the biggest wattage LED lights were insufficient to generate the light levels to an ac￿ptable standard so experiments have been made using floodlights. These brought the light levels to the required standard for the congregation but the 1 Oowatt floodlights offered only minimal savings to our carbon footprint. Redecoration of several areas in the church was seen as a priority with the change of IKJhting. Following work in St George's Chapel last year a need for plastering behind the heating pipes was identified and a local plasterer engaged to repair not only that area but several other areas around the church where rernedial action was needed were re-plastered with lime plaster before any redecoration could be undertaken. A new Electricty 3-year contract with British Gas Lite was signed last year until 2026. St Oswald's has benefitted throughout the year from being locked into a 5-year Gas contract ending February 2025. A new Gas contract has been signed. also with British Gas, but is at a significantly higher rate. VAT totalling £1,362, which had already been paid on eligible work, has been reclaimed under the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. Paul Crosby made representation on behalf of St Oswald's to the Secretary of State DCMS, Rt. Hon. Lisa Nandy, that the LPWGS should be extended beyond 31 March 2025. Following our representation, we heard in January 2025 that the scheme has been extended for 12 months. A new contract has been negotiated for servicing of the Fire Extinguishers. The Parish Centre Lift, Organ and Clock have all been serviced. A new contract is about to be signed for maintenance of the Turret Clock and Bells. All portable applIan￿S in the church have been tested (PAT testing) and are safe to use. Though thanks are due to the whole committee. particular thanks must go to David Smith who has co-ordinated the efforts to progress work on reducing our carbon footprint and who, along with Colin Tansley and Peter Walley have undertaken 'self- help. works and on-going maintenance throughout the year. Paul Crosby. Chairman Parish Centre Report There has been an increase in the use of the Centre, with the Under-5s group now meeting ￿lce a week and a number of new outside lettings. We were particulady pleased to welcome back the Brownies to the Centre, who are very appreciative of the facilities we offer. There have also been dan￿ classes. talks ar)d meetings, and children's birthday parties. The Centre has also been used for wakes following funerals in church. Bookings are now managed by the church administrator with a booking form available for download from the church website.

The heating system has generally worked satisfactorily. The dishwasher continues to sporadically underperfomi and its future usefijl lrfe may now need to be considered. The Building and Fabric Committee continues to take forward planning for improvements to the building to make it more energy efficient. Elaine Leek - Parish Centre Management Commlttee Place Of Welcome The Place of Welcome drop-in on a Tuesday morning was held 51 times during 2024, snow in November forcing the first ever closure in our history. We have continued to welcome guests from both the community and the church family. Numbers fluctuate, with some regular weekly attenders and others who drop in only periodically, but there is always good conversation to be had. We had Hot Cross Buns in Holy Week and in December Haydn Jones played Christmas music for us at our mince pie morning, which was very well attended. Pla￿ of Welcome again registered as a 'Warm Welcome Space, available to anyone in our community who might be struggling to be warm at home. We continue to support the Foodbank from donations made by guests, and in 2024 also sent money to the UNICEF Gaza fund, the Hurricane Beryl emergency appeal. a project Tun by Crisis in Ltverpool helping prisoners who might be released into homelessness and also the Crisis at Christmas appeal. Place of Welcome could not be possible without our nine cheerful volunteers on the kitchen rota, to whom thanks are due. Elaine Leek Ladles Group Report For The Year 2024 The Committee consists of: Chair.. June Williams Secretary.. Ann Sagar Treasurer.. Glenda Evison Over 30 members The members have enjoyed a wide range of speakers also a summer afternoon tea and a Christmas lunch both held at the DeTwen Training College. Friendship and Fellowship are important as are the endless cups of tea. coffee, biscurts and sometimes cake. As usual members have helped out at church events including Place of Welcome, Sunday coffee. We encourage and welcome Ladies to join us at our meetings on the first Monday of the month at 2.30 p.m. in the Parish Centre. June Williams

Mothers, Union Fellowship Group We are a small group now who meet in the Parish Centre on the second Thursday of Ihe month. As we cannot any longer afford to pay, we have to rely on speakers who do not require a fee. Despite this last year we had a fairly varied programme with Harvey taking a Eucharist, Mike Donkin and Jassica both speaking. Atalk aboutTiwan by our Curate and two visits to Bluebell View Residential Home, one at Christmas to share carols and readings with them. The remaining meetings we had talks provided by the members with discu&sions amongst ourselves. Pam Musson Bible Study Group It has been another enjoyable year of reading. learning, and earnest discussion during our bible studies. Particular highlights have been a visit by Father Phil, when we leamed more about his ministry; and listening to lectures given by David Solomon, a Jewish theologian on 'Women in Judaism". We have tried to widen our topics by including a study relating to the Jewish faith thus broadening our knowledge of the origins of Christianity. We were saddened lo hear of the death of one of our previous and valued members Ann Solway, who hosted the group for several years. Sally Wright- on behalf of Monday's bible study group St Oswald's Church Choir Including The SL Oswald's Singers and the Scholars & Gentlemen Chamber Choir The choir numbers are as follows'.- 10 Trebles I Sopranos (2 fewer than last year) 4 Altos 2 Tenors and 4 Basses. During the yearthe choir has sung 71 services. Despite the smaller numbers the Choir has maintained the high standard of music that does so much to support the services. The St. Oswald's Singers, our infornial group who sing when the thoir is unavailable. sang 11 services. This group has gone from strength to strength and is much appreciated for providing a lead for the seDiices in the Choir's absence. The major event this year was the festival to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the Restoration of the Church. This ran from 6th July until 13th October with many events and displays.

Music played a large part in the festival. The Choir sang two choral services to open the Festival on Sunday 7th July (Eucharist and Choral Evensong) and they sang the Closing service on Sunday 13th October in the presence of the Bishop of Lichfiekl. There were 7 concerts. four of which formed a group entitled 'Music for a Summer's Evening,. The Scholars & Gentlemen sang the opening concert on 6th July and one of the Summer's Evening concerts on 31st August. The Choir gave the final COn￿rt on Saturday 12th October, entitled 'What we really do, a programme of music that the Choir has sung for services but which is worthy of the concert hall. The programme comprised, among others, music by Haydn, Mozart and Handel and included a perfOrrnan￿ of the famous 'Miserere' by Allegri. A highlight was the perfOrrnan￿ of the 'Pie Jesu, from the Fauré and Lloyd Webber Requiems beautifully rendered by Eleri Roberts and Aorfe Brennan. It is a mark of the Choir's ability and stamina that they were able to sing SLKh a demanding concert and then the next day sing to the same high standard for the Closing Service. The festival apart. the Choir gave a perfomance of the Fauré 'Requiem' in the evening of Remembrance Sunday (10th November) and for the first time since the Covid lockdown we were able to put on a full Advent Carol se￿1￿ on Sunday 1st De￿rnber Wtth the Choir processing by candlelight through the church as the sen11￿ unfolded. Finally, a splendid Nine Lessons & Carols with 19 items sung by the choir was given to a packed church on Sunday 22nd December, followed by a splendid Midnight Mass and Christmas morning just Iwo days later. The Choristers work hard but the rewards, in tenns of a free education in singing and musicianship is very worthwhile. I recommend the choir to any child who loves to sing. You would be surprised how many professional singers from the worlds of classical, jazz and pop started their careers in a church choir. In July we lost two of our senior choristers. All￿ Williams lefl to begin her studies at Bimiingham Universty and Myles Wilkinson left to take up a place with a Choral Scholarship at Summerville College, Oxford. Fortunately. like other ex-choristers, they returned during the university holidays and sang wilh us for the Christmas season. On the credit side an ex-chorister, Jools Brennan, having graduated from Chester University, rejoined the Choir as a bass. It has been great to have Jools back with us, albeit for a short time as he leaves next September to do a Master's Degree at Queen's Universty, Belfast. Now I must tum to some sadder news. On 17th November we lost a long-standing choirman and friend when John Moore died in a tragic car accident while driving to Oswestry to sing for Choral Evensong. Choral music was John's greal love. He had perfomed in a cOn￿rt given by the Scholars & Gentlemen the previous evening and had sung again for the Sunday morning at St. Oswald's. It was a huge shock to hear of his death the next day.

John joined the choir in 2009 and had become the Choir's leading tenof. He is and will be sorely missed. A full Choir sang for John's funeral which included pieces that he had requested and others which I knew had a special Pla￿ in his heart. We have lost a committed member who always put the church and choir first and Kate and I have lost a very dear friend. May he rest in pea￿. Mike Donkin Director of Music Churches Together In Oswestry District In January St Oswald's hosted a prayer meeting in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Then in March members participated in a Servi￿ at St Martin's devised by Palestinian women for the World Day of Prayer. It made the struggle in the Holy Land feel very real. As usual on Good Friday CTOD took their trailer to the Bailey Head, where for 4½ hours they ran children's activities, gave out Easter booklets and provided a Christian presen￿. Volunteers would be welcome for a similar event in 2025. The trailer made an appearan￿ again just before Christmas where a group sang carols and read some of the Christmas story. Bethlehem carol sheets were available for passers by to join in. There were general meetings at st John the Baptist, Whittington, and at Holy Trinty, Oswestry where we heard about plans for setting up a Street Pastors group in Oswestry. Sadly Iwo churches closed in 2024.. Comerstone Baptist Church. and the 150 year-old Moors Methodist Church. Services of thanksgiving were held for each. On a happier note, Albert Road Evangelical Church weloomed their new minister, Ben Sealey, in November. CTOD now has 13 churches. Fiona Pearson Safeguarding Report for 2024 Safeguarding remains a very important topic for the church and the PCC. During 2024. unfortunately, we were notified by a local police force of an incident that was being investigate. Whilst this was not something that had ¢xcurred inside the church, and had occurred outside of the church, it did involve a member of our congregation. This was dealt with, proactively and sensitively with the safeguarding leads at the diocese. This has now been resolved.

AII PCC members have undertaken to complete the basic and foundation awareness training courses offered by the dI0￿se. The Assistant Safeguarding offi￿r for the di0￿Se is Kim Hodgkins 01543 306099 kim.hod kins -￿lIchfie1d.an lican.oro. The Shropshire Safeguarding Local Authorty Designated Officer is Ellie Jones Lado ov uk 0345 678 9021 Shro￿Shire￿. _ Notices are around the church and parish hall with contact information available. Carron Boulton Parish Safeguarding Officer Mission and Giving The amount allocated for charitable giving was increased to £5,000. This is in addition to the charitable giving raised through special collections and fundraising efforts supporting emergency appeals and the charities we traditionally support. This year, the situation in Gaza steered the intemational giving whilst the local giving continued to support mental health and well-being. The £5,000 was shared as follows: UNHCR £500 International Rescue Committee £500 Compassion UK £500 childho￿ bereavement £500 The Farming Community Network £500 Designs in mind £500 West Mercia Women's Aid £500 De￿en College £500 Hope House £500 Morda Primary School (Pastoral fund) £250 Our Lady & St. Oswald's Catholic Primary School (Choir fund) £250 Harvey Gibbons The Parish Sick and Needy Fund The fund was set up some years ago fomierly known as the Vicar's Discretionary Fund to help people within the parish who are suffering with hardship and is administered by a small committee under the chaimianship of the Vicar. If any member of the congregation is aware of any such case, they should contact the Vicar for the case to be discussed with the committee. Harvey Gibbons

MMT Report 2024 MMT met four times during 2024 to exchange and develop ideas for St Oswald's moving forward. Subjects under discussion were Lent Groups, Holy Week, new Intercessors, Prayer and Spirituality, Pastoral Care, Advent Reflections and Dementia Church. Sadly, the Prayer Walk with picnic which had been planned for early summer as part of our Prayer and Spirituality, had to be Can￿lled due to the resignation of Rev Chen. However, we managed to recruit 6 new intercessors for the Sunday moming services which has led to a welcome diversity of approaches. New dementia-friendly signage has been installed. The Lenl Groups had been well attended, although the books under discussion hadn't been very popular, and the Advent Reflections had provided a time of quiet during that busy month. 11 was hoped that we would be able to join with the Pastoral Care Group in providing times of fellowship in 2025. Everything we do as a church should be underpinned by prayer, and it is vital that we develop and maintain prayer at St Oswald's not only on Sundays but also during the week, and MMT is keen to seed new prayer groups and house groups. We would be delighted to hear from anyone who feels called to contribute to this crucial part of our spiritual life. Lindsay Clarke Schools work The clergy were variously involved in taking Acts of Collective Worship at Morda Primary School. Clergy were also actively involved in supporting focus weeks such as 'e8t well, and 'sleep well, weeks and in pastoral support to staff, children and school families. The school attended church to ￿lebrate their end of temi service at Christmas, Easter and the end of the academic year in July. As a result of Morda Church of England Primary School entering a federation arrangement with Vvhittington Church of England Primary School during the year, the vicar became a Foundation Governor of the Federation and an Associate Governor of Morda Primary School. He continues to be the Bishop of Lichfield's Representative on the Goveming Body of Osweslry School. Harvey Gibbons Home Communion This outreach ministry continues to grow both in the numbers visited and in those doing the visiting. During the year several recipients have died but at the same time fresh individuals have been added to the list. In addition, we have been able to develop significant ministry with the new residential home Bluebell View. Starting our visits before the Home fomierly opened enabled us to form working relationships with the staff which have led to high level of mutual trust. This has enabled us in addition to monthly visits for Holy Communion to support them in events such as their Summer Fete, at which Pam performed the formal opening, Christmas and St Valentines Parties at which yours truly is always expected to say a few words and most recently an act of remembran￿ for a deceased resident with residents and members of his

family present. We continue to visit New Fairholm, High Lea and Woodlands in Morda where the residenls include several previous members of our congregation. Currently there are nine members in the leam Sal. Frances, Michael, Julia, Fiona, Natasha, June, Pam and Keith. If you wish to know more about our ministry please speak to any member of the team or myself. We have started to worship together on quarter and you are welcome tojoin us as we value your prayerful support. Times of the services are included in the pew slip. Keith Musson Deanery Synod Report 2024 (including environmental action) It has been a time of change for the Oswestry Deanery, but a more positive atmosphere than 2023 under the active and enthusiastic leadership of Rural Dean Suzane Williams until her departure near the end of the year. We thank Suzan for all her work here in difficult times and wish her well in her move to Herefordshire. The first meeting of the year, on 30th January, was a Deanery Social at the Parish Centre where I was introduced as Lay Co-chair of the Synod and we said goodbye to Chris Precious and Kathy Trimby, who will be much missed. We each brought one 'encouragement' and one 'challenge' to share about our parish. On 22nd May at Trefonen, the Synod met to hear a presentation by Strategic Development Officer Jill Smith on 'Pioneering Parishes,, aimed at helping parishes to reach out and implement change. The Synod discussed our goals in 'Shaping for Mission, and our parish strengths and challenges. These were later discussed by Church members from across the Deanery on 15 July when Bishop Sarah led a stimulating meeting attended by over 80 people at St Oswalds Church. Vacant positions in the Diocesan Synod were filled by uncontested nominations at the end of June, from Paul Darlington, Stuart Jenny and Steve Nicholson in the House of Clergy, and from Geoff Nankivell and Michael Davie in the House of Laty. Rural Deans and Lay Chairs from across the ShrewsburyArea met with Bishop Sarah at Emmanuel Church in Shrewsbury on 25th March and in Lichfield on 2nd and 3rd September to discuss matters of common Concern, including the process for filling vacant posts. The Deanery Synod met at Kinnerley on 25th September where we discussed the Climate and Nature crises and how to respond to them. Suzan presented a short video from the Diocesan Synod of schoolchildren sharing their concerns about the future. l introduced some stories from Katharine Hayhoe, a renowned climate scientist and evangelical Christian. about the challenges of discussing her research and engaging people without overwhelming them. We looked at how we can be both faith-motivated and science-informed. That our Christian hope gives us Confiden￿ to take action, even if success is not guaranteed! We looked at the support offered by Ecochurch which has registered over 8000

churches across the UK, 100 in our diocese. in schemes which mark progress and award success. We discussed how we might take these issues foward. and ￿lebrate action already taken in building wo￿, land use, nature protection, outreach and prayer. St Oswald's Church is now registered under Ecochurch and will fomi a group to do survey early in 2025. Others are registered or interested. At the Deanery Day in St Martins Church on 26 October, Pete and Christine Winmill gave an inspiring account of their work with Count Everyone In, a charity they established in 2017. There are an estimated 1.5 million adults with learning disabilities, the vast majority of whom never enter any of Ihe 40,000 churches in the UK. There is much work to be done, inspiring and equipping churches to be welcoming and a￿ssIble to everyone, especially adults with learning disabilities. Everyone Christian is called to help people know who Jesus is, help them to understand him, trust him and to grow in faith. The day was attended by a small but enlhusiastic group from the Deanery. Following the presentation, the group learned some basic Makaton sign language during the singing of a worship song, how to engage with a Bible story using coloured flags and spent time sharing experiences. Jonathan Abbatt Undor 5's IU5's) The U5's runs on a Wednesday and Friday, 1 Oam-12pm. We have a steady number of children on a Wednesday session at the moment and the numbers increase on a half termlholiday session. Fridays are very quiet still and Rosita and Sigoumey work alternative Fridays as they are contracted to 2.5hours a week each. Wednesdays consist of some fom of craft, such as painting. playdough or making some kind of art piece, as well as playing with the toys and a little singsong at the end of the session. Friday is more about playing and has less structure to it. We have 2 volunteers a month, Cynthia and Irene, they come and make the refreshments for us on the first and last Wednesday each month. They are a great addition to us so that both S & R can be out working with the children and parents. Aswell as tea's and coffee's we are providing snacks for the children & parentslgrandparents which are cheese, fruit and crackerslcrisps (sometimes cakes). Quite a lot of our 'regular children. have now started nurserylpre-school and we only see them on our holiday sessions, we are registering more new younger children, who are attending with parents and grandparents. We had Jolly visit from Father Christmas in December. parentslgrandparents brought in disheslsnacks for the party and Irene made a fabulous spread (her famous sausage rolls went down a treat!!) and we had lots of dancing and party games with the children before we closed over the Christmas period.

We are always looking for more volunteers to help with the refreshments or mixing with the children & families. Slgournay M•rrony-Potton The Children's Society St Oswald's continues to support The Children's Society through the House Box scheme and Annual Christingle Servi￿. The Children's Society works to provide specialist support that empowers young people to make positive changes and rediscover their hope. Children and young people want a future they can look fomard to and the Children's Society is there to make sure they get it. Working alongside young people, their families and community, they will not rest until together, step-by- step, they've created a society built for all children. The total amount donated from the Christingle Service and house box collections this year was just over £900. Collecting loose change in a House Box is one way to support the Children's Society but as less and less cash is being used some people are switching to donating via a direct debit from their bank account. This could be monthly, annually or as a one-off and can still be 'gift aided,. Information on how to set up a regular or one off direct debit can be found from the Children's Society Website www.childrenssociet .or .uk or by contacting Liz Gibbons, our Children's Society cO￿rdInator. Llz Gibbons - Chlldron's Society House Box Co-ordinator Social Media The new website is working well and is (usually) kept up to date, brighl and interesting. We try to attract new people to St Oswalds as well as giving information to visitors and keeping the congregation informed. Chloe Fraser keeps the St Oswalds Fa￿boOk page up to date. The FB page received nearly 10,000 views during Christmas period and most likely to go up again during Easter or for special events like St Oswald's day or concerts where they get 3,000 10 4,000 views. Photos and videos taken during and aftera Se￿iCe do particularly well on Social media which can and possibly do encourage people to come to the services in the future. Thanks go, as always, to Diane Dawson for the Parish Magazine and toAnn Sagar for the pew sheet. Anne Pilsbury and Chloe Fraser

150th Anniversary Celebrations 2024 marked one hundred and fffty years since our church reopened for worship following major restoration work. To celebrate this occasion, we held a series of events. Music formed a large part of the celebrations with guest artists and our own choir performing to large audiences. Throughout August we hosted The Knitted Bible which drew in many visitors who marvelled at the detail of the work. Our bellringers displayed their talents with a variety of peals and some teddies and soft toys once again braved the zip wire ride. In Ihe parish centre we held four well attended talks remembering the role that many people had played in the lrfe of Oswestry and our church, and we supported the local heritage days with displays in church. All of this culminated in a Celebration SeNice on the 13th October attended by Michael, Bishop of Lichfield and various other dignitaries, followed by a sumptuous high tea. Pam Willing Bell Ringers January and February recruitment 'Taster Days., were well attended and very well received. Those attending were offered a planned twice weekly, personalised training programme over the remainder of the year. Thanks to Richard Major, Chris Hoare, Brian Rothera and Peter Woollam, supported by others from the tower when needed, this has been a great success and seven attendees are now very capable of ringing Call Changes and Plain Hunt. Two new experienced ringers also joined the band this year, raising our band numbers to 23 ringers. This has meant we can ring all eight bells for Sunday worship and practice evenings are well attended. Additionally we were able to ring for Christmas services simultaneously at St Oswald's and Whittington, St. John the Baptist. Ben Rothera was lost from regular ringing as he took up his university place in September but he continues to attend when home. We were very sad to lose our friend, respected and experIen￿d ringing colleagueAndrew J Harris early in 2024. A Quarter Peal was rung to ￿lebrate his life and Andy's sister joined in the ringing. Andrew's wishes for his funeral in February were that donations should go toward improving the bells, specifically for training purposes. Over £900 was donated in this way and we decided to combine this with money that Richard Major won for his 'Pullometer' research article in the Ringing World, giving us £1800 to put towards a projecl. After a meeting in Octoberto discuss different options we decided to purchase 2 training bells to be installed in the clock room, with the option to include these in the simulator. Andy had gained a faculty some years ago to adjust the ringing circle and had purchased the pulley blocks that would be needed for enhancement. It is the intention to visit towers with each of these types of training bells to assess the suitability for our needs. A suc￿Ssful application was made to Oswestry Council for a £500 grant and an application has also been made to Whittington Parish Council

Quarter Peals were rung for the inauguration service of St. Oswald's celebrats'ons for the 150th G.E. Street renovation ofthe church, with 2 more in August and October. and also for the Anniversary closing service in October. Other Quarter Peals were rung in memory of Hilda Rolhera, John Moore and the widow of a bell ringer who rang his first Quarter Peal at St. Oswald's and proposed in the tower. Two very suc￿Ssful Zip-wire days, the first in July as part of the 150th Church Renovation celebrations and the second, as usual, on Boxing Day. Donations from both events, raised £274 for the bell fund. The Shropshire Association of Church Bell Ringers held its Monthly Practice Meeting in July 2024. In September we won the Charles Allmand Memorial Shield at the Shropshire Association Striking Competition. This competition gave further opportunity for new ringers to demonstrate their newly acquired skills and join a good day out meeting others in the Association. A May ringing outing visiting 6 towers around the Wenlocks and surrounding churches gave our new ringers an excellent opportunity to ring church bells elsewhere (not always as good as St Oswald's) with a second in August to Calverhall and Ighffield. Oswestry Cubs visited the lower in September. Many questions were asked and the group were really interested. These Cubs were known to our youngest ringer Sam Davies (11 years old) and appeared impressed watching him ringing. Visitors came to ring from Hampshire, Kent and 13 ringers from Cambridge University Guild of Change Ringers. Jan Snowball- Secretary Gift-Aid Report For 2024 l am pleased to provide a positive report about donations to Sl Oswald's in 2024 which have enabled recovery from the HMRC of a very similar value to the previous year. Recovery of tax from the HMRC.. For 2024, the total tax recovered from HMRC was £17,429. This achieved 99.6 % of the anticipated amount in the 2024 budget, and is only a little lower than the recovery in 2023 which was £18,017. Some additional infomation.. Gifts from named donors.. Gifts from all named donors during the year amounted to £67,210. This includes payments received through (i) the Bank, (li) Stewardship numbered envelopes (iii) Casual donations via Blue envelopes and one-off occasions when cheques are re￿iVed with donor details. The majority of these donations were tax efficient enabling recovery of tax from the HMRC. The HMRC Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme (known as GASDS), enables gift aid to be recovered from anonymous donations in cash up to £20 at a time, up to a maximum

of £8,000 in any financial year, giving a possible return to the Church of £2,000. This includes cash received from donations via the Card Reader machine, the cash plate at Church Services, Wall Safes, Coffee after Services etc. I'm pleased to report that once again cash donations of this type exceeded more than the £8,000 threshold in 2024, thus enabling a recovery of £2,000 from the HMRC. Payments through the bank.. It is encouraging to see the total value of donations made by regular Bank payments has increased by 9.16 % during the last 12 months. This is partly due to members increasing the amount of their donations and partly due to an increase in parishioners choosing to donate to the Church in Ihis way. Members can choose the frequency of their Bank payments when setting up their standing order. I can provide the St Oswald's bank details for parishioners who would like to start donating in this way, tC*Jether with a Gift Aid Declaration Form for tax payers. Stewardship envelopes: The envelopes scheme provides a box of 52 envelopes which have a unique referen￿ number assigned to the member. The envelopes afe date stamped for each Sunday of the year. Whilst the intent of the envelopes is to enable the member to easily make a weekly donation when they attend Church, the scheme is flexible regarding how often a member makes their donation and the amount they donate. If you are a member of this scheme and miss donations for a week or so, you can simply use the relevant dated envelope the nexl time you come to Church, without the need to submit envelopes for the weeks you missed. The number of members opting to donate via the envelopes scheme is continuing to reduce as members elect to use bank payments instead. The new envelopes for the 2024125 tax years have re￿ntlY been made available, and are yellow. We hope you like the new colourl Blue envelopes.. Blue envelopes are available in church for parishioners and visitors who would like lo make occasional donations. These require name and address details to be completed on the front of the envelope, together with signature of the gift aid section if you are a tax payer. If you are regularly using this type of envelope for your donations you might like to Gonsider the Stewardship envelopes scheme or Bank payments as an alternative and easier way to make your donations. As always, sincere thanks go to all those who make donations to St Oswald's and additionally to those who have been able to complete the process for the Gift Aid scheme. I would also like to thank Mike Peters and Muriel Jones for assisting with communications between parishioners and myself. Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions or to provide my details to parishioners who may be interested in participating. Alison Wncent GiftAid Secretary, 2024 Contact detalls.. Email alisonvincent43 tinternet.com Mobile.. [phone]