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2022-12-31-accounts

ANNUAL CHURCH MEETING APCM 2023

SUNDAY 26[th] MARCH 11:45 am

Agenda

Annual Parochial Church Meeting

PART 1

  1. Apologies for absence.

  2. Rector

PART 2 : THE ELECTION OF CHURCHWARDENS

All who live in the parish or who are on the Church Electoral Roll are eligible to vote for Churchwardens.

  1. To confirm Minutes of the meeting held on 3[rd] April 2022

  2. To elect two churchwardens.

PART 3 : ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING

All who are on the Church Electoral Roll are eligible to vote for the PCC. In their report the Churchwardens have referred to the fabric of the church and any matters they wish to bring to your attention as they are formally required to do. Before you come to the meeting please read the reports below about different facets of our church life.

  1. To confirm Minutes of the meeting held on 3[rd] April 2022

  2. Matters arising from last year’s meeting

  3. To receive the reports

  4. Finance

    • i To thank the PCC Finance Advisory Committee for their overview and advice

    • ii To receive the Treasurer’s presentation of the examined accounts

    • iii To formally adopt the accounts

    • iv To appoint an Independent Examiner

  5. Elections to the PCC (conducted by the Churchwardens)

  6. Elections to Deanery Synod (conducted by the Churchwardens)

  7. To receive the names of Sides-people (names to be read out by a Churchwarden)

  8. Any other business

  9. a) The date proposed for next year’s Annual Meeting is 17[th] March 2024.

  10. b) Dates for future PCC meetings (and of the PCC Standing Committee) will be circulated to members.

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Parochial Church Council

Members of the PCC are elected for a three-year term of office. The two churchwardens are elected at the APCM annually. Deanery Synod members are elected every three years and are ex-officio members of the PCC. All PCC officers are elected at the first PCC meeting after the APCM.

The Rector is chair of the PCC. A deputy chair is elected at the first meeting after the APCM and is usually one of the Churchwardens. The Parish Administrator also plays a large part in the management of our church life, carrying out many of the requests and decisions of the PCC.

There is a Standing Committee that meets to deal with specific matters delegated by the PCC. It provides the PCC with full notes of each of its meetings. The Standing Committee consists of the Rector, Churchwardens, Treasurer, Stewardship Promoter and two nominated PCC members. In addition to this there is a Finance Advisory Committee consisting of the PCC Treasurer, the DGT Treasurer, one of the Churchwardens (as decided by themselves for each meeting), another appointed by the PCC for a period of 1 year and the Rector, as an exofficio member.

Events April 2022 to March 2023

During the past year, the PCC has met on 7 occasions. The following topics comprised the main business of the PCC meetings:

Rector’s report

I begin, as I did last year, with my thanks.

First a thank you to Darrol as my Churchwarden after having tragically lost his fellow Warden, Linda, this last year. His time, friendship and support have been immeasurable and his love of this place and for my family are without doubt my most compelling reason for believing in the goodness of humanity. Jo, to you, too, a word of thanks - not least as a Warden widow - as I am certain it should be so-called, since Darrol has spent so much time either here or in meetings with me - a huge thank you. But of course, a thank you should go to you too, in your own right - as my Safeguarding officer, as one who has given freely of your time in making curries for our new faith and exploring group, Curry and Questions, and for Friday coffees and Lent lunches and Wednesday’s Café Play and countless occasions - a huge thank you.

To Cath, our Parish Administrator, Leader of Junior Church, secretary, sorter of diaries, solver of problems. Another immeasurable debt of thanks. Without your constant positivity, presence and proactive engagement, much of what I imagine might be possible, could not be done. Your friendship, love and support are a pearl beyond price and I thank God every day for you and for Andy’s patience in allowing us to borrow you. Bless you.

To Rick, our Director of Music, too, an enormous and heartfelt thanks. Choral traditions are like ice-sculptures. They are beautiful, crafted, chiseled and created with care - they take enormous amounts of time and can easily be destroyed without the correct environment. Rick has not only created the correct atmosphere to attract quality singers, but also now, as was our plan, begun to welcome our volunteer singers too, to the fold. On average, there are now five volunteers alongside our four foundation singers. This is the beginning of this wonderful expansion of

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the musical tradition, which helps to define our catholic heritage of which we are guardians. With our new piano, gifted by the generosity of loans and contributions, we have the opportunity to demonstrate the beauty of this place to new groups who will wish to make use of our space.

I should also like to thank Jana for producing such an informative and attractive newsletter each month and for her huge efforts in promoting Traidcraft.

The organ, a fine three manual Fr Willis, is faring less well and estimates of in excess of £200,000 to rebuild the instrument are being examined carefully. I have established a working party to this end and this Living Organ group will diagnose, raise money for and lead this project over the next five years. What is clear is that if that were to be my focus it would remove my energy and time from the office and work of a priest as outlined in the Ordinal and the basis of the Induction and Collation in which I swore my oaths here, just over a year ago; in short, it cannot be my focus and it cannot be the money of the church which will fund this project. I am grateful, therefore, to those I have invited to form this group - our former DoM, John, Phil as PCC member, Catherine and to Rick, a churchwarden and Gillian our fellow Organist at the URC. This group has been tasked, as I say, to outline the extent of the work required, to determine the nature of funding and to raise the money to complete the task.

The people, the music, have been a real blessing this past year. It has been my privilege and pleasure to direct, walk alongside and pray our way together. It is the music and the people of God here that make this such a special family to be a part of.

Of course, we also need somewhere to meet and this House of God where prayer has been valid since 1308 or thereabouts, is also a special place. The building of buildings, their maintenance and how we employ this building all reflect our theology - our words and understanding about God. In this place, in our souls, there is, firmly rooted, the Catholic deposit of faith and our worship reflects this.

My thanks, too, to my serving team which relish the challenge of this catholic ritual which fills this space. With the arrival of a new Rector with new ideas, the early days can feel unsettled - and what was thought of as ‘received wisdom and practice’ are often revised. I am grateful to Catherine for her management of the team and an especial welcome to newer servers - the team is growing - including Donald, Steve, Benedict and Linda in what I hope will be in the months to come, a refreshed and clearer space in the sanctuary.

I am delighted too, that we have been able to appoint a new Sacristan, Paul. New to the church family, he has become a familiar figure here and about - either serving coffee, on the Traidcraft stall, on the AV desk and now as Sacristan. I am grateful to Andrew who has done this in the past year, but midweek work commitments made this complex and so Paul is willing and able to pick up the baton and press forward - candles, vestments and silver will be his remit and he has already started in earnest.

I established a pastoral support group - a PSG - on my arrival. Ably led by David Greenwood who visits our residential care regularly for Home Communion services, and in conjunction with our Prayer for Healing group, we pray for and visit those who seek pastoral care. In parallel with visits from me, this is important ministry and I am grateful to members of the prayer group and to David and Hilary as Licensed Lay Ministers charged under my care for this ministry.

Over the next few months we shall make progress on enacting the will of the PCC as approved by them, and subject to the planning permissions of the church - the faculty process - for the revisions to the sanctuary. It is a matter of public record, as outlined at last year’s APCM, that this is all part of the five year plan for the building including the organ, a welcome desk, the flooring of the sanctuary and the re-appointment of the stone altar to the north corner under the mosaic of George and Helena.

We shall continue to look at ways to physically open up the internal space of the building including making the sanctuary easier to use in worship, for public benefit and de-cluttering the space. Again, I am grateful to Darrol for progressing this work with Cath and Catherine.

Of course, stage one is complete with the arrival of new chairs - I know that you will all be sitting comfortably, for once. Their flexibility and ease of movement have already been well received. Now, we move to the next stages.

It is important to me, however, that we don’t go blindly about this work, but are sensitive to our history; I would go further and suggest we should be aiming to restore the natural beauty of this place as I hope our plans will attend to. To this end, after many years on PCC and sometime Warden, I have invited Catherine Ferguson to be Custos. This is an ancient title pertaining to the maintenance of the building - the rememberer, as it were. I am delighted that Catherine has accepted this charge and has already been invaluable in sourcing the deeds of the church school and will be of equal import in the Living Organ project and the re-ordering of the sanctuary.

New titles, new servers, singers and new members of the worshipping community - this has been a year of growth and we have begun the work together, of building a growing family of faith. This is not my work, nor is it to my credit, but it is something which rejoices the heart because we are beginning to use our hands not only to hold

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together in prayer, but to open them in welcoming others and busying them in building this community. If the devil makes work for idle hands, then he hasn’t a hope here! Our average attendance has risen from 42 to 70 and there is more to do.

We have welcomed our Romanian Orthodox families and their priest, Fr Adrian. The income generated from this has ensured that we have been able to advertise for a new children's worker in partnership with the URC. Seeing the church full of those who would not usually be with us, is a real moment of Christian hospitality and we should be mindful of the grace of that gift from God.

We have also seen the ongoing work of Tuesday Group, Café Play and Friday morning coffee. Those attending Mass on Fridays grows steadily and there is a wonderful feeling of positive spiritual growth in our Walsingham cell, Curry and Questions and Beer and Banter groups. This year, I hope, will build on these as we grow in confidence and love for one another.

This Petertide we look forward to the making of deacon of Fr Alistair. We welcome him to his training parish for the next three years and I know that you will welcome him as I have the privilege of forming him as a new priest come 2024. He, Carrie, Belle and Didi are in our prayers.

School remains our focus both as PCC and for me, as Rector. I continue to work in demanding times, with our school staff and children and there is a growing understanding of the church as another aspect of their real estate and provision. We are now, truly, seeing one another as the other side of the same coin. That will continue to take my time and I will continue to invest in that space as our mission to the unchurched and churched alike.

Our financial position remains somewhat complex.

St Nicolas, it appears to me from the last 12 months or so of being here, has a reputation of being well heeled. It is thought and indeed I have heard it said, both from without and from within the worshipping community, that there is ample money and that as a consequence there is little need for the congregation to be generous in their regular giving. That said, a few do give a lot – and there have been several generous one-off donations during the past year – but most give not enough I am afraid to say. We ran with an operational deficit of around £44,000 in 2022 - we covered this, by taking from our Dorothy Grover Trust endowment, but it does mean we are depleting that reserve by the deficit amount each year. We are fortunate to have this support at the moment, but this is not sustainable in the long term.

What this means is that we need to set the target of being able to meet our diocesan quota for the year - something we fail to do at the moment. What do I mean by ‘diocesan quota’? Each year, each parish must pay a contribution to the CofE in this place - the diocese. They it is who will pay the clergy, support their housing, train them; ensure that legal obligations are met and safeguarding, schools and other such august bodies are funded. At the moment, we fall short of this contribution by around £25,000 per year.

We should aim, therefore, in the next season to attend to this and this should be our focus, our target and our ambition. Without ‘paying our way’ in that sense, we would not be open, because we would not have, well, me! And from Petertide on this year, we will be gaining a second clergyman. It really is, I rather hope you will agree, very good value for money! So, let us be clear: without paying our diocesan contribution, our parish share, we should not remain open and we are not, yet, meeting that requirement. We must work on that now as a priority to ensure that I have a successor, come the time and that those who are not yet worshipping members of the congregation, have a church open for business.

I am pleased to say that David Sharpin has agreed to take on the role of planning giving officer and taking over from David Coom who has been a tower of strength and faithful steward. For good reason he is now stepping down and we thank him for his service, not least during the interregnum, to ensure - together with Iain and Patrick and Darrol who make up the Finance Advisory Committee and who give freely of their expertise and time - not only that we are financially stable but are savvy with money which sits in the common purse.

We have a gospel to proclaim as the hymn reminds us and that means: sound money, good people, growth focussed, positive prayerful thinking and sacrificial giving. All of these things are happening and I believe that God is in it all. But there is now more to do - I hope that there is much here to be cheered and encouraged by and that there is much to hope for in God’s future. We have so much more to do to open up this building and return it to its original charge - to be the parish church for this place. We are not a niche congregation and I am not your chaplain - I am the Rector of my parish and share the cure of souls with my Lord Bishop and so my eyes are always on the door - who is next, who is coming, and who feels that they cannot or would not. They are the ones to whom I am sent and that is only possible because you share that vision - that mission, God’s mission - to be there for the sake of the world. Thank you for your partnership in the Gospel which enables your Rector and St Nicolas to be known at the Board of Education, in the Diocesan Synod, in the selection of the new Bishop of Dorking, in teaching clergy at the diocesan clergy training college, at the local authorities as Borough Dean. These are an opportunity to demonstrate the catholic witness of the CofE and there is much to do - the harvest is rich but the

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labourers are few and in the time to come there will be much more to celebrate because God is good, all of the time and that time is now. Members of the PCC will be going to a Parish Needs Day of training soon and on the back of that we shall be writing our Mission Action Plan. Pray earnestly for the Holy Spirit to enable us to hear clearly what God’s call. And as I said last year,

The next five years are crucial for the stability of Saint Nicolas Parish Church. We have a significant deficit and inherited a shrinking congregation Sunday by Sunday and in addition to which in a post-Covid environment some things will never be the same again, not least the attendance pattern of people who can make a spiritual communion online, the competition offered to families by alternative attractions on a Sunday and the growing need to demonstrate the very relevance of religion in the public square. We cannot nor should not shrink from these unattractive realities in the challenges that lie ahead.

We are, therefore, being called to seek God’s grace and not to act in our own power, as the Collect for Trinity XIX reminds us:

O God, forasmuch as without you we are not able to please you; mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts … Fr Neil

Churchwardens’ report

You will see from the Fabric Report that most of the activities undertaken were of routine maintenance rather than major development and expenditure. However, this is not the complete picture! As this was Fr Neil’s first full year it was very much one of planning and taking first steps.

Fr Neil, Linda and myself have put together a list of major projects that we believe will benefit the church and achieve our objective of opening up the church and welcoming more people to our facilities, not only as worshippers but in many different activities that will draw people into our beautiful church.

As Fr Neil has strengthened our connection with St Nicolas School, they have been returning for special services in the church. A benefit of our streaming facilities is that we are now able to stream the services at the end of term or harvest etc in a secure way so that parents and grandparents can be sent a private link and watch the children on YouTube if they are unable to attend in person.

Streaming of services continues to play an important part of our mission and I am grateful in particular to Andy Anderson for his dedication and skill in providing this service for our online community. I am pleased to thank and welcome Paul Gabriel who has also learnt the techniques of the system and is playing an active role in relieving Andy at various services. We also have Chris May who will be helping out from time to time so most of the events that need streaming can be streamed. One of our projects this year will be to relocate the streaming desk as part of the Chancel re-ordering to make space for the altar. We will also be investing in new additional microphones and settings to enhance the quality of the broadcast sound.

Linda would have been overjoyed to see the arrival of the new chairs and the impact and flexibility that they bring to the church. This will make so many more activities possible and enable us to make a very flexible space available for the community.

We successfully managed to sell all the old wooden chairs, mainly to a retired dealer who saw our advert on eBay and made us a decent offer. We are also grateful to a number of members of the congregation who bought chairs.

We have 130 of the new chairs and sold 230 so on the face of it we are 100 chairs down on what we used to have. However, on the small number of occasions when we need all 230 chairs, we have 100 chairs in the hall which can be used. Our total seated capacity including pews and other chairs will therefore remain at around 260.

Through the generosity of members of the congregation donating or loaning funds, we have been able to buy a new piano for the church. This has already been very much appreciated during the Christmas period for various concerts and is an important step in encouraging more choirs to use our facilities.

Last Autumn we welcomed the Guildford Shakespeare Company again with their brilliant one man show Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. We also saw more concerts from choirs now they are able to perform without restriction. Over the course of one week in December we had concerts and activities on six out of a seven-day period.

The removal of restrictions also enabled us to run two Christingle services. This is the first time that we have done this, previously we had been running just one service and the capacity was reaching around 400 people. This was not safe in many ways, so this year we invited people to prebook their seats and choose between two services. On Christmas Eve afternoon we welcomed well over 400 people safely and seated across two special

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services! It remains a popular all family event with one particular group bringing together 15 members of one family to celebrate the start of their Christmas.

The low point of the year for us was the sad death of Linda Barnes, my fellow Churchwarden and dear friend to Jo and me. Linda played such a crucial role over the last few years, particularly during the interregnum and we worked well as a team. Her strengths were in many ways my weaknesses and vice versa and her voice, wisdom and infectious laugh is missed so much from our church meetings and social occasions.

RIP, dear Linda.

In the coming year there will be no let up to developing our plans for the use of the church and Parish Centre and we have been greatly encouraged by the growth in lettings of both the church and centre.

Our next step is to apply for a faculty to re-order the Chancel as mentioned. We plan to re-locate the altar, put down a new floor in the chancel and remove the rails. We have already received a donation for a new mobile altar and credence table and these significant steps will open up the chancel and flexibility of the church significantly.

The work of the Living Organ group to raise money for the restoration of our special organ will also start in earnest, beginning with a thorough investigation and recommended plan of action before updating a significant fund raising programme.

Finally I would like to thank all those of you that volunteer, however much or little you do. It is what helps this church to work and I have always been so grateful for the people that step forward to do things. We always need more volunteers for little or large things and we are always rewarded, but if you would like to help do let us know. A special thanks goes to Cath Anderson who does so much as a volunteer but is also such an excellent and unflappable administrator who just makes things happen!

My final thanks, however, must go to my lovely wife Jo, who has to put up with me being at the church far more than she should but her support is wonderful and appreciated.

Darrol Radley

Fabric report

Fabric report Fabric report
JANUARY
Ampella attend Parish Centre boilers and arrange Worcester Bosch to repair a pump
(under guarantee)
FEBRUARY
New tap fitted in gents’ loo
MARCH
Parish		 Centre floors deep cleaned & ovens cleaned
Portable Appliance Testing carried out
APRIL
Watkins & Watson service organ humidifier
British Engineering Services inspect font cover and rood cross winch
JUNE
Pianos		 tuned
Carpets and curtains in church cleaned
AUGUST
Windows cleaned in Parish Centre.
NOVEMBER
Stonemason adds Rector’s name to memorial in church
DECEMBER
Ampella service Church and Parish Centre boilers
Richard Thorpe serviced all fire extinguishers etc.

Children

The major change during the year has been that we lost Liam when he moved to pastures new in August. We miss his enthusiasm and friendly, positive outlook but are pleased for him and Holly that they were able to move to live nearer family.

This year’s holiday club, The Greatest Show, used the film of the same name as the basis for looking at different characters from the Bible, whilst enjoying a visit from circus skills and drumming workshhops, as well as the usual crafts, songs and cake! The holiday club ran for 5 days with the last day being a family fun day including bouncy castle and bacon butties. It was a great success and was testament to all the hard work Liam put in to organising it.

Messy Church continues to meet on the first Saturday of the month. Wayne Hawkins from the URC plans and

leads this since Liam left with support from members of both churches.

Our major focus is on our activities with children on Sunday morning. Since Liam left, I have had the privilege of leading Junior Church, guided and supported by Fr Neil. Numbers are good and I am supported by an amazing team of helpers. If the children enjoy it half as much as I do, we will be doing a good job! It never ceases to amaze me how perceptive they are and how they get to the heart of the matter so directly. It is an exciting time to be part of Junior Church.

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Our Christingle services were extremely popular again this year. We asked people to reserve tickets for the services so that we could control numbers and we ‘sold out’ both. It was so lovely to have so many families, old and new, back in church, many dressed as angels, kings, shepherds etc.

We are now in the process of recruiting a successor for Liam, but for fewer hours, and look forward to our ministry with children growing and developing.

Cath Anderson

Stewardship

This year will be my last APCM report for Stewardship as I am having to give up the Stewardship Promoter role due to personal reasons. Over the years I have tried to encourage members of our Electoral Roll to join the Planned Giving Scheme and there are a number of loyal members, but too few of them to financially support the ongoing financial requirements of St Nicolas. The 127 Electoral Roll members, as at February 2023, equates to 96 individuals/families and of these only 36 are members of the Planned Giving Scheme, a disappointing 38% of the Electoral Roll. Of these 36 regular givers, the top 10 of these give 42% of the total income received and this is not a healthy situation.

Some congregational members do give at the Offertory via the envelopes or just with cash directly into the collection bag, but I would encourage you to join the Planned Giving Scheme to make this a more regular and identifiable contribution. We also need more of the younger church members to make their contribution via the Planned Giving Scheme. Also would those member who have not increased their giving for year, please consider doing so?

I hope that you will support the new Stewardship Promoter and I would encourage those Electoral Roll members who are not in the Planned Giving Scheme to join and ensure the future of St Nicolas Church. It is in your hands!

Goodbye and thanks!

David Coom

Data Protection

The PCC uses a fully GDPR compliant church management software system to store members’ data and communicate most effectively and securely. Confidential paperwork in hard copy is kept in locked filing cabinets with limited access and safeguarding paperwork is kept in a safe, with access limited to the Rector and Safeguarding Officers.

Cath Anderson

Safeguarding

Training requirements for PCC members has broadened and the frequency of retraining has increased. I will be working with our PCC Secretary to ensure, to the best of my ability, that everyone’s training is up to date. Also that new members to the PCC complete their training within the first couple of months.

The Parish Dashboard, which we are required to complete by the Diocese, is a very helpful checklist of everything that we have to think about and comply with. So far we have completed 95% of the actions required but it still needs everyone who should be trained to get up to date so that we can be seen to be 100%.

We routinely complete risk assessments for special services and events and we are committed to following the Diocesan guidelines in all regards to child and vulnerable adult protection.

Jo Radley

Deanery Synod

Deanery Synod met three times in 2022. In February the evening focussed on sharing and learning about each other’s parishes and the areas of common ground, through praying individually and collectively for each church. Parishes were asked to share with the meeting one thing to give thanks for, one thing to pray for and one thing to aspire to.

In June the meeting heard from Archdeacon Paul Davies on the topic of “what deaneries are for”.

In November Synod heard from two speakers who showed the difference that the church is making to the lives of the poorest in our society. Christians Against Poverty (CAP) told how the national charity works and thestory of the local work that is being done in Guildford. North Guildford Foodbank then explained how people are referred, how the logistics are handles and how all of us can help.

St Nicolas’ Infant School

Reflecting on the school year so far, there are challenges that spring to mind, with our small team feeling the impact of both long and short term staff absences. I’m sure many of you will be aware that we have been without our Headteacher since the autumn term, and without one of our teachers last half term. It hasn’t been easy, but in

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spite of this there are many more examples that come to mind of how our wonderful school community has and continues to live out our vision, living life in all its fullness (John 10:10). Our staff, governors and parents have come together with a sense of unity, and with our children at the heart of everything we do. Everyday I am reminded in many different ways of how blessed I am to be part of such an incredible school community!

Our staff family has been joined by several brilliant newcomers, each of them bringing so much to our team. We’ve welcomed Vivian as our new School Business Manager. Lucie has joined us as our Year 1 teacher, working as part of a job share. Amy has also joined the Year 1 team as a Teaching Assistant, and Jan has taken on the role of School Led Tutor. Jas has joined us as a Teaching Assistant in KS1 for two afternoons a week and we also have a new caretaker, Chloe. Each of our new staff has very quickly become a valued member of our tight knit team, and this half term we have been delighted to welcome back to the team the staff who we have missed during their absence.

Our partnership with St Nicolas’ Church has continued to grow, and a recent survey we completed, for the National Church Growing Faith Partnership, has demonstrated that children and staff find this relationship to be so fruitful that we have been invited to contribute to a focus group next month, to share more on how we have achieved this. The children’s responses to the survey questions were so lovely that it’s been hard to choose which to share with you, but here are just a few:

"When I try my best I feel close to God, because God loves the best I can do."

"Fr Neil talks about God and we learn about God a lot and it's like you're right next to God."

"Whenever I get called to lead the prayer, I feel nervous, but God whispers in my ear to tell me what to say and I feel happy."

Fr Neil has invited parents to join some of the Collective Worships he leads in school, and the response to this has been very positive. We’ve also come together as a community in our church more this year, with services each half term. In February we celebrated our first Candlemas at church. The children so enjoy coming to church and love seeing their work displayed in pride of place in the narthex. They were also delighted to see Fr Neil wearing the special birthday present they had made for him at the service!

We’ve had our SIAMS Review this half term, and this was a hugely encouraging experience, which reinforced what Fr Neil is always telling us about the strength of the Christian distinctiveness and ethos of our school. Over this term we have had two visitors from the Diocese comment on how our vision and values are truly lived and shine through from the moment you enter our little school.

Our value this half term is hope, and our children certainly embody this. One example of this is our Green Team. They are working towards the Eco Schools Green Flag award, and it’s been inspiring to see their passion and determination as they have put their minds to ensuring our school community is more eco-friendly. The children have even written to our MP to share their thoughts on this matter!

So on the days when the challenges we have faced have tested us, taking a moment to ‘look for the light’ and seeing how our children are flourishing gives me hope. I can’t think of a better way to put it than the way one of our Year 2 children did in Collective Worship this week - “Jesus always brings peace and everything will be okay because he looks after us.”

Dina Pandis, Acting Headteacher

Tuesday Group

Tuesday Group has continued to meet in the Parish Hall on a weekly basis (excluding school holidays) to share in a rich programme of activities and events, and for good company, lively conversation and mutual support.

The past year's programme has included craftwork, discussions on a variety of topics, games, puzzles and quizzes, as well as occasional guest speakers from outside the Group. The Group was pleased to support St Nicolas's Church's contribution to last year's URC Christmas Tree Festival, by producing a number of the decorations for the tree.

Numbers attending have recently built up somewhat from a post-Covid reduction, and the Group continues to welcome those who attend on a drop-in basis as well as those who attend regularly. Posters and the webpage on the St Nicolas's website publicise the current programme - but word-of-mouth is the strongest recommendation, so it would be very helpful if members of the church were to remember to publicise Tuesday Group's existence, when appropriate, to friends and relatives - and indeed, consider whether they themselves could come to the meetings.

Cathy Goodwin

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Registered Charity number 1133971

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Report and Accounts

31 December 2022

Contents:

Page
Church information 1
Trustees' report 2
Treasurer's report 5
Independent Examiner's report 6
Statement of Financial Activities 7
Balance Sheet 8
Notes to the financial statements 9

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford Church Information

Church address

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford The Parish Office Bury Street Guildford GU2 4AW

The church is a charity registered with the Charity Commission. The full registered name is: THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST NICOLAS GUILDFORD

The registration number is: 1133971

Parochial Church Council

PCC Secretary Catherine Anderson

The following were members of the PCC as at the start of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting held on 26th March 2023

Revd Neil Roberts Incumbent
Darrol Radley Church Warden
Philip Hooper Diocesan Synod
Andrew Rustell Members
Elizabeth Hooper Jo Radley Deanery Synod
Philip Hooper Andrew Rustell Members
David Coom Stewardship Promoter
Elected Members:
Catherine Anderson Caroline Coleman Catherine Ferguson
Jane Birch David Coom Hilary Fletcher
Jenna Clare David Greenwood
Co-Opted Members: Linda Sharpin, Philip Thomas
Treasurer to the PCC: Patrick Andrew

Bankers

NatWest Bank plc CCLA Investment Management Limited 151 High Street The CBF Church of England Funds Guildford One Angel Lane GU1 3AH London EC4R 3AB

Independent Examiner

Julian Ansell FCCA 19 Brooklyn Drive Emmer Green Reading RG4 8SR

1

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford The report of the Trustees (The PCC)

The PCC present their annual report and accounts for the period ended 31 December 2022

Name, address and constitution

The full name and address of the church is The Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford, The Parish Office, Bury Street, Guildford GU2 4AW. The Parochial Church Council (PCC) is a body elected by those eligible to vote at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting. The PCC is registered with the Charity Commission. The PCC members are trustees of the charity and are therefore bound by the laws relating to the Charities Act 1993.

The PCC works with the Rector in promoting in the parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social, and ecumenical.

Organisation

The PCC currently comprises 8 elected, 2 co-opted, and 6 ex officio members. As required by law, the PCC has delegated to nominated members the power to transact the business of the PCC between its meetings, subject to any directions given by the Council. The PCC also has a standing committee which meets in order to prepare and review the agenda for the meetings of the full PCC.

Review of the Year

For an account of the aims and objectives of the church, for details of maintenance carried out on the fabric of the church, and for a record of the meetings held by the PCC during the year, please refer to the appropriate reports within this document,

Significant changes and developments and plans for the future

The PCC has purchased a new grand piano and has also contracted to buy 130 new chairs for the church. The re-ordering of the chancel flooring is also being considered.

The electoral roll and church attendance

At the start of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting on 26 March 2023 there were 132 names on the roll; of these, 56 are resident within the parish and 76 are resident outside the parish.

The number of regular communicants averaged 70 per week.

Transactions and Financial position

The financial accounts are set out on pages 7 to 18. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations 2006 and in conjunction with the Statement of Recommended Practice for Accounting and Reporting by Charities issued by the Charity Commission for England and Wales in March 2005. The trustees consider that the financial performance by the charity during the year has been largely as expected.

The Statement of Financial Activities shows a surplus of net incoming resources for the year of a revenue nature of £16,203, and net realised incoming resources of a capital nature of £Nil, making overall a net surplus of incoming resources of £16,203. The total reserves at the year-end stand at £1,951,114 of which £87,274 are restricted funds and £1,863,840 are unrestricted.

2

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford The report of the Trustees (The PCC)

Specific changes in tangible assets

A grand piano has been puchased, replacing the previous one. The PCC continues to own three residential properties.

Availability and adequacy of assets of each of the funds

The Board of Trustees is satisfied that the church's assets are available and adequate to fulfil its obligations.

Policies on reserves, investment policies and investment performance

Surplus cash reserves are placed in interest earning accounts operated by the church's bankers. The PCC adopts a low risk policy in the management of its investments and seeks to maximise the income derived from them.

Effectiveness of fundraising policies

The church relies for its income substantially on regular planned giving by members of the congregation. Steps are taken regularly to remind members of the benefits to the church of making such giving in a tax efficient manner. Income is also derived from property rentals and from other activities as detailed in the notes to the accounts.

The Church's grant making policies

Special collections are held throughout the year and these, together with other amounts from the church's reserves, are gifted in furtherence of the church's charitable objectives. Details of these donations, totalling £11,431, are shown in note 7 to the accounts.

The major risks to which the church is exposed and reviews and systems to mitigate risks

The PCC seeks to identify the major risks to which the church is exposed each financial year when preparing and updating its strategic plan, in particular those related to the operations and finances of the church. The PCC then reviews any major risks which have been identified, and establishes procedures to mitigate those risks. The PCC is satisfied with the procedures that are in place to mitigate such risks.

The church is open to the usual financial risks of any organisation, and the PCC has introduced controls to minimise these risks, such as two signatures being required for all payments from bank accounts. In addition, the accounts are regularly presented to members of the PCC and are open for members' inspection at any time.

The PCC has an established safeguarding policy and has a named children's and adults' safeguarding representative.

Legal Status

The church is an unincorporated association that is recognised under the Charities Act 2011. As with many other PCCs within the Church of England, the PCC registered with the Charity Commission during 2010 and is now required to file accounts with the Commission. Copies of the accounts must also be made available to members of the public on request.

3

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford The report of the Trustees (The PCC)

The members of the Board of Trustees of the Church, the PCC, during the year ended 31 December 2022 were:-

Revd Neil Roberts David Greenwood
Catherine Anderson Elizabeth Hooper
Julia Andrew decd 05-Jan-22 Philip Hooper
Linda Barnes decd 30-Sep-22 Stuart Murdoch retd 03-Apr-22
Jane Birch Jana Phillips retd 03-Apr-22
Jenna Clare Darrol Radley
Caroline Coleman Jo Radley
David Coom Liam Rowlings retd 03-Apr-22
Catherine Ferguson Andrew Rustell
Hilary Fletcher John Vines retd 03-Apr-22

Responsibilities of the Trustees for the Accounts

The Trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.

The Trustees must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity, of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charity for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the charity’s transactions, disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the provisions of the Charity’s constitution. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Insofar as each of the trustees of the charity at the date of approval of this report is aware, there is no relevant information needed by the charity’s independent examiner in connection with preparing the report of which the charity’s examiner is unaware. Each trustee has taken all of the steps that he/she should have taken as a trustee in order to make himself/herself aware of any relevant information and to establish that the charity’s independent examiner is aware of that information.

This Annual Report of the Trustees, prepared under the Charities Act 2011, was approved by the Board of Trustees on 7th March 2023

Catherine Anderson PCC Secretary 7th March 2023

4

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Treasurer's Report

Our basic financial performance in 2022 is summarised in the following table; this shows our continuing heavy reliance on the contribution received from the Dorothy Grover Trust. These figures summarise the first column in the main report, i.e. these exclude the restricted and the designated funds, and therefore reflect our core performance.

Free (i.e. unrestricted) income
including...Dorothy Grover Trust donation
less
Total running costs
*
leaving
less
Donations made
Surplus / (Deficit) for the year		 2022
£
156,550
42,000
198,550
(195,008)
3,542
(5,190)
(1,648)		 2021
£
134,543
42,000
176,543
(206,259)
(29,716)
(7,500)
(37,216)

This summary shows a marked improvement over the previous year's performance; this is pleasing in some respects, notably the increased income derived from planned giving, but we have to remember that in 2021 it was only in the second half of the year that we were able to let out the parish centre and the church to choirs and other groups. We also spent some £20,000 on refurbishing the rectory in 2021.

Our three investment properties were let throughout the year; the investment derived from the Hope Baillie fund has produced a steady income, and it has not been necessary to draw down any cash from that fund. The chairs in the church are being replaced and we are selling as many as we can of the old ones. And sales of coffee are booming!

Expenditure has been largely contained within budget; we have fixed price contracts for gas and electricity that extend out to 2026 and thus we expect to be protected against the worst of the energy price rises; the increase in music costs reflects our commitment to the foundation choir that has performed throughout the year.

A new grand piano has been purchased and is shown in the balance sheet. This purchase was funded by a mix of donations and loans received from members of the congregation (plus a grant of £1,000 from Surrey County Council). The loans are also shown in the balance sheet; these will be repaid by reference to the income derived from letting the church to visiting choirs, and by additional amounts calculated at the PCC's discretion. As already mentioned, the chairs in the church are being replaced; the cost of this is being borne by the Dorothy Grover Trust. And plans are being progressed for re-ordering the chancel area; a contribution towards the cost of this has been received from members of the congregation, and a distribution received from Guildford Diocese has also been earmarked for this purpose. Each of these activities is itemised in the Funds page of this report (Note number 8).

Please see the following pages for the full report.

5

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Independent Examiner’s Report For the period ended 31 December 2022

Independent Examiner’s Report to the PCC of St Nicolas Guildford

Respective responsibilities of the trustees and independent examiner

The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 ("the Charities Act") and that an independent examination is needed. I am qualified to undertake the examination by being a qualified member of The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.

It is my responsibility to:

Basis of Independent Examiner's Report

My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair' view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent Examiner’s Statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention

have not been met; or

Julian Ansell FCCA Chartered Certified Accountant 19 Brooklyn Drive Emmer Green Reading RG4 8SR

26 March 2023

6

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Statement of Financial Activities for the year to 31st December 2022

Note
2022		 Note
2022		 Note
2022		 2022 2022 2021
Unrestricted Funds Restricted Total Total
General Designated Funds
Incoming Resources
Given by the Congregation
2,7
Donations and Bequests
3
Investments etc. Income
Other Income
Total Incoming Resources
2
Resources Expended
Church Expenses
4
Parish Expenses
5
Community Centre Expenses
6
Parish Share
Donations Made
7
Total Resources Expended
Net Incoming Resources for the Year
Gains/(losses) on Investments
8,9
Revaluation gains/(losses) on Properties
Funds as at 1 January 2022
Transfers between Funds
Funds as at 31 December 2022
Allocation to Funds of
Net Incoming Resources
8
General
Chancel Re-ordering
Chairs
Piano
Flowers Fund
Hazelden Fund
Bellringers' Fund
Transfers Between Funds
8		 £
54,502
45,870
62,963
35,215
198,550
52,085
52,624
12,416
77,883
5,190
200,198
(1,648)
27,668
26,020
(1,648)
(1,648)
-		 £
-
-
-
(35,067)
1,872,887
1,837,820
-
-		 £
6,241
17,706
859
1,911
26,717
2,625
6,241
8,866
17,851
69,423
87,274
7,250
3,831
5,524
225
737
284
17,851
-		 £
60,743
63,576
63,822
37,126
225,267
54,710
52,624
12,416
77,883
11,431
209,064
16,203
(35,067)
1,969,978
1,951,114
(1,648)
7,250
3,831
5,524
225
737
284
16,203
-		 £
54,498
43,361
63,563
20,858
182,280
48,807
74,964
10,572
74,808
12,554
221,705
(39,425)
37,281
90,000
1,882,122
1,969,978

7

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Balance Sheet at 31 December 2022

Note 2022 2021
Tangible Assets - investment properties £ £
St Catherine's House
1
17 Chaucer Court
1
209 Stoughton Road
1
Tangible Assets - unlisted investments
CCLA Investment Fund
9		 900,000
300,000
375,000
1,575,000
262,820
262,820
11,995
(1,995)
10,000
1,847,820
8,089
95
81,814
27,899
117,897
(9,228)
108,669
(5,375)
103,294
1,951,114		 900,000
300,000
375,000
1,575,000
297,887
297,887
Tangible Assets - equipment
Piano at cost
1
Less depreciation
Total fixed assets
Current Assets
Debtors and Prepayments
10
Traidcraft Closing Stock
Central Board of Finance Deposits
Cash at Bank and on Hand
Creditors: amounts falling due within
one year
Sundry Creditors and Accrued Expenses
11
Current assets less current liabilities
Creditors: amounts falling due after
more than one year
Loans received re piano purchase
1
Current assets less liabilities
Net assets
Reserves
8
Unrestricted Funds
General Fund
Designated Funds
Hope Baillie Fund
St Catherine's House Fund
17 Chaucer Court Fund
209 Stoughton Road Fund
Restricted Funds
Chancel Re-ordering
Chairs
Piano
Flowers Fund
Hazelden Fund
Tuesday Group
Café Play
Bellringers Fund
TOTAL RESERVES		 -
-
-
1,872,887
3,838
84
82,953
13,374
100,249
(3,158)
97,091
-
97,091
1,969,978
£ £
26,020
262,820
900,000
300,000
375,000
1,837,820
7,250
3,831
5,524
355
65,912
311
135
3,956
87,274
1,951,114		 27,668
297,887
900,000
300,000
375,000
1,872,887
-
-
-
130
65,175
311
135
3,672
69,423
1,969,978

The notes on pages 9 - 18 form part of these financial statements.

Approved on 26th March 2023 and signed on behalf of the PCC by:

Revd Neil Roberts

8

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Notes forming part of the accounts for the period ended 31 December 2022

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP FRS 102 applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with FRS 102, the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland, the Companies Act 2006 and in accordance with the Church Accounting Reguations 2006 governing the individual accounts of PCCs and with the Regulations 'true and fair' view' provisions.

The Charity meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy note(s).

b) Preparation of the accounts on a going concern basis

After making enquires, the Trustees have a reasonable expectation that the Charity has adequate resources to continue its activities for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements.

INCOME

Recognition of income

These are included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) when:

Donations

These are generally included when received by the charity, since it is virtually impossible to be certain of the income before this point. Gift aid recoverable on donations received is included once this can be quantified with reasonable certainty.

Legacies

These are included once the charity's legal right to the legacy has become clear and once the legacy can be quantified with reasonable accuracy.

EXPENDED RESOURCES

Liabilities

Liabilities are recognised where it is more likely than not that there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to pay out resources and the amount of the obligation can be measured with reasonable certainty.

Expended resources are, as far as is possible, included in the period to which they relate. All expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis and the majority is directly attributable to specific activities. Other indirect costs are apportioned to activities in accordance with staff activity and an assessment of where the resources have been applied.

All expenditure is classified under headings that aggregate all costs related to that category. Where costs cannot be directly attributed to particular headings they have been allocated to activities in accordance with staff activity or an assessment of where the resources have been applied.

9

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Notes forming part of the accounts for the period ended 31 December 2022

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

Special Collections and Donations

These include receipts from all collections held for a specific purpose: home boxes and other specific donations including the 'monthly good causes' and the luncheon voucher scheme. All such income is reported as 'restricted fund income'. Details are shown in note 7. Distributions to the beneficiaries of the 'monthly good causes' may be enhanced by an allocation from the PCC's own funds, also shown in note 7, any such additional amount being assessed by the Council during the year.

FUNDS

The Funds held by the charity are:-

These are funds earmarked by the trustees for a particular purpose.

These are income funds that must be spent on restricted purposes, as specified by the donor, and details of the funds held and restrictions provided are included in the notes to the accounts.

Tangible Assets

Investment properties

The investment properties owned by the church consist of one leasehold and two freehold properties which are let at market rates.These were acquired as follows:

72 Wodeland Avenue, St Catherine's House, was acquired during 1994 at a cost of £160,000; 17 Chaucer Court was part of a bequest received in 2003;

209 Stoughton Road was purchased during 2010 at a cost of £237,500.

Independent valuations of the above properties were carried out by Romans Estate Valuers in 2022 and these values are shown in the balance sheet on page 8. Valuations of the properties are carried out every three years.

The buildings are maintained in a good state of repair and are therefore not depreciated in the accounts.

10

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Notes forming part of the accounts for the period ended 31 December 2022

1 ACCOUNTING POLICIES (continued)

Tangible Assets (continued)

Equipment

Consecrated property and movable church furnishings

Consecrated and beneficed property of any kind is excluded from the accounts by section 10(2) of the Charities Act 2011.

Movable church furnishings held by the Rector and Churchwardens on special trust for the PCC, and which require a faculty for disposal, are accounted for as inalienable property unless consecrated. They are listed in the church's Inventory which can be inspected (at any reasonable time). For inalienable property acquired prior to 2002 there is insufficient cost information available and therefore such assets are not valued in the accounts. Items acquired since 1 January 2002 are capitalised and depreciated in the accounts over their currently anticipated useful economic life (initially five years) on a straight line basis.

All expenditure incurred in the year on consecrated or beneficed buildings, on individual items of £2,000 or less, or on the repair of movable church furnishings acquired before 1 January 2002, is written off.

Other fixtures, fittings and office equipment

Equipment used within the church premises is depreciated on a straight line basis over five years (previously four years).

Individual items of equipment with a purchase price of £2,000 or less are written off when the asset is acquired.

Piano

A new grand piano has been purchased at a cost of £11,995; this purchase has been funded by a mix of donations received from members of the congregation (augmented by a grant from Surrey County Council) and loans received, also from members of the congregation. The donations are reported as contributions to a restricted fund as shown in note 8. The loans are interest free. Repayment terms are as follows: The Borrower will repay the loan in annual installments related to the income from the use of the piano following certification by an independent examiner, appointed by the Borrower, of the amount available for distribution. Such annual repayments shall be calculated by reference to the annual income from events in which the piano is used less direct costs relating to those events and the cost of maintenance of the piano. A minimum of 50% of this net figure shall be applied as repayments pro-rata across all the loans provided by lenders for the same purpose then outstanding. The first such repayment calculation shall be made with reference to the accounting year ended 31st December 2023 and repayments made following the approval of financial statements for that year for St Nicolas, Guildford.

At any time while not in default under this Agreement, the Borrower may make lump sum payments or pay the outstanding balance then owing under this Agreement to the Lender without penalty. Should the Lender experience a change in circumstances, the Lender or their legal representative may apply to the Borrower for repayment of the Loan.

Cashflow statement

The PCC has taken advantage of the exemption in Financial Reporting Standard No 1 from producing a cashflow statement on the grounds that it is a small charity.

11

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Notes forming part of the accounts for the period ended 31 December 2022

2 Incoming Resources

2022 2022 2022 2022 2021
Unrestricte d Funds Restricted Total Total
General Designated Funds
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
2022
£
2,210
42,000
1,660
3,831
5,625
1,000
6,250
1,000		 £
-
6,241
6,241
3,831
13,875
17,706
859
859
1,596
315
1,911
26,717
2022
£
45,870
17,706
63,576		 £
38,440
600
10,088
49,128
5,374
6,241
60,743
45,831
17,745
63,576
18,000
15,060
21,900
1,045
7,817
63,822
18,645
7,065
2,183
82
1,637
149
2,463
1,596
613
2,693
37,126
225,267
2021
£
-
42,000
1,361		 £
36,289
715
9,059
_Planned Giving:_Donations
Income Tax Accrual
46,063
3,382
5,053
54,498
42,000
1,361
43,361
18,000
14,820
23,125
58
7,560
63,563
9,531
5,776
15
1,072
131
1,172
629
686
1,846
20,858
182,280
2021
£
43,361
43,361

12

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2022

4 Church Expenses

2022 2022 2022 2022 2021
£
Heating and Lighting
Insurance
Sanctuary Supplies
Music
Cleaning
Repairs and Maintenance
Items of Equipment (see Note 13)
Deputisation Payments
Flowers
Traidcraft
Depreciation
Sundry
Miscellaneous
Independent Examiner Fee
Bank etc charges
Course fee (2021: gifts)
5 Parish Expenses
£
Office Administration
Parish Administrators
Clergy Expenses
Rectory
Children and Families' Worker
Young People
Magazine
Social Events
17 Chaucer Court
Maintenance
1,072
Service Charge, Ground Rent etc
2,237
Agent Fees etc
2,160
St Catherine's House
Maintenance
517
Insurance
653
Agent Fees etc
2,628
209 Stoughton Rd
Maintenance
2,502
Insurance
328
Agent Fees etc
1,807
6 Community Centre Expenses
Heat, Light, Water
Insurance
Repairs and Maintenance
Cleaning etc.
Purchases, Coffee, Sherry, etc.		 Unrestricted Funds Restricted Total Total
General
£
4,613
5,918
3,183
27,553
4,863
1,753
735
43
603
894
811
450
516
150
52,085		 Designated Funds
£
-		 £
1,371
1,101
153
2,625		 £
4,613
5,918
3,183
27,553
4,863
1,753
735
43
1,371
603
1,995
153
811
450
516
150
54,710		 £
4,933
5,688
1,782
20,610
4,252
6,964
148
93
668
616
338
1,710
450
396
159
48,807
2022 2022 2022 2021
£
5,636
14,415
3,334
3,561
9,240
1,942
592
5,469
3,798
4,637
52,624		 £
-		 £
-		 £
5,636
14,415
3,334
3,561
9,240
1,942
592
5,469
3,798
4,637
52,624		 £
4,433
13,831
2,814
21,715
12,950
555
5,507
7,620
5,539
74,964
2022 2022 2022 2021
£
3,200
1,489
952
6,365
410
12,416		 £
-		 £
-		 £
3,200
1,489
952
6,365
410
12,416		 £
4,003
1,432
1,085
3,882
170
10,572

13

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2022

7 Special Collections and Donations Made

Monthly Good Cause
January
The Children's Society
February
Surrey Drug and Alcohol Care
March
The Bishop of Gfd's Foundation
April
The Bishop of Gfd's Foundation
May
Open Doors
June
Talk Surrey
July
USPG
August
USPG
September
Challengers
October
Salvation Army foodbank
November
Real Change Guildford
December
The Children's Society
Sub-Total
Others:
Lent Boxes
The Bishop of Gfd's Lent Call...
Lent Lunches
USPG
Sales of Produce
USPG
Friday Lunches
USPG
Summer Fayre
The Matrix Trust
Christingle
The Childrens' Society
St. Nicolas School
St. Nicolas School, key rings
YMCA
Town Centre Chaplaincy
The Matrix Trust
Luncheon Vouchers / Guildford Action
U3A concert
DEC - Ukraine
coffee morning
DEC - Ukraine
Ukraine
bring and buy
Macmillan Cancer Support
i.m.o…
Julia Andrew
Water Aid
Linda Barnes
Imperial Cancer Research
Guildford Bellringers
Assoc for Promoting Retreats
Sub-Total
Total:		 Collected
£
34.00
92.00
522.00
254.75
49.00
93.46
53.02
23.12
52.75
1,231.90
533.50
572.90
869.87
355.00
353.11
565.61
525.50
42.50
420.00
15.00
756.10
5,009.09
6,240.99
57.80		 Paid
£
34.00
92.00
49.00
93.46
53.02
23.12
52.75
776.75
57.80
1,231.90
533.50
572.90
869.87
3,500.00
445.01
500.00
1,000.00
353.11
420.00
15.00
756.10
100.00
1,133.61
10,199.10
11,431.00

14

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2022

Note
8 Movements in Reserves
UNRESTRICTED FUNDS:
General Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2022
Surplus (Deficit) for the year
Designated Funds:
Hope Baillie Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2022
Gain/(Loss) on Revaluation
St Catherine's House Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2022
17 Chaucer Court Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2022
209 Stoughton Road Fund
Balance asBalance as at 1st January 2022
RESTRICTED FUNDS:
Chancel Re-Ordering
Donations Received
Chairs
Donation Received
Piano
Donations Received
Depreciation
Flowers Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2022
Add
Contributions Received
Less
Purchases
Hazelden Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2022
Add
Interest earned
Less
Maintenance
Tuesday Group
Balance as at 1st January 2022
Café Play
Balance as at 1st January 2022
Bellringers Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2022
Add
Contributions received
Less
Maintenance Costs		 £
6,625
(1,101)
1,596
(1,371)
859
(122)
315
(31)		 £
27,668
(1,648)
26,020
297,887
(35,067)
262,820
900,000
900,000
300,000
300,000
375,000
375,000
7,250
3,831
5,524
130
225
355
65,175
737
65,912
311
135
3,672
284
3,956

15

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2022

9 Investments

Funds originating from the Hope Baillie Trust are invested in the CCLA Investment Fund (CCLA : Churches, Charities, and Local Authorities). This Fund, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, aims 'to provide their C of E clients with investment strategies designed to align with their purpose and values'.

10 Sundry Debtors and Prepayments
Prepayments
Insurance
New church chairs
Others
Sundry Debtors
Rent withheld by agent
Traidcraft
Planned Giving Tax Accrual
11 Sundry Creditors and Accrued Expenses
Accrued Expenses
Donations
Electricity
Gas
Sundry Creditor
Professional Charges
Deferred Income
Rent received early		 2022 2022
£
6,889
1,200
8,089
2022
£
8,115
1,113
9,228		 2021
£
2,844
173
106
715
2021
£
394
280
697
700		 2021
£
3,020
3,831
38
600
600		 £
3,017
821
3,838
2022 2021
£
5,969
296
930
220
700		 £
2,071
1,087
3,158

12 Related Trusts

Dorothy Grover Trust

This Trust, which is a separately registered charity, no. 276803, is established for the welfare of St Nicolas Church; the trustees are: Peter Oldroyd, David Coom, and Iain Ferguson.

ses of Equipment
Cross and nails
Giving station
Pavement sign holder
Water butt
Sundry tools
Recycling bins
Sanitiser stand		 2022
£
88
450
50
52
95
735		 2021
£
63
85
148

13 Purchases of Equipment

16

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2022

14 Employees and staff costs

The average number of employees during the year was 3 (2021 : 3.5).
The total cost of employing these (part-time) staff was:
Salaries
Pension contribution		 2022
£
33,074
33,074		 2021
£
34,392
488
34,880

The charity employees work on a combination of charitable activities and administrative matters.

15 Traidcraft
Activity in Traidcraft goods during 2022 was as follows:
Income from Sales
less:
Purchases
Opening Stock
Closing Stock as at 31 Dec 2022
movement in cash on hand
net surplus/(deficit) for the year
16 Governance Costs
Independent Examiner's Remuneration
17 Coffee etc Account
Opening balance
Receipts
Purchases
18 Music
Director of Music, salary
Pension contributions
D of M Housing allowance
D of M Childrens' Choir Allowance
Deputisation
Purchase / hire of music
RSCM membership fee
Organ maintenance, piano tuning
Foundation Choristers
Musicians
Sundry		 2022
£
(603)
(84)
95
22
2022
£
3
(12)		 2022
£
613
(570)
43
2022
£
450
2022
£
25
(9)
16
2022
£
12,270
609
110
1,291
11,320
1,690
263
27,553		 2021
£
(616)
(79)
84
(4)
2021
11
(38)		 2021
£
686
(615)
71
2021
£
450
2021
£
52
(27)
25
2021
£
8,763
488
4,000
2,000
60
104
110
1,303
3,320
440
22
20,610

19 Related Party Transactions

One member of the PCC was employed as a part time administrative assistant of the Church at a total annual salary cost of £14,647. No other members of the PCC nor any parties connected with them received any remuneration during the year.

Expenses amounting to £3,334 incurred by the Rector in carrying out his pastoral duties were re-imbursed to him during the year. No other members of the PCC nor any parties connected with them were paid expenses during the year, other than reimbursement of payments made on behalf of the church.

The purchase of the new piano was part funded by loans received from members of the congregation; these included three current members of the PCC.

17

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2022

20 Previous Year Statement of Financial Activities

Statement of Financial Activities for the year to 31st December 2021

Note 2021 2021 2021 2021
Unrestricted Funds Restricted Total
General Designated Funds
Incoming Resources
Given by the Congregation
2,7
Donations and Bequests
3
Investments etc. Income
Other Income
Total Incoming Resources
2
Resources Expended
Church Expenses
4
Parish Expenses
5
Community Centre Expense
6
Parish Share
Donations Made
7
Total Resources Expended
Net Incoming Resources for the Year
Gains/(losses) on Investme
8,9
Revaluation gains/(losses) on Properties
Funds as at 1 January 2021
Transfers between Funds
Funds as at 31 December 2021
Allocation to Funds of
Net Incoming Resources
8
General
Hope Baillie Fund
Comm Centre & Loseley Chapel Redvpmt
Flowers
Hazelden Trust
Tuesday Group
Café Play
Bellringers' Fund
Transfers Between Funds
8
General
Comm Centre & Loseley Chapel Redvpmt		 £
49,445
43,361
63,528
20,209
176,543
45,915
74,964
10,572
74,808
7,500
213,759
(37,216)
65,484
(600)
27,668
(37,216)
(37,216)
(600)
(600)		 £
-
600
600
(600)
37,281
90,000
1,745,606
600
1,872,887
(600)
(600)
600
600		 £
5,053
35
649
5,737
2,292
5,054
7,346
(1,609)
71,032
69,423
(40)
(952)
(40)
(298)
(279)
(1,609)
-		 £
54,498
43,361
63,563
20,858
182,280
48,807
74,964
10,572
74,808
12,554
221,705
(39,425)
37,281
90,000
1,882,122
1,969,978
(37,216)
(600)
(40)
(952)
(40)
(298)
(279)
(39,425)
(600)
600
-

18

DRAFT MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING OF ST NICOLAS’ CHURCH HELD ON SUNDAY 3[rd] APRIL AT 11:45AM

Present: Fr Neil Roberts, Rector (chair), members of the Electoral Roll in person and online – see Appendix 1.

The Chair opened the meeting with prayer.

Part 1

Since the last APCM, there has been continued interregnum, Covid, an appointments process, interviews, an appointment and Induction. All of this was only possible because of two outstanding churchwardens, an amazing PCC, David Greenwood who has returned to his duties as Pastoral Assistant and the PCC Secretary who ensured that communications were maintained and who supported the churchwardens. He recalled the moment when he first entered the building – feeling its prayer-soaked walls, thanking everyone for their continued witness.

Since the Induction we have a appointed a new Director of Music and foundation singers. We sadly lost our Sacristan, Julia Andrew, and is grateful that Andrew Rustell felt called to offer to serve as our new Sacristan. He expressed his appreciation of Catherine Ferguson as head server and her serving team who bring such dignity, beauty and humanity to our worship. He also expressed his gratitude to David Greenwood who was now heading up a Pastoral Support Group.

The number of communicants has begun to rise and the number of children attending our newly launched Junior Church is gaining traction. The link between church and school is growing ever stronger. But the recent financial imbalance remains a problem. Without depleting reserves and the generosity of the DGT, our deficit would be completely unsustainable. Fr Neil wished to record his personal thanks to Iain and the FAC for their work. He said we must now articulate our objectives in order to fulfil our aims. Our new PCC will now have a great and exciting task to deliver the essence of the Parish Profile that attracted him to the role.

The children’s ministry and catholic worship stood out – that is the bifocal of our PCC Away Day. Our provision for the former is still not quite right. Following a conversation with Liam Rowlings, we have begun a period of reflection on the current job description and Fr Neil said he was indebted to Liam for his positivity and for how amazingly supportive he has been. Together with the URC, the role needs to be rebalanced. After 5 years in post, Liam has decided to move away from Guildford in the summer. Fr Neil wished him and Holly well, saying how very grateful he was to Liam for his ‘can do’ attitude. Fr Neil said that he doesn’t believe in family services or in dumbing down our worship. Children need to be kept busy in church and Junior Church, showing them the beauty of our liturgy. Our building needs careful looking at to make it more inviting and welcoming. The narthex illustrates what differences can be made.

He recalled his first meeting in post as being Safeguarding and thanked Jo Radley and her team for their work to ensure that all legislation is followed.

Fr Neil stressed that the building belongs to the parish and is held in trust. Our doors need to be

open – the building needs to be used and for us to find opportunities to build community. We cannot be a Sunday club. Now is our opportunity to invest in the building to equip it to pay for itself. To safeguard its future it needs to be open, future proof and flexible.

Fr Neil concluded by saying that he believes passionately in safeguarding our catholic heritage, but that without investment we won’t maintain or grow it. There is so much to look forward to and so much to do. In sharing the cure of souls he can only do that with the help of God, but he does need the congregation too.

Part 2 Election of Churchwardens

Both nominees confirmed their willingness to continue in the role and were duly appointed for the year ahead.

Part 3 Annual Parochial Church Meeting

Darrol wished to record the meeting’s thanks to Patrick for his maintaining of the accounts and the quiet and efficient hard work that he carries out throughout the year. Without his careful auditing and control we would not have such insight into our financial position. 9 Elections to the PCC: There were four vacancies for a term of three years each, three vacancies for a term of two years and one vacancy for a term of 1 year. The following nominations had been received. Cath Anderson: proposed by Linda Barnes and seconded by Maureen Hibberd. Jenna Clare: proposed by Jana Phillips and seconded by Maureen Hibberd. Caroline Coleman: proposed by Linda Barnes and seconded by Cath Anderson. David Coom: proposed by Cath Anderson and seconded by Linda Barnes. Hilary Fletcher: proposed by Cath Anderson and seconded by Liam Rowlings. All were duly elected. 10 Sides–People. Linda Barnes read the names of those willing to serve as sides-people. Linda informed the meeting that if anyone else wanted to serve, they should speak to a churchwarden for the PCC to agree. 11 Any Other Business Fr Neil said that we miss Darrol and Jo but are glad that they were with family. In Darrol’s absence,

Peter Oldroyd is serving as Deputy Churchwarden, and Fr Neil wished to thank him for his support and wisdom.

Dates for Standing Committee and PCC meetings would be agreed by email.

Darrol wished to record our thanks to Fr Neil and more importantly to Helen and the boys for their support of Fr Neil who has brought a breath of fresh air and who upholds and defends our style of worship. The meeting ended with a blessing.

Signed …………………………………………………………….. Date ……………………………………………………..