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2023-12-31-accounts

NICOLAS LDFORD Gu ANNUAL CHURCH MEETING APCM 2024 SUNDAY 17" MARCH

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 26th March 2023

  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 26th March 2023

  2. Matters arising from last year’s meeting

  3. To receive the reports

  4. Finance

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

  6. ii To receive the Treasurer’s presentation of the examined accounts

  7. iii To formally adopt the accounts

  8. iv To appoint an Independent Examiner

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

  10. Election to Deanery Synod (conducted by the Churchwardens)

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

  12. Any other business

  13. a) The date proposed for next year’s Annual Meeting is 6th April 2025.

  14. b) Dates for future PCC meetings 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.

CREW undertake any work between PCC meetings, as directed by them and to maintain the diary, consider the work of the Pastoral Support Group and the operational activities of the church. CREW consists of the Rector, the Curate, Occasional Preacher, Administrator, Wardens and Deputy Warden.

Events April 2023 to March 2024

During the past year, the PCC has met on 5 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 my Wardens, Hilary and Darrol and to Phil, as Deputy Warden and to Peter as Warden Emeritus. Their experience, common sense and advice are matched only by their immeasurable support and time given to me and to this place. We all owe Cath, our Parish Administrator, Leader of Junior Church, secretary, sorter of diaries, solver of problems more than our thanks, but also our admiration, for she appears to be able to create, I estimate, a further six hours in each day to achieve all that she does. After another year, another thank you to Rick, our Director of Music, too. Our Foundation Singers are now very much part of the family and joined, on average, by five or so volunteers as well as welcoming our junior choristers to their ranks.

Continuing with music - which offers such a vital and determining ministry in this place, the organ, it is estimated will cost, as predicted, in excess of £200,000 to rebuild the instrument. We have established a working party, The Living Organ group and have begun work to establish priorities for how to raise the money to complete the works over the next five years. As I said last year, if that single issue 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 and so my thanks to Phil and the group for beginning the work. It is moving, slowly, very slowly, but we shall get there! In the period of time between the sad demise of the Fr Willis and its hopeful resurrection, I shall be asking PCC and the DGT to look at providing the building with a high quality electronic organ. Together with our Director of Music and Deputy Warden, I have made some progress in regard to seeing

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some options in action. We can then sell back the organ to the supplier for something like 65% of the original price - such is the demand for such equipment. We shall investigate pre-owned, renting and other options, too and I look forward to seeing how we might provide the quality, style and volume of organ music which our Foundation and gathered congregation are able to offer Almighty God in a market in which it is rare!

Our building has seen a significant change in the move of our marble Quire altar to the Western wall of the north aisle. Under the shadow of St Helena and the True Cross, this looks, I believe, made to measure. It means, with more space in the chancel, that orchestras and choirs can use the space and with the arrival of a portable nave altar we can use during Ordinary Time, the focus will be, as it was meant to be, the High Altar. With thanks to Darrol most especially, together with Hilary and Cath for all the necessary paperwork, we now look to the flooring. My thanks, too, to Peter for his management of the lighting with a renewed emphasis upon the reredos at the east end of the church.

Thanks too, to our AV team in maintaining our online presence each week - the numbers of those who join us continues to be impressive and in the service we shared online for the death of Her late Majesty, we were watched by over 2,800 beyond the church walls! We would welcome new volunteers in this area, so please be in touch with me or Andy if you are tech minded! The other aspect of our AV team is the sound system and you will have noticed that this is not always straightforward. We shall need to spend some more money on this and so again, if you are interested in making a contribution, I would be grateful to hear from you.

Our serving team has grown this year and it has been good to welcome newer faces to give weight to the import of the chancel party. Especial thanks to Catherine for years as Head Server. Catherine has now stepped down to spend more time on her grandparental duties but remaining on the serving team, thank goodness! Thanks too, to the rest of my servers for their dedication to worship and their delight in all things beautiful as befits the House of God not least including welcoming our Father in God, Bishop Andrew, for Deanery Confirmation.

After a few months of helping in the sacristy, Paul stepped away as Sacristan to focus on his weekday work. It is a role which demands time and energy and so I am delighted to have appointed a member of the 830 congregation as Sacristan. I am indebted to them for their work - fitting it into a demanding life and polishing silver and ensuring the place is in good order; another new member of the family who has stepped in and helped. God is indeed ‘adding to our number those whom He is calling’ as the Baptism Rite reminds us.

It has been a delight to continue to welcome our Romanian Orthodox families and their priest, Fr Adrian. Our brothers and sisters in Christ bring their love of God and we offer them hospitality and so demonstrate the reality of the world wide church here in Guildford. As their numbers grow so does their need for space and storage. As we work together we shall ensure that both worshipping communities under the Parish church’s roof are able to flourish in God’s good graces.

I am grateful too, to Jo and Maureen before she was taken into glory, for their indispensable work in the area of Safeguarding. This is the central responsibility of us all but needs the focus and attention of our PCC officers not only to maintain our focus but also to take the lead in ensuring our compliance.

Over the past year we have seen growth and embedded the things we established two years ago: Cafe play and Friday morning coffee have continued to grow and those at the Eucharist on Fridays have established themselves as a community of Sunday and Friday only worshipping families. Our not-so-new groups: the Walsingham cell, Curry and Questions and Beer and Banter groups have established a routine and I know that we would like to encourage newer members to join the rotas - most especially the catering rotas - to ensure that we do not rely upon the same faithful few who fight bravely - could that be you?

We have been blessed by the ministry and work of Nicky, our Mission Enabler. Together with her work at the URC, we have grown Messy Church which is now hosted here as well as at our neighbours, we have grown Cafe Play and launched Toasty Tuesdays for our Juniors. Working in our school and at HT and QE where our children go after our won Infants school, Nicky brings a wealth of experience and a passion for the Gospel. She never fails to have ideas and the children clearly trust and love her. I am delighted that she has now - at last (!) - moved into her

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home here in Guildford and we look forward to all that God is already planting through her witness. Please encourage Nicky and support her ministry - it is vital.

Jana has begun her FiM course - Foundations in Ministry. This Diocesan accredited course seeks to support lay ministry in our churches and following a year of bible study and spirituality and theology, Jana will focus on Pastoral Care studies. She will then be affirmed as a LAM - a Lay Authorised Minister - and this affirms Jana’s ministry already undertaken in the Pastoral Support Group. We are also looking to establish a new ministry to the bereaved. A small group of volunteers have begun to emerge who may take this further before long.

Linda has begun her first year of Ordination formation and training here at the Guildford theological college. In two short years she will be made Deacon and then licensed to the Deanery with her focus at St Nicolas. Do encourage Linda as she continues to work, pray and study.

Last year, at Petertide, we welcomed Fr Alistair. It is a privilege to be asked to form him as a new priest come 2024. He, Carrie, Bell and Didi are in our prayers as this year we look to move him into the Curate’s house and, if the bishop confirms it, to his priesting in June.

Our Church School remains a focus for me, as Rector. In my first two years I deliberately over-invested in giving much more time to school than would become the pattern in year three and beyond. That was always the plan. This was to enable relationships with parents, staff and the children to be established in the early days. On more than one occasion I found myself being told that I spent too much time at the school and later the same day another noting that I had not been at school enough in meetings! You can’t please all the people - it simply is not possible! But over the past year I have dialled down the time I was spending in school, not for the sake of wanting to do so, but to address the balance required to be elsewhere now that the church and the school were indeed two sides of the same coin! Sadly, we lost our excellent Head Teacher, Emma. Teachers move on, of course, and finding successors is demanding - so much for wanting to redress a balanced approach! We shall look carefully, as Foundation Governors, at ensuring that our Christian ethos is maintained as we appoint Emma’s successor.

In my Annual Report for 2023 I stated that our financial position remains somewhat complex. That remains the case. I laid the ground for focussing our attention on giving and began conversations about particular contributions. A soft take-off, if you will. This year we shall begin an intentional Planned Giving Campaign. I asked Linda Sharpin, our Ordinand, to share with PCC her Mission and Ministry Project which I teach Year one Ordinands in the diocese. This, as part of her studies at Theological College, has demonstrated the missional imperative of financial stewardship. It has demonstrated what is, and what could be in terms of the population and what missional opportunities there might be for growth. This Mission Action Plan group will report to PCC and once their work is begun and report submitted, we shall focus upon the Planned Giving Campaign. Again, a small group will work on this and report to the PCC, but the headline is that we are giving less per head by some margin, than other churches across our town and that if we do not address that some unpalatable choices will need to be made.

I am grateful to David for his work on Planned Giving this year. He passes the baton to Phil, Deputy Warden as he and I work together on the Planned Giving Campaign. I am as ever indebted to Ian, David Coom, Patrick and Darrol who make up the Finance Committee together with Peter our Warden Emeritus on the DGT who all give freely of their expertise and time in not only ensuring we are financially stable but are savvy with money which sits in the common purse. There is much to be excited by in terms of our numerical growth and the depth of commitment which makes St Nicolas a special place, a jewel of great price. May I end, as I did last year, in commending the words of the Collect for Trinity XIX - for without God’s grace we are a clanging gong or cymbal! May we pray earnestly for the Holy Spirit and know always His will for us and the people of God in this place to which we are called:

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. Amen.

Fr Neil

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Churchwardens’ report

In March last year we finally received the new chairs having managed to sell off all the old wooden chairs. This has given us so much more flexibility in the use of the church and makes it so quick and easy to adjust. In the past year this flexibility has resulted in a number of innovative uses for our Church. The space has been used for Salsa evenings, a folk music and dance concert. The school has used it for a disco and preparing the church for the school services now takes about 15 minutes and is very quickly restored to normal. Nicky has been able to use it for Messy Church creating a very atmospheric ambience that attracted well over 50 children plus parents. On heritage day it was used for an art exhibition and sale. These are just a few examples of how we are now able to attract more people to use and appreciate the church.

At Christmas all the chairs came into use and during the Christmas concert season mid December we were able to deploy all the new chairs as well as most of the chairs from the hall. We now know that our safe seated capacity is 284 seats. There were three concerts last Christmas that came close to this capacity and feedback from all the organisers was very positive.

In the summer we took the next step and applied for a faculty to reorder the chancel. The Diocesan Advisory Committee was supportive of our plans to move the altar and remove the railings but did not all agree on the proposal to change the floor in the way we proposed. So to ensure that we did not get further delays we decided to withdraw the floor change and move ahead with the move of the altar and removal of the railings. As most of you will now have seen this has now been completed. We do still wish to update the chancel floor and this will progress this year with the assistance of our consulting architect.

As you can see from the fabric report most of the activities were of a routine nature.

From October to December Andy Anderson, Patrick Andrew and I ran the Cards for Good Causes shop in the atrium. In spite of difficult trading conditions we managed to achieve sales just £400 behind 2022 and generated valuable income for the church. The card shop, however, is another opportunity to attract people to the church and the events we host. It is an important service for those that send Christmas cards and our customers come from all over Surrey not just the Guildford area.

As part of the planning for the moving of the Altar we relocated the AV desk and installed new ambient microphones which enable improved sound of our excellent choir in particular.

There is still investment to be made to improve the microphones that the priests wear. We have been making do with some cheap replacements after the original microphones wore out. We now need to spend around £2000 upgrading to quality microphones that do not crackle or feedback and enable clear audibility in church as well as online. I am indebted to Andy and Chris for their willingness to man the desk on a regular basis. As Fr N has pointed out we do on occasions get very large viewing numbers, We know from feedback that people watch from all over the country and it is invaluable to those who cannot make it to church through infirmity or absence abroad. Jo and I take great comfort from being able to watch the services when we are spending time with our daughter and her family in Australia.

We also receive feedback that a number of care homes around the Guildford area regularly tune in on a Sunday morning to screen the service for residents. These figures only show as one viewing of course but the benefit is felt by many. If you are willing and able to contribute to the cost of these new microphones please let me, Hilary, Patrick or Fr Neil know. It would be very much appreciated.

This year we have a quinquennial inspection and we will continue to develop a design for the chancel floor that is fitting for the church and heritage of the building. We continue to encourage choirs and event organisers to use the church and Parish Centre. Due to the careful stewardship of Cath in the office, the Parish Centre is occupied about 70-75% of the week so we have made good progress in recovering the usage of the centre post covid.

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I would like to say a big thank you to Hilary Fletcher, my fellow churchwarden who initially reluctantly stepped into the position last May but has rapidly grown into the role with great confidence. Hilary is such a thoughtful and caring person, she is a joy to work alongside.

My thanks also go to Phil Thomas and Peter Oldroyd for their support while Jo and I have been away.

Finally on behalf of Hilary and myself our thanks as always go to all those who step forward to help in all sorts of ways to make things happen in our church. We cannot function without your help.

Darrol Radley

Fabric report

Fabric report
JANUARY Hall piano tuned (Gary Payne)
Bells serviced (John Taylor & Co)
FEBRUARY Church piano tuned (Gary Payne)
Gutters cleared on church and Centre (A K Roofing)
Parish Centre windows cleaned (The Window Cleaning Company)
MARCH New chairs installed in church after disposal of existing chapel chairs (Alpha Furniture)
Electricity smart meter fitted
Plastic protector fitted to wall of hall behind bins (Carol Marulescu Services)
PAT Testing carried out (UK Safety Management)
APRIL Organ tuned (Michael Farley Organ Builder)
Drain valve to water heater replaced
Organ humidifier serviced (Watkins & Watson)
JUNE AV desk relocated from rear of north aisle to rear of south aisle (DSAV)
AUGUST Parish Centre windows cleaned (The Window Cleaning Company)
SEPTEMBER Hall piano tuned (Gary Payne)
Church and Centre boilers serviced (Ampella)
OCTOBER Gutters cleared on church and Centre (A K Roofing)
NOVEMBER Church piano tuned (Gary Payne)
DECEMBER Fire extinguishers & blankets serviced (Richard Thorpe)

Children

I joined St Nicolas and GURC in May last year and have really enjoyed my first few months getting to know everyone. One of my first big events was Holiday Club where we travelled back in time through the bible with 60 children. The last day was a wonderful celebration and the majority of families stayed after the end for the inflatable fun run and hot dogs. I had lots of nice comments from parents who were so impressed by our wonderful team who worked so hard to make it such a fantastic experience for their children.

Junior Church varies a lot from week to week depending on people's availability, we tend to have anywhere up to around 15 children each time, although we have 30 children on our records. This is run by Cath and myself on alternating weeks, supported by parent helpers. The children engage well with the crafts, story and games on offer and we have built lovely relationships with these families.

Cafe Play, our Wednesday baby and toddler group has gradually increased in attendance over the past year. We recently had 25 children and their parents/carers at one session. The children enjoy a good selection of toys, healthy snacks during story time and singing to finish, whilst parents are able to relax and enjoy the refreshments.

Messy Church continues to be a joint event between St Nics and GURC. The numbers of attendees have increased greatly since I first joined the churches. We brought Messy Church to St Nics in November for a light party and 68 children and their parents/carers attended. The church looked amazing lit up at night and the event was a big success. Following this success we have now agreed to alternate location of Messy Church between the 2 churches

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and as a result, the volunteer team from St Nics has grown and we now have a good pool of volunteers from both churches, whereas previously the majority of volunteers was from GURC. We are very grateful to those who have joined the Messy Church team and the joy and enthusiasm they have brought to it.

At Christmas our Christmas Eve Christingle services were sold out and we enjoyed a joint service at St Nics with GURC and lots of children dressed up to help tell the story of the nativity.

I see all the children's activities at GURC and St Nics as being open to all and going forward we now have a range of activities to cater for young people from 0-18 between the 2 churches. Within the activities for younger children we have a lovely community of families who attend groups 2, 3 or even 4 times a week sometimes across the 2 churches and it is my hope that the children will feed into the older groups when they grow up. We are particularly excited about our new Toastie Tuesdays group for 2024, aimed at school years 3-6.

Nicky Geraghty

Music

Music is a medium that links heaven and earth: transporting people closer to God and giving a glimpse of the transcendent. This happens in the worship at St Nic’s through the congregational singing, instrumental offerings, and the ministry of the choir singing on behalf of all. In the last twelve months this mission has continued to strengthen.

Some of the highlights were the Easter Triduum, the Mass for the Coronation of HM King Charles III, the Induction of Fr Neil as Guildford Dean, the welcome Mass for Fr Alistair, the Battle of Britain Sunday, All Saints Sunday and All Souls, the Advent carol service, the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at Christmas and the recent visitation of the Bishop for the confirmation service. For a number of these services a 4 or 5-part ensemble of professional brass musicians added extra richness.

Darrol Radley, Philip Thomas, Alice Bungard, and Tilly Sharpin, all from the congregation have sung, with the choir as their personal schedule have permitted: Alison Underhay Ward, Ruth Vanni, Sarah Marsh, Kate Lowe, Paula Juden, Anna Thomas, Stephen Petch, Daniel Mahoney, Nick MacMahon, Chris Pearce, and Laurence Cummins have all been professional voices in the Foundation Singers giving a strong and polished nucleus, though not all at the same service. Since autumn up to 5 young choristers have sung in the choir for some services. We are most grateful to all these musicians for their loyalty and dedication, hard work, and enrichment of our worship.

The new Kwai grand piano in the church is a very useful asset. If music is to flourish at St Nic’s the critical challenge for the immediate future is our beloved 148-year-old Fr Willis organ and its desperately needed complete rebuilding.

Rick Erickson

Stewardship

This is my first Stewardship report for the APCM. Whilst new into the role it has provided me with a very clear insight into the nature of giving at St Nicolas which, I have to admit, is not an entirely positive one and fills me with concern for the future of our Church. Some statistics that have been shared with PCC help to show what I mean:

In the last 12 months we have made almost no progress towards our stated aim to at least cover our Parish Share from congregational giving in 2023. We must do better!

We also do not all give in the most effective way possible and here I have to mirror some of David Coom’s comments in last year’s report. He referenced that we had 36 members of the Parish Giving Scheme (‘PGS’) – the most effective and least administratively burdensome method of giving. As of February this year this had increased

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to 37 and remains a disappointingly low number. Of those, only about 60% have opted for their donations to be index linked.

One encouraging development in recent months has been the use of PGS for one-off, as well as regular, giving.

Givers who do not use PGS should be aware of the not insignificant burden involved in recording their donations, processing the necessary tax reclaims and the on-going maintenance of the required records for legal and regulatory purposes. Please use PGS if you can!

I would like to thank all those who have given and continue to give but I would also encourage everyone to take a few minutes to review how much you give and the manner in which you give it (preferably PGS). I am sure this would help us make progress in closing the gap on the aim to cover our Parish Share from congregational giving.

I mentioned earlier that this is my first Stewardship report for APCM. However, it is also sadly my last as I have agreed to hand over these responsibilities to Phil Thomas. Please provide him and St Nicolas with every support possible.

Thank you for your support.

David Sharpin

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 Officer.

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

In April a very productive evening meeting and supper was held by Archdeacon Paul for the Lay Chairs of all Deaneries from the Diocese at which we were able to discuss our experiences of setting up a Deanery Leadership Team and it was interesting to hear how other Deaneries have made this work.

Guildford Deanery Synod did not meet many times last year due to significant changes to both the lay and ordained membership and to allow for the appointment and installation of a new Area Dean. However, in January St Nicolas’ played host both to a successful Guildford Deanery Action Plan meeting with Bishop Andrew and a Deanery Social Synod to allow the revised synod membership to meet for the first time.

Future meetings are planned for 24th April and 31st July, when we will be discussing relevant topics that have recently been considered at General Synod.

St Nicolas’ Infant School

As I reflect on another year, it seems appropriate that our value this half term is hope. This academic year has seen more change, and we have said goodbye to some wonderful colleagues who we all miss, but we have also

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welcomed some brilliant new members to our staff team and our governing body. Each of them is driven to do the best for the children in our care, and each brings so much to our school community. Our school continues to be a special place to work and learn, and together we continue to live out our vision of ‘living life in all its fullness’.

There has been lots to celebrate in the last year. We have achieved a UNICEF Rights Respecting School Bronze Award, which recognises that children’s rights are at the heart of our ethos and culture, and that this improves their well-being and develops every child’s talents and abilities to their full potential.

We are also taking part in the World Forum for Early Years’ project, linked to the UNICEF Rights of the Child, embedding FingerTips in our school. This has been developed by our own Mrs McClure outside of school, recognised by the World Forum, and we are using it in school to support our children to become reflective learners. This approach gives children the tools to talk about learning and the tools to learn through talking. We are excited to be part of this project and to see how this, alongside our Rights Respecting School work and our vision and values, enable our children to truly flourish.

We have continued to develop our link with the school in Uganda we have been supporting, which is part of the Forgotten People’s Project, and the children were delighted to see photos of the uniform and furniture we donated being put to good use in their classrooms. They have demonstrated their love of learning and their sense of unity, wanting to know more about what life is like for the children in Uganda and coming up with lots of suggestions for how we can continue to help.

The partnership between the church and school has continued to strengthen over the last year too. We have continued to welcome parents to Fr Neil’s collective worships, strengthening the sense of community, and this term Fr Alistair and Nicky have also begun leading collective worships during the school week, which the children very much enjoy.

We are extremely grateful for the generous donations from the church. This has enabled us to purchase the books we need for our new phonics programme, as well as contributing towards the cost of new lighting in our classrooms. These make a huge difference to the environment and the learning that takes place, and are very much appreciated by governors, staff, children and parents.

School is a busy place, but taking the time to pause and reflect, there are constant reminders of how blessed we are to be part of such a wonderful community. There is so much to celebrate, from those moments when we witness children living our vision in their learning and their relationships, to the moments we see the difference we can make to children half way across the world.

Dina Pandis, Senior Teacher

Tuesday Group

Tuesday Group has met in the Parish Hall on a weekly basis (excluding school holidays) over the past year, engaging in a varied programme of activities and events, and enjoying good company, 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 talks from occasional guest speakers. The Group took charge of the Plant Stall at St Nicolas's most recent Summer Fayre, provided and displayed the Christmas decorations in the Parish Hall, and crafted the ornaments for the tree that St Nicolas's contributed to the latest Christmas Tree Festival at the URC, co-ordinating the personal input from the congregation and others.

Numbers attending recently have remained generally steady, and the Group was delighted to welcome two new members from the congregation attending on a regular basis this year, although anyone able to attend only on a drop-in basis is welcome. Tuesday Group publicises its programme of events on the church notice boards outside the Narthex and within the Foyer; there is another notice displayed at the Infant School; the Parish Website hosts a TG Webpage which gives details of the current programme and shows photos related to past events; and the Parish Newsletter also carries information from the Group - but word of mouth recommendations and invitations remain an important part of publicising it, and church members can help with this.

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Registered Charity number 1133971

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Report and Accounts

31 December 2023

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 17th March 2024 (as anticipated as at the date of the PCC's report).

Revd Neil Roberts Incumbent Revd Alistair Milne Curate Darrol Radley Church Wardens Hilary Fletcher Philip Hooper Diocesan Synod Andrew Rustell Members Philip Hooper Linda Sharpin Deanery Synod Andrew Rustell Donald Thompson Members Elected Members: Catherine Anderson Wendy Gabriel Jonathan Neil-Smith Jane Birch David Greenwood Jo Radley Jenna Clare John Hutchinson Steve Reeds Caroline Coleman Stuart Murdoch Philip Thomas Co-Opted Member: Patrick Andrew PCC Treasurer : 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

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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 2023

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 12 elected, 1 co-opted, and 8 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. CREW meets to undertake any work between PCC meetings as directed by them and to maintain the diary, consider the work of the Pastoral Support Group and the operational activities of the church. CREW consists of Rector, Curate, Occasional Preacher, Mission Enabler, Administrator, Wardens and Deputy Warden.

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 130 new chairs for the church.

The re-ordering of the chancel, including the re-positioning of the altar, is in progress.

The electoral roll and church attendance

At the start of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting on 17th March 2024 there were 142 names on the roll; of these, 57 are resident within the parish and 85 are resident outside the parish.

The number of regular communicants averaged 74 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 shortfall of net incoming resources for the year of a revenue nature of £4,108, and net realised incoming resources of a capital nature of £Nil, making overall a net deicit of incoming resources of £4,108. The total reserves at the year-end stand at £1,971,733 of which £91,111 are restricted funds and £1,880,622 are unrestricted.

2

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

Specific changes in tangible assets

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 £7,477, 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 2023 were:-

Revd Neil Roberts Revd Alistair Milne
Catherine Anderson Philip Hooper
Patrick Andrew John Hutchinson
Jane Birch Stuart Murdoch
Jenna Clare Jonathan Neil-Smith
Caroline Coleman Darrol Radley
David Coom retd 26 March 2023 Jo Radley
Catherine Ferguson retd 26 March 2023 Steve Reeds
Hilary Fletcher Andrew Rustell
Wendy Gabriel Linda Sharpin
David Greenwood Philip Thomas
Elizabeth Hooper retd 26 March 2023 Donald Thompson

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 27th Feb 2024

Catherine Anderson PCC Secretary 27th Feb 2024

(Note that Electoral Roll numbers have been updated subsequent to the date of this report and show the position as at the current year's closing date for registration on the Roll, 3rd March 2024.)

4

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Treasurer's Report

Our basic financial performance in 2023 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.

2023 2022
£ £
Free (i.e. unrestricted) income 178,035 156,550
including...Dorothy Grover Trust donation 42,000 42,000
220,035 198,550
less Total running costs * (224,955) (195,008)
leaving (4,920) 3,542
less Donations made (3,025) (5,190)
Surplus / (Deficit) for the year (7,945) (1,648)

Our final shortfall of £7,945 is a much better result than that originally expected for the year, with our income performing better than first anticipated. Planned Giving held up well and shows improvement on last year; there is, however, plenty of scope for further improvement - in particular in persuading donors to adopt the PGS scheme, preferably choosing to upgrade automatically for inflation. Use of this scheme not only enables us to better predict our likely income but also makes life much simpler for our Stewardship Promoter. The increase in the accrual reflects a change in the timing of the tax reclaim submission to the Inland Revenue.

Income derived from hiring out the parish centre increased substantially, as did that from letting out the church, this latter helped considerably by our Romanian friends. Provision of the new grand piano in the church has been much appreciated by visiting choirs, and the replacement of the old chairs has made for a much more flexible environment for visiting groups.

Expenditure overall, while increased over last year, was closer to the originally budgeted total.A new constituent of the expenditure is the housing that we are providing for our new curate and his family, and we expect that they will move into St Catherine's House in the current year. This year will also include the quinquennial inspection of the church by the diocese.

Elsewhere, in the notes to the accounts, and in particular from the Funds page, it will be seen that we have a new fund opened for the organ, currently standing at just over £5,000; the organ requires substantial work if it is to have a functioning future and the outcome is still being worked out. And on the same page the Piano fund shows a donation of £500 - this is one of the original loans, kindly converted to be a donation. Initial repayments of the piano loans will be made in the current year - In the balance sheet £3,025 has been moved between the two creditors figures in anticipation of these repayments.

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 2023

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

17 March 2024

6

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Statement of Financial Activities for the year to 31st December 2023

Note Note 2023 2023 2023 2023 2022
Unrestricted Funds Restricted Total Total
General Designated Funds
£ £ £ £ £
Incoming Resources
Given by the Congregation 2,7 60,575 4,452 65,027 60,743
Donations and Bequests 3 47,432 17,969 65,401 63,576
Investments etc. Income 64,520 3,038 67,558 63,822
Other Income 47,508 2,211 49,719 37,126
Total Incoming Resources 2 220,035 - 27,670 247,705 225,267
Resources Expended
Church Expenses 4 78,280 19,381 97,661 54,710
Parish Expenses 5 51,983 51,983 52,624
Community Centre Expenses 6 15,283 15,283 12,416
Parish Share 79,409 79,409 77,883
Donations Made 7 3,025 4,452 7,477 11,431
Total Resources Expended 227,980 - 23,833 251,813 209,064
Net Incoming Resources for the Year (7,945) - 3,837 (4,108) 16,203
Gains/(losses) on Investments 8,9 24,727 24,727 (35,067)
Revaluation gains/(losses) on Properties
Funds as at 1 January 2023 26,020 1,837,820 87,274 1,951,114 1,969,978
Transfers between Funds
Funds as at 31 December 2023 18,075 1,862,547 91,111 1,971,733 1,951,114
Allocation to Funds of
Net Incoming Resources 8
General (7,945) (7,945)
Organ 5,074 5,074
Chairs (3,831) (3,831)
Piano (1,006) (1,006)
Flowers Fund 481 481
Hazelden Fund 2,483 2,483
Café Play 1 1
Bellringers' Fund 635 635
(7,945) - 3,837 (4,108)
Transfers Between Funds 8
- - - -

7

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford

Balance Sheet at 31 December 2023

Note 2023 2022
£
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
£
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
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
287,547
287,547
11,995
(4,495)
7,500
1,870,047
12,132
0
88,473
12,338
112,943
(9,407)
103,536
(1,850)
101,686
1,971,733
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
Organ
Chairs
Piano
Flowers Fund
Hazelden Fund
Tuesday Group
Café Play
Bellringers Fund
TOTAL RESERVES
£
18,075
287,547
900,000
300,000
375,000
1,862,547
7,250
5,074
0
4,518
836
68,395
311
136
4,591
91,111
1,971,733

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

Approved on 17th March 2024 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 2023

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).

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 2023

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:-

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 2023

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 2023

2 Incoming Resources

2023 2023 2023 2023 2022
Total
£
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
2022
£
45,870
17,706
63,576
Unrestricte d Funds Restricted Total
General Designated Funds
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
2023
£
1,949
42,000
3,483
11,494
5,975
500		 £
-
4,452
4,452
17,969
17,969
3,038
3,038
1,575
636
2,211
27,670
2023
£
47,432
17,969
65,401		 £
41,172
5,000
7,019
53,191
7,384
4,452
65,027
42,000
23,401
65,401
18,000
15,380
22,350
3,968
7,860
67,558
24,039
12,697
1,720
200
1,397
185
2,674
1,575
1,180
4,052
49,719
247,705
2022
£
2,210
42,000
1,660
3,831
5,625
1,000
6,250
1,000
_Planned Giving:_Donations
Income Tax Accrual

12

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2023

4 Church Expenses

2023 2023 2023 2023 2022
Unrestricted Funds Restricted Total Total
General Designated Funds
£ £ £ £ £ £
Heating and Lighting 5,558 5,558 4,613
Insurance 6,139 6,139 5,918
Sanctuary Supplies 4,115 4,115 3,183
Music 28,277 28,277 27,553
Cleaning 5,012 5,012 4,863
Repairs and Maintenance 6,531 556 7,087 1,753
Items of Equipment (see Note 13) 1,864 15,325 17,189 735
Curate housing rental 13,825 13,825
Deputisation 43
Flowers 1,094 1,094 1,371
Traidcraft 1,015 1,015 603
Depreciation 994 1,506 2,500 1,995
Sundry 900 900 153
Miscellaneous 1,954 1,954 811
Independent Examiner Fee 700 700 450
Coffee expenses 508 508
Bank etc charges 538 538 516
Course fee 1,250 1,250 150
78,280 - 19,381 97,661 54,710
5 Parish Expenses 2023 2023 2023 2022
£ £ £ £ £ £
Office Administration 5,309 5,309 5,636
Parish Administrator 15,314 15,314 14,415
Clergy Expenses 4,867 4,867 3,334
Rectory 4,239 4,239 3,561
Children and Families' Worker 5,550 5,550 9,240
Young People 1,033 1,033 1,942
Magazine
Social Events 398 398 592
17 Chaucer Court
Maintenance 316
Service Charge, Ground Rent etc 2,457
Agent Fees etc 2,160 4,933 4,933 5,469
St Catherine's House
Maintenance 4,104
Insurance 694
Agent Fees etc 2,682 7,480 7,480 3,798
209 Stoughton Rd
Maintenance 655
Insurance 360
Agent Fees etc 1,845 2,860 2,860 4,637
51,983 - - 51,983 52,624
6 Community Centre Expenses 2023 2023 2023 2022
£ £ £ £ £
Heat, Light, Water 3,913 3,913 3,200
Insurance 1,622 1,622 1,489
Repairs and Maintenance 2,789 2,789 952
Cleaning etc. 6,959 6,959 6,365
Purchases, Coffee, Sherry, etc. 0 410
15,283 - - 15,283 12,416

13

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2023

7 Special Collections and Donations Made

Monthly Good Cause Collected Paid
£ £
January The Children's Society 63.02 63.02
February Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice 22.00 22.00
March
April		 The Bishop of Gfd's Foundation
The Bishop of Gfd's Foundation		 373.00 373.00
May Oakleaf 60.00 60.00
June Real Change Gfd 70.05 70.05
July
August		 USPG 41.00 41.00
September WaterAid 95.20 95.20
October SoBS 238.50 238.50
November SERV Surrey 92.00 92.00
December The Children's Society 711.00 711.00
Sub-Total 1,765.77 1,765.77
Others:
Lent Lunches The Bishop of Gfd's Foundation 791.60 791.60
Sales of Produce USPG
Friday Lunches USPG 440.00 440.00
Summer Fayre
St. Nicolas School 3,000.00
St. Nicolas School, key rings 180.00 180.00
YMCA
Town Centre Chaplaincy
The Matrix Trust
Luncheon Vouchers / Guildford Action 442.80 442.80
U3A concert DEC - Ukraine 374.87 400.00
bring and buy Macmillan Cancer Support 281.00 281.00
i.m.o… Sylvia Jenner / Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice 176.00 176.00
Guildford Bellringers
Sub-Total 2,686.27 5,711.40
Total: 4,452.04 7,477.17
Total:

14

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2023

Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2023
Note £ £
8 Movements in Reserves
UNRESTRICTED FUNDS:
General Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2023 26,020
Surplus (Deficit) for the year (7,945)
18,075
Designated Funds:
Hope Baillie Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2023 262,820
Gain/(Loss) on Revaluation 24,727
287,547
St Catherine's House Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2023 900,000
17 Chaucer Court Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2023 300,000
209 Stoughton Road Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2023 375,000
RESTRICTED FUNDS:
Chancel Re-Ordering
Balance as at 1st January 2023 7,250
Organ
Donations Received 5,974
Expenditure (900) 5,074
Chairs
Balance as at 1st January 2023 3,831
Donation received 11,494
Purchase of Chairs (15,325) (3,831)
Piano 0
Balance as at 1st January 2023 5,524
Donation Received 500
Depreciation (1,506) (1,006)
4,518
Flowers Fund
Balance as at 1st January 2023 355
Add
Contributions Received		 1,575
Less
Purchases		 (1,094) 481
Hazelden Fund 836
Balance as at 1st January 2023 65,912
Add
Interest earned		 3,038
Less
Maintenance		 (555) 2,483
68,395
Tuesday Group
Balance as at 1st January 2023 311
Café Play
Balance as at 1st January 2023 135
Receipts 1
Bellringers Fund 136
Balance as at 1st January 2023 3,956
Add
Contributions received		 635
**4,591 **

15

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2023

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 2023 2023 2022 2022
£ £ £ £
Prepayments
Insurance 3,347 3,020
New church chairs 3,831
Others
Sundry Debtors		 338 3,685 38 6,889
Deposit paid on Curate's house 2,278
Rent withheld by agent 600
Planned Giving Tax Accrual
CBF interest accrual		 5,000
1,169		 8,447
**12,132 **		 600 1,200
8,089
11 Sundry Creditors and Accrued Expenses 2023 2023 2022 2022
£ £ £ £
Accrued Expenses
Donations 3,000 5,969
Electricity 536 296
Gas 901 930
Sundry Creditors 110 220
Repayments re piano loans 3,025
Professional Charges 700 8,272 700 8,115
Deferred Income
Rent received early 1,135 1,113
**9,407 ** 9,228

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, Iain Ferguson. and Revd Neil Roberts..

13 Purchases of Equipment 2023 2023 2022
£ £
Screen room divider 601
2 x TV stands 99
3 x Banners 270
Display board 289
Storage box 466
Vacuum cleaner 139
130 chairs 15,325
Cross and nails 88
Giving station 450
Pavement sign holder 50
Water butt 52
Sundry tools 95
17,189 735

16

Parish Church of St Nicolas Guildford Notes forming part of the accounts to 31 December 2023

14 Employees and staff costs

The average number of employees during the year was 3 (2022 : 3). The average number of employees during the year was 3 (2022 : 3). 2023 2022
The total cost of employing these (part-time) staff was:
£ £
Salaries 35,146 33,074
The charity employees work on a combination of charitable activities and administrative matters.
15 Traidcraft 2023 2023 2022 2022
Activity in Traidcraft goods during 2023 was as follows: £ £ £ £
Income from Sales 1,180 613
less:
Purchases		 (1,015) (603)
Opening Stock (96) (84)
Closing Stock as at 31 Dec 2023 0 95
movement in cash on hand (33) (1,144) 22 (570)
net surplus/(deficit) for the year 36 43
16 Governance Costs 2023 2022
£ £
Independent Examiner's Remuneration 450 450
17 Coffee etc Account 2023 2023 2022 2022
£ £ £
Opening balance 16 25
Receipts - 3
Paid to PCC general account (16) (16) (12) (9)
0 16
18 Music 2023 2022
£ £
Director of Music, salary 13,010 12,270
Purchase / hire of music 464 609
RSCM membership fee 127 110
Organ maintenance, piano tuning 1,291 1,291
Foundation Choristers 11,325 11,320
Musicians 1,950 1,690
Sundry 109 263
28,276 27,553

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 £15,610. No other members of the PCC nor any parties connected with them received any remuneration during the year.

Expenses amounting to £4,867 incurred by the Rector and the Curate in carrying out their pastoral duties were re-imbursed to them 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 2023

20 Previous Year Statement of Financial Activities

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

Note 2022 2022 2022 2022
Unrestricted Funds Restricted Total
General Designated Funds
£ £ £ £
Incoming Resources
Given by the Congregation 2,7 54,502 6,241 60,743
Donations and Bequests 3 45,870 17,706 63,576
Investments etc. Income 62,963 859 63,822
Other Income 35,215 1,911 37,126
Total Incoming Resources 2 198,550 - 26,717 225,267
Resources Expended
Church Expenses 4 52,085 2,625 54,710
Parish Expenses 5 52,624 52,624
Community Centre Expenses 6 12,416 12,416
Parish Share 77,883 77,883
Donations Made 7 5,190 6,241 11,431
Total Resources Expended 200,198 - 8,866 209,064
Net Incoming Resources for the Year (1,648) 0 17,851 16,203
Gains/(losses) on Investments 8,9 (35,067) (35,067)
Revaluation gains/(losses) on Properties
Funds as at 1 January 2022 27,668 1,872,887 69,423 1,969,978
Transfers between Funds
Funds as at 31 December 2022 26,020 1,837,820 87,274 1,951,114
Allocation to Funds of
Net Incoming Resources 8
General (1,648) (1,648)
Chancel Re-ordering 7,250 7,250
Chairs 3,831 3,831
Piano 5,524 5,524
Flowers Fund 225 225
Hazelden Fund 737 737
Bellringers' Fund (1,648) 0 284
17,851		 284
16,203
Transfers Between Funds 8
General (600) (600)
Comm Centre & Loseley Chapel Redvpmt (600) 600
600		 - 600
-

18

MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING OF ST NICOLAS’ CHURCH HELD ON SUNDAY 26[th] MARCH 2023 AT 11:45AM

In the absence of Fr Neil, Darrol Radley chaired the meeting. Members of the Electoral Roll attended in person and online.

The Chair asked Fr Nick Edwards to open the meeting with prayer.

Part 1

Part 2 Election of Churchwardens

----- Start of picture text -----
3 The minutes of the meeting held on 3 [rd] April 2022 were approved unanimously as a correct record.
The minutes were signed by the Chair.
4 Cath, as PCC Secretary, explained that Darrol had already served six years as Churchwarden and
would not normally be permitted to stand for a further year. She proposed that the meeting bypass
Section 2(1) of the Churchwardens’ Measures 2001 to enable Darrol to stand. This was seconded
by Catherine Ferguson and approved unanimously.
Election of Churchwardens:
Hilary Fletcher was proposed by Jana Phillips and seconded by Cath Anderson.
Darrol Radley was proposed by Jonathan Neil-Smith and seconded by John Hutchinson.
Both nominees had confirmed their willingness to stand. The meeting voted unanimously that they
be appointed for the year ahead.
Darrol wished to reflect on our loss during the year of Linda Barnes, his fellow churchwarden. He
recalled how they worked so well together and how he could not have got through the interregnum
without her. He thanked Linda for her contribution and wished that she Rest in Peace which was
echoed by the meeting.
----- End of picture text -----

Part 3 Annual Parochial Church Meeting

Cath made a report on the Electoral Roll: at the start of the meeting there were 132 on the roll - 54 in the parish, 73 outside the parish and 5 in category C. There had been 4 deletions from the roll and 8 additions.

Darrol commented that this is a small indication of how we are moving forward as a parish. Catherine wished to make a correction to the Rector’s report which stated that the church had been there since 1308, commenting that it was much earlier than that – 1160/1170.

8 Finance.

In Patrick’s absence, Iain Ferguson presented the accounts.

He firstly thanked Patrick for his huge contribution as Treasurer over the last 30+ years, praising his skill and commitment to the role. He also thanked David Coom as he stepped down from his role as Planned Giving Officer, wishing him and Marian all our best wishes. Darrol also wished to thank David Sharpin for stepping in to the role.

Iain spoke to presentation slides – see Appendix 2. He referred to the Treasurer’s Report which showed a deficit of £1,648, following a contribution of £42,000 from the Dorothy Grover Trust. This means that there was an operating deficit of £44,000. It is pleasing to note that this is an improvement on the previous year. Our income from use of the church and parish centre increased, together with a small but welcome increase in planned giving. It was also very good to see a return of the contribution from Cards for Good Causes run by Darrol and Andy Anderson. Our expenditure in 2021 had included our contribution of £20,000 to refurbishing the Rectory prior to Fr Neil’s arrival. Iain gave a breakdown of how our income was derived: 33% planned giving and collections; 7% from use of the church and parish centre, and 6% from bequests and other donations. So 46% of 2022 income came from the living community. Just over half is derived from legacies, investment and properties. It is right that we should remember them, people such as Hope Baillie, Brian Elkington, Helen Painting, Bill Cox and many others. 25% of total income is derived from the one bequest of Dorothy Grover, left in 1978.

46% of expenditure is for parish share, paid to the diocese and that pays for salaries and pensions, external maintenance of the Rectory etc. The next biggest expenditure is the spending on the parish and church - running the buildings, the office, maintenance, cleaning etc. Music makes up 16% of our spending and does so much to enrich our worship and the life of our church. The Children & Families worker took 7% of expenditure – this was for just half a year as Liam left during the year. 3% of expenditure is donations to charities, the majority going to the school. The operational deficit of £44,000

Without the Dorothy Grover Trust we would not be where we are today. The income from her legacy continues to be an important part of our life at St Nicolas’. The trustees are Peter Oldroyd, David Coom and Iain Ferguson. The DGT has a target of giving £60,000 per year to the church, whilst preserving the capital. £42,000 of that supports running costs whilst the balance goes towards funding PCC projects such as new boilers, new roof of St George’s Chapel, sacristy upgrade and new chairs. We owe Dorothy Grover a huge debt of gratitude.

Just to operate the church and centre, it costs us £950 per week. Our parish share is £1500 per week. £750 is spent on music and the children and families worker and we spend £100 on donations to charity (the monthly collections totalling c£6,000 in 2022 are not included in the figures). In total therefore we spend £3,300 per week and the congregation give about a third of that.

Looking ahead we hope for greater income from third-party use of the church and parish centre, extended use of the church (now weekly) by the Romanian Orthodox Church and hopefully an increasing trend in planned giving. We will have increased expenditure as we will have a new Curate and need to house him. We fundamentally believe that having a curate here really adds to the life of our parish. We are also recruiting a new Children & Families Worker jointly with the URC. Our projected deficit of £60,000 will be wholly taken up by donations from the DGT. However, Fr Neil – has set us a challenge to cover our parish share giving. This is the greatest thing that we can do as

a congregation. If we want to ensure that there are people after us, we need to close the gap. Iain
concluded by thanking those generous givers in our congregation and community.
The piano was financed by donations and loans and this is a novel way to raise funds which we might
use in the future.
Iain highlighted to PCC members some slight changes to the accounts as approved at the last
meeting, relating to wording of policies, notes etc and a note re financing of the piano. The numbers
remain unchanged.
Darrol thanked Iain for his presentation given in such a clear manner.
David Greenwood asked if it would be helpful to give regular givers an indication of how much they
should increase their giving by. Iain replied that as giving is £1100 per week and to cover parish
share, £1500 per week is needed, this is an increase of 35%. However, it is for each of us to look at
what we can do. Fr Neil and David Sharpin will want conversations more directly with people.
Maureen Hibberd thanked Iain for explaining the Dorothy Grover Trust which we have never really
understood before.
Caroline Coleman proposed that the meeting formally adopt the accounts which was seconded by
David Greenwood. This was agreed unanimously.
The reappointment of Julian Ansell as our Independent Examiner was proposed by Philip Hooper and
seconded by Tilly Sharpin. This was agreed unanimously.
Darrol expressed his appreciation to the Finance Advisory Committee and their overview of our
finances,ablychaired byIain Ferguson.		 o
9 Elections to the PCC:
There were four vacancies for a term of three years each, one vacancy for a term of two years and
three vacancies for a term of 1 year. The following nominations had been received.
Wendy Gabriel: proposed by Cath Anderson and seconded by Jo Radley.
David Greenwood: proposed by Jonathan Neil-Smith and seconded by John Hutchinson.
John Hutchinson: proposed by Jo Radley and seconded by Darrol Radley.
Stuart Murdoch: proposed by Catherine Ferguson and seconded by Iain Ferguson.
Jonathan Neil-Smith: proposed by Jo Radley and seconded by Darrol Radley.
Jo Radley: proposed by Linda Sharpin and seconded by Donald Thompson.
Steve Reeds: proposed by David Sharpin and seconded by Darrol Radley.
Phil Thomas: proposed by Cath Anderson and seconded by Hilary Fletcher.
All were duly elected. It was agreed that they would indicate to Cath their preference in terms of
length of service and would be informed of the outcome in due course.
Darrol wished to record his thanks to Catherine Ferguson and David Coom for their service on the
PCC. Catherine is now our Custos, guardian of the historyof the church.
10 Elections to Deanery Synod:
There were three vacancies. The following nominations had been received.
Linda Sharpin: proposed by Cath Anderson and seconded by Darrol Radley.
Donald Thompson: proposed by Linda Sharpin and seconded by Darrol Radley.
Darrol confirmed to Andrew Rustell that as he sits on Diocesan Synod, he is therefore a member of
Deanery Synod.
Linda and Donald were dulyelected.
11 Darrol read out the names of sides-people. The names are received at the APCM but he urged
undertake this role to speak to a churchwarden. Appointment can then be made at a future PCC

meeting.

Fr Nick closed the meeting with a blessing.

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