## **The Parochial Church Council Of** 

## **St Philip & St James Hucclecote** 

**Annual Report and Accounts Year ended 31st December 2022** 

1 



## **Priest in charge report 2022** 

At the end of this year I think we can finally say this is the year that we began to move beyond Covid and the restrictions it placed on us as a worshipping community. I can say without doubt that leading a church through this pandemic has been one of the toughest roles I have ever had to take on in ministry. It has been demanding in ways I never expected, but the hardest part has been the way it put a complete stop to the vision and direction we had begun to travel as a church. You may remember that towards the end of 2019 we had begun to reshape our church community around discipleship and evangelism and we had invested a serious amount of time and energy into that vision. Overnight we had to move from an attitude of outreach to survival. This year we have begun to be able to assess where we are, and the truth is this. We are lower in numbers, we are tired and stretched, but we are still here and we believe God still has plans and purposes for us. Indeed, we have seen some real hope in the ministries of this church, many of the people involved in these ministries have been willing to seek God’s vision for our growth and embrace a desire to see God at work in us and through us. 

I do not know what lies ahead for us as a church, I am sure 2023 will bring us some serious challenges and opportunities. It is up to us as a church to share this call and ministry together. To step up to the challenges, to seize the opportunities. It will take each and every one of us to ask the question, how is God calling me to minister at this time, and perhaps being willing to respond to God’s call in ways we have not done before, or did not expect to do again. The fact that you are reading this means that you have stuck with this church through a really tough time, thank you for that, let’s pray that God will lead his people in this place into the mission and ministry he has for his church here. 

## **Mark Close** 

## **Churchwardens Report** 

2022 has been a year of consolidation and trying new things after two years of disruption as a result of the pandemic. We would like to express our thanks to Mark as he continues to lead us, and to Miriam, Duncan, Jane and Tim who support Mark. All make a huge contribution to the life of our church and have valuable insights into how we can reach out to the local community. Our thanks are also expressed to Liz in the office as she has continued to go above and beyond the call of duty in ensuring that the administrative side of the church is always in order. 

As a church we also need to be thankful for the many people who voluntarily give of their time and talents to ensure that things run smoothly. The treasurer’s job is huge – thank you Lee for sorting out the many issues you have faced over the last year, for keeping the accounts up to date and ensuring the PCC is informed of where we are and the challenges we will face. Thank you also to Tom and Graham for continuing to try and keep up with the myriad of maintenance jobs that seem to be never ending. Graham has now had to step back from the practical work – thank you Graham for your many years of service to this church. New volunteers are required to continue with the ongoing maintenance; the alternative is that we bring in contractors and pay for work to be done. There are many other people who contribute to the life of the church and who volunteer week after week to help services run smoothly, provide refreshments, set up beautiful flowers and a myriad of other things – thank you all. 

## **Rhianydd Warren and Peggy Brown Churchwardens 2022** 

3 



## **TRUSTEES REPORT** 

## **Administrative Information** 

St Philip & St James is situated in Larkhay Road, Hucclecote, Gloucester. It is part of the Diocese of Gloucester within the Church of England. 

The correspondence address is: Church Office Stone Building 18 Larkhay Road Hucclecote Gloucester GL3 3 NS Telephone: 01452 372177 Website: www.hucclecotechurch.org E mail: stpandstj.hucc@mail.com Bankers: National Westminster Bank 21 Eastgate Street Gloucester GL1 1NY Independent Examiner: Janet Wilce 

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) is a charity registered with the Charity Commission. PCC members who have served from 1st January 2022 until the date this report was approved are on page 5. 

4 



## STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT PCC 2022- 2023 (after APCM on April 6th 2022) 

Incumbent Revd Mark Close Chair from September 2017 Ex-Officio Revd Duncan Hutchison Curate from June 2020 Revd Miriam Davis Ordained Local Minister (OLM) from June 2021 Wardens Mrs Rhianydd Warren re -elected 2022 Mrs Peggy Brown re-elected 2022 Deanery Mrs Jean Thomas re-elected 2020.    For 3 years Synod Mrs Doreen McLellan re-elected 2020.    For 3 years One vacancy 

Elected Members of the PCC   ( up to 12 in number ) 

Mr Chris Brookes re-elected 2022 Mrs Marion Cook elected 2020. Mrs Josie Cumberbatch elected 2022 Mrs Pat Dabbs elected 2022 Canon Margaret Edwards re-elected 2021 Safeguarding Officer and PCC Secretary Mr John Grime re-elected 2022 Mr Mike Madigan re-elected 2020 resigned  Sept 2022 Mrs Joy Noah re-elected 2021 Electoral Roll Officer Mrs Judy Preece re-elected  2020 Mrs Jane Stock elected 2022 Mr Lee Thornton elected 2020. Treasurer 

Co-opted  member   Dr Alison Dight from July 2022 

1  vacancy on PCC and 1 Synod vacancy 

The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. All church attendees are encouraged to register on the electoral roll and stand for election to the PCC. 

The PCC is supported in its work by teams whose views and recommendations are taken into account by the PCC when making many decisions. 

5 



## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES** 

St Philip & St James PCC has the responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent in promoting the parish, the whole mission of the church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. It also has the maintenance responsibilities for St Philip & St James Church and associated property.  The PCC is registered with the Charity Commissioners and all members of PCC are Trustees of the Charity; as such Hucclecote PCC must adhere to Charity Commission rules and regulations. 

## **2022** 

For most of this year, pandemic rules of Covid-19 have been lifted and from March, services have returned to being in church, albeit with many remaining cautious of close contact with one another.  Diocesan guidelines for the administration of Holy Communion have been followed as a precaution against spreading germs and this continues until the present time (March 2023). 

The normal pattern of Sunday services on Sunday has resumed, with 8.30am Holy Communion every week and Morning Worship for most Sundays with a Communion on the 2nd Sunday of the month, and an evening service of Worship and Word on the 3rd Sunday of each month. 

## **Additional services in 2022** 

2nd March - Ash Wednesday 14th April - Maundy Thursday 15th April - Good Friday 6th November - Memorial service 

## **Christmas Activities** 

Messy Christmas -  a very packed church once again and the tree was decorated Christmas Make It - a fun evening of Christmas crafts 

Nativity on a Lorry - icy conditions prevented some from taking part but we hosted the refreshments on 15th December Carols at the Pub -  The Wagon & Horses had invited church members to sing, on 15th December Carol Service -  Sunday 18th December 

Crib Service -  held on Christmas Eve afternoon 

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day - Holy Communion services as usual. 

## **Achievements and performance** 

Sunday attendance figures have started to rise during the year but the numbers are still less than pre-pandemic ones. Following the PCC Away Day in July, leaders of our church  activities have been asked to take as many opportunities as possible to share our faith with those attending these groups, and so making us more ‘outward facing’ in all we do, as was the Mission plan at the end of 2019, before the Global pandemic and subsequent lockdown. 

## **Margaret Edwards** 

6 



## **PCC MEETINGS** 

It is usual for the PCC to meet bi-monthly and the Standing Committee (Vicar, Curate, OLM, Treasurer, Churchwardens, PCC Secretary and Administrator) meet on the alternate months; the latter group discuss the general running of the church and the financial status together with any areas of concern and then makes recommendations to the PCC for further discussion. 

PCC Agenda items always include a financial report, Safeguarding issues and updates as well as reports from  the Standing Committee, the Mission team and Deanery Synod. 

At the APCM on April 6th, Rhianydd Warren and Peggy Brown were elected to stand as Churchwardens for the year 2022-2023 and the PCC elections were as follows: Chris Brookes and John Grime were re-elected for a further 3 years and newly elected were Josie Cumberbatch, Pat Dabbs and Jane Stock.  The remaining vacancy and the vacancy on Deanery Synod were not filled.  The Electoral Roll was 101. 

The Statutory and essential reports had been accepted and adopted by the PCC at the meeting on March 9th 2022 in readiness for the APCM. 

Tom Brown has continued to carry out inspections of the church buildings and grounds , carries out repairs as necessary and sets the heating clocks in season. This valuable work is much appreciated. The PCC held an Away Day on Saturday 16th July, led by Revd. Canon Dr. Sandra Millar. 

The secretary would like to thank PCC members for their commitment to their duties and attendance at meetings. Also, huge thanks must go to those who volunteer for our church services and the many regular activities taking place on the church site or the ones off-site but under the church umbrella. The giving of time and talents by so many volunteers, means that we can honour God in all we do as a worshipping community. 

Margaret Edwards 

7 



## **STATUTORY REPORTS** 

## **FINANCIAL REVIEW 2022** 

This is the first full year that the church’s usual services, activities and events were not directly disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. Total receipts in 2022 were £126,969 and total payments were £130,292, giving and overall deficit across unrestricted, restricted and designated funds of £3,323. This was expected with certain building repair work to the church deferred again. 

If the Community garden restricted fund activity is excluded then the deficit would have been £5,165 

## **Receipts** 

The largest amount of the church’s incomes continues to be from planned giving and other donations. The regular planned giving has remained fairly static, but there was a reduction in non-recurring giving. Overall voluntary income in 2022 was £96,720 compared to £102,145 in 2021. 

The amounts generated from hall lettings increased from £8,637 in 2021 to £10,587 in 2022. With the Community Garden, grants totaling £8,000 were received; the balance for money that has not been spent during the year is held in a restricted fund and will support this initiative in the future. 

## **Expenditure** 

The largest item of expenditure was the Parish Share of £65,256 which is paid to the Diocese to help provide for churches and clergy (this was an increase from 2021 of £4,293) 

Church running costs have increased, and reflect the church being open for a full year post Covid and additional expenditure with for instance weekly cleaning costs. 

A total of £9,687 was donated as part of our tithe, in line with the budget to: OMF International, Gloucester City Mission, Gloucester Foodbank, Scripture Union, a partner church (Mwilanvya in the Diocese of Western Tanganyika, Tanzania) and all to support four students at Lake Tanganyika Theological College. 

Overall spending was lower than budgeted as a number of repairs were again deferred. The Community Garden spend is covered by grants received. 

## **Reserves** 

It is the policy of the PCC to maintain a balance of Unrestricted Funds that equates to a minimum of two months’ operating costs, and this is comfortably met.  Following the PCC decision in 2019, the designated essential maintenance fund was topped up by £3000 from general funds. 

## **Finance Team** 

Approved by the PCC on 8th March 2023 

8 



|**Parochial Church Council of Hucclecote**|**Parochial Church Council of Hucclecote**||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||||||||
|**Statement of asset and liability balances as at 31st December 2022**|||||||
||||||||
|||**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**|**Restricted**<br>**Funds**|**Designated**<br>**Funds**|**31.12.22**|**31.12.21**|
|||**£**|**£**|||**£**|
||||||||
|**Charitable Funds**|||||||
||||||||
|**Restricted Funds**|||||||
||Ann Smith Bequest|0|4,352|0|4,352|4,352|
||Boiler|0|20|0|20|20|
||Building|0|59,720|0|59,720|58,996|
||Children Worker|0|4,264|0|4,264|4,234|
||Churchyard Maintenance|0|11|0|11|11|
||CommunityGarden|0|4,763|0|4,763|4,000|
||Local Mission|0|1,643|0|1,643|1,837|
||Music & Worship|0|891|0|891|891|
||Olive Withycombe|0|301|0|301|304|
||Tanzania|0|1,669|0|1,669|1,276|
||PCC Fund|0|4,850|0|4,850|6,112|
||Wardens|0|500|0|500|500|
||||||||
|**Designated Funds**|||||||
||Church Centre|0|0|120,000|120,000|120,000|
||Depreciation Fund|0|0|2,221|2,221|2,221|
||CommunityGarden|0|0|0|0|920|
||Computer Fund|0|0|1,785|1,785|1,785|
||Essential Maintenance|0|0|13,654|13,654|14,568|
||Coffee Pot|0|0|349|349|243|
||TeddyBears|0|0|2,419|2,419|2,724|
||Treasurers|0|0|4,525|4,525|4,525|
||Social Fund|0|0|1,477|1,477|1,477|
||MessyChurch|0|0|610|610|0|
||||||||
|**Unrestricted Fund**|General Fund|35,960|0|0|35,960|38,320|
||||||||
|||35,960|82,984|147,040|265,984|269,316|
||||||||
||||||||
|**Represented By**|||||||
||Bank Term Deposit Accounts|0|0|0|0|63,069|
||Bank Current Accounts|35,960|82,984|27,040|145,984|87,035|
||PettyCash|0|0|0|0|0|
||||||||
||Total Bank and Cash|35,960|82,984|27,040|145,984|150,104|
||||||||
||||||||
|**Liabilities**|Creditors|0|0|0|0|784|
||||||||
||||||||
|**Net Current Assets**||35,960|82,984|27,040|145,984|149,320|
||||||||
|**Fixed Assets retained by the charity**|||||||
||Land and Buildings at historic cost|0|0|120,000|120,000|120,000|
||||||||
|**Total Net Assets**||35,960|82,984|147,040|265,984|269,320|
||||||||
||||||||



9 



|**Parochial Church Council of Hucclecote**||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||||
|**Receipts and Payments Account for theyear ending 31st December 2022**||||||
|||||||
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**|**Restricted**<br>**Funds**|**Designated**<br>**Funds**|**2022 Total**|**2021 Total**|
||**£**|**£**|**£**|**£**|**£**|
|||||||
|**Receipts**||||||
|||||||
|**Voluntary Income**||||||
|Tax efficientplannedgiving|71,255|0|0|71,255|71,140|
|Otherplannedgiving|6,060|600|5|6,665|6,760|
|Othergivingand donations - non-recurring|1,686|0|325|2,011|6,541|
|Othergivingand donations - recurring|0|0|0|0|0|
|Special appeals|0|0|0|0|0|
|All tax recovered through Gift Aid|16,739|0|50|16,789|17,704|
|Legacies received|0|0|0|0|0|
|Non-recurring grants|0|8,000|0|8,000|4,000|
|||||||
|**Activities for Generating Funds**||||||
|Fund raisingevents|206|0|0|206|0|
|Hall lettings|10,587|0|0|10,587|8,637|
|Income from  other church activities|768|0|1,075|1,843|408|
|||||||
|**Investment Income**||||||
|Dividends and interest|166|753|0|919|488|
|||||||
|**Income from Charitable Activities**||||||
|Total Parochial Fees income|0|7,800|0|7,800|5,884|
|Service fee reimbursement|0|0|0|0|0|
|||||||
|**Other Incoming Resources**||||||
|Insurance claims|0|0|0|0|1,739|
|Other income|599|70|225|894|129|
|||||||
|**Total Receipts**|108,066|17,223|1,680|126,969|123,430|
|||||||
|||||||
|**Expenditure**||||||
|||||||
|**Charitable Activities**||||||
|Fundraisingcosts||||||
|Donations/grants to charities & missiongiving|9,480|207|0|9,687|9,972|
|Local mission & evangelismprojects|0|6,158|1,299|7,457|2,582|
|Parish share|65,256|0|0|65,256|60,963|
|Clergyexpenses|1,082|0|0|1,082|912|
|Church runningcosts|14,217|370|3,148|17,735|12,581|
|Churchyard maintenance|1,896|0|816|2,712|3,180|
|Children/youth work costs|103|0|1,191|1,294|631|
|Parochial fees|0|4,642||4,642|3,550|
|||||||
|**Management and Administration**||||||
|Salaries and wages|11,480|0|0|11,480|10,167|
|Support costs|0|0|0|0|326|
|Administration costs|2,163|0|0|2,163|2,608|
|Insurance costs|3,740|0|0|3,740|3,650|
|Sundryexpenses|1,107|757|1,180|3,044|2,530|
|||||||
|**Total Expenditure**|110,524|12,134|7,634|130,292|113,653|
|||||||
|**Receipts over Expenditure**|-2,458|5,089|-5,954|-3,323|9,777|
|||||||
|**Funds Opening Balance 1.1.2022**|38,320|82,534|148,466|269,320|259,542|
|||||||
|**Funds Closing Balance 31.12.2022**|35,862|87,623|142,512|265,997|269,319|



10 



CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGLAND AND WALES
Independent examinerfs
report on the accounts
Section A
Independent Examiner's Report
Report to the tru5ts051
m•mbors of
Th• Paro¢hlal Church Coun¢ll of 8t Phlllp &8t Jam•s Church, HuGclocot•.
a1￿C•s1*r
On •ccwnts torth• y￿1
•nd•d
31-Decsmb8r-2022
Charlty no
Irf aftyl
1133978
Sot out on pages
I report to the trustees on my èx3minats.on ofthe accourts ofthe above
charity I'thg Tnjsfl for the year endwj 31nw 2022
R•spon$ibiliti•s and As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are rasponsible for the preparnlion
basls ol r•port of the accounts in accor<lan¢e with the requirements of Ihg Charitiès Act
2011 Iyhe Acri.
I report in iespe¢t of my oxaminaknjn ofthe Trusys accounts carried OLrt
under section 145 01th& 2011 Act and in carrying out my examinth'on. I
have followed the aFpli¢abb Dir8¢tions given by the Charity Comwni$$ion
under section 14515llbl of the Act.
I havo completed my examination. I confimi that no material matters hav8
com8 to my attention in ¢onne¢tson the examination which gives mg
cause to believe that in, any material respect..
accountsng fec(Y<l$ Mere not kept in accordanra wilh seaion 130 of
the Aci 01
the aC￿unts do not aco)rd with the accounting re¢ords
Inde￿ndont
examinerfs st4tsm•nt
I have no concerns and have come acn)ss no other matters in connection
with the examination to which attention should dfawn in order to enab
proFew understanding of the a¢￿Unts to ￿athed.
' Please delets the in the brdckets rfthey do not apply.
Slgned:
J Wlce
Dat•:
2310112023
N•m•:
Janpt Wl
Rel•vant profvssional
quallficationl51 or body
Ilf any)..
Addross:
IER
Octolxr 2018
li

## **DEANERY SYNOD** 

The Deanery Synod representatives are Jean Thomas and Doreen McLellan. 

During the year there was a lot of further discussion of the Deanery Strategic Plan (DSP) and at the February meeting we were introduced to the facilitator for the Gloucester City Deanery – Revd. Canon Professor James Woodward, Principal of Sarum College.  Following a short presentation, he took responses from the floor regarding hopes for the DSP and, towards the end of the business meeting there was discussion on the next steps for the DSP. 

In April a facilitated day was held to discuss the DSP.  Following this, Rev. Jo Pestell produced a document for Deanery Synod covering what has been done so far and what the next stages are. 

At the April Deanery Synod meeting the speaker was Canon Rachel Howie, Diocesan Director of Education.  As well as acknowledging the many links parishes have with schools, she shared ideas and resources to help develop links further – and how we can all help.  At this meeting Les Reilly stood down as Lay Chair. 

The June meeting began with a Eucharist, followed by a short business meeting.  At this meeting Mary Gould was elected as Lay Chair and Andy Wilson as Deputy Lay Chair.  There was an update on the DSP. 

At the November meeting the speaker was Barrie Voyce, Senior Youth Connector for the Diocese of Gloucester.  He outlined his role of overseeing what is happening in the Diocese and his aim to have a team of Youth Connectors.  There was discussion regarding the challenges facing young people today.  A first draft of the DSP was presented to the business part of the meeting.  Comments were invited and the draft will go to the Deanery Standing Committee, which will produce a first version for circulation to PCCs. 

## **Doreen McLellan** 

12 



**Church Fabric Statutory Report** 

**Care of Churches and Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction Measures 1991** 

## **St Philip and St James Church, Hucclecote** 

## **CHURCH FABRIC REPORT 2022** 

Generally speaking, the church is in a good state of repair.  However, there are areas which continue to be of concern. Most significant, and visible, are the areas of black mould on the walls and flaking paint in a number of areas of the walls in the nave and chancel. The recent cold weather resulted in there being large amounts of paint flakes on the carpet throughout the church. Having gained permission from the DAC to re-decorate, attempts to find contractors to carry out this work have so far been unsuccessful. The areas in the chancel where the plaster had become detached from the walls were repaired during the year. Repairs to the inner vestry ceiling were not completed as anticipated in 2022 and remain to be done along with the investigation of the damp patch on the inner vestry wall. 

There are a number of lights high in the nave which no longer work. However, the bulbs are no longer available and we may have to think of replacing the whole system as the dimmer control will not work with LED lamps. 

The porch gate was re-painted during the year to match the colour of the main gate. 

A baby change unit was fitted to the wall of the toilet area. 

General maintenance work is on-going and aims to identify issues and resolve them before they become major problems. A leak on a radiator pipe in the North Aisle was identified during the Christmas period which resulted in the carpet becoming very wet; a temporary ‘fix’ is in place and this is now being monitored and will be repaired later in the year when the heating is not in use. 

The gas safety inspection on the boiler was carried out in September and fire extinguishers have also been inspected. 

The external East wall, just below the coping stones, is deteriorating due to becoming damp and subsequent freeze / thaw action. This will have to be repaired. 

General grass cutting in the churchyard has continued on a once-a-month basis during 2022. Day to day tidying of graves and cremation plots continues; shrubs next to graves are pruned as necessary. Ivy on the yew trees on the south side of the churchyard was removed where possible. The boundary hedge was trimmed in the autumn. 

## **Churchwardens – Rhianydd Warren and Peggy Brown** 

13 



## **NON-STATUTORY REPORTS** 

## 1. **MINISTRY & LEADERSHIP** 

## **Ministry, leadership, Prayer and worship** 

A huge thank you to all those who have contributed to the leadership and ministry of the church over the last year. 

Thank you to Duncan, who has again been a great source of encouragement in his ministry as curate. We are so blessed to have him as part of the team here and we look forward to his curacy being completed soon. We are also so blessed to have Miriam and her wonderful gifts that she gives so freely, her preaching, leading and playing the organ are greatly valued. Jane has been a welcome addition to our preaching and leading teams and she has also been a real blessing to Judy and the Messy Church team. Messy Church continues to be a source of blessing and hope, a massive thank you for the whole team there, especially Judy. Tim has also continued to support our services where his work has allowed. We have also been blessed this year by our music groups Lee and Cecilia leading and the bands which support them. Thank you to everyone who has been part of the team that helps church happen Sunday by Sunday, without your willingness to be on rotas we would not be able to keep the services running. 

This year we have continued to move away from online worship, bringing our online morning prayer to an end and phasing out our live streaming of services. We felt that although being online was necessary during the pandemic, we were not able to continue to meet the demands of being both online and in person, and that the quality of what we could produce was not good enough to warrant the huge amount of time and energy that was going in to it. 

We have made an effort to increase the level of prayer that is happening in and around our church community. Near the end of the year we initiated a meeting to pray every Monday morning and once a month on a Wednesday evening. It is our belief that when our vision is limited we must turn to prayer, and so this is what we have done. 

Other changes we have made this year include a new evening service of worship and word, once a month and we have begun to reimagine our Sunday morning children’s work. 

## **Mark Close** 

## **2. PRAYER** 

## **Prayer** 

A group meets for prayer on a Saturday morning on-line from 9.00 till 10.00 on Zoom apart from the day of Messy Church when we meet in the church.  All are welcome please ask for details of login. Prayer is also on Monday morning at 9.00 and once a month on Wednesday evening at 7.00 in church. 

We attended a prayer breakfast on Saturday in January and prayed for different areas the church is involved in; this was led by Miriam. 

Members of the 10.30 prayer ministry are still available to pray after the service and also after communion. 

## **Chris Dale** 

14 



## **3. YOUTH & CHILDREN** 

## **Core Youth Group** 

Core is a youth group for 11-18 year olds. We meet one a month for 2 hours, in the Stone Building and the evening consists of prayer, Bible study, games, catching up and food! Numbers are unpredictable and we have a few older youth, of 17-18 years and a couple of younger ones at 11 years old. The age gap presents challenges, but in order to keep the group going we have opened it up to those at the start of secondary school. 

## **Amy Close** 

## **COFFEE POT** 

Coffee Pot meets on a Tuesday morning in term time, is based in the Church Centre and runs from 10.00am until 11.30am. 

The number of families fluctuates from week to week but the atmosphere is always welcoming and friendly. The children enjoy playing, doing craft, listening to a story and singing, with the highlight being rolling up the carpets at the end of the session. 

Sadly Trevor Henning, due to ill health, was unable to continue to help and has been missed by both the team and the families. 

Thanks to the whole team, Peggy Brown, Rhianydd Warren, Linda Weedon, Susan Taylor, Pat Peachey and Josie Cumberbatch who ensure that the families are supported and encouraged as part of the church ministry. 

## **The Coffee Pot Team** 

## **TEDDY BEARS Toddler Group** 

Our regular Friday morning sessions at Pineholt Village Hall remain very popular, with 15 families joining our team of helpers. We meet at 10.00am in term time, and the babies and toddlers enjoy the activities, a story, snack time and some singing, while the adults enjoy chatting to each other or to the volunteers. The older toddlers really enjoy helping us to clear away the toys and we struggle to get them out of the store cupboard.  Since September, we have introduced a homily after the story, allowing us to bring God into the session, even if the story is not a Biblical one and we also include a prayer and Grace before our snack time. The adults feel very comfortable now sharing their concerns and problems with us and we offer to pray with them if that feels appropriate.  It is a privilege to hold this activity and I am very grateful to the team for their commitment to Teddy Bears.  We gained an extra volunteer during the year, when her grandson went to Pre-school she asked if she could continue as a helper as she would miss it so much. 

## **Margaret Edwards (on behalf of the team - Kay Galling, Chris Scourfield, Susan Taylor, Jean Thomas, Wendy Vickers, Rhianydd Warren )** 

## **MMESSY CHURCH Report for 2022** 

If you ever wonder how you can make something edible illustrate a Bible story, then pop into Messy Church sometime and you will find out. Thanks to some very clever imagination and ingenuity a banana, some grapes and a pair of edible eyes are arranged into a picture of Zacchaeus peering out of a tree. Gingerbread men sporting icing bandages help to tell the healing of the lame man at the Beautiful Gate and yummy Rocky Road bars are the best thing to make when the story is The road to Damascus. 

The stories of Easter, Ascension and Pentecost involved the rolling of eggs on to a target, a helium balloon disappearing out of sight and the Vicar up a ladder dropping paper “flames” which spun gently to the floor. Each Messy Church has a dozen or more activities so that every child can find something that they enjoy doing. The happy buzz of voices on a Saturday afternoon is proof of this. 

15 



A large group of helpers (25-30) transform the church into a welcoming space for families who, in the main, have no church connection. After making lots of different things to take home we all come together for a time to celebrate, sing, hear (or see) a Bible story, reflect and pray. Whatever stage of their faith journey and whatever age they are, this is the time for them to experience church. 

We are so grateful to those who give faithful support through prayer, carrying tables, preparing food, serving hot drinks, manning a craft table, baking cakes and still finding the energy to help with clearing up at the end of the day. 

## **Judy Preece** 

## **OPEN the BOOK** 

There is no report for Open the Book because the team did not return to weekly assemblies at Hillview School until the start of 2023 

## **Dianne Brookes and team.** 

## **4. OUTREACH** 

## **Outreach** 

We continue to seek new ways to outreaching both to our community and also to the world through our mission partners. A massive thank you to Miriam and the mission team who have kept us focused on our mission partners both local and global, we have kept up to date with their various missions and ministries through updates and mission slots. 

One key area of outreach this year has been our launch of the foodbank hub in our church hall. It has been a joint venture of the Hub churches, mainly working with Hillview church, but we have had a good number of our church members involved also, and it has been an opportunity to show the love of God by service those most in need in our community. 

The community garden is another area of real growth and hope. Massive thanks to Alison and Alan who lead that ministry, and all who have got stuck in and help out regularly. It has been a real lifeline for many people and a place where love is shown and hope is felt. It is our hope that this ministry continues to bloom and bless the community. 

Many other people have been reached and supported this year through our other ministries, particularly through messy church and our parent and toddler groups. 

## **Mark Close** 

## **The HUB** 

Although the Hub has been limited in its function this year, we were able to continue with the NOAL (nativity on a lorry) this year, as well as sing carols at Christmas in the pub. The major activity of the Hub this year has been to work together to establish a Gloucester City Foodbank Hub on our site. It has been a real privilege to work together with the other Hub churches to serve the community in this way. 

## **Mark Close** 

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## **MISSION TEAM** 

In 2022 we continued to support our five mission links from the church tithe – The Diocese of Western Tangynika (four theological students, Lake Tanganyika Theological College in Kasulu and our link parish, Mwilanvya; OMF International and the Pawsons in Japan; Scripture Union UK and the 95 project; Gloucester City Mission and Gloucester Foodbank. 

1. The Pawsons moved in May 2022 from Sapporo, Hokkaido to Hanamaki on Japan’s main island of Honshu. They are still in the language and culture learning programme with some involvement in the OMF church planting team in a largely unchurched city.in a rural area. 

2. Kevin Howie visited on May 17[th] 2022 for our monthly mission slot and cash donations amounting to £58.64 were given by individuals on that day. In October a small group learnt a lot about the work of GCM through joining the monthly praise and prayer time Refuel; visiting the Revive café and the main office block Renew and hearing from members of staff. 

3. On July 24[th] we were due to welcome Bishop Emmanuel from the Diocese of Western Tanganyika and his wife Juslene for lunch and a programme following the Sunday morning service. Sadly, we were not able to welcome them in person due to delays in their visas. However, we went ahead with lunch a time of fellowship that was much enjoyed and did manage a live link with him during the afternoon. The quality of sound was very poor so we subsequently recorded a Zoom interview with Bishop Emmanuel while he was at the Lambeth conference which we were then able to show in church on a later Sunday. Bishops Rachel and Robert kindly delivered the gifts we had prepared for the family in person at the Lambeth conference. 

4. Steve Hutchinson now retired from Scripture Union, came to preach at 8:30 am on Sept 18[th ] and to share about SU in our mission slots in both services. He introduced us to the helpful framework ‘Connect, Explore, Respond, Grow’ as a way to view getting beyond connecting with people. In December some of the mission team and Messy Church leaders met with Hannah Legge, Cheltenham based and Mission Enabler for the SU Central England Team.  Mark met with Hannah subsequently and we all found her inspiring. 

5. Tearfund is not one of our mission partners but in the light of the massive needs around the world we joined many churches round the country on November 19[th] for the Tearfund Big Quiz night ably hosted by Lee and Ruth Thornton. The evening was enjoyed by all, and £306.00 was sent to Tearfund from ticket sales and donations on the night. 

A big thankyou to the mission team members and all who volunteered their time to help host these events and all who gave generously. 

## **Miriam Davis, January 30th 2023** 

## **Christian Aid 2022** 

Christian Aid began in 1945, helping refugees in need across Europe at the end of the Second World War. Now, seventy-seven years later, 2022 has once again seen Christian Aid and partners supporting and helping refugees across Europe as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, delivering baby incubators, blankets, trauma kits, food, water and medical supplies to the most vulnerable.  The impacts of this war are affecting many parts of the world, not least in East Africa where rising food and fuel prices have pushed millions into extreme hunger.  Christian Aid has also responded to ongoing emergencies in Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon and Haiti.  The demands are ever increasing, as if the problems resulting from climate change and natural disasters were not enough! 

Thank you to all who contributed to Christian Aid Week 2022 via either the online GiveStar account, Red envelopes, Christian Aid bucket collection and buying preserves.  The total raised was £420-00 of which £280-00 was Gift Aided, enabling Christian Aid to reclaim a further £70-00. The Easter and Christmas coffee morning/mini-markets raised a further £808-00, making a grand total of £1,228-00.  Please support Christian Aid Week 2023,  May 14[th] –  20[th] . 

## **Philip Wenham Christian Aid representative** 

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## **5. DISCIPLESHIP & PASTORAL CARE** 

## **Discipleship  -      Home groups** 

In January 2022 we conducted a questionnaire with church members in an attempt to discover the then status of our small groups and whether there were some who would like to be in a group but weren’t.  Among other things the need for a daytime group became apparent, also that some church attendees were not aware of the existence of groups. Leaders met on April 4[th] and June 27[th] and we discussed the purpose of groups and how we had benefited personally from being in one and as leaders. We ran a six-week afternoon Lent course which was well-attended, and then in June a new daytime group started  on Wednesdays at 2pm with a variety of people leading and an attendance of up to 10. One evening group has folded since September. Three evening groups continue – two on zoom and one in person. All groups are open to newcomers. Resources for home groups have been collected together in the outer office of the Stone Building, and anyone is welcome to borrow these for personal or group use. 

## **Miriam Davis** 

## **Pastoral Care** 

Pastoral care was an aspect of our church life that had been a particular challenge over the covid pandemic. However this year we took a big leap forward when Pat Dabbs stepped into the role of pastoral coordinator. She has been exceptional as a point of contact and leader of this important pastoral ministry and has helped to ensure that people are supported. Janet Wilce has also been such a blessing to the church as she has taken on the important task of supporting those who are bereaved who are connect to our church by sending cards offering love and support on the anniversary of the funerals we have taken. All our team and church have stepped up to continue to offer support to one another and I have personally benefitted from being part of a loving community during the serious illness of my mum. I have often said that pastoral care is the role of the whole church as we support one another and it is a joy to be part of a place where this is true. 

## **Mark Close** 

## **PASTORAL CARE GROUP** 

In February 2022 the Pastoral Care Team came into being. There are several groups and activities happening within the church life and the leaders of those groups are responsible for the care of their members. 

The team was formed with the hope of keeping people connected with church life when members are unable to attend due to illness, frailty or general circumstances either temporarily or permanently. 

We also contact bereaved families after a funeral service has taken place in the parish and on the first anniversary of the death. 

Everyone in the Church has a role to play in pastoral care and can care/visit/phone people who have not been to church or are in need. Please let Pat know if you are doing this. 

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Three members of the team attended a training day for helping people with anxiety in October and two attended a bereavement training course in November. Seven members have completed the online Domestic Abuse Awareness training recommended by Bishop Rachel. 

Pastoral care is a privilege and a great joy when getting to know members of our fellowship in greater depth. The team is dedicated and committed. Please pray that God will direct our actions/visits/words/prayers etc; that we may be sensitive to the needs of people being visited; that we may have the gift of love and be filled with the Holy Spirit. 

## **Pat Dabbs – Coordinator.** 

## **6. FACILITIES & BUILDINGS** 

## **Grounds and Buildings Report 2022 Church Centre, Stone Building, Youth Centre & Gordon Rooms.** 

**Church Centre Site.** Overall the site is in a reasonable condition and is generally clear of rubbish. A cracked drain cover in the car park requires replacing; a replacement is available in the garage. The garden areas have been maintained and kept colourful over the year with the grass being cut regularly. Many thanks go to the group who have laboured over the year to make this happen. The Larkhay Rd boundary fence needs repainting and the entrance gate reinstating. Weed killer has been applied around the site to keep the weeds under control. 

**Heating and Fire Extinguishers.** All of the heating systems had their annual safety checks in August and were satisfactory. The boiler in the Youth Centre was installed 28 years ago and will undoubtedly need replacing at some point. It is living on borrowed time. The fire extinguishers were checked in August and all found to be satisfactory. 

**Five Year Electrical Circuit Inspection.** The Stone Building, Church Centre, Youth Centre and Gordon Rooms had their electrical circuits inspected in September. The Stone Building and Youth Centre were satisfactory. The Church Centre and Gordon Room circuits were unsatisfactory and require remedial work to make them safe. This is being followed up with the electrician. 

**Stone Building.** Overall the building is in a reasonable condition. Some re-pointing of the stonework is required, especially on the east wall, and some of the coping stones on the south east corner need replacing. Five of the wooden window frames around the building have been repainted. Another 3 are still to be done. Inside the building there are some areas where paint and plaster is flaking off and needs repairing. There are also skirting boards that have been affected by wet rot and need replacing. The lighting in the office area needs upgrading to LED panels. 

**Church Centre.** The chimney breast and ceiling in the northwest corner of the hall requires redecorating. The exterior woodwork requires repainting. The roof has loose ridge tiles and broken tiles that need attention. The external walls around the ladies and gents toilets need rebuilding and the toilets need refurbishing. The kitchen needs re-modelling to bring it up to date in line with current standards and in-line with its current use. Basically the whole building is in need of refurbishment and modernising. The raised area of parquet floor in the north west corner of the hall was repaired in February. All of the curtains in the hall need replacing along with the curtain rails. 

**Youth Centre and Gordon Rooms.** In both buildings the upright part of some of the reinforced concrete portals supporting the roofs needs repairing. This repair can only be carried out by specialists. The corrugated asbestos cement roof panels on both buildings are deteriorating and need attention as they are starting to develop holes. Rain water was entering the YC in the kitchen area and was tracked down to a hole in a roofing panel. This was repaired. A repair was carried out on a toilet waste pipe in the YC and the tap assembly in the kitchen was replaced. YC lamp tubes have been 

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replaced. Alan Preece organised the redecoration of the outside of the buildings and a gutter repair on the east side of the Gordon Rooms. There needs to be a decision about the future of these two buildings. 

**The Garage.** The garage continues to be serviceable but has a temporary repair on the roof at the main door end. There are broken concrete panels in the wall, but the garage is still secure. 

**Five and Ten Year Plan.** A five and ten year plan is needed for the site and its buildings. 

## **Tom Brown** 

## **7. ADMINISTRATION** 

## **Staff** 

Liz has continued to serve the church as parish administrator over the year and provided excellent administrative support to the parish. Liz made the decision to move on from her role at P&J’s near the end of the year and ended her time with us at the start of 2023. She will be much missed and we are greatly appreciative of the years she spent working in the church office as administrator. We wish Liz all the best in her life going forward. Our Church wardens Peggy and Rhianydd committed to serving for another year and have been exceptional in their support and management of the parish. The whole standing committee has been wonderful, with Lee continuing in his role as treasurer. Huge thanks to Lee who has continued to take our finances forward with clarity and real wisdom. Margaret has been instrumental in her role as PCC secretary, she continues to be a faithful servant of the church, going well above and beyond in all her work. Duncan and Miriam have also been valuable contributors to the group and their leadership is as invaluable as their leading and preaching ministries. Thanks to the PCC for its continued support and leadership of the church and its outreach, we have spent time looking at vision going forward together, and this process will continue into 2023.Thank you to everyone who is actively involved in ministry in this church, we have a huge number of volunteers who make our wonderful ministries happen, thank you for all you have done and continue to do. 

## **Mark Close** 

## **SAFEGUARDING REPORT for APCM** 

At St Philip & St James Church, the PCC take seriously their legal duties to promote a safe environment for all, working closely with the Safeguarding Department at the Diocese of Gloucester. In our responsibility for the protection of Vulnerable Adults and Children & Young People (Under 18s), we follow the advice given to PCCs and the necessary legal documents are on display in our church buildings, where our activities occur. 

We have a legal duty to have the statutory documents (as listed below) on display and these were approved and adopted by the PCC on their meeting on **March 8th 2023** . 

The full versions of the documents are available in the Church Office or available electronically on request by contacting the church office or the Parish Safeguarding Officer. 

## **2023 Safeguarding Policy.** 

**Promoting a Safer Church - Parish Safeguarding Handbook** (Oct 2018 version) **Types of Abuse** (including signs and symptoms) 

## **Canon Margaret Edwards Parish Safeguarding Officer** 

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## **8. SOCIAL & FELLOWSHIP** 

## **Mothers` Union** 

We managed to have a full year of meetings. We had a number of in-house speakers with many interesting topics and we held an AGM.    We visited a Garden Centre for the May meeting; in June we celebrated the Queen`s Platinum Jubilee with members bringing Memorabilia of the Coronation and a tea; Mary Sumner Day was celebrated as usual in August, with a coffee morning.   We started September with our Wave of Prayer meeting, held with catch up of items required for the next 4 months; an in-house speaker for October, 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence (No More 1in3) was recognised and we finished the year with a social.  Two members have left the MU this year. We are still collecting toiletries for various local charities.  Thank you to everyone for their support for Mothers` Union. 

## **Jean Thomas, Branch Leader** 

## **Social Events Team** 

No Report for 2022 because the team didn’t meet and restarted February 2023 

## **Lunch Club 2022** 

Lunch Club can report another most successful year. The atmosphere in the Church Centre on a Thursday has been so happy and bubbly, with lots of loud conversation and everyone enjoying meeting up and sharing fellowship and food together.  Our guests so look forward to what they say is definitely the highlight of their week. They are so grateful and have formed many friendships which can otherwise be difficult if you live alone, have mobility problems and cannot get out. We have met roughly three weeks in every four apart from school holidays. (during August once a fortnight). 

We have a wonderful team of cooks, drivers and helpers, all enjoying working and serving together.  If anyone is missing we always check up on them with a phone call.  Birthdays, Easter and Christmas are always remembered with a card.  Many thanks to the cooks who prepared the traditional Christmas dinner. In the autumn we were saddened to learn that Lunch Club is not regarded as being a part of the ministry of the church.  This is a matter to be looked into and rectified in 2023, as we all see Lunch Club as being a vital part of Church outreach ministry to the elderly and lonely within our community. 

## **Margaret Wenham on behalf of the Lunch Club team** 

## **Tuesday @ Two 2022** 

It is hard to believe that Tuesday @ Two has enjoyed its tenth birthday!  How time flies when you are having fun! Twice a month, on a Tuesday, eager gamesters have been queuing outside the Church centre keen to settle down to an afternoon of “competitive” playing, enjoyment and conversation.  Scrabble and canasta remain the favourites, but other board games like Up-words and Rummikub are available.  The afternoon always ends with a welcome cup of tea (bone china service of course!) and a slice of delicious cake.  All are welcome to come and join us. 

## **Margaret & Philip Wenham** 

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## **Church flowers** 

We continue to meet each week to arrange flowers for Sunday services which we as a team enjoy. We would however welcome 'new blood' into the team – it is not essential that you come each week but would be happy for you to come when we have Weddings or Festivals – like Harvest or Christmas. 

We arranged flowers for two Weddings last year and made posies for Mothering Sunday. The Christmas flowers were quite a challenge this year as much of the greenery was frozen due to the snow and ice and thanks to all who braved the cold to cut it, but we still managed to decorate the Church in time for the carol service. 

My thanks go to the team who give their time to fill God's house with flowers. 

## **Jenny Barton** 

## **CAMEO** 

We had a good and varied programme for 2022 starting in January with members bringing items which meant a lot to them.  February's meeting was a treat with Kate & Angela Peake dressing a Victorian Lady – with all the clothes being hand made! We had Fauna & Flora from Elizabeth Orr in March, April was about the Nurse who changed Guinea-Bissau and in May Paul & Clare Kenchington told us all about their time in Hong Kong and how it was a shock to the system. We had Chair Yoga in June with Ellie Stafford and a summer outing in July to Trioscape for a delicious afternoon tea.  Mercy Ships was September's topic and in November it was a Eco friendly evening. 

Our Christmas celebrations were however cancelled due to the ice and snow. 

We continue to meet once a month and with our numbers increasing, new members would be made very welcome. 

## **Jenny Barton** 

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|**LIST**||page numbers|
|---|---|---|
|Priest in Charge Report||3|
|Churchwarden Report||3|
|Trustees Report||4|
|Structure, Governance & Management||5|
|Objectives and Activities||6|
|PCC Meetings|7||
|**STATUTORY REPORTS**|Financial Review|8|
||Accounts (2 pages)|9|
||Independent Examiner’s Report|11|
||Deanery Synod|12|
||Fabric|13|
|**NON-STATUTORY REPORTS**|||
|1. MINISTRY & LEADERSHIP||14|
|2. PRAYER||14|
|3. YOUTH & CHILDREN||15 - 16|
|Core Youth Group|||
|Coffee Pot|||
|Teddy Bears|||
|Messy Church|||
|Open the Book|||
|4. OUTREACH||16 - 17|
|Outreach|||
|The HUB|||
|Mission Team|||
|Christian Aid|||
|5. DISCIPLESHIP & PASTORAL CARE|||
|Discipleship - Home Groups||18 - 19|
|Pastoral Care|||
|Pastoral Care Group|||
|6. FACILITIES & BUILDINGS||19 - 20|
|Grounds and Buildings Team|||
|7. ADMINISTRATION||20|
|Staffing|||
|PCC Policy for the Safeguarding of Children and Young People|||
|PCC Policy for the Safeguarding of Vulnerable Adults|||
|8. SOCIAL & FELLOWSHIP||21 - 22|
|Mothers' Union|||
|Social Events Team|||
|Lunch Club|||
|Tuesday @ Two|||
|C.A.M.E.O.|||
|Church Flowers|||



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