**==> picture [340 x 54] intentionally omitted <==** ## **Annual report 1.9.2022 – 31.8.2023** ## **ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION** This report relates to Bath Methodist Church to 31.8.2023, registered with the Charity Commission under Charity Number 1134062. All correspondence for the church should be addressed to: Mrs Sharon Keevill – Church Administrator Bath Methodist Church Walcot Methodist Chapel Nelson Place East Bath BA1 5DA Telephone: 01225 461509 Email: admin@bathmethodists.org.uk Further and latest information is available on our website: bathmethodists.org.uk The membership of Bath Methodist Church stood at **162** members as of August 31st 2023: ## **The Managing Trustees for the year 2022 -23 were** : **Ministers:** Revd Simon Topping (Superintendent Minister), Revd Jan Tate, Deacon Annie Trembling **Church Council Secretary:** Sue Clark **Treasurer:** Trevor Purches **Administrator:** Sharon Keevill **Stewards:** David Pendle (Senior Steward), Allan Bain, Julia Barratt, Gwen Essam, Gareth James, Elizabeth Kenyon, Tricia Mills, Mike Priscott **Safeguarding Officer:** Mary Gibson (to April 2023) **Congregational reps:** Anne Allen, Steve Barratt, Greville Mills, Claire Phillips, Hazel Roch, Ben Sykes. **Interfaith rep:** Revd David Musgrave **Chapel House rep:** Pete Keevill **Circuit Steward:** Ian Sims Decisions concerning the activities of Bath Methodist Church and the appointment of its Trustees are made at Church Council meetings of which there are a minimum of three each year. 1 ## **AIMS AND ORGANISATION** The aims of Bath Methodist Church are as defined in the Methodist Church Act 1976 namely: The advancement of - a) the Christian faith in accordance with the doctrinal standards and the discipline of the Methodist Church. - b) any charitable purpose for the time being of any Connexional, district, circuit, local or other organisation of the Methodist Church. - c) any charitable purpose for the time being of any society or institution subsidiary or ancillary to the Methodist Church. - d) any purpose for the time being of any charity being a charity subsidiary or ancillary of the Methodist church. ## **This is achieved by:-** - a) Holding regular acts of public worship open to members and public alike. - b) providing pastoral care for members of our community visiting sick and bereaved. - c) teaching Christianity through sermons, courses and small groups – both in person and online. - d) Promoting Christianity through events and services. - e) Provision of activities and clubs to support need in the community such as lunch clubs /foodcycle for elderly and homeless. - f) Letting premises for community organisations - for example local choirs , pre-schools, health and wellbeing classes. - g) Supporting other charities with finance and prayer in accordance with Christian values to promote Christian mission and by addressing poverty and social need in both UK and the World. ## **Review of activities, progress and achievements (September 2022 – August 2023)** Bath Methodist Church was launched on 1[st] September 2022 when the existing Methodist Societies of Beechen Cliff, Horizon, Nexus and Weston were merged to form a single society. The church buildings - Walcot Chapel (the former Nexus site), Beechen Cliff and Weston - were retained for church and community use and Southdown Methodist Church Centre (managed by Trustees appointed by the North East Somerset & Bath Methodist Circuit) is also used for worship. ## **Mission** The mission of the Bath Methodist Society is to promote and practise ‘A Methodist Way of Life’. We will seek to live out this mission by sustaining and nurturing both our Christian journey inwards and our Christian journey outwards. The inner journey: - daily prayer - keeping connected to each other through prayer groups and prayer times - worshipping together – Sundays and during the week - pastoral care of members and adherents - small groups – for fellowship, prayer and bible study/learning - discipleship formation – stepping stones to discipleship - from enquirers’ events to fully committed participation in the Methodist Way of Life - building up our fellowship through social activities The journey outwards: - outreach to the local community (hospitality and generosity) 2 - commitment to social justice - care for creation - practising an inclusive welcome to all - outreach to University students/Chapel House Community - commitment to the Southdown Church and Community Project - sharing the faith – actively seeking ways to tell the Christian story ## **Worship** ## **Sunday Worship:** Sunday morning worship is held at Walcot Chapel and Southdown Methodist Church Centre on the 1[st] , 2[nd] and 3[rd] Sundays of the month. On the 4[th] and 5[th] Sundays, there is a joint service alternating between the two sites. On the 1[st] Sunday of the month, there is also a short service of Morning Prayer at Walcot, followed by breakfast. Worship via Zoom was introduced in 2020 as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This continued on a monthly basis up to May 2023 but was then discontinued as the demand had diminished significantly. Those still attending were given suggestions of other online worship resources. We also offer paper worship resource for those unable to attend in-person services. ## **Midweek Devotions:** There is a weekly prayer meeting on Fridays via Zoom. Midweek prayers were also introduced at Walcot and Southdown in April 2023, based on the Celtic liturgy from the Northumbria Community. Numbers attending the sessions at Walcot were low and so it was decided to continue at Southdown only from July. ## **Bible Study & Fellowship** Study groups are held during Advent, Lent and Bible Month (June). There are several fellowship groups meeting inperson or online. ## **Pastoral Care** Our pastoral visitors have remained in contact with those on their lists and have continued to support members of the congregation. ## **Junior Church** A group of young people meet on an informal basis at Walcot Chapel on Sundays. ## **Church-run groups** ‘Tea & Cake’ meets weekly at Walcot in the Concourse (and church garden weather-permitting). This is both an opportunity for people to meet socially and for the main church doors to be open to anyone passing by. ‘Coffee Plus’ is a monthly evening event at Walcot with talks on a range of topics by local speakers. ‘Tigerlilies’ Parent and Toddler group meets weekly in term time at Weston. It is run by church members for families in the local community. ## **Social justice** We organised webinars as part of the Methodist Church ‘Walking with Micah’ initiative looking at social justice issues and what we as a church can do. 3 ## **Community use:** Our church buildings have rooms available for hire and are used by several community groups: ## Walcot: - FoodCycle – using surplus food from supermarkets to provide free meals and a place to meet. - Bath Child Contact Centre – a safe place for children from separated families to meet their absent parent. - ‘Pixies’ Steiner Playgroup - 57[th] Bathampton Guides - Choirs – Horizons Choir, Bath Minerva Choir and CWM Male Choir - Exercise classes – Pilates - Events - Hosted BBC Radio 4 Gardeners’ Question Time (in partnership with Stratton House Methodist Home) - `o` A venue for Bath Festivals ‘Party in the City’ event - All-day ‘Choirthon’ raising money for Turkey/Syria Earthquake Appeal - Fundraising concerts ## Beechen Cliff: - Korean Methodist Community weekly Sunday worship - Bear Flat Association – monthly Community Tea and Community Market - Bath Share & Repair Café - Green Shoots Pre-School - Choirs - City of Bath Male Choir and Birch Tree Choir - Exercise classes – Yoga - Children’s Birthday Parties ## Weston: - PeterPan Pre-School continues to meet on the premises for 4 days per week during school term time. This is an OFSTED and Local Authority approved provision. - Several physical and mental health activities including Yoga and Pilates - Newbridge Arts Trail: This is an annual event, for a weekend, involving local artists who exhibits from their homes and public places. - Space for Consultation with the public about local issues such as proposals for parking permits or road closures. - Children birthday parties - The New Testament Church of God – weekly Sunday worship ## **Southdown Church and Community Partnership** This is a project of the North East Somerset and Bath Methodist Circuit and is based at Southdown Methodist Chruch Centre. Many of our church members are involved as volunteers for the activities organised and supported by the Partnership: - Lunch Club - Community Charity Shop - Toddler group - Warm Spaces - Roundhill Food Pantry (in partnership with Oasis Bath). ## **EcoChurch** This scheme encourages churches to commit to care for the environment in worship and teaching, management of church buildings and land, community and global engagement and the lifestyle of church members. 4 ## **Chapel House** Chapel House is a student residence next to Walcot Methodist Chapel, run by Bath Methodist Church. The Chapel House Community is made up of 2 parts: the resident students who live in Chapel House, and an extended, non-residential community made up of others who have committed to follow the same way of life and to pray for those who live in the house. The Chapel House Community meets together for monthly meals in the hall at Walcot. In June 2023 we celebrated five years of the Chapel House Community. ## **Church Administrator:** The church administrator is responsible for producing the weekly notice sheets and monthly magazines, updating the website, dealing with telephone and email enquiries, producing publicity material for church events and activities and dealing with room hire. The administrator keeps church members informed via weekly emails or by distributing printed resources to those without internet access _._ ## **Stewards** The team of Stewards are responsible for the smooth running of the church, ensuring services and other events are organised properly plus keeping an oversight over the various committees/church groups and indeed the overall life of the church. ## **Safeguarding** As part of the Methodist Church we are committed to safeguarding as an integral part of our life and ministry. Safeguarding is about the action the Church takes to promote a safer culture. This means we will: - promote the welfare of children, young people and adults - work to prevent abuse from occurring - seek to protect and respond well to those that have been abused. All those who hold roles and responsibilities within the church are required to undertake safeguarding training and DBS checks in line with the policies and procedures of the national Methodist Church. ## **Property –** Bath Methodist Church are Managing Trustees for : - Walcot Chapel – BMC worship space and community rooms - Beechen Cliff – worship space used by Korean Methodist Community and community rooms - Weston – worship space used by New Testament Church of God - Chapel House – Christian Student residential community All are maintained to be fit for purpose according to the recommendations of the 5-year independent inspections. Southdown Methodist Church Centre is managed by the North East Somerset and Bath Methodist Circuit, which appoints its trustees. It is used by Bath Methodist Church for worship and meetings and to support community activities. ## **THE CHURCH’S BANKERS** The Church has accounts with the following banks: ## **Central Finance Board** 9 Bonhill Street London EC2A 4PE ## **CAF Bank** **HSBC plc** Milsom Street Bath BA1 1DU 25 Kings Hill Avenue, Kings Hill West Malling, Kent ME19 4JQ 5 ## **Treasurer’s Report 2022-23 financial year** ## Headlines 1. Following the merger of 4 separate churches Bath Methodist Church was formed on 1 September 2022. As one would expect following the merger of 4 society accounts has resulted in considerable additional work to amalgamate and standardise the financial operation as well as managing a much larger turnover. Our regular income in the first year was over £200,000. We made a small operating surplus of £3000. ## 2. Digging down: ## a. £112,000 of our income is from donations. b. We have a deficit against expenditure on running our pastoral, mission and worship of £15,000. Our assessment to the circuit is £108,000 This is close the per capita figure suggested by the circuit to balance their finances, unfortunately most other churches are not able to meet this figure. c. Rental and other building income covers the routine cost of maintaining and operating our buildings d. Chapel House has a significant surplus which covers the higher costs of Walcot Chapel and the church operating deficit. e. Cash reserves increased this year to £202,000 due to late grant of £18,000 for the Walcot Roof scheme and bequest of £5,500 from a former Horizon member. £34,000 of reserves are restricted and a further £83,000 relate to bequests. f. Expenditure on our buildings was very low: BC £5900, Walcot £3400, Weston £1600, Chapel Hse £3500 Southdown Property £1300 (mainly on sound/projection equipment. This was due to development of a strategy regarding the future of our buildings. g. Energy and cleaning are our highest building running costs followed by insurance. h. We have made £4300 of donations to various causes from our own funds. And £2700 from donations made members and friends via special collections and events. £4000 has been given to Southdown for our use of the building. 3. During the year we have been working to rationalise the banking, centralising all current account activity on the Bath CAF account. The Horizon bank account has been closed and those of Nexus, BC and Weston are reduced to a handful of monthly transactions. All CFB Deposits funds have been merged in the Bath deposit fund. We are running a single set of collection envelopes which will be named BathMC in 2024. ## Reserves Policy 4. Reserves policy has been refreshed we have sufficient reserves to tackle a major building repair. Or spend a few £10ks on a building repurposing. Budget 23-24 5. Budget has been set based on previous years expenditure and property expenditure recommended by property group. As well as routine property expenditure the budget includes major repairs and renewals that have been identified by the property group and £30,000 towards a scheme to develop one building. Please see full set of accounts with examiner’s report enclosed. _Trevor Purches: treasurer_ 6 ## **CHURCH RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS** # **THE METHODIST CHURCH STANDARD FORM OF ACCOUNTS** ## **BATH METHODIST** **Church** ## FOR THE YEAR ENDED ## 31 August 2023 **NE Somerset and Bath Circuit Circuit no. 7/13** 1134062 ## **Registered Charity - Charity Registration number** If not a registered charity **Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs Gift Aid number** (The HMRC number is equivalent to a registered charity number in terms of evidence of charitable status and may be used to give to donors or grant funders wishing to see evidence of the organisation's charitable status. Methodist charities in England and Wales that are not registered charities are excepted from registration under Statutory Instrument 2014 No.242) ## Minister: Revd Simon Topping Rev Jan Tate Deacon Annie Trembling ||Church Stewards:|| |---|---|---| |David Pendle||Julia Barratt| |Gwen Essam||Gareth James| |Patricia Mills||Alan Bain| |Elizabeth Kenyon||Mike Priscott| Treasurer: Trevor Purches Assts Steve Barratt, Roger Chapman, Paul Udey Church R and P 2015.xls 1 of 5 **Church** ## **ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023** ## **BATH METHODIST** **==> picture [573 x 718] intentionally omitted <==** **----- Start of picture text -----**
Unrestricted Restricted Totals this Totals last
SECTION A Funds Funds year year
£ £ £ £
a1 RECEIPTS Note
a2 Offerings and Tax recovered 107460.00 107,460 138,865
Bank and CFB interest and
a3 Investment income 2,537 2,537 145
a4 Lettings 88,684 88,684 68,874
a5 Other receipts 8,411 19,675 28,086 85,412
a6 TOTAL RECEIPTS 207,092 19,675 226,767 (a7) 293,296
SECTION B
b1 PAYMENTS
b2 Circuit Assessment or Share 108,000 108,000 107,900
b3 Donations 8,332 8,332 1,756
b4 Repairs and Maintenance 18,457 18,457 109,791
Utilities (Insurances, water
b5 charges, heating & lighting) 52,270 52,270 35,406
b6
b7 Other payments 11,152 11,152 32,652
b8 [TOTAL PAYMENTS ] 198,211 198,211 (b9) 287,505
SECTION C
NET RECEIPTS/PAYMENTS
c1 FOR THE YEAR (a6-b8) 8,881 19,675 28,556 5,791
Total funds brought forward from
last year
c2 82,294 91,778 174,072 (c6) 168,281
c3 Sub total (c1+c2) 91,175 111,453 202,628 174,072
c4 Transfers and adjustments (c7)
c5 [TOTAL FUNDS AT END OF YEAR ] (c3+c4) 91,175 111,453 202,628 (c8) 174,072 (c6)
SECTION D
FOR INFORMATION ONLY: MONEY RECEIVED AND PASSED ON TO EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS
d (these amounts are not to be included in total receipts/payments figures £ £
d1 Balance brought forward from last year 227 172
d2 Offerings/Gifts - received for external organisations 2,376 1,804
d3 Offerings/Gifts - passed to external organisations 2,696 1,749
d4 BALANCE STILL TO BE PAID (d1+d2-d3) (93) 227
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2 of 5 Church R and P 2015.xls BATH METHODIST **Church** ## **SUMMARY OF CHURCH ACCOUNTS AND INTERNAL ORGANISATIONS REPORTING TO THE CHURCH COUNCIL** **==> picture [570 x 316] intentionally omitted <==** **----- Start of picture text -----**
SECTION E Please follow the Guidance Notes to complete this page
Summary of the Church accounts for the year ended 31 August 2022 and Internal Organisations reporting to the Church Council/Church Meeting. Note that the funds of
an Internal Organisation would normally be Restricted funds unless it could be clearly shown that they could be used for any Methodist purpose. This section must be
completed to arrive at the gross income and expenditure totals of the Church. If gross income exceeds the Accruals threshold, then the Accruals method of accounting
AND A DIFFERENT FORM must be used to report the accounts (see Methodist website). Please refer to the guidance notes regarding transfers between the District
and connected District Organisations.
INTERNAL Net Receipts/ Opening
ORGANISATIONS Receipts Payments Payments Adjustments balances Closing balances
e1
e2
e3
e4
e5
e6
e7
Sub total of Internal
e8 Organisations funds (e11) (e12)
Church accounts (totals
brought forward from page
e9 2 - totals column) 226,767 (a7) 198,211 (b9) 28,556 (c7) 174,072 (c6) 202,628 (c8)
TOTAL CASH FUNDS HELD
e10 BY CHURCH 226,767 198,211 28,556 174,072 (x) 202,628 (y)
Continue on a separate sheet TOTAL
if necessary and bring the TOTAL RECEIPTS
PAYMENTS
totals forward
**----- End of picture text -----**
## **SECTION F** ## **STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES** |f1
f2
f3
f4
f5
f6
f7
f8
f9
g1
g2
g3
g4
g5|**CHURCH - CASH FUNDS HELD at 31 August 2022**
**SECTION G**
**OTHER ASSETS and LIABILITIES**
Other Assets
Central Finance Board
Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes
Other funds
Other Liabilities
Total funds held by Internal Organisations (the closing
balance total from above) (e12)
Investments (include Endowments)
Bank Deposit Account CAF (Inititally Nexus+BC)
Land & Buildings (see notes re Insurance value)
**SUB TOTAL - Church accounts**
Loan(s) - show amount outstanding at year end
**TOTAL CASH FUNDS HELD BY CHURCH**
Cash in hand
Bank Current Account HSBC, Santander,Lloyds|**OPENING**
**BALANCES**
44,094
48,569
27,746
53,663
**174,072**
(c6)
(e11)
**174,072**
(x)
At
1 September 2022
13,047,685
256,839|**CLOSING**
**BALANCES**
12,309
45,139
91,517
53,663
**202,628**
(c8)
(e12)
**202,628**
(y)
At
31 August 2023| |---|---|---|---| f4 Include only Funds held at the Central Finance Board f5 Include only Funds held at Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes g1 Include any other investments (not the cash element of TMCP trusts accounts this is included in line f5 3 of 5 2015 Church R and P.xls Name of Church BATH METHODIST No 7/13 ## **Declarations and Scrutiny** I confirm that these Receipt and Payment based accounts for the year to 31 August 2023 have been prepared from the records of the Church and that they include all funds under the control of the Church trustees. Signature of treasurer ……………………………………………………… Date………… 01-Oct-23 Name and address of treasurer TREVOR PURCHES 6 Christchurch Road, Bradford-on-Avon finance@bathmethodists.org.uk Post Code BA15 1TB ## **Presentation to the Church trustees** I confirm that the annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 August 2023 will be presented to the meeting of the Church trustees held on 19 October 2023 Signature of the Chair of the meeting …………………………………………………………………… Name of the Chair of the meeting **Revd Simon Topping** Date 19-Oct-23 ## **Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees of the** ## **BATH METHODIST CHURCH** ## **Charity Number 1162034** ## **Responsibilities and basis of report** I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the BATH METHODIST Church for the year ended 31 August 2022 set out on pages 1 to 3 As the Church’s trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’). I report in respect of my examination of the Church’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the Act and, in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. 4 of 5 2015 church R and P.xls Name of Church BATH METHODIST CHURCH No 7/13 ## **Independent Examiner’s Statement** I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination (other than that disclosed below*) which give me cause to believe that in, any material respect: - the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act; or  the accounts do not accord with the accounting records. [the [the I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. I have not* obtained independent verification of all investments with the Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes or held in other trusts, bank balances and funds at the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church which are individually in excess of £10,000 (ten thousand pounds) at the balance sheet date. Signature of independent examiner ………………………………………………………………… Name of independent examiner ………………………Alexander M du Pré Relevant professional qualification of independent examiner …Chartered Engineer Name of firm (where appropriate) ……………………N/A Address ………… 15 Mitchell Walk, Bridgeyate, Bristol POST CODE BS305XY Date …………… 15-Oct-23 5 of 5 2015 church R and P.xls