## **PCC CHURCH OF THE HOLY SPIRIT CLAPHAM** 


## **REPORTS AND ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEARS ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2019 AND 2020** 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **ANNUAL REPORT OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL** 

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) presents their reports and financial statements for the years ended 31 December 2019 and 2020*. 

*We have yet to produce full accounts for 2020. These will be published as soon as possible. 

## **AIM AND PURPOSES** 

The principal purpose of the PCC of Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham is to cooperate with the incumbent, Revd Ruth Burge-Thomas, on matters of importance to the parish and in promoting the mission of the Church and to have joint responsibility, with the incumbent, in the running of the parish. 

The PCC is also specifically responsible for the maintenance of the church fabric and its contents and for the maintenance and running of the Contact Centre, our church hall. 

The PCC also considers and discusses matters concerning the Church of England or other matters of religious or public interest. 

## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES** 

The PCC is committed to enabling as many people as possible to worship at our church and to become part of our parish community in Clapham. 

When planning our activities for the year, the incumbent and the PCC have considered the Commission’s guidance on public benefit, and, in particular, the specific guidance on charities for the advancement of religion. The PCC (as trustees) have complied with the duty in section 17 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the public benefit guidance published by the Charity 

Commission. In particular, we try to enable ordinary people to live out their faith as part of our parish community through: 

- worship and prayer; learning about the Gospel; and delivering their knowledge and trust in Jesus; 

- provision of pastoral care for people living in the parish; 

- mission and outreach work. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

To facilitate this work, it is important that we maintain the fabric of the Church and the Contact Centre. 

## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE** 

## **VICAR’S REPORT** 

## **2019** 

It’s hard to remember what life was like before the lockdown, and this retrospective report is mainly a lament for all that we were doing in 2019 that we could not do in 2020. 

Our Pram Service and toddler group were thriving. Holy Molies on a Tuesday morning provided socialising for both the pre-schoolers and their carers, and Caroline RussellClark did an AMAZING job at keeping them entertained and engaged.  Pram was fun, fun, fun, and the families who supported it formed a wonderful community.  A highlight for our younger members was the Good Friday workshop which was packed and crazy. 

Children were prepared for first communion (one of my favourite parts of the year), and our adult confirmation class was one of the most thoughtful and profound groups that I have led. We also hosted a Lent Reflection group based on paintings in the Tate Britain collection which was cut short by the pandemic. 

One of the significant decisions that was made in 2019 was not to have the Abbeville Fete.  The Fete had grown into a magnificent beast, the fundraising kept increasing and the entertainment was second to none.  It did, however, take an enormous amount of time and resources to run. We debated whether to hand it over to the wider community to run, but no one, in church, or outside, had the energy and time to commit to what looked like a full-time job. Instead we had a summer fete: entirely located in the church and run by our own members.  IT WAS GREAT. I am so grateful to our churchwarden Kathryn for the initial idea, and her enthusiasm for encouraging us all to bake, paint and grow, and generally prepare us for the lockdown to come. 

Another area of creative growth was the choir, which increased in numbers and ambition, and regularly provided an outstanding level of music for special events and services. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

Our schools’ engagement was thriving with the launch of a junior choir and visits to our Silver Socials by pupils from our local school, Bonneville. The junior choir sang beautifully at several services before lockdown came into effect just as they were due to perform for Mothering Sunday. 

Our Robes homeless shelter, however, continued during the first few weeks of the pandemic whilst the local authority arranged temporary housing for our guests under the Everybody In project.  I am enormously grateful to the hardy souls who helped keep it open. 

Our LGBT action group also thrived. Services hosted at several local churches invited some wonderful and inspirational guest speakers, and the highlight of the year was our carol event at the Two Brewers drag pub on Clapham High Street. 

My ministry was encouraged and challenged and generally made life-giving by the PCC, wardens and volunteers who gave so unstintingly during the year.  The PCC had a great away day in May, with the usual mix of crazy team games and serious hard questioning and reflection. 

## **2020** 

Then came lockdown. 

Celebrating holy week, Easter and Pentecost at a computer screen was a challenge. Fortunately, Nick Jenni worked tirelessly to get us online, producing a weekly newsletter to keep us in touch and organising (together with Yaw and Ollie) the design specification, tender process and installation of a new AV system in church.  This meant that even during lockdown we could hold services in church and zoom them into your living rooms and studies.  Kathryn was all over the Covid regulations and risk assessments and has put enormous effort into keeping us safe. 

Many of you contributed financially to the new system and many more have been unsung heroes of the pandemic, phoning and visiting our older members and those in isolation. 

Introducing zoom services had some up sides: it allowed less mobile parishioners to be a part of the worshipping community, and put us back in touch with parishioners who had moved abroad and who joined us from Korea, Malawi, Colchester and other exotic places.  However online church is not suitable for the very young – we had a good stint 

Page | 4 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

of presenting pram online but it was not hugely successful – kids want the real thing. Similarly, some parishioners found it hard to access online services.  Caroline RussellClark single-handedly held Sunday School together with an online service every week and a loyal and engaged group of grateful families.  Online church also motivated us to up our game in social media, and we have had good followings on Youtube and Facebook and launched two new services: online daily midday prayer and a weekly meditation beautifully led by June Williams. 

Predictably I took far more funerals than I have in previous years, but we also had a number of small but nevertheless joyous weddings. 

During the year we continued to support our Robes guests with support parcels. Thank you for contributing generously, and to Vicki, Sara, Marghi, Alan and Ian for organising the shopping, packing and delivery.  We also hosted a monthly foodbank drive, which has seen 4 van-loads of essentials collected every month to support the increasing number of families in food poverty. 

The lockdown has sharpened our awareness of inequalities in our community, and the Black Lives Matter protests over the summer also focused our attention on the continuing negative impact of racism in British society.  The church took part in a number of BLM events at a local, deanery and Diocesan level, though we need to keep the issue at the forefront of our work and the life of the wider church. 

During the year Jo Ross stood down as contact centre manager and Lilly Bell (who had been our temporary administrator) began full-time study.  We were joined by Gill Fisher in the contact centre and have already benefitted from her additional support with social media and her fantastic clear out of the cellar! Our new administrator, Rosslyn Okumu, is also a fresh broom and is impressively organised. I have relied on both of them heavily. 

This year Kathryn Newell stands down as Churchwarden but will continue (praise be!) to support us on the PCC.  Judith Vickery will also stand down as PCC secretary, a role she has filled very ably for something like 100 years – well done Judith! 

The year ahead presents us with plenty of challenges: to fully open up and get Sunday school, pram service and silver socials back up and running.  We will need your help to achieve this. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

We have a bumper crop of baptism candidates lining up for the next few months, the choir are in fine voice and we look forward to throwing a big parish party as soon as we are able. 

Thank you for sticking with us over the last year and giving your vicar the will to live! I am tremendously grateful (and am guessing that you are too) that Rev Caroline Clarke, our Area Dean, has been so committed to our worship and ministry this year.  She has provided me with much needed cover and collegiate support and has provided you with a break from me! You will, no doubt, be aware of her great pastoral and organizational skills and the breadth of wisdom and experience that she brings as well as the huge the amount of work that she shoulders in leading our deanery.  Thank you so much. I am looking forward to the year ahead. 

Revd Ruth Burge-Thomas 

## **WARDENS’ REPORT** 

## **2019** 

The role of the Churchwarden is defined as supporting the vicar in the day to day running of the parish and ensuring that all parish services run well.  We do all that we can on all fronts, but as the needs and demands of our parish have increased, we are immensely grateful to our parish administrators Sarah Spillet and Lilly Bell who took over from her on a temporary basis. 

The PCC/Fabric Committee started to take forward the work on the church space, and appointed Thomas Forde to take forward the plans for the permanent dais and the new contact centre toilets.  But progress was slow, with difficulties in agreeing the shape of the dais and a delay in appointing contractors for the toilets. 

The latter meant that if any work was to take place in 2019 it would have to be done in the summer at peak time resulting in a cost that exceeded our budget.  We therefore decided to put the contact centre toilets on hold. 

We would like to thank Alan Mundy, who is standing down as church warden this year, and everyone who volunteers and supports bringing the work of the church 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

to fruition.  And of course to Mtr Louise, Fr Robin, Fr Christopher and Mtr Ruth for their leadership, guidance and spiritual nurturing of us all. 

## **2020** 

2020 has been particularly challenging with the COVID 19 pandemic impacting on all aspects of our daily lives and the operation of the church.  In March 2020, the Prime Minister put the whole country into a “lockdown” which included encouraging all people to stay at home and closing places of worship. 

We knew that closing our church would have an impact on all our congregation and, although we had to stop many of our services, we embraced online solutions by moving our Sunday 10.30 Eucharist to “zoom” and starting a new lunchtime daily prayer on “zoom”.  We are grateful to Nick Jenni for his help with developing the processes to make this work. This was supplemented by a Sunday coffee morning social zoom instigated by Rachel Edge, and later we were able to add an online “Sunday School” which Caroline Russell-Clark delivered single handed.  We also created a newsletter and service sheet to be delivered to parishioners not having access to the service. 

In addition, to make use of the church network to help people cope with the pandemic, we arranged for the members of our congregation living alone to receive regular phone calls. 

The zoom online worship opened up new opportunities for delivering services in the future – it provided access for people not well enough to attend church, but also excluded many of our longstanding congregation who did not have access to IT. However, following a donation we were able to install a permanent AV system that would enable us to deliver services from church in a hybrid format. This has been very successful and has been particularly welcome when there have been limitations on attendees at weddings and funerals. 

In August we were able to open the church again to services and restarted the pram service and 9.00am Eucharist. This had to be done safely, meeting all the requirements to create a COVID safe venue. We were able to deliver a number of our Christmas services, but used Eventbrite to manage numbers and to keep the church congregation as safe as possible.  In January 2021, when a further national lockdown was introduced, we took the decision to close the church again. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

This year we recruited a new contact centre manager and church administrator.  Jo Ross retired and Lilly Bell our temp church administrator resigned. These roles have been increasingly important, as the pandemic has made it more difficult to involve volunteers in the work of the church, and we are immensely grateful to our church staff past and present. 

We have not made much progress on the layout of the church and installation of a permanent dais.  There have been issues around a design that meets the needs of the church and is acceptable to the DAC.  We will be taking a proposal on how to proceed to the next PCC. 

We are grateful to Robert Bowles, who maintains a close eye on the organ and is currently carrying out maintenance work on it. 

The pandemic has made it difficult to take forward work identified in the quinquennial review for the maintenance and uptake of the building, so, as suppliers open up in 2021, we will look to develop a plan to take this forward. 

Kathryn Newell is about to stand down as church warden after 2 years.  Paula Wilson will continue until new church wardens can be identified and this will provide some continuity for the smooth running of the parish. 

We would like to thank everyone who volunteers and supports the work of the church in any way during this very difficult year. We would also like to thank our music Director Andre and our organ scholar Shawn Li for continuing to provide us with music, as well as our clergy team: Mtr Caroline, Mth Louise and Mtr Ruth for their concern and guidance over this last year.  We would also like to offer a special “thank you” to Nick and Ollie Jennie for their work in installing the new AV system allowing us to deliver our services online. 

Kathryn Newell and Paula Wilson 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **FINANCIAL STATEMENTS** 

## **Contents** 

|Independent Examiner’s Statement|10|
|---|---|
|Treasurer’s Report|12|
|Statement of Financial Affairs|15|
|Balance Sheet|16|
|Notes to Balance Sheet|17|
|Refugee Fund|18|
|General Fund|18|
|Abbeville Fete Fund|20|
|Contact Centre Fund|21|
|Organ Fund|22|
|Fabric Fund|22|
|Pastoral Fund|23|
|Legacies Fund|23|
|Sound System Fund|23|



Page | 9 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT** 

1[st] September 2020 

I report on the financial statements of the PCC of the Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham for the year ended 31 December 2019 as set out on the following pages. This report is made solely to the Charity’s Trustees, as a body, in accordance with section 145 of the Charities Act 2011.  My work has been undertaken so that I might state to the PCC, as Trustees of the charity, those matters I am required to state to them in this Report and for no other purpose.  To the fullest extent permitted by law, I do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charity and the PCC as a body, for my work, for this Report, or for the opinions I have formed. 

## **Respective responsibilities of Trustees and examiner** 

As Trustees of the charity, the PCC are responsible for the preparation of financial statements. The PCC consider that an audit is not required for this year under Section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’) and that an independent examination is needed. 

It is my responsibility to: 

- ­ examine the financial statements under section 145 of the 2011 Act; 

- ­ to follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act; and 

- ­ to state whether particular matters have come to my attention. 

## **Basis of independent examiner’s report** 

My examination was carried out in accordance with the 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 financial statements presented with those records.  It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the financial statements and seeking explanations from you as 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 financial statements 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: 1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the 

Page | 10 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

requirements have not been met: 

   - ­ to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; and 

   - ­ to prepare financial statements which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act; or 

- 2) to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the financial statements to be reached. 

## Michael J Woolley BA, FCA 

Page | 11 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **TREASURER’S REPORT** 

## **General Fund Deficit Down, Contact Centre Income Up** 

The deficit on the General Fund reduced from £42,508 in 2018 to 24,152 in 2019. Regular giving was £99,804 which is up 6% on 2018.  Fortunately, Contact Centre income remained steady at £67,327 with costs down almost 10% to £42,767.  The Church contributed £91,593 to the Diocese in 2019 (a 5.6% reduction on 2018) in the form of the ‘Parish Support Fund’ which enables the Diocese to fund clergy and clergy pensions both in this Parish and in less-wealthy Parishes where need is inevitably greater. 

## **Abbeville Fete and Christmas Fair** 

The Abbeville Fete contributed £6,800 to CHS in 2018 but there was no Fete in 2019 (the next Fete is scheduled for 19[th] June 2021). The lack of Fete income was partly compensated for by the Summer and Christmas Fairs (the latter’s takings were up 30% at £4,172).  Both events were successful due to the huge effort put in by a large number of volunteers and hopefully we might be able to hold a Fair either in 2021 or 2022. 

## **Capital Spending and Reserves** 

In 2016 I reported that I hoped a permanent dais, re-siting of or reinstated chancel screens, new toilets in the Contact Centre (CC) and a programme of church repairs and maintenance would be carried out in 2018.  A surveyor did carry out a Quinquennial Inspection in late 2018 and emergency repair work was carried out on the roof. Unfortunately, despite having £85,000 worth of reserves available for the past six years, the PCC has made very little progress. We must all hope that the new PCC can finally get to grips with this and deliver a new dais & restored chancel screens and new CC toilets before the end of 2021 by which time the ‘temporary’ dais will have been in use for more than half a decade. 

## **Basis of accounting** 

The accounts for all funds are prepared so as to recognise income and expenditure when they fall due rather than when they are actually paid, and assets purchased for use over several years are shown in the balance sheet, and their cost written off over their lives. 

As a non-accountant I rely heavily on the accounting skills of my colleagues.  I am indebted to: 

- Peta Parker and Lynn Valkenaar for making sure the Church’s books add up and 

Page | 12 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

- Jo Ross and Frances Stormer for making sure the Contact Centre’s books add up 

I am very sorry that all four have left the team, having earlier lost Deborah Di Biase who helped with Fete accounts until last year.  A special thank you to Jo Ross who has been running the Contact Centre since 2004! 

I am thrilled that Lottie Lago has re-joined the team following her return to SW4 from New York, and I welcome Gill Fisher who looks after the Contact Centre finances and manages the church payroll.  If you’d like to join the friendly Team Finance please email me for more info at treasurer@holyspirit-clapham.org.uk 

I thank those led by Anna Long who count the collections given by the congregation on more than 60 occasions in 2019 including Marcus Hope, Erica Shelton, Sarah Miles and Nick Jenni (who also helps me to put these accounts together). 

I particularly thank Terry Parker who, alongside huge caring responsibilities, found the time in 2019 and early 2020 to account for, and bank, our weekly collections come rain or shine. For now, physical collections have stopped. 

We all use the church’s IT and in 2019 and 2020 with Martin Gill’s help we accessed the CHS server from home and from the Church and Contact Centre offices.  In 2021 we migrated all the software to the ‘cloud’ bidding farewell to the server. 

Huge thanks are due to Michael Woolley, who has once again given his time freely to carry out the Independent Examination both of these 2019 accounts and will do so again when he examines the 2020 accounts. 

As I write (in April 2021) we have yet to produce accounts for 2020, a year of reduced income (both in terms of fees and giving) matched by reduced spending.  Happily reserves remain untouched thanks especially to a few very generous donations received during the year. This enabled us to maintain a £7,000 monthly donation to the Diocese, a real achievement in a year with little income from the Contact Centre and neither an Abbeville Fete nor a Christmas Fair. 

If you can dig a little deeper, please consider increasing your giving as costs will increase as we come out of lockdown.  Any amount, however small, is welcome (the bank account details are below) and we can usually add 25% to the value of the donation in 

Page | 13 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

Gift Aid.  Thanks to generous giving from the congregation we raised the £25,000 needed to install a new AV system and I thank everyone who made this possible notably Nick and Ollie Jenni. 

The 2020 accounts will be published as soon as possible. 

Andrew Chevis Hon Treasurer 

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Church of the Holy SpiriL Clapham
state￿￿nt of Financial Activrties
For the perlod from 01 January 2019 to 31 December 2019
UMostrf¢l8d
funds
Ro$lrfct•d
fijnds
Endo%Mnont
funds
Tol
funds
Pdor yoar
to1￿ fund$
InCOR￿ngres0Urc&S
Inc￿ning reS￿[ce5 from
other vdunl8ry incorring res￿r¢t$
A¢tiwlies lofurther the w￿K of the church
Actiifjlies f¢￿ generBling funds
Inc￿ne from investments
99.803
540
6.519
10.671
678
99.803
540
93,262
1,447
6,308
74,376
6.519
10.671
678
other Inccrfning res￿r¢e5
ID¢cme directly relating loworship
61.886
666
61.886
666
61,258
930
Total In¢om8
180,766
180,766
237,584
Resources used
Cost5 of genEraling funds
Grants
Paymentsto further the wc*k of the Church
costs
Church building. m&nagemEnt and administration
ExpenililurE dirpctly relating lo W￿shIp
3.304
3.729
95.855
18.113
53.600
7.083
3.304
3.420
98.45S
18.313
53.600
7.083
29,236
31,135
107,598
19,975
57,282
8,038
2.600
Total expendlluFg
181,887
2,290
184,178
253,266
Net Income I lexpendltur81 resources before transfer
12,290
115,B82
Tr￿J$f￿$
Gross Iransfrrs betyKen funds- In
Gr055 transfers between funds-
114.537
114.537
27,800
127,8001
otherrecognlsedoalnsllossos
Gains Ilosses cfi investm￿1 assets
Gains on revaluali¢m. fixpd assets, charitys ONn use
Net movement In fvnds
IZ,ZgD
13,4121
115,582
Recondl/atlon of fUl￿S
Total funds brougm forward
199,463
2,290
201,754
Z17,436
Total funds carrled lorwdrd
198,141
198,141
2D1,754
Page | 15

Church of the Holy SpiriL Clapham
Balance sheet (Church of England)
As at.. 310ecember 2019
As at 3111212019
As at 3111212018
Flxod assots
Tangible assets
43.433
54,875
43.433
54.875
cU￿•￿t assgts
Debtors
10.159
155.707
6.532
150.193
Cash al bank and in hand
165.867
156.726
Credit￿s." Amounts falling due in we year
4.958
3.847
Net curront assets I￿S current Ilabllltles
IBO,908
151879
Total assBts less cuttBnt Ilabllltles
2D4,J41
207,754
Credit￿5.. Armunls falling due after more than c￿e year
6.000
6.000
Total not assets IBSS IlabllltlBS
198,341
201,754
Represont$d by
Llniostrlcted
Unrestricted- General fund
84.880
68.463
Doslgnated
Designated Chairs Fund
Designated- S)und system Fund
Designated- Abbevlle Fete
Designated- c￿lac1 Centre
Designated- Centenary
Desionaled- Restoration Fund
Designated- Orgen Fund
Designated- Fabric Fund
Desionaled- Past￿&1 Fund
Designated- Legacie5 Fund
545
4.350
43.734
4.125
38.293
5.016
66.Q25
5.016
77.329
23
Restrlcled
Reslncted- Refvgeeswelcune Lan*eth
2.290
Funds of th• church
198,341
201.754
Page | 16

Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **Notes to the Balance Sheet** 

## **1. Fixed Assets** 


## **2. Debtors** 

Debtors include amounts due from HMRC for Gift Aid tax (£7907); Salaries (£792); and insurance (£1460). 

## **3. Creditors** 

Creditors include amount due to Clapham & Clapham Park Montessori School in respect of a licensee’s deposit of £6,000. 


Page | 17 



Church of the Holy SpiriL Clapham
Receipts and payments
Sèlected period.. 01 January 2019 to 31 0￿0￿4)er 2019
From
To
01 January 2019
31 December 2019
01 January 2018
31 December 2018
REFUGEES- Refugees Welcome Lambeth (Restrictedl Fund
Recolpts
Other voluntary Inccmlng resources
One-off Gifl glfts
One off Grants
700.00
200 00
rotal Other wluntery inconwngfesources
900.00
Tot￿ recelpts
9)0.00
Payments
Grants
H￿ne rTiSSiQn & outreach
1309.02)
Tolal Granls
1309.02)
Pa￿r￿n15 lofurtherthe WOTk oflhe Church
Wotking exppn5es of incumbent
Y￿th acts￿Ille5
50.49
400.00
H￿seh¢4￿ and clher equlpmeDI
Total PayrNrnls 10 fvrtheT rhe ¥vtrk of the Chwch
2.6￿).00
2600.00
450.49
Support f05tS
Glfts
800.00
Totalsupput costs
800.00
Total paymonts
2,290.98
1.250.49
Excess of Inccmino resources over Res￿ree5 used
Brwghl f¢Thvard balance
Total tarrlèd forward balancé
12.290.981
2.2￿).98
1350 491
2,641 47
,2￿J.
General- General fund (Unrestricted) Fund
Recelpts
InccThing res￿reeS from donus
Gift Aid- Bank
Gift A4d- Envelcwes
Other gwing underGift Aid
Gi￿1ng thr￿gh church ￿>XeS
Donations in kind
51.992.QO
14.367.60
9.211.99
95.01
58.Q72.50
12,740.87
2,967.16
250 00
L￿se p￿te Cdleclions
Tax rerThrraLIE Gift Aid
3.709.21
20.428 09
2,319.64
16,912.03
Totall￿On￿n￿reso￿s Trom donc*s
99.803.90
93.262 20
other voluntary Inc￿nIng resour￿5
on￿Off Gift Aid gifts
Donations appeals etc.
515.00
25.00
282.15
265.51
Total 011￿ ￿lUnte￿ IncO￿n￿reSoUrceS
Actvilies to fvrther the work ofthe church
Christingle Children's Soc
Easlerlent Call
Rent. church/LDF ￿lIding u*
Hdy Mdies
540.00
517 66
679.38
338.87
200.00
210.00
240 00
TotelActivili8s to further lh8 ofiiB chwch
7,089.38
578.87
Page | 18

Church of the Holy SpiriL Clapham
From
To
01 January 2019
31 December 2019
01 January 2018
31 De¢ember 2018
J¥ot8
Acttwrties for generating funds
Other funds generated
Cake S8les
415.12
172.30
Church stalls- (ther
Church stall- BBQ
Christmas Fair
1,717.00
205.(K)
4,172.16
274.20
3,222.82
255.56
Te8 & Coffee
CC￿Cert$
Bodr Sales
Church hire
91.96
9.00
1,375.00
2,305.00
130.06
1.756.79
1.335.QJ
3.410.(M)
225.85
The Opera Prr4ect
Webslore incotne
Tol8lActivilies forgeneraling funds
10,661.80
10,41 J.02
IDc(¥ne fr(¥n inve51tnents
Bank & build'ng soc interest
364.27
Tot8llncornr Irorn in￿$11rJPNlS
364.2T
Other inccming res￿r¢e5
Disposal of assets
1158.061
1758.06)
rot•l Other ￿COmIng resowces
IncL¥De directly relating lo W￿Ship
Votive C8ndles
165.29
179.42
Fees to PCC
501.00
751.CN)
Tol8llncon* d*6Ctlyrelabng loworship
666.29
930.42
Total recelpts
113.125.64
105.572.11
Payments
C051s of generating funds
Printinglpublicity
Christmas Fair eKpenses
Summer Fair 8xpenses
1,889.81
571.44
608.74
54.99
502.62
Total Costs ofgerEraliny funds
3,069.99
557.61
Gr8nls
Rths Prgect
Children's kniety
Church Action
1.617.45
69.31
25.00
25.
Mccabe Educational Trust
746.29
P8uI's Cancer Supp)rt
Hcffle mission & outreach
Oz8nne F￿ndS11
Disaster Emergency Ccrnmittee
Fishetrnens Rest
Thames Reach
746.29
309.02
400.00
88.00
969.31
969.31
Totel Gr8nts
3.729.95
3. 135.03
Payments lo further the w¢Jrk of the Church
Perish SJpp¢¥t Fund
Padsh training and misslon
Wotking expenses of incumbent
Youth actI￿lieS
91,592.87
125.871
370.38
1,306.18
356.05
97.104.96
1.500.94
556.03
547.27
sen1￿$ acliwilies
313.98
Printing & Stalion8ry
Catering
795.09
667.69
437.41
674.10
Tolsl Pay￿￿￿￿$ lo ftsrther of the Church
94.832.11
101.364.97

Church of the Holy SpiriL Clapham
From
To
01 January 2019
31 December 2019
01 January 2018
31 Decernber 2018
Support Costs
SalaryJ8dminislrator
Gifts
Printer, cO￿Ule[, netwoyk and sofrware
8.547.23
270.00
342.84
10.931.60
177.19
415.58
Total Suppiyt cosls
9,160.07
17,524.37
Church building. manegemenl and athHnistr&liL
Bank 8nd financp charg¢s
Church running exTrinsurance
Church maintenance
53.60
1.608.99
5.017.82
39.64
1.719.67
4.203.43
233 47
3.11690
3.426.27
1.276.42
949.60
M15cellaneous
D¢pred811o)
Church running expense5- Heal
Church running exp- Eleclnc
Telephone brogdband
Maiorrepairslchurch
3.114.24
6.288.00
1.066.86
956.19
1.296 00
Totel Church buiklino, men8gernntandadministralit>n
Expenditure directly relating loworship
Organlpiano tuning
mu￿e, ￿ganISL and chrlr
Ch8n¢d Expenses
FlcMer5
J9.407.70
14.965.40
390.52
5.986.33
1.551 94
11000
6.230.54
730 52
122.50
Total Expenditure dwectlyrelatiw to WLTship
T,063.56
&,038.79
Total paym9nts
137,277.38
139.586.17
Exress of Inc(¥Ting r¢s￿rGe5 ￿￿Er Resources Used
Transfrrs loltrLYlll
Transfers Ic4trcml
Transfers t￿tr￿n)
Brought f(￿ard bèlance
Total carrlbd forward b￿aTrEe
124,151.741
20.744.41
14,383 861
24.208.16
68.463.56
134,014.061
27.800.00
74.677 62
68,463.56
84,880.53
Abb8ville- Abbeville Fete IDesignatedl Fund
Recelpts
Aclwilies for generathng funds
Abbemlle Fete
Church stalls- other
4.594 56
2.340.07
6.208.00
5.075.10
9.643.00
2.900 00
11.170.00
115.00
19.475.00
2.445 23
Church stall- bar
Church stall- 88Q
Stalls rents & share received
Pr(wy¥mme ¥dwertislng
Sponsorship rec￿Ved
Traderand street cdler11￿ box
Church- SIlEnl auction
Church- Raffle
10.00
To131Acliwties for yenwaling fiJnLIs
10.00
63.965 96
Total r6cblpts
10.00
63,%5.96
Payments
Costs of generating funds
bewlle Fete Expenses
11.458.90
2.996.00
2.790 00
3.918.62
1.438.34
5.076.97
235.00
stalls direct C051s
stalls costs- bar
Sta115 C<)5t5- 88Q
Entertainers and attractions
Page | 20

Church of the Holy SpiriL Clapham
From
To
01 January 2019
31 December 2019
01 January 2018
31 December 2018
Fete party
1.Th)o.rx)
TotstrCosi$ ofgew•tlno fvnds
235.00
28,6T8.83
Gr8nl$
Ace of Club5
6.800.
6.800.rx)
6.800.(M)
6.800.
H¢)rt Stert Lambeth
Parallel Ycmjlh Entprprl*
The Trci8ns Scheme
Toi81 GT8nis
2T,200.00
Total paywngnts
235.(KJ
55,878.e3
Excess of Inccring res￿ree$ over Res￿reeS used
Transfers t￿(1[(¥￿)
8[￿ght foyward balance
Total carTlgd loww￿d balance
(225 001
8.087.13
16.8(N).001
3.(￿3.23
4,350.36
4,350.36
4,125.36
Contact- Contact Centre (Designated) Fund
Rgcglpts
Aclwities lo furtherlhewoyk of Ihp church
c¢￿1£et Centre- Lettings
TotelActiwli8s tofyrther lh8 of Ih8clyurGh
5,430 00
5.730.(K)
5.430.00
5,730.00
Inccme from investments
8ènk & buildng soc Interest
1090
TotsllJ7coJre h)mIn￿S￿￿)ents
g090
Other IncttAng res￿ree5
CL￿tact Centre- Rents rec'd
Clapham & Cl£pham Park m(￿lesso￿- Rent
Tolal Other resowces
45,219.83
16,666 66
36.466.50
24.949.99
61.886 49
67,416.49
Total iecglpts
67,327.39
67,146.49
Paym•nls
Psyment$ tofvrthpr the wotk ofth¢ Chur¢fv
Prinlina & Stationery
C8lerin9
1,023 00
460.92
13.15
Total PayJr*nls lo furt1￿ Ihe wuk ￿the Church
1.033 00
4T4.OT
pport ¢¢sts
Salaryladmini51rat¢x
9,153.08
7.651.28
Tol&l Supp(Yt ¢osis
9.153.08
7.651.28
Church building, Tnanagemenl &drrinistrati(
Miscellaneou5
Deprposli
Church runniny exp Water
Telephone and broadband
c(￿1￿Ct Centre cos15- gas
c(￿1￿Ct Centre- 8edririly
c¢￿tact Centre
Insurance
c(￿1￿Ct Centre- Cleaning
Repairs. mainlenanre & safety- CC
Repairs & Maintenance ICCPMI- CC
MRICoTrlacl Cpnlrp reder0ral1￿hnIGc
8,327.28
239.99
1,249 84
1,512.76
1,513.28
1,802 99
9,458.41
5,050.64
822 92
11.869.02
231.41
1.192.58
2.349.25
2.583.(N)
1.719.67
9.971.
8.760.59
450.
3,000.00
TOtalCh￿Ch builrling. Managen￿￿tA￿LI•d￿lni&tretrott
32.591 68
39, 131.58
Told paymènts
42,767.76
47,256.93
Page | 21

Church of the Holy SpiriL Clapham
From
To
01 January 2019
31 Decem ber 2019
01 January 2&18
31 Decernber 2018
Nottr
Excess of Inc(xning reswrces Res￿r¢e5 used
T[ansferst￿fr￿nI
TranSferSt&(fr￿nI
Transfers lollfronl
Br￿ght fc#ward balance
Total catrlod fop*Rrd balance
24,559 63
iio.oth.001
10.000 (M)
130.0(M).001
43,734.08
19.889.56
121.000.001
44.844.52
38,293.71
43,734.08
Organ - Organ Fund IDesi9natedl Fund
Tr8nsferstd(frunl
Tr8nsferstd(frunl
Transfers Id(frunl
Brwghl I￿ard balance
Total catrled forvrard balanco
269 92
3.630 08
13.9DO.001
5,016.46
5.016.46
5.016.46
5,016.46
Fabric- Fabric Fund IDe5ignatedl Fund
Rocelpts
In¢(xne frc¥r Investments
Bank & bullding soc Interest
30316
Tota1lTr¢on￿ frominVes)￿erjls
30316
Total roc8lpls
303.16
Paymgnt5
Pa￿nentS lofvrtherthe worf( oflhe Church
Major repairsipcc prcperty
5.308.80
Tol81 P8yrFrnls Ic lurth8T lh8 of lh8 Chwch
Church buil(ling. m8nagemenl and adrrinisiratits)
Church m8intenance
s,￿6.8(1
2.045.58
1.140.00
Major repairslchurch
Totsl Chwch buikling. managerenl and administrat
1,607.40
1,6Q7 40
3.185.58
Total payments
1,807.40
8,494.38
Excess of In¢uning re5￿jr¢es over Re$￿Jr¢eS used
Transfers lol(frcrfnl
Transfers lol(frcrfnl
Tr8nsferstd(frunl
Br(xJghl fmvard balance
Total c¥¥rled forward balance
11.304.241
6,514.38
4,383.86
120.898.241
77.329 91
66,025.67
18.494.381
85.824.29
77,329.91
Page | 22

Church of the Holy SpiriL Clapham
From
To
01 January 2019
31 Deeèm bÈr2019
01 January 2018
31 December 2018
Note
Pastoral- Pastoral Fund (Designated) Fund
Payments
Grants
Hcxn2 mission & outreach
800.(X)
Totsl Grants
800.00
Totd paymgnts
0.00
Excess of IDC(ming resojrces over Reswrces used
Transfers IrJ<frunl
Transfers l￿fr￿n)
Br￿ght faward b818nGe
Totl cartlod fowward balanco
1800.001
1.970.00
11,993.361
23.36
823.36
23.36
Legacies- Legacies Fund (Designated) Fund
Transfers IrAfrcml
Transfers I￿{frC￿l
Transfers I￿{frC￿l
Br￿ght f(xward balance
TO1￿ ¢arrl8d foNtard balan¢&
1.046.32
14,946.641
3.900.00
0.32
0.32
0.32
Sound - Sound system Fund (Designateill Fund
Transfers I￿(frC￿l
Br￿ght f￿lar￿ balance
Tota cartlqd lotward balancq
1545.Q31
545.03
545.03
S15.03
Page | 23

## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (CONT’D)** 

## **DIOCESAN SYNOD** 

Mtr Ruth and Paula were elected representatives for Lambeth North Deanery. 

Meetings in 2019-20 took place on 

9[th] March 2019 17[th] July 2019 16[th] November 2019 14[th] March 2020 

In 2020-21 meetings took place on zoom as follows 

8[th] July 2020 5[TH] Dec 2020 13[th] March 2021 

## 8[th] July 2020 

Covid and lockdown were in full swing. This was the first ever zoom meeting. It was very short with a Presidential Address, a short financial statement and a general greet and check on everyone’s welfare. 

## 5[th] December 2020 

This had been put back from November to allow a bit more time for financial statements and estimates to be prepared. The Parish Giving Scheme was mentioned but not in much detail. 

Property – the Diocese has an ongoing parsonage condition survey which they have had to extend into this year as it was impacted by Covid. The thing for us to note is that they intend to develop a 5 year and 10 year maintenance plan for the properties, like the quinquennials for churches. 

Worship – they want to increase worshipping communities and will be reviewing smaller churches, those with less than 50 parishioners. The number of Southwark churches who are involved in social action and community outreach is higher than the national average. 

Education – there was a report on schools, generally positive. 14 governor vacancies. Please consider if you could become a school governor. 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## 13[th] March 2021 Our 3[rd] meeting on zoom. 

Living in Love and Faith – a presentation and then we were asked to consider how can we get involved? How can we work on this in our own church? 

There was a vote on adopting the Southwark anti-racism charter – carried unanimously. We looked at Racial Justice and BLM. We were asked to consider have we discussed racial injustice issues in our church? And how do we promote racial inequality and inclusion in our church? We had a small group discussion which raised the interesting question about the removal of a benefactor’s statue in a church in South East London where the family were known to have profited from slavery. 

There was a financial report which showed 96% of churches are honouring their pledges for their Parish Support Fund, also vicars’ stipends are receiving a 0% increase this year. 

Revd Ruth Burge-Thomas and Paula Wilson 

## **DEANERY SYNOD** 

## **2019** 

The Deanery Synod consists of a group of 16 parishes (21 churches) in Lambeth North. Geographically, our parish is the furthest south, and St John’s Waterloo is the furthest north.  Representatives (both clergy and lay members) of the 16 parishes meet regularly, typically 3 times a year, with the purpose of working together in the community and sharing information and experience. In 2019, the calendar ran as follows: 

We met in February, July and October 2019, in a different church each time. The main joint activities we arranged between the 16 parishes were: 

1. Lambeth Country Show. 20/21 July 2019.  For the third year, a church stand, manned jointly by all the Lambeth Deaneries, provided activities for children, hymns, hand massages, a daily eucharist and prayers. 

2. Food and Fun Summer Club was held every Tuesday and Thursday 23 July to 29 August 2019 at Christchurch Primary School, Brixton Road. This was a playscheme with activities (including cooking) and meals to support 

Page | 25 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

particularly families whose children normally get free school meals in term time, and struggle with hunger and activities during the long summer holiday period. A good number of volunteers from the Deanery helped with this – 8 of the 16 parishes were represented, including CHS. The highlight for the children was a visit to the zoo. Finance came from the Deanery Synod funds. 

3. The autumn Deanery Synod on Monday 14 October 2019 debated the motion concerning the request for a service of prayer and dedication following civil partnerships and same-sex marriages. There was a formal paper vote, with a substantial majority in favour of the motion. 

4. The North Lambeth Deanery synod also circulated information to its member parishes about activities of interest – such as the dates of Welcoming Church Lambeth, a bereavement course at Holy Trinity, Clapham, a “Come and Sing” day with John Rutter at St Mary Magdalene, Wandsworth Common etc. 

## **2020** 

1. The Deanery Synod meeting in February 2020 was held in the lovely chapel at St Thomas’s Hospital.  Following lockdown, the other meetings were held by zoom. 

2.   Although it was planned to repeat the summer play scheme and the church stand at the Lambeth Country Show, both were cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

3.  Black Lives Matter was a main topic at the June 2020 meeting – with many comments and suggestions from the churches as to how best to approach the subject in churches and more widely in society.  Two events followed (socially distanced of course) in Brockwell Park and at St Mark’s, Kennington.  The St Mark’s Kennington event in July was held on the steps of the church and was called “Exhale” – a spoken word event open-mic performances. 

4.  The November 2020 meeting compared how the churches in our Deanery were coping with lockdown, and the pros and cons of zoom services and prayer meetings. Plans were also made to hold a Deanery Passion Trail on 20 March 2021, around 14 churches and church schools, each illustrating one of the Stations of the Cross. (Note: this duly took place, and Holy Spirit was involved, providing music and art works for the 4[th] Station, “Jesus meets his 

Page | 26 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

mother”.) A permanent website was also announced, and can now be viewed on www.lambethnorthdeanery.org with pictures and video clips from the Passion Trail. 

Margi Mahoney 

## **ELECTORAL ROLL** 

## **2019-21** 

In 2019 there were 81 names on the Electoral Roll, and 113 names in 2021, however this is not a true reflection of regular worshippers in our congregation. 

The Church Representation Rules state that: 

(1) There shall be a church electoral roll (in these rules referred to as 'the roll') in every parish, on which the names of lay persons shall be entered as hereinafter provided. The roll shall be available for inspection by bona fide inquirers. 

(2) A lay person shall be entitled to have his name entered on the roll of a parish if he is baptised, of sixteen years or upwards, has signed an application form for enrolment set out in Appendix I of these rules and declares himself either - 

(a) to be a member of the Church of England or of a Church in communion therewith resident in the parish; or 

(b) to be such a member and, not being resident in the parish, to have habitually attended public worship in the parish during a period of six months prior to enrolment; or 

(c) to be a member in good standing of a church which subscribes to the doctrine of the Holy Trinity (not being a Church in communion with the Church of England) and also prepared to declare himself to be a member of the Church of England having habitually attended public worship in the parish during a period of six months prior to enrolment. 

Being on the Electoral Roll entitles you to stand for election to the PCC and to assist with the overall running of our church. It also means that you are formally showing that you are a committed member of our church. The roll is closed for new names for the two weeks leading up to the APCM, but if you would like to add your name after the APCM, forms will be available. 

Page | 27 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **CONTACT CENTRE** 

## **2019** 

The Contact Centre continued to be busy with children’s and adult classes and groups.  Most of the people coming to the classes were local from the immediate Abbeville Road area. 

During term time the hall and stage room were nearly fully booked on weekdays and there were parties nearly every weekend.  New groups hoping to use the Contact Centre needed to fit in with the very limited space available and accept that we do not have any storage space for equipment. The Clapham Park Montessori had exclusive use of the upstairs room. 

As of the end of 2019 users of the Contact Centre were as follows: Montessori Infant Community, Spring School of Ballet, Monkey Music, ABC German, Clapham Martial Arts (formerly Hapkido), Hartbeeps, Sensory Land, Mama Codes all activities for children, paying the full rent.  We had a few groups who paid a nominal fee to use the Contact Centre like the Brownies, Guides and La Leche League, all charitable groups run by volunteers.  Adult activities include Janet Buck’s exercise classes, Pilates Plus, Ki Aikido, Clapham Martial Arts for adults, Toto Yoga, AA, Vera the Diva ballroom dancing, and the Art Class run by Joakim Agulander. Labour Clapham Common Ward ran a Surgery in the Stage room on the second Saturday of the month from 11.30 – 12.30. 

The rates for single hire were increased from January 2019 to £45.00p/h, and for the regular renters from September 2019 to £22p/h for the hall and £20p/h for the stage room.  Local people were also able to rehearse various art projects if we had space when no one else needs it. 

There were small improvements to the Contact Centre over 2019 but mainly general maintenance.  Plans to renew the toilets were still current but a large job and will have to take place during the summer holidays. 

The Church hosted Robes on Saturday nights from the end of January through to March.  Thankfully, due to all the volunteers, we were able to do this again in 2020. Also, although the timings needed to be carefully managed, we managed to fit in lots of birthday parties on Saturday afternoons. 

Page | 28 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

In case anyone would like to know more about how the Contact Centre is run there is a manual.  There is a hard copy in the Contact Centre, or you can ask the Church Wardens for a copy. 

Jo Ross 

## **2020** 

As a community space, the Contact Centre has been significantly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic over the last year. Our regular groups began suspending their classes from the beginning of March, and all groups were cancelled by the first national lockdown from 23rd March 2020. 

## Groups 2020 

The centre was not able to host people from the Robes homeless shelter over the 2020 Autumn/Winter period due to Covid and no information has been shared about 2021. 

As an Early Years’ setting, the Clapham and Clapham Park Montessori groups have remained open for children of key workers throughout 2020. The Infant Community meet in the centre’s main hall on a Monday, Tuesday and Thursday morning. The Clapham Park Community meet upstairs every weekday. 

The staff have responded to the Covid-19 emergency by implementing multiple safety measures, including staggered pickup and drop-off times, temperature checks and equipment sanitation. 

As restrictions were eased from the 4th of July, Manager Jo Ross began liaising with groups about their return. All returning groups provided a signed risk assessment and agreed to the new Covid compliant rules, such as reduced group sizes and checking in using the track and trace app. Automatic hand sanitiser dispensers have also been installed along with appropriate signage. 

From September 2020, the following groups returned: 

Children’s Groups: ABC German, Spring School of Ballet, Clapham Martial Arts, Hartbeeps, M Monkey Music & Sensory Land. 

Page | 29 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

Adult Groups: Vera the Diva ballroom dancing, Hapkido for adults and the Art Class run by Joakim Agulander. 

The following groups did not return and do not plan to: Mama Codes, Janet Buck’s exercise classes, Pilates Plus, Toto Yoga, and the monthly Labour Clapham Common surgery. 

A new Early Years group called La Ola Spanish (formerly E-Kids Spanish) joined the Contact Centre in November 2020. An Early Years group called Clip Theatre also joined the Contact Centre for a weekly session, but this sadly could not continue as they were taking the slot which had been unconditionally reserved for Babyfare (formerly La Leche League). 

When the second lockdown was imposed on the 5th November, Early Years groups were allowed to continue, so Monkey Music, Hartbeeps, La Ola Spanish, Clip Theatre and Sensory Land remained. 

## Groups’ return 2021 

All groups except the Art Class and Babyfare returned in December. Since January 2021, the third lockdown has meant that only the Montessori, Early-Years setting ABC-German, and parent and baby support group Babyfare have returned to the centre. 

The Art class has been suspended as the teacher is emigrating. Otherwise all groups plan to return to the centre when restrictions allow. The majority are set to return from the 12th April 2021. 

All returning groups have been asked to review and sign an updated Risk Assessment and Booking conditions form. 

## Other 

Staff Jo Ross and Paul Gregson were placed on furlough from Monday 13th April until June under the Government Job retention Scheme. 

In October 2020 Jo Ross retired after 14 years as Contact Centre Manager. She was replaced by Gill Fisher with a slightly revised role. 

Page | 30 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

Paul Gregson continues to clean the centre for ten hours a week. 

## Bookings and rates 

The booking forms have been updated to include clear guidelines on storage and Covid regulations. The space has not been hired out as a venue since the pandemic hit, but it was previously booked out almost every weekend for parties and receptions. 

We recently reviewed the standard rates which are £22p/h for the hall and £20p/h for the stage room. These have been capped. However, the current charity rate which has been applied to voluntary groups of £6 per session has been increased to £20 per session active from April 2021. The groups in question were made aware of the impending change from January 2021. 

The rates for single hire of the space as a venue remain at £45.00p/h. Local people are also able to rehearse various art projects if we have space when no one else needs it. 

## Maintenance 

There were ongoing issues with the centre boiler which are now fixed. The heating vents in the stage room have been blanked off to be Covid compliant by avoiding air being circulated between two spaces. The stage room must now rely on oil heaters. 

There have been some sporadic power outages from isolated electrical sockets in the main hall and office which have been fixed. This led to an outage of the wi-fi network, which was sadly complicated and costly to reset, but it prompted the move of the centre’s sever to a cloud based system. 

During the third lockdown, staff have been enacting a clear out, which has involved a cataloguing of the different group’s storage and getting rid of unneeded items. This is a work in progress. 

## AOB 

In case anyone would like to know more about how the Contact Centre is run there is a manual available. There is a hard copy in the Contact Centre, or you can ask Gill Fisher, or the Church Wardens for a copy. 

## Gill Fisher 

Page | 31 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **SUNDAY SCHOOL** 

## **2019-20** 

In pre-history, Sunday school was changing – Kathryn Newell who had led Sunday school so kindly and with such dedication had become Church Warden and needed to let go of some of her other church commitments – she continued to offer service as a teacher but let go of her superb, meticulous and calm organisational efforts. Some of our team were changing as their children grew older and needed to move into different ways of being Christian.  New and younger children kept arriving and demanding their space and time in Sunday School. 

I volunteered to help lead and Deborah (Rufus’ Mum) wonderfully volunteered to deal with all the paperwork. 

We met once a term at a team supper, decided our themes in collaboration with the vicar, agreed our rota and carried on much as before. About 10/12 children came irregularly to Sunday morning worship and a team of 8/10 adults volunteered to lead, in pairs, the Sunday morning sessions held in the large hall of the Contact Centre. Each teaching partnership decided their own style, their own manner of delivery, and used Roots magazine to guide the content and interpretation of the week’s liturgical readings.  The children presented their work to the congregation at the end of the service cleverly led by Ruth to reinforce the message of the day. Most teachers were very apprehensive of this performance as they were well aware that it revealed how much – or how little – the children had taken in. The appreciative laughs, smiles and claps of the congregation however was reassuring – and showed the children that they were valued by the ‘grown-ups’. 

We were making some additions – using a noticeboard at the back of the church to pin up some of the children’s work, questioning whether or not we wanted more uniformity of delivery, how we could improve our training and support for teachers, and most importantly delivering an ‘Eco Advent’ where we focused on a sustainable, plastic free world – aligning some of our contemporary patriarchs and prophets such as David Attenborough and Greta Thunberg with the more traditional ones as told in the Bible. 

Page | 32 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

See Appendix 1 on page 47 for the detailed Sunday School report. 

## Holy Molies 

During 2019/2020 Holy Molies continued their weekly sessions every Tuesday from 9.30 to 11.30. We sadly said goodbye to minister Helen but, as a band of about 10, we continued enjoying stories and music in church followed by play and gossip in the stage room. 

Then, in February 2021 came Covid; it all halted. We are aiming to return as soon as possible, outside in the first instance. 

Caroline Russell-Clark 

## **MUSIC** 

## **2019** 

The last year has seen some wonderful musical performances at CHS, with some additions to the musical team and choir. 

The Christmas carol service is always a highlight of the musical year, and with good reason! In 2019 the congregation was treated with a few classics such as the intimate yet bleak ‘Coventry Carol’, a dramatic story telling of Mary’s Annunciation through ‘Gabriel’s Message’, and Darke’s classic carol ‘In the bleak midwinter’. 

In addition to these better known carols, the choir also performed a sweet rendition of Wilcock’s Christmas carol ‘Quelle est cette odeur’ under Sarah Mistry’s expert watch, and a smaller trio (Lucilla Poston, Sarah Mistry and Andrei Lebed) sang the 14th century carol ‘There is no rose’ from the top of the gallery. 

The musical team were delighted to welcome Shawn Li as our new organ scholar. Shawn was preparing to apply for an organ scholarship at Oxford and Cambridge, and we had the pleasure of his exceptional musicality and dedication as he prepared for those exams. 

Over the next year the plan was to undertake a project to re-organise the choir library (a key back-bone to any good choir, thank you Ian Pearse for volunteering 

Page | 33 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

to help with this). This would streamline our rehearsing but also help us sensibly expand our repertoire of music. 

We also planned to bring back Choral Evensongs once a month after Easter following a short hiatus this year. 

However, music at CHS is not only confined to choral singing and organ playing! We are blessed with a group of highly talented instrumentalists, who grace us with their music regularly during communion, and occasionally get together in ensembles. Highlights from an instrumental perspective include performances of the band at the Abbeville Fete and the Passover dinner under Anna Rowsell’s experienced leadership! 

Music also played a very large part in the Abbeville Fete in 2019. There was nearly twenty hours of live music and entertainment across four different stages - from steel bands to school choirs, ukulele groups to jazz ensembles… and a bit of dancing thrown in as well. We are so grateful to all those who took part and to our sponsors who covered almost all our fete music costs, enabling us to donate _._ even more money to local charities 

Andrei Lebed, Ian Pearse, David Jeffries, Anna Roswell 

## **2020** 

- Shawn Li organ scholarship at Oxbridge 

- COVID changes 

- Christmas services 

2020 has offered challenges to many aspects of church life, music notwithstanding. With lockdown measures put in place in March 2020, services moved online on zoom, with music being provided live via zoom, or often pre-recorded by musicians and then shared as part of the service. 

As well as continuing to hear the sounds of the organ to help lead worship, we were also fortunate to hear a variety of solo performances from musicians across the church, including solo voice, piano, guitar and flute. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

In the meantime, our Organ Scholar, Shawn Li, was diligently preparing for his Oxbridge Organ Scholarship auditions, which took place in September over zoom. We were delighted to hear that he was awarded an Organ Scholarship at Peterhouse, Cambridge - his first choice college! 

As COVID-19 case rates started to fall towards the end of 2020, we were pleased to be able to perform our traditional service of lessons and carols to a real audience in the church building. The choir debuted a chilling a cappella arrangement of ‘I Wonder as I Wander’ by John Rutter, and finished the service with a rousing rendition of Gardiner’s ‘Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day’ - which brought pleasant childhood memories to several ladies in the choir who sang the same piece under Gardiner’s baton at St Paul’s Girl School. 

While the year was somewhat musically hampered by COVID-19 restrictions, we have all been incredibly grateful for our wonderful new AV system which has allowed us to stream music from the acoustically impressive church building direct to our congregation’s living rooms. Going forward, the AV system will be used regularly to support not just streaming, but also recording of the musical activities in church so that more people in our community can enjoy the music we produce on a weekly basis. 

Andrei Lebed 

## **CHURCHES TOGETHER IN CLAPHAM** 

## **2020-21** 

CTIC (Churches Together in Clapham) is the body which represents the different church denominations in Clapham (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal and Orthodox), now comprising 12 congregations. All clergy and laity are entitled to participate, though we currently have 3 voting lay representatives (Anna Long and Alan Mundy, with a third person to be appointed). CTiC’s Standing Committee members are also the trustees who act as governance for the organisation. 

## Officers and Forum Meetings 

At the October 2020 AGM. Liz Marin-Curtoud (Clapham Methodist Church) was elected Chair of CTiC and Mark Potter (Holy Trinity Church was elected 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

Secretary; Anna Long (Holy Spirit) was (re-) elected Treasurer following Rev Robert Faulkner’s move to Brixton. The CTIC Forum, the principal body, met physically in May, July and October 2019, as well as in January 2020. Because of the CV-19 lockdown more recent meetings (the delayed 2020 AGM in October and in January 2021) have taken place via zoom. The new CTiC covenant was signed at a service at Holy Trinity in January 2020. The Robes Project, Ace of Clubs and the High Street Hub continued to feature in discussions in 2020 and 2021 and there have been useful discussions on youth work and developing our social media presence. A survey was conducted into how CTiC churches had managed to continue their work during the pandemic. We maintained links with Churches Together in South London and Faiths Together in Lambeth. 

## Study groups 

The 2020 Lent course focussing on a series of art works had just commenced when the CV-19 lockdown started, so could not be completed. Similarly, there has been no study group this Lent. 

## Community Engagement/Projects 

CTiC has continued to support Lifeline (providing a Christmas party for the elderly housebound of the area), the Ace of Clubs and, until the lockdown, the Hub, providing a refuge (in the Methodist Church) for young revellers from the bars and clubs of Clapham High Street. 

## The Robes Project 

In 2019/20 CHS members again volunteered for Robes (providing winter food and accommodation for the homeless) at St Paul’s Hall, Ace of Clubs, and in the Contact Centre. Holy Trinity and Christ Church also hosted Robes. In 2020/21 volunteers provided support packages to Robes guests living in the Best Western Hotel, Peckham, as part of the Government’s Everybody In initiative. 

## Ecumenical Services and Events 

Holy Trinity Church hosted the service in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in January 2020 (when the Covenant was re-signed). The (renamed) World Day of Prayer service was an online event in March 2021. St Paul’s held an outdoor service in February 2021 to mark Racial Justice Sunday and prior to the latest 

lockdown again hosted the ecumenical Advent carol service. During this Lent there have been 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

short weekly evening prayer sessions online, led by clergy from the different churches (including CHS). 

## Web presence 

Rev Kit Gunasekera of St James Church, continues to run the CTiC website: www.cticlapham.or 

Alan Mundy 

## **SILVER SOCIALS** 

## **2019** 

Silver Socials is a coffee morning/social gathering for the more mature members of the parish, both church goers and those living locally who do not usually attend services. These include residents of Charleston House, the sheltered housing complex at the common end of Narbonne Avenue. We met in church every Tuesday morning from 10.30 – 12 noon to share coffee and cake, chat, exercise, activities and quite a lot of laughter. 

Once a month we were visited by Debbie who does manicures and provides a very popular toenail cutting service. She charges only £10 for each treatment which is paid for by CHS although some members do contribute towards the cost. Bingo with Terry is also a monthly regular. 

We were sorry to say goodbye to Pinkie Turner, a founding member of Silver Socials and long-standing member off the congregation, as she moved to a care home in Suffolk to be close to her daughter. Always the schoolteacher, she never failed to keep us all in order! 

The smooth running of Tuesday mornings was down to the commitment of a group of volunteers who drove, baked, served tea and organised activities. They also provided support at other times during the week by shopping, visiting and chatting on the phone. So, thanks go to Deborah di Biase, Anna Long, Madeline Johnston, Biddy Taylor, Monika Majieko, Terry Parker and Lisa Walsh. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **2020** 

Silver Socials did meet during January and February 2020, but then we had to close down due to Covid and we have not been able to open since. From telephone conversations with members, it is clearly missed, but I gather contact between them is maintained and many phone chats continue. 

Thanks to Alan Mundy, Jacqui Whitewick, Trina Thompson and Fiona Millar, the weekly service sheet has been delivered to all members. We look forward to the day when we can all meet up again. 

We were very sad to hear of the death of Monika Majieko, who volunteered every week and remembered exactly how we all liked our tea or coffee. Shortly after her husband died last year as a result of cancer, Monika had a severe stroke. She went back to Poland where she was in a care home and died recently. Both were in their fifties. 

Judith Vickery 

## **ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS** 

## **2019** 

The main online communications continued to be the parish newsletter, of which there were 6 editions during 2019, sent to a readership which grew from 260 to 317 by the end of the year. This was mainly the result of an efficient sharing of the welcome cards received in church, but partly from people signing up online. The letter as an open rate of between 35 and 50%.  The website on www.holyspiritclapham.org.uk continues to be the main online presence for the church, 

but https://www.facebook.com/CHSClapham and https://twitter.com/holyspiritsw4 are also used from time to time to promote particular events and support offline communications, like banners, posters and cards. All of these can be used and maintained by a number of people, thus sharing the load. 

## **2020** 

From 6 editions of the online newsletter during 2019, 44 editions were produced in 2020, when the newsletter became a weekly publication in March 2020 in response to Covid and the lockdown. 


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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

Part of the purpose of the weekly newsletter has been to share details of various events, including the main Sunday service, daily prayer and weekly meditation 

service, held on the church’s zoom account opened for that purpose.  All these services were presided over by clergy from their homes, and included welcome contributions from many people, including live and recorded music. The zoom recordings of sermons were posted weekly on Facebook and YouTube. 

One of the newsletter editions, in July, was an appeal for funding for an upgrade of the church sound system and the provision of an audio-visual system allowing the sharing of services online. This allowed, from October, the services on zoom to be broadcast from church. A team of AV operators has formed a rota, organised first by Andrew Chevis, and now by Gavin Williams, to be the eyes and ears of the congregation at home. Their skills have got better and better as times has gone on. From December, these services have also been broadcast on YouTube and Facebook, allowing people to participate in services in a way which is a little more distanced than seeing and being seen on zoom. Numbers doing so are small but these are also available as recordings afterwards, which is when they get the most views. December saw our first broadcast wedding, to be followed in January by a funeral, both allowing large numbers to attend from all over the world. 

Much else has gone online, as we have been deprived of social contact, and this includes notably giving, on which the church’s mission depends, and administration, with meetings large and small taking place on zoom. An online quiz enlivened the first lockdown. Much more use is being made of the church’s page on Facebook and account with Twitter, and the service details are published on the website in the virtual church section. This has been made possible through the efforts of Lilly Bell, and now Rosslyn Okumu, as church administrator, and the social media skills of Gillian Fisher, our contact centre administrator. 

It is clear that many of these changes are permanent, while some will wither away when we emerge from lockdown. What is not clear is in what proportions that will happen.  What is fairly clear is that our congregation and we are no longer bound only to those who are attending church in Clapham on a Sunday. www.holyspirit-clapham.org.uk/virtual-church www.holyspirit-clapham.org.uk/about/newsletters www.facebook.com/CHSClapham 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## https://twitter.com/holyspiritsw4 

Nick Jenni 

## **JUST CHURCH / LGBT+ INCLUSION** 

## **2019** 

Church of the Holy Spirit has continued to grow the network of churches included in our LGBT+ outreach activities. Our group, originally consisting of steering committee members from CHS and St Paul’s Clapham, started under the banner of ‘Welcoming Church Lambeth’ several years ago. In 2019, we re-named ourselves ‘Just Church’ as we have grown to include more parishes. In 2019, our activities focused on two major directions: 

1. Just Church services: We have continued monthly worship services with the aim of creating ‘a safe, sacred space of welcome and reflection particularly for those who have felt excluded.’ These services have included reflections on the experiences of LGBT+ Christians as well as liturgy and music aimed at creating a welcoming space. In widening our outreach, we hosted services at CHS, St Paul’s Clapham, and St John the Divine Kennington in 2019, and are now hosting zoom services with the aim of expanding to additional churches (St Anne and All Saints Vauxhall) when church buildings reopen. In the Advent season, we hosted a carols singing event at the Two Brewers, giving us ideas for future fresh expressions of church in new venues. 

2. Action for increased inclusion in liturgy: Over the course of 2018-2019, our group led discussions with other churches in our Deanery that culminated in a motion submitted to Deanery Synod for their October 2019 meeting. This motion followed on very similar motions passed in other Diocesan (Hereford) and Deanery synods, requesting that the House of Bishops ‘commend an Order of Prayer and Dedication after the registration of a civil partnership or a same sex marriage for use by ministers in exercise of their discretion…’ This motion was voted on and approved at our October 2019 Deanery Synod meeting, and we continue to discuss with other nearby parishes in other Deaneries to voice wider support for more LGBT-inclusive liturgy. 

## **2020** 

In 2020, our activities focused on two major directions during lockdown: 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

1.  Just Church worship services: We continued our worship services on zoom, hosting four services online in 2020. One highlight was our “Pride at Home” service in June, which attracted more than 50 attendees from as far-flung as Yorkshire, North Wales, and Malawi, and led by our guest clergy Revd Ayla Lepine (Hampstead), Revd Andrew Hammond (Cambridge), and Revd Mae Christie (Tooting). At the end of 2020, we took a break from Zoom services while we all anticipate a fresh start with in-person events after lockdown. 

2. Networking with other groups: A major aim for the coming year is to form deeper connections with similar-minded groups in London and throughout the UK. We hope to speak to the leaders of Open Table and other groups to develop ideas for moving forward in 2021. 

Nathan Woodling 

## **ROBES PROJECT** 

## **2019** 

This was the 9[th] year the Robes Project has been hosted at churches in Clapham. The Robes Project’s amazing volunteers and partner churches allowed us to offer warm beds throughout the winter in South London night shelters, while Robes advice workers were busy all year round, providing guidance and support for homeless guests. 

That winter, from mid-November to mid-January the venues in Clapham on Tuesday nights were Holy Trinity hosting 20 guests and Ace of Clubs (for St Mary’s) hosting 15 guests. St Paul’s Rectory Grove hosted 15 guests on Thursday nights. From mid-January the venues changed to Christ Church on Tuesday nights with 20 guests and Holy Spirit in the Contact Centre with 15 guests. 

Members from Holy Spirit again volunteered at all these venues providing food, hospitality and a welcoming atmosphere for the guests. This was the fourth year in the Contact Centre and it was rewarding to see how we worked together for the benefit of the guests who have truly valued our companionship, conversations, listening, support, wonderful meals, friendly kitchen magic, and especially the consistency of regular friendly faces each evening and breakfast time, creating a homely welcome each week. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

Sadly the night shelters had to close early because of Covid 19, however all the guests were accommodated in hotels, various flats, B&Bs around south London and continue to be supported by the Robes Project advice workers. 

## **2020** 

Looking back to March 2020, as we were moving into lockdown the overnight shelters churches in Clapham had been hosting were closed down early. The good news is that guests were found accommodation in hotels, various flats and B&Bs spread over London including as far away as Action and Camden. Robes continued to support guests through advice, guidance and a weekly delivery of care packages (essential items and some food). This continued till September when hotels and accommodation were returning to pre-lockdown use. 

In October Robes opened a Tuesday club at Trinity Hall offering a takeaway lunch service with an open door policy welcoming all vulnerable guests and rough sleepers within Clapham and surrounding areas. Robes have provided 1,244 meals since 20[th] of October 2021 and 780 care packages to Tuesday club guests. The club provides 70- 80 meals every Tuesday. Advice workers are also stationed at the Tuesday club helping guests with issues relating to housing, employment, health, finance and signposting to other specialised agencies. The support workers have provided 186 advice sessions in total. 

It was very clear early on that the normal winter shelters we were used to hosting would not be feasible this winter. Fortunately in November, Robes partnered with Southwark Council to provide accommodation for around 36 guests up to the end of April based in the Best Western hotel in Peckham. Churches in Southwark including the churches in Clapham have been providing care packages to the guests each week. Throughout the year Robes have been able to support guests with items such as furniture, electrical / kitchen items and groceries. Robes have also been able to provide guests with a phone and tablet, and also support them with laundry vouchers and food vouchers (targeted mostly towards guests with no recourse to public funds). Out of 36 guests, 9 have recently moved into more permanent accommodation. 

It is too early to tell if the normal winter shelters will be up and running for next winter, in the meantime Robes are working to help guests move into alternate accommodation. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

More about the Robes charity can be found on their website http://robes.org.uk/ . 

Anna Long and Ian Cherrie 

## **LAMBETH WELCOMES REFUGEES** 

## **2019** 

In 2019 Lambeth Welcomes Refugees hosted another Christmas party at Holy Spirit and secured the support of the then-Mayor, Ibrahim Dogus, as one of his charities of the year. 2020 started with the arrival of our final (28th) family in January, settling in Loughborough Junction. This fulfils Lambeth Council's original commitment, but they have promised there will, in time, be more. We as a group continue to support the families socially and practically in various ways, including connecting local residents (including some of our congregation) to support and befriend them as they establish themselves here and seek to improve their English. Thank you to several people from Holy Spirit for their efforts in furnishing flats and moving furniture etc. Rachel continues to do admin for the group in her spare time. 

In lockdown, our fortnightly ESOL chat sessions moved to weekly zoom calls, hosted on the church account, which have helped the confidence and speaking levels of our newest family come on leaps and bounds, as well as strengthen our relationships with them in this difficult time. Anyone interested in joining in with these calls is welcome to speak to Rachel Edge. 

This year a new community organiser, Paulina, joined Lambeth Citizens to coordinate the various churches, schools, mosque, synagogue and other groups. For obvious reasons in 2020 Lambeth Citizens members have been focussed on coronavirus needs, with an appeal for devices and funding to buy devices so that children in Lambeth can connect to online learning. 

We have as a church been less involved in other Lambeth Citizens activity and campaigns, and there is a need for someone to take on the role of church representative as Rachel does not have capacity to do this. Are you interested in joining forces with other groups in our borough to make changes that improve all of our lives? Could you enthuse the congregation about community organising, attend monthly meetings and report back to the church about what is going on? If so, please get in touch with Rachel and Mother Ruth. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **2020** 

It remains to be seen what support will be required or offered from volunteers in LWR as we come out of lockdown and the council explores the possibility of welcoming more refugees, especially in the light of increasingly hostile government policies towards international migrants, including reuniting child refugees with family in the UK. 

Since meeting has not been possible due to lockdown restrictions, the main activity has been continuing to keep in touch with families who people have established relationships with, one on one, or digitally, as well as assisting with moving house or furniture needs. These often arise due to new babies or growing children, but the refugees are generally on low wages or benefits so not able to afford new items so support is greatly appreciated as and when requests are circulated. Thank you to several people from Holy Spirit for offering items to help provide and move items etc. Rachel continues to do admin for the group in her spare time, working closely with Barbara Wilson, a member of Corpus Christi RC Church on Brixton Hill, who devotes a lot of her time to keeping in touch with the families and running the whole LWR group. 

We have as a church been much less involved in other Lambeth Citizens activity and campaigns, although Nicola Kingston has been working with them regarding health provision in the local area. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact Paulina, who is one of the now two part-time Community Organisers for Lambeth, who would love to speak to you. paulina.tamborrelsignoret@citizensuk.org. 

Rachel Edge 

## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT** 

The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. At Holy Spirit, Clapham, the membership of the PCC consists of the incumbent (our vicar), churchwardens, Deanery Synod representatives, Treasurer and the members elected by those members of the congregation who are on the electoral roll of the church. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

The PCC members are responsible for making decisions on all matters of general concern and importance to the parish including deciding on how the funds of the PCC are to be spent. 

## **ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION** 

Holy Spirit, Clapham is part of the diocese of Southwark within the Church of England. The correspondence address is Narbonne Avenue, Clapham London SW4 9JU. The PCC is registered with the Charity Commission in England and Wales under number 1134600. 

Since the PCC is a body corporate, liabilities it incurs in contract are enforceable against it rather than against its members. A PCC member only become personally liable for a debt of the PCC if he or she voluntarily accepted legal responsibility for it or if the debt has arisen in circumstances involving a breach of the PCC member’s fiduciary duties. 

The PCC members who have served from 2019 until the date this report was approved are: 

## **2019** 

Ex Officio members: 

Incumbent: The Reverend Ruth Burge-Thomas Chair 

## Wardens:  Kathryn Newell Paula Wilson (Deanery Synod) 

Elected members: 

Judith Vickery (PCC Secretary) Andrew Chevis (Treasurer) Yaw Basoah 

Deborah di Biase 

Paul Donohue 

Sharon Gordon David Jeffries Sara Spillett Sam Travis 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## William Yarker 

## **2020** 

Ex Officio members: 

Incumbent: The Reverend Ruth Burge-Thomas Chair 

Wardens:  Kathryn Newell Paula Wilson (Deanery Synod) Elected members: Judith Vickery (PCC Secretary) Andrew Chevis (Treasurer) Andrew Bailey Frances Cavanaagh Yaw Basoah Paul Donohue David Jeffries Sharon Gordon Liz Muldoon Katie Pollock William Yarker 

Approved by the PCC on [  ] 2021 and signed on their behalf by Revd Ruth BurgeThomas. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **APPENDIX: SUNDAY SCHOOL FULL REPORT 2019-2021** 

In pre-history, Sunday school was changing – Kathryn Newell who had led Sunday school so kindly and with such dedication had become Church Warden and needed to let go of some of her other church commitments – she continued to offer service as a teacher but let go of her superb, meticulous and calm organisational efforts. Some of our team were changing as their children grew older and needed to move into different ways of being Christian.  New and younger children kept arriving and demanding their space and time in Sunday School. 

I volunteered to help lead and Deborah (Rufus’ Mum) wonderfully volunteered to deal with all the paperwork. 

We met once a term at a team supper, decided our themes in collaboration with the vicar, agreed our rota and carried on much as before. About 10/12 children came irregularly to Sunday morning worship and a team of 8/10 adults volunteered to lead, in pairs, the Sunday morning sessions held in the large hall of the Contact Centre. Each teaching partnership decided their own style, their own manner of delivery, and used Roots magazine to guide the content and interpretation of the week’s liturgical readings.  The children presented their work to the congregation at the end of the service cleverly led by Ruth to reinforce the message of the day. Most teachers were very apprehensive of this performance as they were well aware that it revealed how much – or how little – the children had taken in. The appreciative laughs, smiles and claps of the congregation however was reassuring – and showed the children that they were valued by the ‘grown-ups’. 

We were making some additions – using a noticeboard at the back of the church to pin up some of the children’s work, questioning whether or not we wanted more uniformity of delivery, how we could improve our training and support for teachers, and most importantly delivering an ‘Eco Advent’ where we focused on a sustainable, plastic free world – aligning some of our contemporary patriarchs and prophets such as David Attenborough and Greta Thunberg with the more traditional ones as told in the Bible. 

That was pre-history. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

On Mothering Sunday 2020 I was in ‘self-isolation’ due to family Covid illness. Church gathered for the normal distribution of flowers and an all age worship service. The next week ‘lockdown’ came. That first Sunday I managed Zoom church with everyone else and Gavin Williams said, “Well Caroline – I’m hoping for Zoom Sunday school”. The IT wizards among us, Martin, and Nick Jenni, gave me careful instructions, a zoom role as host - I have delivered Zoom Sunday school ever since. 

At 9.30 every Sunday morning during term time I have pressed the Zoom button and welcomed a screenful of wonderful smiling children, with supportive parents moving around in the background. I needed church worship myself hence a new separation between the main service and Sunday school. At first we had about 10 children ranging from 11/12 year olds to 4/5 years. After the first lockdown eased, the need for sport took the majority of older children – and I gladly saw that 

release – then they joined their new schools and continued, I believe, their sporting activities.  The younger children grew older, wiser about IT and continued smiling throughout the whole year.  Once when the internet froze on me I returned from internet oblivion ¾ minutes later to see the children still there. “We waited for you because we knew you’d come back”, they said. Who could have imagined that patience a year earlier! Since September we have had a dedicated and regular attendance of 5/6 children.  They have shared their gardens, their weeks and their fun, week in and week out – and have helped keep me sane – and in touch with life and living. 

My primary objective throughout has been to help the children manage this oddest of times – and that needed consistency, regularity, structure and calmness. It required weekly work on setting up presentations, you tube hymn/songs/dances, prayers – which took longer than any normal planning as I had to reformulate all my teaching techniques (sometimes all day). I also had to grapple with technology – not my preferred way to deliver learning opportunities. However that delivered a much better Sunday school offer than in pre-history – and more reliably. Although I could not say exactly what the children have learnt I have been able to give them more information on our Biblical background, on Jesus’ role in our lives and learning, on the place of prayer and song, and I think, a more coherent sense of how our faith gives us support and hope in ‘tricky’ times. 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

As a teacher I plan over a period – usually in half term blocks – then ideas mature as the children move through the topic. The topics followed the church’s liturgical and seasonal teaching. I have used the weekly readings to give me content, and Roots Magazine, and my own Biblical understanding to prepare the sessions. Underpinning everything has been the aim to impart the sense of a God of Love, of Wonder, and of Support (Comfort) who commands us to love our neighbour.  I have tried to give a sense that our weekly church sessions are a starting point, and a supporting point, for the journey through each day and each week. 

The first topic was the Easter story focused around the “I am” sayings of Jesus – I am the Resurrection and the Life, I am the Bread of Life, I am the Vine, I am the Good Shepherd, I am the Gate, I am the Way, I am the Light of the World. I used pictures from the Internet to explain what each of these claims were in Jesus’ time and place – the reality of being a Shepherd, the Door that keeps us safe, the Bread that feeds us so that they could remember the images and reflect on them at moments later in their lives. We included the Pentecost story of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit being the Fire that inspires us. 

During June and July we looked at the Lord’s Prayer – taking each phrase and examining what it meant – using pictures from the Internet to reinforce the ideas and creating their own art work after the initial story and pictures told by me – now the children all know and say the Lord’s Prayer every week together, on unmuted zoom, so we hear each other and know each other to be ‘gathered together in Christ’s name’. 

In September there were flutterings about starting back as a ‘normal’ Sunday school and I considered meeting up on the Common by Eagle Pond – however that presupposed regular, tested additional leaders, dealing with unwelcome intrusions from the public, and raised issues for parents.  It came to naught and instead I planned to continue the delivery over zoom – keeping the children secure and confident that we were all doing the ‘right’ thing. 

Before Harvest the sessions followed the liturgical readings from St. Paul’s epistles to the Philippians and Thessalonians – we looked at Roman towns of the time with their temples, markets and roads – we looked at St. Paul as a writer, teacher, traveller and encourager of communities he knew. I pulled out ways of helping each other and of facing ‘tricky’ decisions about what to do when things were 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

challenging. We used paper, glue and scissors to make pictures, mobile shapes, – mobile paper scales balancing each other to show how many things we need to balance when we decide what path to follow. 

Harvest came with mobiles of fruit hung upon the kitchen walls and was followed by more lessons drawn from Philippians and Thessalonians – Who do we follow?, Caring by sharing, Onwards and Upwards, and Peace of Mind – big themes translated to issues faced by children in their remote classrooms – and with their siblings. 

After half term we explored Remembrance and followed with an extended Advent period – producing work for the Church door by December 1[st] and studying Prophets and Patriarchs from the more recent and Clapham based past – William Wilberforce, Mary Seacole, Thomas Babington Macaulay and Florence Nightingale, Lilian Bayliss – all searching for ‘enlightment’ as recognisable people and trying to bring it to others.  We looked at John the Baptist and our need to make things ‘right’ with our friends before we can celebrate together and at Mary, travelling to a place where people didn’t know her and weren’t exactly welcoming. On my afternoon exercise I biked around delivering little goodie bags of crafty stuff to encourage the children to produce fun stuff for Christmas – to make Christmas preparations fun even though rather different. 

The Christmas season saw us talking about “Journeys” and we produced 5 zig zag books which we called ‘Guide Books’ – The Journey (Magi), Where do I get help for my journey?, How can we hear and understand?, Who should we listen to?, What should we do?. 

We had a Sunday rest over half term and during Lent we have been working in our scrapbooks to draw pictures of events in Jesus’ life. These events have been themed around Jesus the Walker and Friend, Jesus the Teacher, Jesus the Healer, Jesus the story teller, Jesus the acute observer, Jesus the Thinker and Faith Leader. So far the favourite stories have been the paralysed man being lowered through the roof, the wise man building his house on a Rock (and the Foolish Man’s house going ‘Splat’ after all the rain), and the blind man healed at the Pool of Siloam. We used the Teacher episode to look at the Sermon on the Mount and Beatitudes – and the commandment to love our neighbour- interpreted in drawings for the church’s Lenten Tweets - and an enchanting window display.  The stories of Jairus’ 

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Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

daughter, the Good Samaritan, the Prodigal Son, the Sower and the Seed – have all been told but didn’t gather the interest for drawing as did the others! I am hoping we will be doing something to decorate our homes with Easter eggs and trees and baskets – but we are promising ourselves gleefully that we can meet up in church on Easter Day. 

This is a more detailed report than usual but – so much has happened. It is important that the congregation understand our ups as well as the downs.  This affects how we deliver Sunday School in future. As in so many other ways, Covid has exposed what we were **not** doing in pre-history. 

## Covid Pluses – 

1.    A regular, secure, consistent weekly format – 

   - Newsletter plug about direction of Sunday school and the necessary materials before we start. 

   - Prompt start at zoom time. 

   - Know how long it will continue and adapt activities to regular timings. 

   - Open with traditional Anglican hymn with printed words from You tube. 

   - `o` Power point presentation with stories illustrated from internet – me telling stories and making points backed up by pictures. 

   - Craft – activity follows with picture, painting, book making, mobiles. 

   - 6 one sentence written out prayers read out by each child. 

   - We all say the Lord’s prayer together – and the Grace. 

   - `o` Finish with lively hymn/dance/ that we all join in. 

2. Real relationships developed between regular teacher and regular children. Smiles all round – never mute any child – giggles when zoom goes wrong – listen to each other – tactful background support from parents – zoom being taken round gardens – hearing birds outside – all fun and interesting – and shows children that their interaction is genuinely welcomed and valued. 

3. Considerably more ground covered than in pre-history. 

4. Many connections made between daily life and religious learning. 

Page | 51 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

5.     Learning reinforced every week – by reminding of past weeks’ work, in rote learning and in incidental learning – e.g. Geographic and Historical context for 1[st] century AD, biography of St. Paul, what is a ‘gospel’ and which are the Four, Biblical old Testament references such as Prophets and Patriarchs. 

6. Included wider resources – pictures and hymns to reinforce learning - internet and you tube plus children’s bibles, prayer books and hymn books, both Anglican traditional and lively song and dance appropriate to teaching point – enhances and strengthens learning throughout session – and increases interest and fun – thereby further deepening learning. 

7. Craft activities more closely connected to lesson objectives – keeps up motivation and clearer to children what they are doing – how it connects to their learning objective – some Roots craft activities difficult to connect! 

8.   Longer seasonal periods of topics gave coherence to biblical stories and relevance to everyday life – again enabling deeper learning. 

9. Tighter, regular, consistent structure allows children to be confident of what they are doing which relaxes them and enhances their learning. 

10. Regular weekly repetition reinforces learning and usefulness – as our services do in Sunday morning worship – gives children security by predictability and the consequent space to explore ideas they hadn’t considered before -  can explain words of hymns, meanings of prayers, key messages – Love your neighbour as yourself, Blessed are those we generally don’t rate, praise and thank God, talk with God in prayer – all because adult can build up a clear picture of what specific children know and they ask questions which adult understands – and thereby receive answers which are more likely to increase their understanding. 

11. Regular place of prayers – modelled by adult but read by each child (currently high reading levels among children – often not the case among this age group) builds prayer life appropriately for children. Children favour prayers of praise and thanksgiving – I add in prayers for those in need of help to model that thinking for them to use in future. 

Page | 52 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## 12. Weekly regular attendance very much higher than before in pre-history. 

## Down sides: 

1. Weekly planning taken much longer than before. 

2. Sessional planning crucial in underpinning work. 

3. Hard to share adult leadership without face to face contact with team members – tried emails but not enough response (possibly inadequate list). 

4. Hard to broaden out and be open to newcomers. 

5. Without consistency and regularity and smiling face provided by 1 teacher not sure it would have worked – a problem for delivering Sunday school with a team of teachers – who rotate according to busy life schedules. 

6. My personal Biblical knowledge has been strong enough to shape lessons – my own childhood learning plus my later study/thinking as a practising Christian has enriched and deepened my planning and delivery – not available in many volunteers. 

7. My professional skills have been key in developing a strong learning environment – especially as had to learn a huge amount about IT delivery – equally not widely available in volunteers from congregation. 

8. Need to stay in step with church and community – apart from overhearing parents (very important) little contact with wider church – and without actual presence of children not much interest – danger of divergence here. 

Most important caveat – obviously I can only reflect on the learning I saw taking place in Sunday schools I delivered in pre-history – other leaders might have different recall. 

## **Questions for future** 

Given Lockdown has shown how much more we can help our children learn about God and Jesus, Church worship and Christian living, surely we have to ask what to change about the past to deliver a better learning environment for our children in the future. 

1. How do we improve the learning environment and teaching techniques of all teachers? Are we content to muddle through ‘teaching’ our religious life without more training to guide us in what we have now discovered is a 

Page | 53 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

demanding task – at which volunteers can flounder if not properly guided – I struggled to deliver all this and have much more professional qualifications than many – including serving and reflecting as a Sunday school teacher years ago, youth leader, foster parent, parent and grandparent, childminder and primary school teacher?  How can I pass that knowledge and those skills on to others in congregation? And use new thinking in today’s education to keep fresh and appropriate? 

2. Should we give more consideration to topics delivered consistently over periods giving children time to absorb well thought out lessons in both information and spiritual life – or deliver in a scramble someone else’s magazine suggestions in rather haphazard manner? 

3. Could we be more consistent in the weekly structure – or continue as a team doing what fits in best with our individual skills and personal experience? 

4. Timings - Is Sunday school for the children – or for our peace in church? Are we right to deliver Sunday school at the time we do – is it ‘babysitting’ for our church needs – is it helpful to their learning that timing dictated by the length of other people’s lessons, sermon and prayers dictates the timing and planning of their lesson delivery? And what value does late arrival give to the whole effort? (Really hard to be late for zoom!) 

5. How many of the children we have raised as a congregation remain as practising Christians in their adult life?  My own record is abysmal in my family – good people all but apart from one the other four have no contact with formal religion. Some success with one or two young people through Sunday school and Guides but not great.  Society is not well disposed to formal religion nowadays which doesn’t help but………. Does some of the responsibility for that not fall on church congregations – and their Sunday school teachers? 

None of these questions are new – or even unrehearsed but this year has shown me how much better we could do by changing our accepted practice.  Is this not the time to take new risks, new attitudes and thereby strengthen our children’s understanding of the centrality of God in our lives? 

Caroline Russell-Clark 18.3.21 

Page | 54 



Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham 

## **KEEP IN TOUCH** 

Visit our website: www.holyspirit-clapham.org.uk Facebook page:  www.facebook.com/CHSClapham Follow us on twitter: @holyspiritsw4 

## **Other useful contact details** 

## WARDENS 

_wardens@holyspirit-clapham.org.uk_ 

## VICAR 

07740 647 603 

_vicar@holyspirit-clapham.org.uk_ 

## CHURCH OFFICE 

020 8675 8094 

_office@holyspirit-clapham.org.uk_ 

Page | 55 



**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS** 

## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT TO THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, CLAPHAM** 




**Treasurer’s report for the financial year ended 31 December 2020** 

## **Covid-19 changed everything** 

The pandemic meant that the church was closed or offered reduced provision during 2020.  Cash and cheque-based giving collapsed but offset by an increase in online giving: gift-aided bank transfers up 34% to £78,735 as gift-aided envelopes fell 87% to £1,912. Overall, giving was up 10% on 2019. 

Closed for much of 2020, Contact Centre income fell 34% to £44,123.  Despite this, the Church contributed £84,000 to the Diocese in 2020 (an 8% reduction on 2019) in the form of the ‘Parish Support Fund’ which enables the Diocese to fund clergy and clergy pensions both in this Parish and in less-wealthy Parishes where need is inevitably greater. 

The signal achievement in 2020 was the speedy design and installation of a new audio-visual system to enable us to broadcast and livestream our services to congregation members who for much of 2020 were in lockdown or shielding as some continue to do. Huge thanks to Nick and Ollie Jenni who oversaw the project and trained a small but willing group to operate the system. Particular thanks to those who donated so generously to enable it all to happen. Thank you all. 

## **Basis of accounting** 

The accounts for all funds are prepared so as to recognise income and expenditure when they fall due rather than when they are actually paid, and assets purchased for use over several years are shown in the balance sheet, and their cost written off over their lives. 

As a non-accountant I rely heavily on the accounting skills of my colleagues.  I was indebted to: 

- Lottie Lago for making sure the Church’s books added up and 

- Frances Stormer for making sure the Contact Centre’s books added up 

I am as always indebted to Michael Woolley, who has once again given his time freely to carry out the Independent Examination of these accounts. 

- We need new congregation members to join Team Finance.  Please email me for more info at treasurer@holyspirit clapham.org.uk 


## **Andrew Chevis, Hon. Treasurer** 

Church of the Holy Spirit Narbonne Avenue, London SW4 9JU 

- www.holyspirit clapham.org.uk 

Charity number: 1134600 

Bank details: Church of the Holy Spirit Clapham Sort Code: 40-01-07 Account number 21106244 



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## **Notes to the Balance Sheet** 

## **1. Fixed Assets** 


## **2. Debtors** 

Debtors include amounts due from HMRC for Gift Aid tax (£6003); Salaries (£485); and insurance (£1508.42). 

## **3. Creditors** 

Creditors include amount due to Clapham & Clapham Park Montessori School in respect of a licensee’s deposit of £6,000. 



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14 Mill House, WrnyMIII Park
Batts Hlll. Rel8atè RH2 OU
8th Au8USt 2021
Members of the Parochial Churth Council
Church of the Holyspirrt
Narbonne Avenue
London SW4 9JU
I report on the financial staternenis of the PCC of the Cthurch of the Holy Spirit. aapharn for the year ended 31
December 2020, as set out the followi￿ paEes. This report is madesolelyto the Charitvs Trustees. as a body,
in accordance with section 1415 of the Charttie5 Att 2011. My work has been undertaken so that I might state to
the PCC, as Trustees of the charity. those matters i am required to state to thern in thSs Report and for no other
purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law. I do not accept or assume responsibi1Sty to anyofte other than
the charity and the PCC as a body, for my worl forthls ReporL or fry the opinions I have forn*é.
Respe¢thie respon51bllltlt5 of Thistee$ •nd examlner
As Trustees of the charity, the Pccare responsible forthe preparation of financial statements. The PCC con51der
that an audit is not required for this year Under section 144121 of ihe Charities Act 20111'the 2011 Act'l and that
an Independent examination Is needed.
It is my responsibility to..
examine the financlal statement5 under sectknn 145 of the 2011 Art-
to lollowthe procedures la¢d down inihe GeneTrl Directions glvefi bythe Charity Commssslon undèr5ectSon
1451Sllbl of the 2011 Att,. and
to state whèther particular matters have come to my attentlon.
Bas55 of Ind•pendent *umlbWs report
My examinatlon was carrled out in accordance with the Gèneral Direttions 8l¥en bythe Charitycommlssion. An
examlnation 5nclude5 3 review of the acc￿ntIng records kept by the charfty and a tomparison of the financial
staternents presented with those rttords. It also includes conslderation of any unusual items or distlosures In
the financial statement5 and seeking explaTr*h?ns Irom yoy as trustees concèrnin8 any SLtch matters. The
procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidenceihat would be reqtslred in an audil. and consequently n¢
opinKsn is given as to whether the financial statements present a'irue and fair viev/ and the ￿port 15 Ilmited to
those matters set out in the statement below.
Independent examlner'5 siat•ment
In connettion with my examination, no matter has come to my attentKJn'.
11 which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material fespea ihe re4ulrements have not been
to keep accountlne records in accordante wth sertion 130 of the 2012 Act,. and
to prepare finar•cial statements which accord with the attountin8 records and cornply with the
accounting requirements of the 2011 Act,. or
21 to which, in my opsnion, attention 5hovld be drawn in order to enable a proper tsndetstandlng of the
rinancial statements to be reached.
Michael J Woolley BA. FCA
Chartered Accountant