**0615** ## **Anglican Diocese of Chester – Middlewich Deanery Mid Cheshire Circuit of the Chester and Stoke-on-Trent District of the Methodist Church** **----- Start of picture text -----**
St Mary’s Church, Weaverham
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## **Annual Report and Financial Statements of the Ecumenical Church Council for the year ended 31 December 2024** ## **Incumbent** Reverend Paul Withington, The Vicarage, Church Street, Weaverham, NORTHWICH. CW8 3NJ ## **Minister** Reverend Janet Aspey, 38 Earls Way, Kingsmead, Northwich. CW9 8GQ ## **Secretary** Pam Thomson, 4 Barley Castle Close, Appleton Thorn, WARRINGTON. WA4 4SA ## **Treasurer** John J C Freeman, Stable Court, 20a Leigh Way, Weaverham, NORTHWICH. CW8 3PR ## **Banks** Santander, Bridle Road, BOOTLE. L30 4GB CCLA Investment Management Ltd., POBox 12892, Dunmow, Essex. CM6 9DL ## **Honorary Independent Examiner** Kevin D Pickering, 5 Withens Close, Weaverham, NORTHWICH. CW8 3JJ ## **Registered Charity Number: 1135093** 1 ## **ST. MARY’S CHURCH, WEAVERHAM ANNUAL REPORT FOR THE ECUMENICAL CHURCH COUNCIL [ECC] FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[st] DECEMBER 2024** St. Mary’s Church is situated in Church Street, Weaverham. It is a Local Ecumenical Partnership (LEP) between the parish church of the Church of England in the parish of St Mary in the Middlewich Deanery and Chester Diocese and the Methodist Church within the Mid Cheshire Circuit of the Chester and Stoke-on-Trent District. The partnership looks for support, encouragement, advice and overview to the relevant denominations, the Diocese and the Methodist District. The correspondence address is St Mary’s Lighthouse Centre, Church Lane, Weaverham, NORTHWICH, CW8 3NN. ECC members who have served in the year are: - |_Incumbent:_|Revd. Paul Withington|Revd. Paul Withington|Chairman| |---|---|---|---| |_Methodist Minister:_|Revd. Janet Aspey||| |_Wardens:_|Robert Hough
Colin Weeks||Elected 2024 ACM| |_Representatives on_
_the Deanery Synod:_|Pam Thomson
John Freeman
David Whitfield
John Freeman||Secretary
Treasurer
Elected 2023 ACM
Elected 2023 ACM
1 vacancy| ||||| |_Methodist Stewards:_|David Whitfield
Mike Hornby||| |_Representatives from lay church_
_roles:_|Gilly Latham
Linda Jones
Jules Sanders
Mike Sanders||| |_Elected members:_|||| |Jerry Marshall_(elected 2022)_
Pam Thomson_(elected 2022)_
Gillian Horth (née Edwards re-_elected 2023)_
_Lindsay Hough (elected 2024)_
_Christine Weeks (elected 2024)_
Sue Winnington_(re-elected 2023)_
11 current members
1 vacancy||Jonathan Gore_(re-elected 2024)_
Mike Hornby_(re-elected 2024)_
_Vicky Rushton (re-elected 2024)_
_Denise Mitchell (elected 2024)_
_Sue Cameron (elected 2024)_|| ## **Structure, governance and management** The method of appointment of ECC members (trustees) is set out in the Constitution of the Local Ecumenical Partnership signed in November 2009. All Church attendees are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and stand for election to the ECC. 2 ## **Objectives and activities** St Mary’s ECC has the responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent, the Revd. Paul Withington and Methodist Minister the Revd. Janet Aspey in promoting the whole mission of the Church: pastoral, evangelical, social and ecumenical in the ecclesiastical parish. It also has maintenance responsibilities for the buildings associated with the church. St Mary’s is fully integrated as an LEP between the Anglican and Methodist Churches in Weaverham. We worship at the Anglican Church building with our services varied between Anglican and Methodist styles and leadership. The vision statement for St Mary’s Ecumenical Church, Weaverham is as follows: ## _**St Mary’s Church Weaverham, sharing the light and hope of Jesus in our community.**_ ## **Achievements and performance** ## _**Church attendance**_ The current electoral roll has 128 members. We have a duality of Anglican and Methodist members; members can be either or both. Attendance varied during the year, with an average attendance on a usual Sunday at 84 [76 adults and 8 children]. 18 Funerals and 2 weddings were conducted and 3 baptisms took place during the year. ## **Safeguarding** The safeguarding committee has met in the last 12 months to ensure our Safeguarding Policy remains up to date and complies with the Church of England Requirements, and those of the Methodist Church. As an Ecumenical Church we must follow the policies of one of the denominations and at St Marys we follow the policies of the Church of England. This includes displaying posters which include relevant information and contact details which we do. A copy of our policy is available to anyone who may want to see it. The policy has been approved by the ECC which has complied with the duty imposed under section 5 of the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016 (duty to have regard to House of Bishops’ guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults). 23 members of the parish attended a Basic Awareness safeguarding training course in October 2024. ## **Review of the year** The ECC met nine times during the year with Standing Committee meetings between when needed. The ACM was held on the 29[th] April 2024. Café Church, held in The Lighthouse, has become a regular feature on the first Sunday of the month. This is a more informal service aimed mainly at young families and an average of 75 adults and 12 children attend every month. The service pattern for other services remains the same (average attendance of 76 adults and 7 children), and a “United Service” held on the four Sundays during the year which include a fifth Sunday, (average attendance of 52 adults and 6 children). The Lent Course this year utilised the Home Group meeting times plus an extra session. There is always difficulty finding a time which suits most people. Using existing times did have the advantage that people were available but possibly prevented many discussions which are possible with larger groups. There was a Sunrise Service at Easter, held jointly with The Stronghold Church, which was well supported. The Easter celebration at St Mary’s was attended by 129 people with 75 taking Holy Communion. Harvest was celebrated in October with the harvest gifts donated to the Northwich Foodbank which we continued to support throughout the year. We were back to a normal format for our 3 Remembrance Day services held in November, with uniformed groups filling the church in the afternoon. The services at Christmas were very well attended with 397 people attending the Christmas services and 61 taking Holy Communion. The Carol Service was again very well attended with the music being provided by Weaverham Community Choir and a brass ensemble. “Experience Christmas” was repeated in 2024 and it was as successful as it had been the previous year. Children from Weaverham Forest Primary School and Weaverham Primary Academy came to St Mary’s during the first week of December to visit different “stations” depicting the Christmas Story. Older students from Weaverham High School came to help. School Carol Services were also held at St Mary’s. John Freeman, our long-standing treasurer was made a Lay Canon of Chester Cathedral for his work on Diocesan and General Synod. John was Instituted by the Bishop and Installed into his seat by the Dean on Sunday 28th July 2024. The Lighthouse Café on Tuesdays continues to be very well attended by both church members and a significant number of people who don’t come to church but find a warm welcome. The Wednesday food distribution continues in the Lighthouse in partnership with Northwich Community Support. We supported the community playscheme in the summer holidays providing crafts activities, games and stories. During the year several faithful members of the congregation died and they will be greatly missed. 4 ## **ADDENDUM** The following are our church groups and some have submitted reports. **Sticky Fingers** - Toddlers group that runs every Monday during term time. **YPF - Young People’s Fellowship [YPF]** met on Sunday evenings and is aimed at children in school years 7 to 11. Unfortunately this is currently not meeting in 2025. **Home Groups** are rightly recognised as an important aspect of St Mary’s Church. They are places where fellowship, pastoral care, bible study, and prayer take place in an informal and small group setting. Sadly, the number of groups has dropped from 5 to four during the year, mainly due to health issues. The total membership of remaining groups is 32. Each group has a different flavour and meets at different times, locations, and frequencies, as follows: Vicky Rushton is nominally the leader of a women-only group which has seven members. They meet on Monday mornings 9:30 – 11am at various locations but most often in Long Meadow. Any member is free to lead a session of bible study, but the dominant flavour is fellowship, pastoral support and prayer. Jerry Marshall leads a men-only group that meets alternate Thursday evenings, 8 to 9:30pm in Sandy Lane. It has a strong missional flavour with plenty of socials, in addition to bible study and prayer. Of its six members, two do not yet attend church regularly and another is a member of another church. Stephen Wilson leads a group every Tuesday afternoons from 2:00 to 4:00pm on Green Park. Of its ten members, one attends another church. A distinctive flavour of the group is that members can attend via Zoom – at least two do so regularly (from Watford and even Amsterdam!) It is noteworthy that one member is a regular at our 8:30am HC service. The emphasis is on bible study and application. For much of the year we looked at the lectionary readings of upcoming Sunday services – going deeper and discussing application more than is possible in the context of Sunday worship. We also tackle difficult scriptures or those unvisited in Sunday worship. Jules Sanders leads a group of nine that meets weekly on a Tuesday evening. They have enjoyed great fellowship with both laughter, tears and plenty of cake. They have studied and wrestled with many questions while engaging with a broad range of scriptures during the year, culminating in the letters of John. Their focus is how they live out their faith in their everyday lives. All groups use some of the many published bible study guides. We have accumulated quite a range. They are stored on the shelves of two bookcases in the PCSO office in the Lighthouse. All credit and thanks to Jules, our great Administrator, they are catalogued and can be used by anyone – but please sign them out if you do so. Finally, we believe everyone who attends a home group would say “Amen” to this statement from Jules. “Knowing that you have the support of the group as you go out into the world to live your Christian life can be a great encouragement, whether that’s work, family, home or neighbourhood.” **The Mothers Union** Branch of St Marys has had a fruitful and inspiring year, filled with fellowship, service, and spiritual growth. Guided by our motto, "Family Life at the Heart of the Church," we have continued to support our church community, strengthen families, and engage in outreach activities that reflect our faith and values. This year, we are grateful to have 8 active members who have faithfully attended our now quarterly meetings. Our gatherings have been a time for prayer, Bible study, and discussion on topics relevant to family life and faith. Our prayer chain has been a cornerstone of our ministry, offering intercessory prayers for families, the church, and the wider community. Each year, we put together bunches of daffodils for all females to receive at all services on Mothering Sunday. For the second year running, we have arranged a successful library lunch bag collaboration with Weaverham Library in both the Easter and Summer holidays which has been 5 well received by residents. We organised the teas following the Annual Remembrance Service in Church, an opportunity for fellowship. We supported the Church activities including the steam rally and harvest supper. We have enjoyed visiting other Branches in the deanery for their events and also the deanery festival. Our annual Summer Outing was a canal boat trip – with lots of entertainment! We have supported and promoted the Mothers Union “Away From It All” Holiday scheme. Members visited the sick and elderly in hospitals and care homes, offering comfort and companionship. We organised our annual Strawberry Tea and also a Rainbow Fair both of which were very successful and have raised funds to help support Mothers Union projects. We participated in the global Mothers Union Day of Prayer, joining with members worldwide to pray for families and communities. We also contributed to the Mothers Union global projects, such as supporting literacy programs. While we have faced challenges such as low membership, we have been sustained by God’s grace and the support of our church family. We are especially grateful to Paul, Janet and all the leadership team and all the congregations for your encouragement and assistance. In the coming year, we aim to: - Expand our outreach programs to reach more families in need. - Strengthen our partnerships with other community groups. - Continue to grow spiritually through prayer, study, and fellowship The Mothers Union remains committed to serving God, our church, and our community. We are thankful for the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of families and to witness God’s love in action. As we move forward, we ask for your continued prayers and support as we strive to uphold our mission and values. **St Mary’s Choir** continue to lead congregational singing at the Sunday 6.30pm evening service, enhancing the worship experience and encouraging the congregation to lift their voices in praise. We sang at Christmas Eve Midnight Communion where the choir presented a moving selection of carols which helped usher in the celebration of Christ’s birth. We have welcomed 1 new member to the choir this year, enriching our sound and bringing fresh energy to our group, we aspire to return to pre-Covid numbers. Like many ministries, we faced challenges such as attendance which has sadly impacted on our ability to participate in special services and festivals within the church which we previously would have done. However, these challenges also provided opportunities for growth, teamwork, and reliance on God’s grace. We have condensed our 2 robe cupboards in the Choir Vestry into 1 to enable the children’s group to utilise it for storage. We currently are not holding regular choir practises and therefore are unable to learn new anthems. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Margaret, Bob, Henry and Marion who play our magnificent organ each week for their dedication, leadership, and musical expertise. We are grateful to the church leadership and congregation for their ongoing support, encouragement, and prayers. A special thank you to all choir members for their commitment, hard work, and willingness to serve through their gifts. As we look to the coming year, we are excited to: - Continue growing musically and spiritually as a choir - Explore new ways to enhance worship through music. - Strengthen our outreach efforts to share God’s love through song. - Encourage more members of the congregation to join our ministry. **Rambling Group** - Meets for occasional Saturday morning walks of 3-4 miles. **Upcycling Shed and Crafts -** Meets on Thursdays in the Lighthouse Annexe. 6 **Bell Ringing** – we have a thriving band of all ages who ring regularly for Sunday services, weddings and other special services and national events. We practice on a Tuesday evening. During 2024 work has been done on our clappers, the clapper hangs inside the bell, swinging back and forth to make it ring. The clappers were removed and taken to the bell foundry in Loughborough to have some work done on them. They were then refitted and will last for many more years. Work was also done on the oak louvres, some were renewed and some repaired and again hopefully, these will last for many more years. Most of the work was done by the ringers with help from Bob Hough and a Little Budworth ringer, thus keeping the costs down. **Fund Raising -** The fund raising campaign “Raising the Roof” was started in the last quarter of 2022 to undertake a programme to pay for necessary repairs to the fabric of the building. The work on the roof and stonework has been completed and paid for. Since the start of the project approximately £43,000 has been raised from donations, grants and events and £35,648 has been paid out for the work. We also made donations of approximately £1,000 to the groups and their charities who performed in the concerts which we have hosted. During 2024 we held several concerts in church and the Lighthouse, we had a barn dance, an evening with Adrian Plas and helped with the catering for the History Society’s World War 1 book launch event and they kindly donated the proceeds to the fund. But the highlight of the year was the steam event in September. Thanks to contacts of some of our congregation and the power of social media advertising, several steam engines, a fairground organ and several old vehicles arrived on St Mary’s car park. Inside church, several model railways were set up alongside a giant Scalextric track where children (and grown-ups) could test their driving skills. Not satisfied with all this, the bellringers ran a Teddy Bear Zip Wire challenge from the tower roof. These different attractions together with cakes and refreshments provided by the Mothers Union attracted many villagers to St Mary’s and helped us raise over £1,000. “Raising the Roof” has now become “Building the Future”. We are still raising money to improve our green credentials by reducing our carbon footprint. This essentially means changing our old gas boiler for a greener alternative for heating. 7 INDEPENDENT EXAMIF4ERYS REPORT TO THE ECUMENICAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN, WEAVERHAM This report on the accounts for the year ending 31 December 2024 is in respect of an examination carried out in accordance WRth the Accounting Regulations (the Regulations) and the Charities Act 1993 (the Act) As members of the ECC you are reswinsible for the preparation of the accounts. you consider that the audit requirements of the Regulations and Section 43(2) of the Act do not apply. It is my responsibility to issue this report on those accounts in accordance with the tenns of the Regulations. My examination was carried out in accordance with the general directions given by the Charity Commission under Section 43(7)(b) and to be found in the Church of England Guidance 2006 edition. That examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the ECC and a comparison of the accounts with those records. It also includes considering any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently I do not express an audit opinion on the view given on the accounts. In accordance with My examination, no matter has come to my attention which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements to keep accounting records in accordance with Section 41 of the ACL to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the Act and the Regulations have not been met, or to which in my opinion attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. fvbo P,J Kevin D Pickering- Hon Independent Examiner- January 2025 ## **FINANCIAL REVIEW** There was an overall excess of expenditure over income of £7412 due to expenditure on the church roof and pointing. Expenditure was helped by 2 grants, one from the Diocese of Chester for £7000 and the other a conditional grant from the National Churches Trust of £4496. These were part of the “Raise the Roof” campaign which is continuing to raise funds towards making the church carbon neutral. Looking ahead there is a need to increase our levels of regular giving as costs have followed the general national inflation trends. This will enable us to keep the church in a good state of repair over the coming years. Energy usage for the year was as follows, 2023 figures in brackets gas Church 82 106 kWh (58 229 kWh) Lighthouse 14 194 kWh (20 563 kWh) and electricity Church 3783 kWh (4027 kWh) Lighthouse 9410 kWh (7183 kWh). ## **RESERVES POLICY** The policy is to hold at least £25 000 to cover the next three months of normal expenditure and £10 000 in the case of any emergencies. The policy will need reviewing as there is a need to build funds up to achieve carbon neutrality as some funding will be needed towards any projects. There are likely to be some funds available, but we need to determine what will be necessary from our resources. ## **ACCOUNTING POLICY** The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Church of England Accounting Regulations taking into account the SORP 2005 revisions on a receipts and payments basis including as far as possible most Church activities being reported on a gross basis. Movable church furnishings are held on trust for the Council by the Churchwardens and would require faculty approval before removal. 9 ## **ACCOUNTS FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDING 31 DECEMBER 2024** |Notes
Unrestricted
Restricted
Total
RECEIPTS
£
£
£
Voluntary income
**A**
117680
117680
Church activities
**B**
17414
17414
Fund raising
7139
7139
Investment income
**C**
4437
105
4542
**TOTAL**
**146670**
**105**
**146775**
PAYMENTS
Church activities
**D**
151129
151129
Fund raising
1652
1652
Salaries
1406
1406
**TOTAL**
**154187**
**154187**
NET INCOMING FUNDS
-7517
105
-7412
Gains on investments
____
46
46
NET MOVEMENT IN FUNDS
**-7517**
**151**
**-7366**
BALANCES AT 1 JANUARY
802584
2757
805341
BALANCES AT 31 DECEMBER
**795067**
**2908**
797975
**BALANCE SHEET AT 31 DECEMBER**
**FIXED ASSETS**
Tangible asset- Lighthouse
684440
684440
Investment assets
1711
1711
**CURRENT ASSETS**
Short term deposits
87641
1196
88837
Cash at banks
22986
____
22986
**TOTAL**
**795067**
**2907**
**797974**
The notes A to E form part of the accounts
**A**Voluntary income
Gift aid
68109
68109
Tax recovered
25339
25339
Other
7602
7602
Collections
2840
2840
Donations
general
1294
1294
Curate
Grants
Diocese
7000
7000
National Churches Trust
4496
4496
Legacy
1000
1000
117680
117680
**B**Church activities
Lighthouse
12752
12752
Food sales
Fees
4662
4662
17414
17414|_2023_
_£_
_146383_
_16836_
_19779_
_1701_
**_184699_**
_125734_
_1842_
_1816_
**_129392_**
_55307_
_137_
**55444**
_749849_
**_805293_**
_684440_
_1665_
_84316_
_34870_
**_805291_**
_68801_
_40730_
_6259_
_4364_
_2519_
_410_
_2300_
_3000_
_18000_
_146383_
_9244_
_1233_
_6359_
_16836_| |---|---| 10 C Income from investsnents Deposit account Wayleave War Memorial 4417 20 4417 20 105 4542 1602 20 79 1701 105 105 4437 D Church actlillties Giving Overse&g missions 1100 Overseas development 2500 Home missions 2500 Ministy Parish shate 68169 Circuit fee 5970 Other ministries costs 6857 Curate Church heaL ligbt and water 6747 Church running alld maint. 13819 Lighthouse 11172 Major projects 29803 Trdining 349 Administration 2143 151129 1100 2500 2500 1000 3000 3025 68169 5970 6857 64923 5834 7051 3420 5757 11723 7588 10200 6747 13819 11172 29803 349 2143 151129 220] 125734 During the y¢ar the Council employed a verger and Tell￿ on ￿Ual organists. The o￿an1$t$ deal with their own tsx liabilities and the payments to the ye￿er are too snull to attract social security payments. Reimbursement of out of pocket expenses were made to some members of the Council, all supported by the ne¢¢ssary receipts E Cash balances at 31 December Current account 3454 Deposit account 87641 Lighthouse 19532 War Memorial deposit War Memorial 74 CBF shares 3454 87641 19532 1196 1711 113534 18529 83224 16341 1092 1665 120851 1196 1711 2907 110627 Approved by the Ecumenicat Church Coullcil at its meeting held on 17th February 2025. Reverend Paul M Withington Incumbent Canon Jobn J C Freeman Hon treasurer