2022-12-31-accounts

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THE BENEFICE OF PONTEFRACT PARISH OF ST GILES with ST MARY’S Registered Charity No. 1135106

ANNUAL REPORTS AND ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

The Benefice of Pontefract Parish of St Giles with St Mary’s

Vicar: The Revd Canon June Lawson

I would like to commend our annual report to you this year, especially its detailing of the varied ways in which our Churches embody the vision for Christian ministry and mission in the parish of Pontefract. All we do arises from the centrality of our worship of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit and his command to serve others. The core message of Jesus’ teaching to his followers is summarised in these words: ‘you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself.’ As individual church members make their response to that specific calling, the collective mission of the church as a unified body working for good in local communities finds its fullest expression.

Between them the churches of St Giles with St Mary’s have a long history of Christian devotion and service. The landscape of the parish and the nature of community and working life has changed throughout history, and the church has needed to refresh its life (and buildings!) in the light of those changes. The strong focus we have today on community engagement arises from the needs of our local community in this time and place. We are privileged to have such a beautiful, wellloved and cared for building in the heart of our town as the base from which we can fulfil our Lord’s command to love God and to serve our neighbours. Sunday by Sunday we are indeed sent out from our worship with God’s blessing to ‘go in love and peace to serve the Lord.’

At the start of the year, Cath Fox came to us on placement as a trainee Reader and we ‘leased’ Jill Clapham to St Catherine’s Sandal so she could fulfill the requirements of a placement in a different parish. During January, Tony Williams was also authorised as a pastoral minister. In June, Fr Sam Fletcher was priested at Wakefield cathedral and celebrated his first Mass the following day. In October, Jill, as part of the LLM/Reader licensing held at St Giles, became a fully-fledged LLM/Reader. As churches, we are fortunate to have their ministry amongst us and we look forward to their ministry growing and developing in the coming year. Within the booklet, a heartfelt thank you is recorded for all, in whatever capacity, who serve the church with dedication and devotion. The ‘thank you’ is also followed by an equally heartfelt plea for new people to take on roles and responsibilities as faithful servants step down.

2022 was a year of additional Civic services: the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee service took place on 29[th] May, but was sadly followed by a service commemorating her Majesty’s death on 18[th] September held ahead of the state funeral on 19[th] September. As a church we were pleased to be able to open our doors for the ten-day mourning period, warmly inviting the people of our town to come inside to light candles and sign a Book of Condolence. In addition to the usual civic services around the Remembrance period, a service was held in June remembering those who lost their lives in the Falklands conflict. A further service was held in the town hall to bless a plaque honouring members of the St John’s ambulance (Pontefract) who lost their lives in World War1. In May, we were pleased to welcome to our church the Queen’s Lord Lieutenants (Yorkshire region) who were visiting our town. During Heritage week in September, a member of the congregation was able to offer a guided tour explaining the history of the ceiling bosses in our church. In the Advent and Christmas period we held a range of local school carols and Christingle services, along with community carol services.

On Sunday 4th September at our patronal service, we were pleased to hold a Benefice Confirmation service at St Giles led by +Tony, it was lovely to see 10 people, spanning a variety of ages, come to baptism and confirmation after suitable preparation.

Without our church building, so much could not happen, it is a landmark of our town, a place of worship and service to our community. Throughout the year a dedicated small team of people work to maintain and refresh the fabric of our building. Particular attention this year has been paid to interior decoration, electrical repairs and the cleaning of the stained-glass windows. We were seeing ‘through a glass darkly’ but now the sun gleams through, enabling our beautiful windows to be seen in all their splendour.

The importance of taking care of our church building, being mindful of the quality of our welcome and never losing sight of its sacredness, amidst our numerous community activities, always puts me in mind of the prayer written by +Thomas Ken.

O God, make the door of this house

wide enough to receive all who need human love and fellowship,

and a heavenly Father’s care;

and narrow enough to shut out all envy, pride and hate.

Make its threshold smooth enough to be no stumbling-block to children, nor to straying feet, but rugged enough to turn back the tempter’s power: Make it a gateway to thine eternal kingdom. Amen

(A prayer inscribed on the doors of St Stephen’s Walbrook, written by Bishop Thomas Ken 1637-1711)

It is a beautiful prayer for me to commend to you.

Thank you to all who have submitted reports. A special thank you to Vivienne Smales, our administrator, who pulls it altogether into a seamless whole.

Canon June Lawson March 2023

Introductory Letter ...................................................................................................................................... 3 Contents .......................................................................................................................................................... 5 St Giles’ Church ....................................................................................................................................... 6 Aims and Purposes/Objectives and Activities ..................................................................................... 7 Administrative Information ................................................................................................................. 10 Structure, Governance and Management .......................................................................................... 10 Volunteers and Staff ............................................................................................................................ 13 Statutory Reports : Electoral Roll ............................................................................................................................... 15 Proceedings of the PCC ................................................................................................................. 15 Safeguarding ............................................................................................................................... 16 Financial Statements of the Parochial Church Council ........................................................ 16 Financial Reserves Policy .............................................................................................................. 17 Fabric, Goods and Ornaments of the Churches of the Parish ............................................ 17 Proceedings of the Deanery Synod ......................................................................................... 18 Non-Statutory Reports: Baptism Visitors .......................................................................................................................... 19 Bell Ringing ................................................................................................................................. 19 Flower Team ............................................................................................................................... 20 Junior Church – St Giles 3:16 .................................................................................................... 20 Lunch with Us ............................................................................................................................. 20 Messy Church .................................................................................................................................. 21 Missions Committee .................................................................................................................. 22 Mothers’ Union .......................................................................................................................... 23 Music ............................................................................................................................................ 23 Open Church .............................................................................................................................. 23 Parish Magazine ........................................................................................................................... 24 Pastoral Care ............................................................................................................................. 24 Serving Team ................................................................................................................................... 25 St Giles’ Management Committee .......................................................................................... 25 St Giles’ Foodshare & Pantry Club (No. 6) .............................................................................. 28 St Mary’s ............................................................................................................................................ 29 Social Media ................................................................................................................................. 30 Tiddlywinks .................................................................................................................................. 31 Financial Reports: Independent Examiner’s Report ............................................................................................. 32 St Giles’ PCC Financial Statement .......................................................................................... 33 St Giles’ PCC Final Summary of Receipts & Payments ........................................................ 34 Summary of St Giles’ Centre Accounts ................................................................................. 37 Summary of Lunch with Us Accounts .................................................................................... 37 Summary of St Giles’ with St Mary’s Missions Committee ................................................. 38 Summary of St Mary’s Receipts & Payments ......................................................................... 39

ST GILES’ CHURCH (within the Benefice of Pontefract)

St Giles' Church is situated at the heart of Pontefract town centre. There has been a church on this site since at least the 12th Century. A significant re-ordering took place in 2012-2013. The ecclesiastical parish includes a wide range of housing within its bounds including new housing on a former pit site. St Giles’ Church of England Academy is within the parish, along with three other primary schools, a secondary academy, and New College, Pontefract. Pontefract General Infirmary, and the Prince of Wales hospice are also within the parish, along with leisure centres, a golf club, numerous retail outlets, and significant local employers such as the Haribo factory. St Mary’s community centre is a significant community provision based in Chequerfield. St Mary’s church meets weekly in this local centre.

The services at St Giles range from simple forms of worship to sung services. Our mid-week services follow a simpler form of Eucharistic worship.

The 10:15am Service of the Mass on Sunday mornings is a sung service with parts of the Eucharistic liturgy sung by our choir who rehearse weekly. On Feast Days incense is used at this service. Our children’s group (St Giles 3.16) meets during the service.

Choral Evensong generally takes place on the first Sunday of the month except in August. Themed evening services have been held for occasions such as Epiphanytide, the celebration of Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in July, a memorial service for her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth 11 in September, and Songs of Praise in November.

On Friday's, monthly organ recitals take place in church at 1.00pm. Our organ is one of the finest in the north of England.

St Giles’ plays an active role in supporting local charities and organisations: several musical concerts take place in the church throughout the year.

No. 6, the leased shop on Chequerfield, has increased its profile providing a weekly pantry club for local residents to opt into and much needed food provision for families needing help in school holidays.

Every Wednesday between 12.30-1.30pm ‘Lunch with Us’ has provided food for the homeless and people with little resources.

There is also a church café serving coffee/teas and cakes, which is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays to coincide with the town's market days.

We have an active Mothers' Union, and a thriving toddler group (Tiddlywinks) which meets every Thursday morning.

The St Giles' Centre has several meeting rooms which are used by local groups as a venue for their activities. Open church, run by volunteers, enables the church building to be open throughout the week. This allows people to come in for quiet reflection, to light candles for loved ones and to pray. In the latter part of the year, we have offered a warm space and provided refreshments under the ‘Warm Spaces’ umbrella. In. November, the Pontefract Foodbank started to operate out of the St Giles Centre enabling the public to collect food and get help from Citizen’s advice.

St Mary’s is a small congregation of around 9 people who meet weekly in the St Mary’s Community Centre. Services are Eucharistic, Common Worship Morning Prayer and occasional family services themed as appropriate.

Our bell ringers ring on Sundays before worship and practice on Mondays.

These activities which indicate ‘public benefit’ are described in more detail in this report.

AIMS AND PURPOSES

St Giles’ with St Mary’s Parochial Church Council (PCC) in the Benefice of Pontefract, has the responsibility of cooperating with the incumbent, the Reverend Canon June Lawson, in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish of St Giles, the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social, and ecumenical. The PCC is also specifically responsible for the maintenance of St Giles’ church, whereas St Mary’s congregation meets in a building licensed for worship run by St Mary’s Community Project.

OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES.

The PCC is committed to enabling as many people as possible to worship at our churches and become part of our worshipping community at St Giles and at St Mary’s. Broadly our vision is to be an open, welcoming, and inclusive church for all who visit and live within the parish of Pontefract.

When planning our activities for the year, we have considered the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and the supplementary guidance on charities for the advancement of religion by:

offering the opportunity for individuals and families to come together for public worship, prayer, and teaching as part of our Sunday, midweek services, and evening worship
Continuing the teaching of Christianity through sermons, and seasonal learning events including confirmation classes.
Offering ‘Open Church’ throughout the week which offers reflective and prayerful space for those who need a quiet environment to cope with life’s challenges.
Providing pastoral care through the occasional offices such as baptisms, funerals, and occasional weddings, as well as visiting the bereaved, those who are ill and taking the sacrament to them.
Supporting our church school through governance, visiting church and taking collective worship, also supporting other local schools through occasional assemblies and visits to the church. Pastoral needs are also met through the provision of food parcels to designated families in school holidays.
Offering the opportunity to explore matters of faith to children who join in with our Junior church provision.
Offering through twice weekly coffee mornings, a weekly toddler group, monthly Mother’s Union, Whist Group, and our weekly Lunch with Us, the space for people to come together for fellowship and friendship.
Providing through ‘Lunch with Us,’ and the provision of perishable goods made available from local shops, the opportunity to eat without cost or make a small donation.

Providing the community, through rooms made available as part of the St Giles’ Centre, access to citizen’s advice, a weekly chair exercise group, and a variety of meetings related to health and wellbeing.
Supporting mission partnerships with other local churches as well as working with other civic and community organisations.
Providing monthly organ concerts and being a venue for a variety of musical concerts that draw in the local community, such as The Pontefract Choral society concerts.
Representation on the St Mary’s Community Project Management Committee which is a not-for-profit organisation offering a range of activities including adult education courses, and community activities.
Supporting other charities in the UK and overseas through our mission giving (including a hardship fund) and the offering of prime town centre outside space for charities to use.
Acknowledging our responsibilities to pay for ministry within our own parish and contributing to ministry provision within the wider diocesan church family by making parish share payments as fully as we are able.
Maintaining the fabric of the Church of St. Giles to a high standard in order to provide a building that we can be proud of as a centre of worship and community mission in our town.

In 2022, we

Offered regular worship with at least 3, usually 4 regular services per week
Authorised and licensed a pastoral and lay minister for work in the parish
Continued to be a training parish offering a variety of ministry opportunities for our curate and for a trainee lay minister on placement with us
Offered a new seasonal service for families on the Chequerfield estate
Provided time and space for quiet contemplation and lighting of candles through the church being open set times every day in the week
Provided an open space in the church for members of the community to mark her Majesty’s Queen Elizabeth’s passing through lighting of candles and opportunity to write their thoughts in a memorial book
Continued pastoral work including visiting the long term sick
Conducting religious services in church and at the crematorium for the bereaved
Offered services of baptism for families seeking to mark a key life event
Offered wedding services and services of blessing after a civic ceremony for couples marking a key life event
Provided a service on All Souls Day for the community to remember the departed, also carol services before Christmas for the local community and a family orientated crib service
Held services for 4 local schools around Christmas, engaged in school assemblies throughout the year and provided learning opportunities for schools to visit church as part of their curriculum activities
Supported our church school and St Mary’s Community Centre through membership of governing bodies

Offered and supported at least 5 civic services throughout the year and participated in a St John’s ambulance plaque dedication service at the town hall along with services at the war memorial
Held some social events, including a beetle drive, fashion show and harvest supper
Offered monthly organ recitals and a silent film show
Hosted bell ringer teams from other churches to ring in our tower, visiting organists to play our fantastic organ, and the Yorkshire Lord Lieutenants visiting our town of Pontefract
Provided a venue for musical concerts provided by local singing groups such as The Pontefract Choral society and the Fairburn Singers
Provided refreshments after worship for the congregation, enabling fellowship and friendship
Provided a coffee morning for the community twice a week
Continued to develop links with local community groups, such as the Civic Society, through active participation in Heritage week (bell tower tours and information sessions informing visitors about the ceiling bosses) and events around the Queen’s Jubilee
Worked with Wakefield Council to illuminate the church windows as part of Light Up Pontefract
Contributed to ecumenical work in the town through active participation in CTIP
Provided community space within the St Giles Centre, including a weekly Citizen’s Advice session, weekly chair exercise and facilitating the development of links with local community groups
Supported the provision of free English language classes to Ukrainians resident in our town and district
Had success in writing bids to gain grants that have enabled valuable community work to continue and to specifically enable the development of a new service for families during 2023
Contributed to providing opportunities for people to be involved with community voluntary activities through practical care of the building, administration, bell ringing, joining a choir, playing whist, staffing open church, helping with Lunch with Us and Tiddlywinks, hosting the local Foodbank, and volunteering as drivers as part of school holiday meals provision
Held fundraising activities for local charities and church funds
Supported designated charities in the UK and oversees through mission giving and collections for crisis situations
Complied with statutory risk assessment through reviewing our Health and Safety polices, attending to the diocesan safeguarding dashboard policy requirements regarding child and vulnerable adult protection
Supported the work of the diocese through membership of clergy chapter, deanery synod, diocesan synod and the work of our cathedrals through the vicar’s membership of the college of canons.

Our achievements for 2022 are further detailed through the collection of reports presented as part of this booklet.

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

The PCC is a body corporate (PCC Powers Measure 1956, Church Representation Rules 2017) and a registered charity number 1135106. In June 2019, we became part of the newly created Benefice of Pontefract which includes the parish of All Saints, Pontefract along with our own parish of St Giles with St Mary’s.

Our correspondence address is: Parish Office, St Giles Church, Market Place, Pontefract, WF8 1AT Tel: 01977 790448 Email: stgileschurchpontefract@gmail.com

Bank: Virgin Money, 81 Carlton Street, Castleford, WF10 1BW

Insurance Provider: Ecclesiastical Insurance Group, Beaufort House, Brunswick Rd, Gloucester, GL1 1JZ

Architect: Mr David Barker, Associate Director based at Norwich Union House, High St, Huddersfield, HD1 2LR

Independent Examiner: Mr John Ransome, John Ransome Accountancy Services Ltd, 11 Northleigh, East Hardwick, Pontefract, WF8 3DR

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

In June 2019, the union of the Benefice of All Saints’ Pontefract and the Benefice of St Giles, Pontefract, became a legal entity. The constituent parishes remain distinct. Canon June Lawson was appointed as the first incumbent of the new Benefice of Pontefract.

The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules 2017. At St Giles’ with St Mary’s, the ex-officio membership of the PCC consists of the Incumbent (Vicar), other clergy licensed to the benefice, four churchwardens (elected at the Annual Meeting of parishioners), and the 12 members of the laity elected by those members of the congregations who are on the electoral roll of the church. All those who attend our services/members of the congregation are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and stand for election to the PCC when vacancies occur.

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. The Standing Committee is required under Church Representation Rules. It meets approximately 8 times a year to transact the business of the PCC between its full meetings including meeting prior to PCC’s to set the agenda for the meeting. It also acts as the personnel committee of the PCC.

The PCC enable people to live out their faith as part of our parish community through:

Worship and prayer, learning opportunities and opportunities to grow in discipleship through the whole Benefice and through signposting to diocesan resources
Enabling pastoral care to those who live in the parish
Community engagement

Missionary support
Caring for a grade 2 listed building, preserving the fabric for future generations, and developing our building as an asset for both the church and the wider community.
Framing an annual budget to support this work
Ensuring risk assessments regarding Financial Risk, Health and Safety, and Safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults are conducted regularly as part of its regular agenda

During 2022, the full PCC met 6 times with an average attendance of 68.7%.

The PCC has committees with Terms of Reference which deal with a particular aspect of parish life. These committees include the Standing Committee, the St Giles’ Centre Management committee, the Fabric, Health and Safety committee, St Mary’s Community committee, and the Missions Committee. All are responsible to the PCC and report back to it regularly with minutes of their decisions being received by the full PCC and discussed, as necessary.

The following people served as PCC members for all or part of the year 1[st] January 2022-31[st] December 2022:

Vicar and Chair (ex officio) The Revd Canon June Lawson Vice Chair Barbara Sessford Churchwardens Bruce Dalgleish (ex officio) Peter Lavine Pam Mercer Barbara Sessford Deanery Synod Representatives Maureen Gummerson (ex officio) Tony Williams Ruth Carter (not attending PCC meetings) PCC Members Sonia Atkin (reappointed for 3 years from 03.04.2022) David Belford (reappointed for 3 years from 03.04.2022) Jill Clapham Lynne Davis Karen Glynn (appointed for 1 year 03.04.2022) Janet Robinson (RIP 28.01.2022) Ulric Murray Joan Taylor (reappointed for 3 years from 03.04.2022) Delia Perritt (resigned 22.11.2022) Frank Ward (St Mary’s Pro-warden) Treasurer *David Leigh Clergy Fr Rod Walker, Associate SSM (Priest) (ex officio) Fr Michael Taylor, PTO (Priest) Fr Mark Watkins, Associate stipendiary priest Fr Sam Fletcher, stipendiary curate

*indicates member of Standing Committee

The following appointments were made by the Parochial Church Council during the year 1[st] January 2022 to 31[st] December 2022:

Sides-people	Linda Atkins	Margaret Hopwood
	John Barber	Ian Knox
	Sandra Barker	Barbara Lavine
	Bill Bradley	Maureen Milnes
	Barbara Chessman	Peter Spurr
	Janet Colvill	Geoff Walsh
	Margaret Coverdale	Ian Wood
PCC Secretary / Church	Vivienne Smales
Administrator
Treasurer	*David Leigh
Health and Safety Officer	Peter Lavine
Safeguarding Officer	Karen MacDonald
Electoral Roll Officer	Bevil Edwards
Organist and Director of Music	James MacDonald
Disability Officer	Barbara Sessford
St Mary’s Community Meeting Chair	Fr Michael Taylor

VOLUNTEERS and Staff

The mission of the church is also pursued through a wide range of volunteer help as detailed below.

In addition to thanking the assistant clergy, Fr Sam Fletcher, Fr Rod Walker and Fr Michael Taylor, along with our newly authorised lay pastoral minister, Tony Williams and lay Minister (Reader) Jill Clapham, I would like to thank all the volunteers who work in so many varied ways and with such generosity to make our church a busy and vibrant community.

Volunteers offer ministry in our regular services, as committed members of our wonderful choir, led by our Musical Director and Organist, James Macdonald. Michael Phipps, our organ curator, is always willing to offer his time and expertise when the St Giles’ organ needs attention. Our dedicated bell ringers have summoned us to worship, led by the tower captain, Adrian Garner and assisted by Karen Glynn.

Weekly and mid-week services could not happen without the team who serve as lectors, intercessors, and servers; as Eucharistic ministers, sides-people, operators of the sound system, printers of service booklets and arrangers of such beautiful flowers throughout the year. Another

lovely team is at work in our Junior church, in the Thursday Tiddlywinks and as baptism welcomers, co-ordinated by Mary Murray.

Administration happens in the parish through our much-appreciated paid part-time administrator, Vivienne Smales, and through two dedicated volunteers, Stuart Lonsdale, and Jonathan Harris. Both give very generously of their time week by week attending to service booklets and other printing tasks including magazines for other churches. Jonathan Harris has ensured our presence on social media through our Facebook pages, twitter account and the national online platform ‘a church near you.’

A large amount of work administering lettings goes on behind the scenes in the St Giles’ Centre and so grateful thanks must go to Bill Bradley for his commitment to this.

The church members and wider community are served by numerous volunteers working as part of ‘Lunch with Us’ (a much-appreciated meal provision in the community), by those catering and serving refreshments as part of the regular coffee mornings, and as individuals staffing the Open Church rota, enabling the church to be open for the public is an important gift of quiet space for our town.

In the latter part of the year a member of the congregation began a monthly ‘Men’s Breakfast’ seeking to provide fellowship and friendship over a mug of tea and a bacon sandwich.

The caretaker, Ian Wood, a paid staff member, continues to keep our church clean and ensure those letting our rooms are looked after. A small team of volunteers, led by Peter Lavine, also look after the fabric and health safety of the church building.

Many members of St Giles serve on committees, not least the PCC and the St Giles’ Centre committee, but also as members of Deanery and Diocesan Synods, as part of school governance and as trustees of the St Mary’s Community Project. Their role is key to parish and diocesan governance.

Our Mission’s Committee organise events to raise funds for our church supported charities. Other local and national charities are supported by individuals raising funds. Individuals organise whist drives, concerts and recitals, organise raffles (including guess the weight of the cake), host an annual fashion show, or run bric a brac stalls to help church and charity funds. A spin off of these events is to provide fellowship for those who take part.

A big thank you goes to our churchwardens: Bruce Dalgleish, Peter Lavine, Pam Mercer, and Barbara Sessford, along with their weekly teams, who, always work with such faithfulness and dedication. Frank Ward, St Mary’s pro warden, does a wonderful job to ensure that the small community of St Mary’s can meet for worship week by week.

David Leigh, church treasurer for so many years, has overseen and administered the church’s accounts and its finances. A role that takes a lot of time counting and banking money, paying invoices, populating spreadsheets, and then helping others to make sense of the figures. Sorting out utilities companies has been a feature of this year!

I hope no team has been missed if you have – many apologies. It makes your gift of time no less valuable to our ministry and mission.

Faithful volunteers over many years do increasingly come to me signalling that they would like to step down and it important that people are able to do so. However, we really do need a willingness from others to take on roles and responsibilities in the life of the church. We are a Christian community which flourishes best when the tasks are shared. Without that sense of ‘passing on the baton’ to others who are willing to take a new role on, our ministry and mission in Pontefract will cease to thrive and our doors will slowly close. Your church needs you! Our Lord needs you to be his servants in order that his church may fulfill what he calls us to be and do.

Canon June Lawson

STATUTORY REPORTS (Achievements and Performance)

ELECTORAL ROLL REPORT

Notice of revision of the electoral roll was given on 30 January 2023 and the revision was concluded on 4 March 2023. One application for inclusion on the roll was received and the name and address of the applicant has been entered accordingly.

The details of one member who has moved away and two members who have died have been removed from the roll.

The number of members recorded on the roll at today’s date is 141.

Bevil Edwards Electoral Roll Officer Date: 5 March 2023

REPORT ON THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

The PCC welcomed some new members in 2022 and there followed another busy year for the PCC as a whole and for the various groups which report to the PCC.

Some of the significant areas that the PCC has considered are:

Heritage week in September
Risk Assessments on all areas of church life
The church's budget, parish giving and fundraising
Works to be undertaken on the fabric of the church including cleaning and replacing of bulbs in the main lights of the church, installation of rain channels on the North Aisle roof to prevent rain damage and internal decorations
Staffing
Parish Share
Withdrawal of COVID measures
Revising of Term of Reference for committees and church policies
Receiving of committee reports inc community provision
Approval of a Reserves Policy
Visit by the Lord Lieutenant’s Office
Work of the St Giles Foodshare and Pantry club
Safeguarding dashboard updates, especially related to new role descriptions for leaders and members of teams
The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee – Service of Thanksgiving
The Queen’s Book of Condolence and Commemoration Service
Harvest Supper

Remembrance events
Introduction of Messy Church at St Mary’s supported by a grant application to the Bishop’s Development Fund
Purchase of new projector and mobile stand from funds received from the BDF
Installation of an additional CCTV camera
Fees updates
Warm Space initiative
Digital Giving Device
Grant applications including ASDA Foundation to help with Warm Space initiative and the National Lottery to help with letting costs for Citizen’s Advice
Preliminary investigations into the installation of solar panels
Future inclusion of The parish of Carleton and East Hardwick into the benefice

SAFEGUARDING

The church complies with Diocesan Safeguarding Policies and Practices, with regular updating of the Diocesan Safeguarding Dashboard. This guides the work of the PCC in fulfilling its statutory obligations.

All members of St Giles’ who are, due to the nature of their post (voluntary or otherwise) are currently in receipt of an enhanced DBS check and this information is confidentially stored with the parish administrator. Post holders and volunteers have all received the necessary clearance to fulfil their roles. In line with new guidance from the Diocese, all DBS checks are to be renewed every 3 years rather than 5 and all must be updated by January 2024.

The PCC continues to commit to carrying out the Church of England policy for Safeguarding; it also reaffirms that everyone is responsible for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults irrespective of their role within the church community, with any concerns being reported to the Safeguarding Officer, Clergy or a member of the PCC.

Churchwardens and PCC members are in the process of completing the necessary training stages in line with the diocesan policies, as are the leaders of church groups.

Since the last APCM report there have been no Safeguarding issues within Saint Giles’, however, the relevant personnel have been made aware of local and regional concerns as a precaution, although this does not pose any risk to children or vulnerable adults in church. A comprehensive list of DBS checks remains updated in line with national protocols.

Karen MacDonald

Parish Safeguarding Officer

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

Please refer to the Financial statements at the end of this booklet.

FINANCIAL RESERVES POLICY

A Financial Reserves Policy is annually agreed by the PCC.

“Under normal conditions the PCC within has adopted a policy to maintain a balance of unrestricted funds which equates to circa six months of the unrestricted funds normal annual expenditure. Certain of these funds are from time to time earmarked for designated purposes.”

REPORT ON THE FABRIC, HEALTH & SAFETY COMMITTEE 2022

Condition of the fabric

Following the complete re-roofing of the south nave roof in 2021, improvements have now been made to the north aisle roof. These improvements were in response to a couple of incidents that resulted in rainwater entering into the church during torrential downpours. It was agreed with the PCC to consult with our church architect and the company that had given us good service reroofing the south nave. The outcome of the consultation resulted in zinc rain channels being fitted to carry rain water from the main nave roof across the north aisle roof to lessen the amount of water on the lower roof. It is hoped that this will remedy the problem of extreme downpours in the future.

Other than the above, the fabric of the church is in a good state.

We have continued to redecorate the inside spaces of the church, painting various rooms on the first floor, the south and north aisles and the café area.

We have taken the secondary glazing out of the stained glass windows in the north and south aisles and cleaned those units. While the units were out we took the opportunity to clean the stained glass.

Over a period of three months the main church lights have been taken down to carry out essential maintenance of them. The bulbs were replaced along with the emergency lighting batteries. These batteries allow the lights to function should the power fail. We have reduced the number of light bulbs to mitigate the rising cost of electricity.

All the mandatory test and examinations that are required to enable the church to operate legally and safely have been completed. The five yearly fixed electrical installation inspection will be due this coming year. Additionally, the five yearly quinquennial inspection by our architect is also due this year and the necessary arrangements have been made to allow for this to happen.

The annual, planned schedule of maintenance has been completed by our regular maintenance team who continue to conscientiously go about their duties on our behalf and long may that continue.

Looking to the future we are hoping to embark this year (2023) on installing solar panels on the south aisle roof. This will enable us to further reduce our carbon footprint on the environment and reduce the burden of rising energy costs. We will be seeking the relevant permissions and funding to enable this essential project to go forward. If you have any questions on this project or

feel you would like to help with a financial contribution please speak with myself, Canon June or David Leigh.

Peter Lavine on behalf of the Fabric, Health and Safety Committee.

REPORT ON THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE DEANERY SYNOD

Deanery Synod met on three occasions during the year. The first meeting was held 24[th] February 2022 in St Giles Pontefract. Rev. Margaret Gallagher, Area Dean, opened the meeting with prayers and welcomed Sarah Hobbs who is an advocate of Living in Love and Faith. She gave an informative presentation on this project Synod then held small group discussions on the six guiding principles of LLF which set out to inspire people to think more deeply about what it means to be human and live in love and faith with each other. In March following on from this a Lenten study course hosted by Rev Gemma Fleury and Rev Sam Fletcher was held St Mary’s South Elmsall.

St Martin Womersley was the next venue for Synod on 28[th] June 2022 Jemima Parker, Diocesan Environment Officer, gave a presentation on how churches can become net carbon zero by 2030. She offered advice and resource links to enable churches to achieve their goals

Jo Byrne Deanery Secretary expressed a wish to step down as she is to undertake training for ordination. To date no replacement has been found and she is continuing in this role.

On 20[th] October 2022 Synod met at All Saints Featherstone. The meeting was chaired by Tony Williams who welcomed Rev Ruth Harris, Wakefield Episcopal Area Co-Ordinator for Prayer and Spirituality. She spoke about tools and ideas to assist us on our spiritual journey. Various forms of prayer were shared.

Bishop Tony has invited all three Deanery Synods in the Wakefield Episcopal Area to a special meeting on 21st February 2023 in Wakefield Cathedral.

A Quiet Day will be held later in 2023at Archbishop Holgate’s Hospital Hemsworth - Details to follow.

Maureen Gummerson

NON-STATUTORY REPORTS (Achievements and Performance)

BAPTISM MINISTRY

After the restrictions during the Covid pandemic it has been heartening in 2022 to see an increase in the number of those seeking baptism either for themselves or for their children. The number of families at any one service has continued to be limited to two in order to offer as personal a ministry as possible. It also has to be remembered that this is an occasion when many of those attending the baptism may have little, or even no, real understanding of the significance of the service and care is taken by the presiding priest to explain in an informal way what baptism means. Guests have continued to be limited to 50 per family.

The preparation meetings are held in church and have been led by Canon June or Father Sam. The Baptism Welcomer is also present; this is an opportunity to get to know the family so that they can become acquainted with a member of the church family and so are able to meet with someone they know on the day itself.

There have been 31 baptisms in 2022. Of these, 2 were of adults, 19 were of children under the age of one year, 9 were between 1 and 4 years and one child was 5 years old.

Many thanks to our team of nine Baptism Welcomers. Their commitment and willingness to help in this ministry are greatly appreciated. Thanks also to Vivienne who undertakes the administration so very efficiently and cheerfully.

Should anyone in the congregation wish to know more about the role of Baptism Welcomers, please feel able to speak with myself, the clergy or one of the team.

Mary Murray

BELL RINGING

The belfry goes from strength to strength. We regularly have seven ringers for Sunday service ringing and have up to 10 bells ringing on a Monday night practice. Two of the band were recently awarded their Association of Ringing Teachers Level 1 certificate in bell control. Several people have expressed an interest in learning to ring tower bells and I am giving lessons in the evenings and on weekends to fit around their other commitments. Hopefully it will not be long before we can ring all 10 bells for Sunday morning service.

We have welcomed a number of visiting bands into the tower since the COVID lockdown has been lifted including the Yorkshire Association of Change Ringers, the Yorkshire Tykes and hosted an evening practice for the ringers from Doncaster. The Yorkshire Tykes are a group of young people who are all learning the joys of ringing together and are building an exceptional reputation for having fun and being inclusive. The hope is that in the coming year we can share with more people the bells we are fortunate to have in the tower of St Giles.

On the maintenance front we are getting close to needing a new set of ropes. The current ones have lasted around 10 years and will need to be replaced soon as they are starting to fray and a couple have already had pieces cut out of them and been spliced back together.

Some of you may have noticed that the clock is no longer chiming the quarter hours or counting out the hour. This is because the mechanism that works the chimes needs to be repaired. We will endeavour to arrange for this repair to be done in the coming months.

Your support for the ancient art of bell ringing is always appreciated and should anyone wish to learn, please come along one Monday evening at 7:30pm or contact me (07790 956257).

Adrian Garner Tower Captain

FLOWER TEAM

The Flower Fairies are a small but committed enthusiastic band of flower arrangers. It is a privilege to work with such a beautiful part of God's creation.

Whilst 2022 has seen a return to regular arrangements, it has not been without challenges. We are grateful to all the people who sponsor the flowers and hope you will continue to do so.

If you like to support our efforts any contribution would be most welcome.

Thank you

The Flower Team

JUNIOR CHURCH – ST GILES’ 3:16

Our name changed after lockdown to St Giles 3:16, to encourage our young people to continue to learn with us after the age of 11 years when they traditionally left Junior School for Secondary education. It was also chosen because of the verse in St John’s Gospel ‘God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believed in him may not die but have eternal life’.

We do struggle to encourage more children and young people to join us and I know this is a problem that as a church we are trying to address, through Messy Church and church visits by local schools. Despite this the young people we do see are having fun and learning about our faith.

We teach many of our lessons through Godly Play lessons. This works well for us as we have a wide age range from five to thirteen and relies on not only telling Bible stories through the use of the little figures we have made but also askes our children to wonder? Recently we wondered what it would be like for people who were about to meet the most important person in the world. They wondered who that would be because the most important person to one person might not be the most important person to another! So, a discussion followed. We also use arts and crafts to develop understanding. We always start with our own prayer written by children a few years ago that involve actions to accompany our prayer and a lighted candle (battery operated Peter!).

During the last year we have been looking at the role of the prophets, what a prophet is and why they are so important. They have included Adam, Noah, Moses, Joshua, David and Daniel. We are

now exploring the work of Jesus the Messiah through his teaching ministry, his healing ministry and the nature and healing miracles. We try to link our teaching programme to Christian festivals in the Liturgical year.

Lynne, Stephanie and Jane.

LUNCH WITH US REPORT

Lunch with Us continues to offer warm food and drinks every Wednesday from 12.30 till 14.00. It has now been seven and a half years since the project started.

The customers are varied, some coming regularly and some less frequently.

We have received a grant in the last year and some generous donations from individuals. Greggs continue to donate left over good for which we are very grateful.

There is an amazing team of volunteers from St Giles, St Joseph’s Church and St Stephen’s East Hardwick and I would like to thank everyone for their continued support.

During 2022 we exceeded our 2021 figure of 2813 serving 3768 meals.

The venture had an income of £1478.96 with expenditure of £1310.23 and showed a small profit of £168.73.

Barbara Sessford

Lunch with Us Coordinator

MESSY CHURCH

After seasonal trial events throughout 2022, our first official Messy Church at St Mary’s was held in January 2023, and is now a monthly event. Messy Church takes place on the third Sunday of every month, at 4pm. Each service includes craft activities, music, storytelling from the bible, prayers, a Christian message, and a free meal. It is aimed at people of all ages, and intends to be accessible to children and families. We have a team of excellent volunteers with a variety of skills, to whom we are very grateful. We have a planning meeting for each service, which involves making necessary plans and preparations, as well as praying for Messy Church. It is broadly publicised, including through flyering in Chequerfield, at St Giles’ school, to our Tiddlywinks group, and to baptism families. Our first two events have been well attended, and very positively received; 23 adults and 8 children attended our February Messy Church, and we hope that many in this group will become consistent members of a growing Messy Church community. We have received grant funding from the Bishop’s Development Fund, which will fund Messy Church activities for at least 12 months.

Fr Sam Fletcher

THE MISSIONS COMMITTEE REPORT

Once again, our main fundraising activity was the monthly Saturday morning coffee.

Fundraising activities other than coffees included a beetle drive at February half-term, a chocolate tombola at Easter and a cake stall in June. To boost our funds Anne Healy again knitted Christmas pudding table decorations and also small wooden reindeer were assembled to be sold in the runup to Christmas.

We supported the following organisations:

CMS

We helped fund Andrew and Andrea Young, who work on behalf of the CMS, providing pastoral care to United Mission in Nepal.

The Leprosy Mission

TLM offers rehabilitation, education, vocational training, small business loans, housing and fresh water and sanitation to tens of thousands of leprosy sufferers each year. We sent a contribution to help with this valuable work.

The Leprosy Mission have stopped recycling stamps so after many years we are no longer collecting, trimming and sorting them for church.

Church Army

We sent a donation towards their work taking place in very deprived areas of the UK.

Mara

Majengo Mapya is our link parish near Musoma on Lake Victoria and we sent a contribution to assist with the continuing work being done there.

The Mission to Seafarers

They work worldwide to support seafarers, giving specialist help in a crisis and we are happy to help in a small way to their on-going work.

The Missions Committee thanks our congregation for their continuing support.

Edie Barber

Treasurer and Secretary

Other Charitable Giving

The church holds special collections in response to Christian Aid requests for financial help so that they can respond to international disasters.

Collections are held for the Church of England’s Children’s Society as part of any Christingle services held in the churches.

Edie Barber

MOTHERS’ UNION

We have 25 members and 1 indoor member.

2022 was a very busy year, we had some interesting speakers, a lovely day out at Beverley and Burnham Gardens, Pocklington, and enjoyed an afternoon tea in July.

We did well with fundraising, which we shared between AFIA (Away from it all Holidays) and World Wide projects….

We ended the year with our Advent Service and a lovely Christmas Lunch.

Marjorie Laidlaw

MUSIC REPORT

The choir continues to enhance worship at St Giles’. The work of the choristers is much appreciated as is the support from visiting organists. It was a pleasure to have Paul Bowen return to support our service of IX lessons and carols, which was musically outstanding. Tom Moore, who has a long association with St Giles’ choir is now enjoying his new post in Northampton and we wish him, Heidi and the children all the best as they settle there. I must record my thanks to Michael Phipps who continues to generously support the maintenance of the organ, which is. arguably, one of the finest in the North of England.

The new mass setting by Peter Nardone is now regularly part of the repertoire which allows more congregational involvement. It’s a tuneful and uplifting setting so please do join in with much enthusiasm. Several new hymns have been introduced and I do, as always, think it is important to sing the variety of tunes available: the Church (in the wider sense) has acquired some interesting habits of expecting certain tunes for certain hymns because « that’s what we’ve always done ». I’m quite sure the music of Léonin and Perotin would still exist if we didn’t embrace the less familiar. Like many aspects of life, things evolve and adapt: traditions develop.

The Friday recital series continues to attract a decent number of enthusiasts, and the recitalists are always grateful for the warm Ponte welcome they receive! To those of you who support it: thank you. It really is an important part of our musical heritage which, midst the technologically dependant world in which we now live, allows for a celebration of tradition and an opportunity to enjoy exceptional music.

James MacDonald Organist and Director of Music

OPEN CHURCH

We have been able to keep the church open for a period of time each day. This means that people can light a candle, pray or seek some quiet time. As well as this an extra ‘Warm space’ session has been added on Thursday afternoon.

There is a great team of volunteers who help this to happen, but we would be grateful to welcome any others who would like to come along and help. If you are unable to commit every week please consider being on a reserve list. If you are interested, please see Barbara Sessford.

Barbara Sessford

PARISH MAGAZINE

The magazine had a facelift this year, introducing colour into the front and back pages. After some discussion the price was increased to £1 per copy, there being 10 issues during the course of the year, with an extra to mark the late Queen’s Jubilee.

I would like to thank those who regularly contribute to the magazine - you know who you are - and would like to invite everyone else to put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard, to add your particular area of interest or concern, a memorable experience, a poem, a funny story, a photograph, a sketch, your life story in several chapters… anything to help to swell the pages.

Feedback about any aspect of the magazine would be welcome. Perhaps you might start by writing a letter to the editor? Honest opinions are always welcome, but some positive thoughts would help to make the task of compiling the magazine much more rewarding!

Bruce Dalgleish

PASTORAL CARE

Pastoral Care continues to be an important part of our churches’ ministry. We have a core pastoral care team consisting of Canon June, Fr Sam, our Licensed Lay Minister Jill Clapham and our Lay Pastoral Minister Tony Williams. This group generally meets on a monthly basis in order to co-ordinate pastoral care within the parish.

We currently take Home Communion on a monthly basis to 7 regular home communicants, as well as those who receive home communion on a temporary or one-off basis. This is in addition to the pastoral visiting by our clergy, which we arrange as the need arises. We also make phone calls to check in on the wellbeing of particular church members, especially those who our records show we haven’t seen at church for a while. We record the dates of our pastoral visits, phone calls, and home communions, which are put into a database that can be accessed by the pastoral team, so as to keep track of who has been visited. We support people facing a wide variety of difficulties, including grief, isolation and ill health. When possible, we visit members in hospital and link patients with the hospital/hospice chaplaincy departments. There is a weekly prayer list for the sick and those in difficulty. Our clergy also offer pastoral care to those outside of our congregation – for example, as part of our funeral ministry.

As well as the pastoral ministry provided by our core pastoral team, a major element of our pastoral care as a church comes through the fellowship and friendships formed between members of our congregation, providing care and support to one another through good times and bad. Our pastoral team sometimes plays a role in fostering these connections – for example, Tony has established a Men’s Fellowship Breakfast, which first met in October 2022.

Care and support of various kinds is also offered from church members to those outside the church, for example through Lunch With Us and the Food Share at No. 6.

Our clergy conducted 39 funerals this year in church and at the crematorium.

In summary, through our pastoral ministry, we continue to provide important spiritual and emotional support to our congregations and the wider community.

Fr Sam Fletcher

SERVING TEAM REPORT

I would like to say a big thank you to everyone from the choir and congregation who volunteer their time and services at the altar on Sundays and at other times when needed. Your continual support as readers, eucharistic ministers, intercessors, acolytes and crucifer is very much appreciated.

Members of the congregation are always encouraged to volunteer and especially our younger members. Daisy Jowett has been amazing in her continued faithfulness as acolyte.

Sadly, this year a long-standing member of the serving team has needed to step down from regular help, we owe Warwick Sumpter a huge thank you for all his dedicated service over many years.

We have been delighted to welcome Robert Jubb and Rejoice Jirira onto the serving team.

Volunteers don’t necessarily have the time, but they always have a heart. So, thank you again for helping to make our Church’s Sunday worship run smoothly and efficiently.

Tony Williams

ST GILES’ MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

The Covid-19 restrictions imposed during 2020/21 were substantially reduced at the beginning of 2022 and procedures for use of the Centre thereafter returned to pre-Covid requirements. The pandemic had severely affected the St Giles Centre in terms of room bookings, user numbers and income during the previous 2 years requiring the committee to review its Strategy Map with the main focus for 2022 being to increase both usage and the promotion of the Centre. This would be achieved by increased advertising of the Centre’s facilities by numerous means including social media sites, Centre website, Google business and local media outlets.

At the beginning of the year the committee also reviewed the room hire rates and agreed an increase of 4% (the first overall increase since the Centre was established in 2013) which would come into effect on 1 April 2022. This figure was well below the rate of inflation at that time and was based on impending increases in energy costs and the need to generate additional income following the considerable loss of income over the last 2 years.

It was also agreed to jointly plan ahead with Citizens Advice to seek further funding to cover its room hire costs after existing grants ended in December 2022. A successful bid to the National Lottery Community Fund (Awards for All) was subsequently made which will meet their room hire costs for the 12-months January – December 2023. Further joint applications will be made to ensure Citizens Advice continue to provide a town centre service beyond 2023.

The use of the Centre by community groups and organisations has slowly increased throughout 2022 but in financial terms is well below that of pre-Covid levels –

The weekly Chair Exercise classes continue to popular.
The fortnightly Whist Drives continued throughout the year but ended in November having run very successfully since March 2014. Many thanks Kath for your support.
SWYP NHS Trust Mindfulness+ Group (Baghill House) completed a weekly 9 sessions course in January.
SWYP NHS Trust Seeking Safety Group completed its weekly course (Sept 21–May 22)
Pontefract Choral Society held concerts in March, June and December.
Pontefract Readers Group ended its monthly meetings in July due to low numbers.
Wakefield Youth Work Team commenced its weekly sessions in January but these stopped at the end of March due to low numbers.
Artzone Art Café recommenced its activities in March but struggled to maintain numbers and eventually ended its booking in May.
WEA Art & Craft for Wellbeing course – a successful and well attended course ran for 11 weeks April – July. A subsequent Aromatherapy course was cancelled due to lack of numbers.
Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College courses -
Caring for Me and You - 6 weekly sessions ending in May.
Freedom from Fibromyalgia - 3 weekly sessions commenced in September.
Pastel Drawing held in October.
Understanding Personality Disorder held in November.
Christmas Gonks – held in November.
Christmas Rag Wreath Workshop held in November.
Wakefield Health Alliance Primary Care Networks (Conexus Healthcare) commenced its on-going monthly Peer Group sessions in April and its on-going monthly Wellbeing Café sessions in May.
The Centre offered free use for an English Conversations course for Ukrainians which was held weekly throughout June and July.
Pontefract Foodbank food collection and advisory service commenced in October and will run weekly for 12 months.
The Fairburn Singers concert was held on 17 November.

The income from room hire in 2022 amounted to £4318.00 compared to £4463 in 2021 and was 66% down on 2019 (pre-Covid).

The weekly Lunch with Us meals service continued to provide a limited takeaway service during the first 3 months of the year, however, from April onwards it was possible to provide a full meals service once again within the café area. A weekly average of 72.5 meals to 35 people served by 7.8 volunteers (2021 figures: 54 meals/23 people/7.5 volunteers).

In November a successful application was made to the Asda Foundation for funding to cover energy and food costs in order to create a Warm Space within the café area on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons over the 3-month period December to February 2023.

The Centre Committee continues to oversee the Holiday Food Share and Food Pantry projects which are based at No.6 The Circle in Chequerfield.

Throughout the year the Centre Management Committee has given particular attention to the financial difficulties caused by increased energy costs and reduced income. It is recognised that the Centre is of great benefit to the church and does provide an income as well as contributing to the mission of the church to serve the community, however, its current financial contributions to the PCC to cover utility, staffing and other costs are unsustainable in the current climate and consequently there is a need to adjust its budget by incorporating such costs within the church account.

Caretaking hours were reduced by agreement from 16 to 12 per week which may be increased on occasions if necessary.

The Diocesan lead development worker from the Wellsprings Together initiative has offered advice regarding a review of the church’s community engagement particularly regarding No.6, however, the resources required is not readily available at this time.

The Committee is now looking forward to a more productive 2023 and has received a number of new room hire bookings and enquiries.

Carers Wakefield & District Cook & Eat courses
Core Team East (Baghill House) Health & Wellbeing Mindfulness+ course
Additional Conexus Healthcare Pontefract & Knottingley PCN 1:1 sessions
Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College courses
Wakefield Discovery College courses
Pontefract Choral Society concerts in March, June and December
The Fairburn Singers joint concert with Latvian choir in September
WEA courses (tbd)
Mothers Union Fashion Show on 27 April

The committee was pleased to welcome Father Rod as a new member in July and wish to express its thanks to Vivienne (Secretary), David (Treasurer) and Ian our caretaker for all their help during another difficult year for the Centre.

Committee Membership: Canon June (Chair), Vivienne Smales (Secretary), David Leigh (Treasurer), David Belford, Bill Bradley, Ulric Murray, Fr Rod, Barbara Sessford and Joan Taylor.

Bill Bradley

Please see the Appendix for Financial accounts.

ST GILES’ FOOD SHARE & PANTRY CLUB

We are now over a year into the three-year lease of No 6 from wdh. We are told that wdh values our presence on The Circle, and we are extremely grateful for their sustained support.

No 6 is the base from which two schemes are run to support nominated families with school-age children: the weekly Pantry Club in the Chequerfield/Cobblers areas and the Holiday Food Share offered throughout Pontefract. Concerns about increasing costs of living that were emerging last year have been exacerbated by the events of 2022 and are manifested in the rising need for support from food-aid providers.

The graph shows the steady rise in Pantry Club membership during the year (solid parts of the line), reaching our maximum capacity of 21 families (c100 people), determined by the space available in the shop. The dashed lines show the totals reached during school holidays which now include half-term deliveries to help family budgets. The number of participating families has doubled from the summer scheme to over 40 at Christmas (c200 people). We expect this level of need to be maintained at least through 2023.

The increase at Christmas also reflects Cherry Tree Academy starting to nominate families to the Holiday Food Share again. Up to that point, families in their catchment area were accessing the scheme only through other referral agencies. Throughout the year, we have received a number of nominations from the Foodbank to help support families in the school holidays. This reflects the close collaboration with the Foodbank, based on shared values and a will to complement each other’s approach to tackling local poverty. Some Holiday Food Share families have gone on the join the Pantry Club. The security of assured access to food has again enabled most Pantry Club families to avoid the necessity of crisis referral to a foodbank and this must help their emotional well-being.

Distribution of holiday food parcels has been undertaken by a team of drivers who continue to respond to our requests for help. The Friday doorstep drop of fresh fruit and veg is now

established and is also undertaken by three drivers operating on a rota system. We are very grateful for this support without which we would not be able to undertake the increased provision of both schemes. Thank you too to David Leigh who helps us to negotiate with outside agencies on financial issues.

The generous St Giles’ monthly food donations have been sustained throughout the year and are helpfully responsive to our entries in the weekly Notices about our immediate needs. All Saints’ also makes regular food collections for No 6; we have been supported by St Stephen’s; and St Joseph’s is proposing to set up a box in Church. Collections at Harvest and other occasions have been donated to Food Share by St Giles’, Orchard Head and De Lacy schools. We also have a permanent collection point in Pontefract Asda from which we also receive a monthly trolley-load of items. Morrisons Community Champions continue to donate to No 6, from both stock and the green charity bags. Donations can also be made at the YMCA store and Willow Park Care Home.

When available, we like to distribute fresh foodstuffs, particularly fruit and vegetables, mainly on a Friday. Some is delivered by FareShare and Morrisons often put expiring perishable food aside for us when shelves are restocked. A couple who grew surplus potatoes on their allotment kept us going for several months, and the weekly delivery of under-size potatoes from Stringer’s Farm in Stapleton picked up again towards the end of the year. We also applied for and received a grant from wdh to finance purchases of fruit and vegetables over the winter period for Pantry and Holiday Food Share families.

We have also benefitted from financial donations during the year. WMDC continue to fund the weekly FareShare deliveries. Our stall at last year’s Community Showcase gave the opportunity for contact with Pontefract Rotary, and we were invited to make a presentation to the group which was followed by a donation that helped pay for the summer holiday scheme. Since the autumn, we have received a generous monthly donation from a local firm which is fully spent to make weekly in-store purchases, particularly of milk, breakfast juice and jam, items which are rare in FareShare deliveries. We are very grateful for these and individual monetary donations, some regular and others apparently ‘spur of the moment’ when people are passing the shop.

As we are at capacity for our weekly Pantry deliveries, we are now ‘signing up’ members who will come to the shop to pick up their food parcels. To support this, we need to have supplies of bread available for these families and have applied to Hillards Charitable Trust for a grant to purchase a small under-counter freezer. This in turn has required the insertion of an additional power socket and Fixx have again offered to provide one free of charge.

Though we are reluctant to ‘advertise’ our schemes on social media, St Giles’ Food Share is becoming well known in the community and we are grateful for the goodwill and donations from local people.

Paul & Ann Harris

ST MARY’S

Once again it is my pleasure to report on the year at St Mary’s.

The congregation, whilst small in number, have undoubted enthusiasm, which makes leading services a joy.

“Messy Church” has hit the scene, under the auspices of Fr Sam, and will be a regular feature.

We have music, by way of technology, which I have yet to get to grips with! And this makes a great deal of difference.

The year culminated with a very successful “Christmas Event” raising over £500 and a Christmas Eve carol service and Christmas Morning Eucharist.

My thanks go to all who support this Church.

Fr Michael Taylor

SOCIAL MEDIA

2022 was a busy and, at times, challenging year for the social media. Events both internationally and closer to home have required a response both in the form of prayer and information about what is taking place at St Giles’ to mark what has happened. There has, of course, been the war in Ukraine where, especially during the early days of the conflict, we were sharing prayers from different denominations (both Church of England and Orthodox). We also had to respond to a number of high profile deaths this year including those of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, His Late Holiness Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI and, of course, Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II through the sharing of prayers and tributes. The death of the later involved monitoring different social media accounts for prayers and other information surrounding the Late Queen death which were considered of interest to those who visit our social media platforms. This included sharing Westminster Abbey’s history of the Cross that was placed at the head of Her Late Majesty’s coffin during her Lying in State.

In terms of the numbers visiting and interacting with our main social media platforms, we continue to see growth both in terms of people liking or following us or visiting them. At the end of 2022 the Parish Facebook had nearly 400 likes and nearly 500 followers. A deal with the administrators Pontefract Community Page Facebook group to share as much or as little of our content from the Facebook page on there means that we reach about 8,000 people a week via Facebook. The Benefice Twitter account currently has 129 followers. A massive thank you goes to both the Diocese and Church of England Twitter accounts for their continued encouragement on Twitter through liking and retweeting what we post including the photo of our ten Confirmation Candidates after the service in September. We also continue to have healthy visitor numbers to both Churches’ A Church Near You pages with St Mary’s receiving 11,474 visits in the last 12 months and St Giles’ receiving 14,618 visits in the same period. 2022 also marked the end of an era when our last live streamed service of Compline which took place on the 6[th] January. This received 52 views.

2023 promises to be another busy year for the social media. We, of course, have His Majesty’s Coronation to look forward to in May and will be sharing prayers and information about events taking place in the Parish about what will be taking place to mark that. Please don’t forget that if you would like to promote an event that you’re planning or photos from an event which has taken place on the social media then please email the details and photos to stgmsocialmedia@gmail.com and I’ll happily put it on for you.

Jonathan Harris

TIDDLYWINKS REPORT

Last year was very encouraging. We managed to maintain maximum numbers throughout the year and, weather permitting, we held our usual church session at the castle much to the delight of the children.

Like the whole of the nation, we also held a party in celebration of the Queen’s Jubilee with all the children coming in fancy dress and we made jewelled crowns.

We meet every Thursday morning, 10:30 to 12:00 in term time, for a short children’s service which includes a story, prayers and songs accompanied by noisy musical instruments. The children then do various craft activities so that they have something to take home to show their parents/ guardians. This is followed by playtime in the café area with refreshments. This year, thanks to the generosity of our users, we have been able to make donations to church who provide us with a warm, welcoming place for our meetings.

Our group consists of Sandra Cutting, Jill Townsend, Elaine Troughton, Sheila Roydhouse and Barbara Lavine.

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT

The Benefice of Pontefract: The Parish of St Giles with St Mary’s Pontefract,

Receipts and Payments Account for the year ended 31 December 2022

I report on the accounts of the PCC for the year ended 31 December 2022 which are set out from pages 32-38.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner.

The church's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts.
The church's trustees 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 accounts (under section 145 of the 2011 Act)
to follow the procedures laid down in the General Directions given by the Charity Commissioners (under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act: and
to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

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 accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts 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 accounts present a 'true and fair view' and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent Examiner’s statement:

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:

which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements
to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; and
to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 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.

Name: Mr John Ransome (signed on page 33)

Address: John Ransome Accountancy Services Ltd 11 Northleigh, East Hardwick, Pontefract, WF8 3DR

ST GILES’ PCC – FINANCIAL STATEMENT YEAR ENDING 31[ST] DECEMBER 2022

ST GILES’ PCC – FINAL SUMMARY of RECEIPTS & PAYMENTS 2022

Fura1 Fees Caretsker & PA W8ge5 1000 15000 1071 15446 18000 18151 Publl$hlng Pholcupier Rental & Pn'nting Stationery 2251 1421 2000 5000 3673 Organl¥t & Mu8ici•ns Organist Mise. li tuning) 6010 1500 7500 6957 St Glles. P•rl•h Share Common Fund IG £51166. M £4449) 510¢JO 434S Mlsslon Actlvlti 1123 St Marfs ISIOS & Parl8h Share) 55 5500 Sundrfel Refreshments Misc. 1145 3284 2500 4430 TOTAL EXPENDITURE 109000 104060 Budgot 79000 109000 Actual 86146.18 104060.17 TOTAL ST GILES PCC RECEIPTS TOTAL ST GILES PCC EXPENDITURE SUM OF RECEIPTS AGAINST PAYMENTS 2022 -17913.99 Net Cash Transfors 2022 11931.23 TOTAL CASH SURPLUS 2022 -5982.76 Curront Stal• of Accounts: Yorkshire Building Society Yorkshire Bank Curr6nt Account {31112) Yorkshire Bank Invested 2022 ond 2021 £1,356.62 £1,316.25 £14.325.80 £20,654.20 £75,719.51 £75,414.24 TOTAL £91,401.93 £97,384.69 35

Approved on behalf of the PCC by

Revd Canon June Lawson, Vicar and PCC Chair 7 March 2023

St Giles’ Church Pontefract

Summary of St Giles’ Centre Accounts 2022

DJL January 2023

Lunch with Us Account Summary 2022