## Trustees Annual Report and Financial Report 

of 

The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of The Church of the Holy Cross, Uckfield 

Registered Charity no. 1137746 

## **For the year ended 31 December 2025** 

|**Table of Contents**<br>**Page**|
|---|
|The Trustees Annual Report ..................................................   3|
|Safeguarding Report .............................................................. 24|
|Fabric and Maintenance Report ............................................ 38|
|Financial Review .................................................................... 40|
|Statement of Financial Actvites ........................................... 43|
|Balance Sheet ........................................................................ 44|
|Notes to the Financial Report ................................................ 45|
|Independent Examiner’s Report ............................................ 54|



## **Administrative information** 

_**Incumbent**_ 

_**Independent examiner**_ : Mr B Jacobs, 12 Silverdale, Keymer BN6 8RD (appointed 2022) 

_**Bankers**_ : National Westminster Bank, 1 Muster Green, Haywards Heath RH16 4AP 

_**Website**_ : www.churchofheholycrossuckfield.co.uk 

_**Social Media:**_ 

## **Advisers to the P.C.C.** 

Mrs AD Johnson - Churchwarden 

Mr P Ireland - P.C.C. Treasurer 

Mrs G Youngman - P.C.C. Secretary 

Mrs L Ireland - Parish Administrator 

Mr P Kennedy - Major Works Project Manager 



Thank you to the following people for permission to use their photos and graphics: 

Anthony Simpson, Simon Tuck, Sarah Widdowson and Gillian Youngman. 

_**The rest of this page is intentionally left blank.**_ 

P a g e | **2** 



## THE TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT 

## **OUR AIMS AND PURPOSES AS A CHARITY** 

‘The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of the Church of the Holy Cross, Uckfield’ is a Charity registered with the Charity Commission in England and Wales as charity number 1137746. It is commonly known by its working name of ‘Holy Cross Church, Uckfield’. 

is part of a Plurality with St Michael and All Angels at Little Horsted and St Margaret of Antioch at Isfield, overseen by the Rector, the Reverend John Wall (Father John). The Parochial Church Council (P.C.C.) is a corporate body established by the Church of England and operates under the Parochial Church Council (Powers) Measure 1956, Church Representation Rules 2006 which states that its principal function is “promoting in the parish the whole mission of the church”. 

The P.C.C. has the responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent in: 

- •The promotion of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ according to the doctrines and practices of the Church of England. 

- •Promoting in the parish the whole mission of the church: pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. 

- •Getting to know Jesus better and make Him better known. 

- •Practical support and care for people in the parish, from the youngest to the eldest, irrespective of level of need or ability to pay. 

- •Providing financial support to those in need and to other organisations with similar objectives. 

- •Demonstrating that our aims are for the public benefit, including charities advancing education or religion or relieving poverty. 

- •Following the Chichester Diocese Strategy 2020-2025 ‘Vision for Growth’ (More Open; More Converted to Jesus Christ; More Generous; More Engaged). 

## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES** 

When planning our activities for the year the P.C.C. and clergy have considered the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and, in particular, the specific guidance on ‘charities for the advancement of religion’. 

## **We enable as many people as possible to worship at our church:** 

- •Enabling as many people as possible to become part of our parish community. 

- •Teaching, baptising and nurturing new and existing believers. 

- Encouraging children we encounter to worship. 

## 

- •Maintaining an overview of worship throughout the parish. 

- •Considering how services can involve the many groups that live within the parish. 

- •Putting faith into practice, through prayer and scripture, music and sacrament. 

- •Providing services and opportunities to worship (other than the regular Sunday services) which reach out to the wider community. 

- •Services organised by the Youth and Children’s Choirs. 

P a g e | **3** 



## 

•Assisting people from all walks of life to develop their knowledge of, and trust in, Jesus. 

•Sermons and talks to deepen spirituality both as a community and as individuals. 

•Offering worship and prayer, learning about the Gospel, in small group situations including monthly services in home complexes for retired living and annual confirmation classes for adults and children. 

## **We engage in evangelism and outreach to the parish in various ways:** 

•Reaching out through less formal services, children’s activities, community, social and fundraising events. 

•Bimonthly Community Leaders’ Lunches. 

•Outreach to local schools through assemblies, talks and worship. 

## **We provide a building for people to enjoy:** 

•Maintaining the fabric of the church building as a historic centre and focus of life in the town: 

maintaining the fabric of The Belmont Centre (church hall). 

•Enabling an appreciation of the church building in the history and archaeology of the area. 

## 

•Providing pastoral care for people whether part of the Holy Cross Church family or not, including visiting the sick and dying. 

•Providing assistance to the poor and needy of the parish both financially and by initiatives such as Very Chatty Café. 

•Providing assistance to the wider community, including the relief of poverty through support to local charities such as the Uckfield Foodbank, the Community Fridge and the Edward Holmes Baldock Charity. 

## **We consider protecting the needs of those entering our church buildings:** 

•Ensuring all members and visitors to the church are kept safe and that all Safeguarding procedure and policy is followed. 

•Supporting the National Church’s initiative “Living in Love and Faith” on sexuality. 

•Raising awareness of issues of race, bias and inclusion. 

## **We spend money as wisely and responsibly as possible:** 

•Adhering to our Financial Records and Accounts Policy including authorisation of spending. 

•Tendering for large jobs in order to make sure we are getting the work done to our specification while good value for money. 

•Spending the income of our parish trusts according to the wishes of their donors. 

## **We consider the needs of people served by other charities and overseas:** 

•Giving to wider Christian charities and community organisations both at home and overseas. 

•Giving to missionary organisations. 

•Responding to emergencies and crisis by arranging adhoc appeals and retiring collections. 

•Supporting and Responding on a regular basis to appeals from voluntary Ukraine aid workers. 

P a g e | **4** 



## **WHAT WE PLANNED TO DO TO ACHIEVE OUR CHARITABLE OBJECTIVES** 

## **PERFORMANCE REVIEW OF ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE YEAR** 

## **Services of Worship to God** 

All are welcome to attend our services and the church family welcomes visitors from within as well as outside the parish boundary. 

The regular services are: 

- Sunday 8.00am Holy Communion 

- Sunday 9.30am Parish Communion (including Healing on the 4th Sunday of the month) 

- Sunday 10.00am Open Doors (Family Eucharist) usually on the 2nd Sunday of the month 

- Sunday 5.30pm Evensong (see below for details) 

- Wednesday 11.00am Holy Communion 

The number of adults attending a **Sunday morning service** in 2025 averaged 78 (this includes the Open Doors service when Junior Church and families participate in the service) and is an increase of one from last year. 

Each year the Diocese asks parishes to monitor attendance during Sundays in October. In 2025 the average adult attendance in Church for the morning services in October (including the Harvest Open Doors service) was 82 which is the same as last year. 

Although the average number attending the **Open Doors services** decreased this year (73 adults and 12 children - a decrease of 18 and three respectively) they are still the most attended services for adults.  The numbers attending, especially for children, fluctuate for various reasons of other things happening on Sundays or, for example, there were only seven children present in July the morning after Proms on the Pitch, where the Choirs were singing, which was a late night. 

Three Open Doors services saw an attendance of over 100 adults: 

- Easter Day 153 adults 30 children (an increase of 18 and 2 in 2024) 

- • Harvest 115 adults 35 children (an increase of 1 and 3 in 2024) • Christingle 110 adults 15 children (110 and 25 in 2024) 

follows: 

|follows:||||
|---|---|---|---|
|**Age **|**Number**|**Percentage 2025**|**_Percentage 2024_**|
|0 – 17|42|19|_25_|
|18 – 69|44|20|_25_|
|70+|137|61|_50_|



This year showed a marked increase of people attending the weekly **8am Holy Communion service** , ranging from 7 to 24 (the highest attendance being Easter Day) with an average of ten people attending throughout the year (last year numbers ranged 4 to 14 with an average of seven).  Similarly, attendance at 

P a g e | **5** 



the weekly **Wednesday 11am Holy Communion service** varies from 7 to 18 (the highest attendance being Ash Wednesday) with an average of 10 (compared to varying from 5 to 15 and an average of eight in 2024). 

Holy Cross Church continues to be one of a very few churches that has an **Evensong Service.** Numbers are low at times so services continue to not be held every week and sometimes special services take place instead. 

In 2023 a new format was set which has continued through 2024 into 2025: 

- 2nd Sunday of the month Festal Choral Evensong 

- 4th Sunday Sung Evensong 

As time went on, the congregation for the 1[st] & 3[rd] Sundays Evensong reduced to a very small number of regulars therefore, the P.C.C. agreed to stop the 1[st] and 3[rd] Sunday Evensongs & retain the 2[nd ] and 4[th] Sundays at Holy Cross and the 5[th] Sunday at St. Saviour’s. 

In 2025 there were nine Choral Evensongs, with an average attendance of 32. Two of these were special services, one in memory of Jill Crotty (a faithful member of the evening congregation) and another a service for the Bell Ringers. Four Sung Evensongs were held, three of which had an average attendance of fourteen.  The fourth one (in May) included visitors from Fairwarp Church and the congregation increased to 36.  On 22nd June Holy Cross Church Choir were invited to lead Evensong at Christ Church, Fairwarp as part of their patronal festival celebration. This service was attended by over 50 people. 

As well as the above there were also some **special evening services** which included: 

- May - the annual Hymns and Pimms service attended by 50 people. 

- August - the annual Evensong combined with a BBQ (held at The Belmont Centre and in church this year) with 60 attending. 

- September - the Youth Choir (supported by the Children’s Choir) put on another Candlelit Concert. There are 9-10 members of the Youth Choir and 10 in the Junior Choir.  [It is worth noting that the Youth Club has now effectively been replaced by the Youth Choir.] 

- December - the Advent Carol Service was attended by 86 and Lessons and Carols Service by 154 people. 

Holy Cross hosted two Deanery services this year: 

P a g e | **6** 




In January a special **Deanery Service** led by Bishop Will was held to launch the “Year of Faith”. It included stories of faith and renewal of baptism promises. 


Fr. John led confirmation classes assisted by Rhian Cottrell and Sandie Boniface with a hugely happy Deanery **Confirmation Service** on 5th October, with three adult candidates and four children from Holy Cross and three candidates from other parishes. There were also two baptisms. Bishop Ruth Bushyager, the Bishop of Horsham, presided on her first visit to Holy Cross and she was especially delighted by our children's and Youth Choirs.    The service was attended by 156 adults and 37 children. 


Throughout the year other services also took place which bring in the wider community (see chart below). 

|below).||||
|---|---|---|---|
|**Date**|**Service**|**Adults**|**Children**|
|5thNovember|All Souls Requiem|67|-|
|8thNovember|Remembrance SundayCivic Service|400|100|
|11thNovember|Remembrance Day|100|10|
|7thDecember|Festival of Christmas Trees ClosingService|127|49|
|11thDecember|Mayor's Carol Concert*|215|35|
|13thDecember|Carols byCandlelight with Uckfield Concert Brass|200|20|
|14thDecember|Sussex Bonfire Societies Carol Concert|400|40|



* Our Mayor, Karen Bedwell, organised a new Mayor’s Carol Concert ‘celebrating the Uckfield volunteer community’ which the Holy Cross Church Choir, the Children’s Choir and the Youth Choir participated in, 

P a g e | **7** 



The church is also used as a suitable venue by others for special events like the Rocks Park School Harvest Service and Uckfield College Carol Concert and the Friends of Sussex Hospices Countdown to Christmas evening (which this year saw Celia Imrie, fresh from the very popular Celebrity Traitors programme on television), participate in. 

School assemblies are taken by Fr. John in our plurality at the nearby Little Horsted School fortnightly in term time. 

Christmas services were well attended with the Crib ‘unrehearsed nativity’ Service (see photo below) continuing to be the most popular service of all where children were invited to take part and despite the inclement weather was attended by c150 adults and c450 children (similar overall numbers to last year). Dorothy, the three month old daughter of Tim (our Musical Director) and Eleighsia (Junior Church leader) played the part of Jesus on this and other occasions. 


**Compline** (an Order for Night Prayer) continued at 4.30pm on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Tuesday of the month at **St Saviour’s** (following private prayer from 4pm) with, like last year, an average of five people attending. 

of the month, both with 8-12 people. Sadly, the Margaret House service dwindled to no takers so it was cancelled. 

## **Children’s work and attendance** 

**Junior Church** We are proud to say that Holy Cross Church continues to have a lot to offer young families. continued to meet on the 1st, 3[rd] and 5th Sundays of the month, participating in the Open Doors family Eucharist on the 2nd Sunday of the month with families having the 4th Sunday free when they can enjoy other activities. Junior Church start their worship in The Belmont Centre, then come into church for Communion followed by the children showing and explaining what they have been doing which they enjoy sharing and the congregation are pleased to hear about. Overall there are about five children less than last year but numbers vary considerably and are very encouraging with as many as 36 children (8 more 

P a g e | **8** 



than last year) when they made pancakes ahead of Shrove Tuesday and 24 (27 last year) for the Nativity Play in church. 


Junior Church performing a delightful play “The Little Apple Tree” in the Open Doors **Harvest** service in October (see left). 

We are very grateful to Sarah who oversees Junior Church, supported by Eleighsia Guntrip, Steph Green and Beth Morris-Boag. 

_year as President. This year Lions President Frank Phillips has donated to three local good causes; one of these was £350 to Holy Cross Church Uckfield Junior Church group with funds to be used for the many different crafts etc the group does on a Sunday morning._ 

Two Saturday morning sessions of **Messy Church** were held (Messy Easter and Messy Harvest) each with an attendance of 42 and 29 children respectively (numbers for the second one had to be capped due to a shortage of helpers). Priority booking is given to Junior Church children with the remaining spaces open to the wider community. 

In summer the **Holiday Club** returned with the theme of ‘Our Wonderful World’ attended by 40 children over the three days which were packed with activities, story time, music and crafts based on a story from the Bible. The following Sunday the usual Holiday Club service was held when children shared with the congregation and families what they had done the previous week. 


Our amazing Children’s and Youth Choirs performed at various services and events throughout the year including Proms on the Pitch in July (a musical celebration for the whole family on the Rugby Club field led by Uckfield Concert Brass with spectacular fireworks finale – this was the 6[th] year it took place and the Choirs have been involved). They sang at their Candlelight Concert in September (see left). December was a very busy month for them with performances at: the Festival of Christmas Trees Closing Service, Mayor’s Carol Service, Christingle Open Doors, Carols for Thornbury Care Home, Junior Church Nativity and the Crib Service. 

For more information about Children’s work please see Sarah’s reports in the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 

about the history of the church building, dressed up in albs and chasubles, lit candles and had fun! 

P a g e | **9** 



Following the success of the Polar Express Movie Night last year, ‘elf’ was shown this December with well over 100 Junior Church children and their families enjoying a fun night. 

## **Life Events** 


events Our church continued to be appreciated by our parishioners and many others as a space where life are celebrated with joy and thanksgiving.  In 2025 there were four baptisms, two weddings and 16 funerals in Church (similar numbers to last year) and four funerals taken by clergy at the Wealden Crematorium in Horam.  There were no internments of ashes. 

## **Pastoral ministry/care** 

We greatly appreciate those who prepare and lead services at Holy Cross Church and across the plurality. Namely our Rector, Fr John, our Honorary Assistant Curates; the Revd. David Ashton and the Revd. Dr Mike Blanch as well as our Reader Sheila Fordham.  Their time and input is invaluable in order to maintain all the services that take place. 

We also thank the Revd. Canon Martha Mutikani (Associate-Vicar of Isfield, Uckfield and Little Horsted) for her ministry in the plurality of four years before she moved on to be Vicar of St Augustine’s parish at Scaynes Hill in May. Canon Martha came back to Holy Cross Church for her 10th Anniversary of Ordination Service on 28th June and the following day Fr John celebrated 35 years of being ordained as a Priest and a hearty toast was raised to him in The Belmont Centre after the 9.30am service. In November, the Diocese of Chichester announced the Bishop's appointment of four new Honorary Canons of the Cathedral, in recognition of the contribution that they make to the apostolic life of the diocese. We are delighted when we heard that Fr John, our Rector, is one of these and will take the Stall of the Prebendary of Seaford in January 2026. 

This year saw the introduction of the Authorised Lay Ministry training programme by the Diocese of Chichester, designed to equip lay people to undertake wider ministry in the local church in partnership with the clergy. As Fr John pointed out “As fewer clergy are available, areas such as laity leading worship and preaching will become more pressing if we are to continue the forms of worship and services we are currently offering”.  Training is between 6 and 12 sessions.  Modules offered were Pastoral Care, Mission, Chaplaincy, Worship & Liturgy, Preaching, Care of Creation and Eco Church, Rural Ministry, Small Group leaders and Youth and Children. Candidates should normally be baptised, confirmed, and on the electoral roll of their sponsoring church; there is no upper age-limit. Candidates need to be nominated by their P.C.C. for this ministry. 

Holy Cross Church was very pleased that two members of the congregation expressed an interest. Dee Johnson put herself forward for the course in Worship and Liturgy with a view to being able to lead Evensong/Matins in future rotas if we have fewer clergy/Lay Readers available.  Traditionally churchwardens have been able to lead services of the word when clergy aren't available, so in many ways this would be a natural extension of the role. 

P a g e | **10** 



Lucy Morrison (who became a P.C.C. member in November) had hoped to do the Eco Church course but the training times did not work out so she put herself forward for the Catechumenate course which is to do with accompanying confirmation candidates and others on their journey of faith. 

On completion of the training, candidates are commissioned at a Diocesan Service led by a Bishop. All ALMs need to be DBS checked, complete Safeguarding training through the parish to C2 level and have their Role Description signed off before commissioning. Both Dee and Lucy had their applications supported by the P.C.C. and started their training in the second half of the year. By the end of 2025 they had completed roughly half the courses and they are due to be licensed on 9th May 2026 at Chichester Cathedral. 

Authorisation lasts for a period of three years and can then be renewed following a review by the incumbent and Parochial Church Council. 

Clergy continued to visit the sick at home and in hospital plus Pat Hall takes monthly communion to those in Copper Beech Care Home, Thornbury Residential Home and to private homes when requested. 

## **Communication** 

Social media continues to be one of the most effective means of communication and at the end of the year our Facebook page followers numbered 2,000 (a 5% increase from the previous year.) We are indebted to Sarah Widdowson who continually keeps our pages updated and says that she has continued to notice a substantial increase in the number of people interacting with our page over the past year. 

At the end of April Simon Tuck took over maintaining the Church website from Sarah. He made many modifications and added a wealth of information, so much so that it grew from 65 pages to 224. New features include the weekly pewsheet ‘The Grapevine’ and current and back copies of the parish magazine ‘The Link’, a photo gallery and giving pages. At the end of the year approval was given to use the shorter address of holycrossuckfeld.org.uk (the former one will continue to be used for at least another two years). The use of the website has increased significantly and during 2025 186,745 pages were viewed by 58,718 visitors. For more information about the website please see Simon’s report in the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 

Towards the end of the year, in addition to posters/fliers created by Sarah Widdowson, Simon Tuck started to produce eye catching posters/fliers, examples below, to attract people to various services. These were put on Facebook and the website, included in The Link (parish magazine) and emailed to those who receive the weekly pewsheet via that medium (nearly 200 people). 



P a g e | **11** 



## **Social events and fundraising** 

Coffee is served in The Belmont Centre after the Sunday mid morning service and a good number stay on for this. Donations for refreshments continue to go to the Chichester Diocese Children’s and Families Work (FSW) and Goodwill Children's Homes (who help to build brighter futures for disadvantaged children and families in rural South India). 

Coffee is also usually served in church after the weekly Wednesday service and on occasion refreshments are served after a special Evensong or at an evening concert. 

The family of Holy Cross generously volunteer and support events and fundraising opportunities. These occasions also serve as valuable socialising and wellbeing times for the helpers as well as those attending. 

A **jumble sale** held in February made £480 and another in August was amazingly successful, raising over £700 which is possibly a record. 

Churchwarden Dee’s Lent Challenge this year was getting up at crack of dawn to bake bread and hot cross buns to sell after the Sunday morning service, she did very well raising over £250. 

Following the wash out last year, the **Spring Festival** was able to take place on Luxfield Field again this year, held on the Bank Holiday Saturday rather than the Monday.  There were more stallholders than ever before and although we didn’t offer our free Messy Church tent there was more entertainment and a dog show was introduced. The event was extremely well attended and although not quite the same amount as in 2023, the event raised just over £2,000 but we look ahead to next year and will review a few areas where we can possibly save costs.  It was a very well received community outreach and only possible with the time and commitment given by so many. 

In June Esther and Poppy held another cake sale towards their **Walsingham Youth Pilgrimage Fund** , raising a grand sum of £230. 

A cake sale was held after the Open Doors service on 14[th] September, raising £192 as a contribution from the Holy Cross Church to **Ride and Stride.** This is an annual event always held on the second Sunday in September where people are sponsored to travel between churches (in a variety of modes) to raise money for the Sussex Historic Churches Trust (half the money raised goes to your named church).  Holy Cross no longer participates but following an appeal from the charity last year decided to hold this fund raiser for which the Trust was very grateful. 

The **Harvest Lunch** was a very sociable lunch organised by Dee and her team in The Belmont Centre; many attended. This year a full meal was put on the tables to be served amongst those there. 

The annual **Christmas Fair** , held in November in The Belmont Centre raised £2,500 (compared with just over £1,700 in 2024).  The event was well supported and left over items were sold at the Festival of Christmas Trees. 

The **Festival of Christmas Trees** (now in its 18[th] year) was as spectacular as ever with the greatest number of trees ever (120), the largest amount raised (over £20,000) and an amazing 6500 visitors.  This annual event continues to be a very popular attraction to children and adults and is a huge occasion on the town’s calendar with people coming long distances to visit and admire the trees.  It could not take place without 

P a g e | **12** 



the time, dedication and hard work put in by the vast number of volunteers from both the church and wider community led by Sarah Widdowson’s enthusiasm and vision. 

For more information on some of the above events see the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 

The popular **Very Chatty Café** continued to thrive, thanks to a dedicated and happy team of organisers and helpers.  These sessions, open to the community, are self-funded via donations from those participating and wise spending of monies. The sessions celebrate birthdays and have a varied programme offering very interesting talks and quizzes as well as a wonderful, varied menu of tasty lunches and soups and cakes. 

During February and March Very Chatty Café also met every Friday for coffee 10 a.m. – 12 noon. This provided a warm space for people to come and meet others and for the hardworking team to come out of the kitchen a bit more and speak to those attending. 


In addition to the Friday sessions, the augmented Very Chatty Café team organised **The Family Love** event in February with meals both morning and afternoon (a mammoth 61 breakfasts were cooked); fun activities for the children along with who very much enjoyed Winnie the Pooh boxes of sandwiches, cakes, fruit and a drink. £900 was raised for The Belmont Centre and Very Chatty Café. 

In May they supported the **Spring Festival** on Luxford Field with their Vintage Tea Room. 

A second was held on a Saturday in September to raise money to give back to the church for the free use of The Belmont Centre on Fridays. 

The VCC team are always very caring and in April for the second time they gave the money raised at the Friday raffle (£60) towards the ongoing health costs of Oakley Wallace, a member of our church family. 

For more information on Very Chatty Cafe see the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 


Music continues to be a vital part of worship and entertainment and fundraising continues for the **Organ Fund** (last year our Director of Music, Tim Guntrip, identified that as time goes on the organ will need some expensive maintenance work varying from a minimum of £37,000 to the maximum of £67,700). During 2025 the Ashdown Singers performed two concerts in aid of the Organ Fund, donating £800 from their proceeds. Their concert “A Celebration of English Choral Music” held in October included a new work by Sam Barton “In Flanders Fields”. 

The organ continues to soldier on apace. The organ decided to misbehave during the morning service on Remembrance Sunday with two cyphers (sticking notes) appearing towards the end of the service. 

P a g e | **13** 



Thankfully we were able to disconnect these notes before the afternoon Civic Service and business has continued as normal since – albeit without those two notes! Earlier in the year, the organ also experienced a sudden loss of wind pressure. It was initially suspected that the split in the main bellows had increased in size – on further inspection it was found that items stored on the organ blowing apparatus (behind the curtain in the Christchurch Chapel) had collapsed onto the winding system causing damage – thankfully we have managed to repair this and the organ has most of its wind supply back! We hope this year to start getting a committee together specifically for the organ project – do let Tim know if you would be interested in getting involved. 

We are very grateful to those from outside the church who have put on or supported social and fundraising events, often for church funds. 

## **Promoting the Gospel** 

On the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the month from October till next February Fr David led a **Bible Study** on I Corinthians at St Saviour’s. Those attending numbered about 10. 

Tim Guntrip approached the P.C.C. proposing that the current hymn book (Hymns Old and New) be replaced with **“The Revised English Hymnal”** (published 2023). Although the P.C.C. agreed to underwrite any expense, an appeal was made to the congregation to sponsor a hymnbook for a mixture of 190 copies; the response was amazing and sufficient funds came in to pay for all of them. A combination of a grant from Norwich Books and the Waterstones loyalty scheme saved £385 on the recommended retail pricing. 


|**Edition**|**Numbers**<br>**required**|**Total price**|
|---|---|---|
|Words edition|150|£975.00|
|Largeprint|5|£30.00(£90 loyalty discount)|
|Full music|30|£875.00(5 copies free – Grant)|
|Melody|5|£0.00(5 copies free – Grant)|
|**Total**|**190**|**£1,880.00**|




Where people wished, they could dedicate a hymn book to someone, or where there were no names, a generic bookplate was inserted (see above); we are grateful to Simon Tuck for his work on this. 

Fr John blessed the new hymn books in church on 23[rd] November and they were put into use from 30[th] November.  The old hymn books were offered to other places. 

Whilst the new hymn book has many advantages, some hymns (mainly the more modern ones), have not been included.  Work is therefore in hand to produce a supplementary inhouse hymn book. 

Simon also started to rewrite the numerous **orders of service booklets** which were twelve years old. Following comments that more copies of some were required, they also needed revising to include things like ‘King’ rather than ‘Queen’ so Simon took this huge task on.  These were introduced into the various services towards the end of the year. 

P a g e | **14** 



For more information about changing the hymn books and the order of service booklets, please see the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 

## **Our witness to the community** 

Holy Cross Church is at the heart of Uckfield and attracts people to both the Church and The Belmont Centre for services and events, especially the Festival of Christmas Trees. The Church also shows witness to the community by supporting and participating in the life of the town as already described and the Spring Festival is now putting us on the map. On Palm Sunday those who can, start the service in the High Street and walk to church carrying a cross and palms. 


In September children and helpers again took part in the in the High Street during the afternoon and Fr. John with Fr. David said prayers for the town at the top of the High Street that evening – **Carnival night** is a part of the Sussex Bonfire season and is attended by thousands of people from Uckfield and further afield. 

Holy Cross Church gives ongoing support to the town’s **Foodbank** by means of a financial donation along with a regular appeal in the weekly pewsheet (a box for donations is put out each Sunday, kindly overseen by Terry Hall). Also, many people now put their donations directly into the supermarket collection boxes. However, Holy Cross Church donates about twelve large shopping bags a month which are always gratefully received. Dee Johnson, one of our churchwardens, continues to represent Holy Cross Church as a Trustee of the Foodbank and is able to issue food vouchers on behalf of the Church. 

At the Harvest service this year donations were taken in the form of food for the Foodbank and a collection for the Diocesan appeal ‘Friends of the Holy Land’, a UK-based, non-political, ecumenical Christian charity with a deep commitment to sustaining a hopeful future for Palestinian Christians. 

Throughout the year Dee has been appealing for items for an orphanage in Ukraine as Andy Wooller (known to the Church from Uckfield Concert Brass who perform for us at various events) goes out there regularly.  Things like nappies and paracetamol are in great demand and the Church has responded very well.  Andy spoke about his trips at a Ukraine coffee morning in August where £870 was raised which will pay for one of his journeys which he normally funds himself.  We are also very mindful of the work that Toby Illingworth (son of Fiona in the Choir) does in Ukraine via the Yashchenko Foundation which he set up. 

You can read some background to Andy’s visits and Dee’s appeals in the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 

Holy Cross Church is a member of the and the both of which hold regular meetings, in person and on Zoom, and work together for the benefit of the local community. We keep contact with them and occasionally Fr. John joins a Zoom Meeting. With regards the Chamber of Commerce, as a major institution in Uckfield, Holy Cross Church impinges on the Business Community as part of its Community Involvement. 

P a g e | **15** 



Holy Cross Church continued to witness to the community with the bimonthly **Community Leaders Lunches** held at the Rectory, attended by about 25 people. After a cooked lunch provided by the Rector with help from Gillian Youngman, a short talk is given by someone about the group or organisation that they represent. As a result of this, needs and concerns are shared and networking has been beneficial with organisations sometimes offering financial help or other kind of support to each other. Talks in 2025 included aid to Ukraine, U3A, Community Policing and Wealden Council and Planning.  The Lunches are usually held at The Rectory, however, the February lunch took place at The Belmont Centre (with the Very Chatty Café team kindly doing the catering) in order for Fr John to then show people round the Church and show those present the changes that have taken place and spoke of work that needs to be done and the financial implications. See photos below of the lunch and tour. 



Fr John continues to be Chaplain to the Uckfield Rugby Club saying grace at meals and supporting home games. He is very much supporting the development of the clubhouse as a community asset for the town, and the Chairman will be speaking in the Summer of 2026 at one of the Rectory Lunches. 

## **Mission, outreach and evangelism** 

All services and activities organised by the church are open to all and as said above, there are times when the church bears witness to the town. 

A small Giving to Other Charities sub-committee, appointed by the P.C.C., had not met by the end of the year but £2,300 has been accrued to be donated to a mix of charities both local, UK based and abroad. 

Other regular charitable giving throughout the year has included Action Aid (sponsoring of Maria Luisa Cucul Yat in Guatemala), Christian Aid, Uckfield Foodbank and The Children’s Society. 

The Churchwardens are also trustees of the **“Edward Holmes Baldock Charity”** which is three charities rolled into one. It incorporates the Henry Gardener and Dorothy Ellis charities, and all three of them were established to relieve poverty in the town of Uckfield. Dorothy Ellis died in 1731 and some of the money she left enabled 12 fourpenny loaves to be provided to 12 poor families at Holy Cross Church every Sunday. 

In 1846 Edward Holmes Baldock bequeathed the sum of £750 to be invested and distributed each year amongst poor persons of the parish. These combined investments are held with the COIF Charities Investment Fund which provides a quarterly income used to fund an annual donation to three families selected by a sub-committee each year. No donations were made in 2023, so in £50 each was given to three recipients in 2024. 

P a g e | **16** 



At the annual meeting last year, Paul Ireland (our Treasurer) reported that each year the investment of this money makes about £20 and the P.C.C. makes it up to three gifts of £25. It gets harder each year as £25 does not really make much difference to someone. The sub-committee are therefore going to consider a different way to using the money whilst still maintaining the aims of the charity. Any proposed change will be checked with the Charity Commission to ensure the use meets the requirements specified in the original bequest. 

Some of the congregation belong to **Caring and Sharing** , a scheme (started in Eastbourne in 1982) which raises money by sacrificial giving by people who try to: ‘Live more simply that others may simply live’. It is based on two ideas: the first is that by making a small sacrifice members can turn away from the material values of the western world; the second is that they can share their comparative wealth by sending the savings from this small sacrifice to projects in poorer countries to provide the basic needs of life. By making a small change in lifestyles this year £1,500 was raised. 

In summer 2023, 100 handheld crosses from Jerusalem were blessed and distributed. These have proved a great source of comfort for people and continue to be available. Often the recipient has given theirs away and needs another. The take up and impact of the crosses has been amazing and by the end of the year we estimate that about 800 have been distributed. 

## **Walsingham** 

A Pilgrimage took place in September to The Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk. Fr John led the group of another nine people plus another three (including Fr David) staying elsewhere.  A summary of this Pilgrimage can be read in the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 


## **Ecumenical Relationships** 

and participate in the Good Friday Walk of Witness from Cornerstone Church (where coffee and hot cross buns were served) up the High Street to Hartfields café where a short service took place. 

## **PROPERTY** 

## _**Holy Cross Church**_ 

The Church is open to visitors each day when there are no services taken place and many people do call in for many reasons and will often find a Church member to talk to. Sometimes they sign the Visitors Book saying that they were married there etc and they comment with remarks like ‘beautiful’, ‘peaceful’, ‘lovely and welcoming’. 

The dedicated Children’s area in the Christ Church Chapel which was created last year has proved to be a great success and the books and toys are often used discretely by young families during services and are available for anyone while the Church is open. 

P a g e | **17** 



From February, it was decided to make a welcome display in the south foyer, which would change regularly. The first one was in February, inspired by the Open Doors theme. 



## _**The Belmont Centre**_ 

A very short walk from the church is The Belmont Centre which the church owns. The P.C.C. is responsible for the upkeep of the building overseen by the Churchwardens, and the Parish Administrator who report back to the P.C.C. The Parish Administrator also manages bookings and other day to day activities of The Belmont Centre. The building houses the Parish Office and has a hall and small meeting room and also a good well stocked kitchen and toilets, including a disabled toilet with a baby changing facilities. An additional part of the Belmont Centre is on permanent loan to a Nursery/Pre-School Group. 

This wonderful facility is used for Church fundraising and social events and is also an asset for use by the wider community and brings in an income for the Church. Bookings this year went very well with regular hirings on most days of the week as well as parties, wakes and baptism celebrations. We are regularly inspected by the Food Standards Agency and have retained the five star food hygiene rating which is the highest level, showing that standards are very good. 

## _**St Saviour’s**_ 

with seating which also doubles up as a community space for events. It is managed by Uckfield & District Housing Association Ltd. Ray Pilson continues to be Deputy Churchwarden there. 

Compline takes place on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Tuesdays as detailed earlier. More details about St Saviour’s can be found in the _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 

## **VOLUNTEERS** 

We continue to extend the opportunities for the exercise of ministry and gifts within the life of the community. We are grateful to have the dedication and support of Dee Johnson and John Pontefract as our churchwardens and a full complement of P.C.C. and Deanery Synod members. 

P a g e | **18** 



There are over 40 roles of individuals and teams which enable Holy Cross Church to run as well as it does. These volunteers give their time and talent, in some cases to more than one area or role. 

Fr John acknowledges them all in his annual report. In addition there are others who help at our fundraising events and the many people from the local community (and further afield) who help in various ways with the Festival of Christmas Trees, enabling this annual amazing event to take place. We would like to thank the many people who volunteer in any way to make Holy Cross Church so vibrant and at the heart of the community. 


Our volunteers/fundraisers are of all ages and in February, one of our Junior Church children, Erin, spent her inset day off school re-planting all the pots outside The Belmont Centre with bright and joyful flowers - she worked incredibly hard! How lucky we are to have so many young members of our church that take such an active role in caring for our church and grounds. 


Later in the year a Junior Church member, Oscar, made and sold beautiful paracord cross keyrings to raise £65 funds for Junior Church! 

We are very proud to say that volunteers from Holy Cross Church won awards at the annual Ashdown **Volunteer** Radio Community Awards Ceremony at the East Sussex National. Paul Ireland was the Winner of **of the Year Award** : Paul as well as being our greatly valued Church Treasurer holds voluntary roles in numerous other voluntary organisations in the town and we are very grateful for the time and dedication he gives to our accounts and his wealth of advice. 

Also at the Ceremony, the Very Chatty Café team were delighted to hear that they were winners of the **Community Group Award** . 



Many people had put them forward for the Award and their nomination read as follows: 

_“The Very Chatty Café clearly makes a difference in the lives of those who need nothing more than a friendly face and a warm meal.  Whether someone is elderly, lonely, struggling or wanting a chat, the team of volunteers has a reputation for making everyone feel welcome and included. They exemplify what it means to be a community, and the volunteers can feel great to be part of something special.”_ 

P a g e | **19** 



For more information on Very Chatty Café see the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 


One last, but certainly not least ‘volunteer’ who must get a mention is **Vito** , Fr John’s new black labrador (named after an excitable Italian pro dancer on Strictly Come Dancing) who we have watched grow and settle into Church life since he arrived at The Rectory in January. Vito is adored by both regulars and newcomers to services and events and is a great topic of conversation. He is so very well behaved and looked after by Dee and other members of the congregation - you usually forget he is there, other than the odd thump of his tail! 

Left: Puppy Vito’s first time to a Church service in January. 

## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT** 

The appointment of Parochial Church Council members is governed by and set out in the Church 

Representation Rules. The P.C.C. members are responsible for making decisions on all matters pertaining to the parish including how funds are to be spent. 

It is made up of the following 19 people (there was a vacancy until November): 

## 

- The Revd John Wall (Rector and Chair) 

- Sheila Fordham (Reader) 

- Dee Johnson (Churchwarden and Vice Chair) 

- John Pontefract (Churchwarden) 

## **Elected members (3 year term)** 

- Dee Johnson (representative on Deanery Synod) 

- Sandie Boniface (representative on Deanery Synod) 

- Francis Wallace (representative on Deanery Synod) 

- Anthony Simpson (representative on Deanery Synod) 

- Paul Ireland (Treasurer) 

- Gillian Youngman (Secretary) 

- Paul Cuerden 

- Terry Hall 

- Ann Kennedy 

- Beth Morris-Boag 

- Angela Noel 

- Edna Osborne 

P a g e | **20** 



- Ray Pilson 

- Sarah Widdowson 

## • Rhian Cottrell 

- Lucy Morrison (since November 2025) 

All those who attend our services are encouraged to apply to be on the Electoral Roll and if appropriate, to stand for election to the P.C.C.. The Electoral Roll is totally renewed every six years and this happened last year, with the number of people on it in April 2025 being 162 (a decrease of 27 from the previous year). As of 23 April 2026 there were 173 names. This includes just over 10% of people who are not resident in the parish (this is the same number, 18, as 2025). 

The GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) was passed in 2018. This protects personal data and from a church aspect gives individuals options on what information they receive and how.  Forms were completed by the congregation seven years ago and this year the form was revised and everyone was invited to complete one again – 159 people did.  This number is less than before largely as some people did not come back to church after Covid. 

The full **Parochial Church Council** held four meetings during the year (February, June, September and November) at St Saviour’s. The average attendance of P.C.C. members at these meetings was 13 (74%) which is a bit less than last year. 

A meeting is usually held solely to approve the Trustees Report (including the Financial Review) but this year that was again done via email. 

Our parish is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults from harm. We follow the House of Bishops guidance and policies and have our own Parish Safeguarding Officers (PSO’s). Our Diocese of Chichester’s safeguarding pages contain vital links and information including contacts for the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor who advises our PSO’s. 

The **P.C.C. Standing Committee** comprises the Rector, Dee Johnson and John Pontefract (Churchwardens), Paul Ireland (P.C.C. Treasurer), Gillian Youngman (P.C.C. Secretary), Angela Noel (P.C.C. representative) and Lynne Ireland (Parish Administrator). The purpose of the Standing Committee is to conduct P.C.C. business in between meetings or in an emergency, including addressing day to day matters and ensuring the smooth running of the church and The Belmont Centre. They only met once (via Zoom) during the year. Often decisions are now instead made via emails or a WhatsApp group which is easier and means they can be dealt with quickly and efficiently. 

With a building the size and age of Holy Cross Church and heavy use of The Belmont Centre, there is a lot of ongoing maintenance required plus we are continually trying to improve the building to make it safe, welcoming and inclusive. Obviously what can be done and when depends on a number of factors like money, sometimes planning permission and approval by the Chichester DAC (Diocesan Advisory Committee for the Care of Churches) which is a statutory body, providing advice and guidance on the care of churches. We are very grateful to Paul Kennedy our Major Works Project Manager who deals with these applications which entail detailed and time consuming form filling. 

As part of our **Mission Action Plan** , during 2024 the P.C.C. agreed on the following major work to be done over the next three years, this list has been updated with progress in 2025: 

P a g e | **21** 



- _**South door ramp**_ – faculty granted, funding in place and contractors appointed 

- _**Automatic internal door**_ - funding in place and contractors appointed (deposit paid) 

- • _**Choir vestry window**_ – restoration work to window and surround completed 

- _**Carpets**_ – new Church carpets fitted 

- _**North stairwell walls**_ – deferred awaiting advice from Architect 

- • _**Organ restoration**_ [see page 12 for breakdown of costs] – planned for 2026 

Further detail on the work for 2025 can be seen in the Fabric and Maintenance Report [see page 38] 

## **Deanery Synod** 

The Deanery Synod considers matters concerning the Church of England, brings together the views of member parishes on common problems, fosters a sense of community and interdependence among those parishes, and generally to promote in the Deanery the whole mission of the church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. 

The Deanery Synod elects clergy and laity Diocesan Synod representatives and has an allocated General Synod representative. Holy Cross Church currently has four representatives on the Uckfield Deanery Synod. They met 3 times in 2025 and the main purpose of these meetings is to share information and experiences between the parishes on areas which concern us all. 

They report back to the P.C.C. via a written report from Francis Wallace who is Secretary of the Deanery Synod. Deanery Synod members are ex officio P.C.C. members. A more detailed report of the meetings and work of the Deanery Synod can be seen in the separate _Report containing Activities of the Church Family and Background Information._ 

## **Holy Cross School** 

Following the closure of the School at the end of 2023 and an exhibition and Thanksgiving Service in early 2024, a booklet giving a brief history of the School (see below) was launched at the Church Spring Festival last May. Two banners (also below) which were carried by pupils at Year 6b leavers services (for the schools in the Diocese held at various venues) were processed at the Thanksgiving Service and given to the Church; these have now been hung up on either side of the dais. Nothing has happened to the School site yet. 



P a g e | **22** 



**People** 

## **Archbishop of Canterbury** 

On 3[rd] October it was announced that The Rt Revd and Rt Hon Dame Sarah Mullally DBE was to become 106th Archbishop of Canterbury. She will be the first woman to hold the office. 

The Bishop of Chichester, Dr Martin Warner, issued the following statement: 

"The appointment of Bishop Sarah Mullally brings great rejoicing to many within the Church and the nation more widely who have longed for the day when a woman would be Archbishop of Canterbury. 

In the diocese of Chichester we join with others in assuring Bishop Sarah of our prayers and good wishes as she prepares to undertake the ancient and weighty office of Archbishop of Canterbury. 

May the learned and missionary saints, Gregory of Rome and Augustine of Canterbury, who established the See of Canterbury, be an inspiration in the challenges and ministry that lie ahead." 

## **Archdeacon of Hastings** 

The Welcome and Collation of the Revd Russell Dewhurst, as Archdeacon of Hastings, took take place in the context of Choral Evensong at St Dunstan’s Church, Mayfield, on Sunday 23 November. He replaces the Venerable Dr Edward Dowler who went on to become the Dean of Chichester. 

P a g e | **23** 



## Safeguarding Report 

The Holy Cross Parochial Church Council has complied with the duty under section 5 of the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016, fully recognising its duty to have due regard to House of Bishops’ guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults. We continue to work within the guidelines in the most recently published Parish Safeguarding Handbook (approved by the House of Bishops). 

called "Parish Dashboard" which covers Safer Activities, Safer Practices, Safer Structures, Safer People. There are 3 levels to work towards: 

- Level 1 - Foundation (Essentials of Good Practice) 

- Level 2 - Good Practice 

- Level 3 - Best Practice 

As this is a relatively new initiative, most churches are working towards Level 1 Certification. Holy Cross Church has achieved Level 2 Certification and is working towards Level 3. 


**----- Start of picture text -----**<br>
Safeguarding Action Plan - Level 2 Uckfield<br>**----- End of picture text -----**<br>


## Introduction 

The Church of England’s safeguarding policy statement, _Promoting a Safer Church_ , says: 

_“All Church bodies should ensure that they have a ‘Promoting a Safer Church’ action plan in place that sets out, in line with national and local priorities, how the policy is being put into action and is reviewed regularly.”_ 

To help parishes prioritise their safeguarding work, a _Safeguarding Dashboard_ can produce three levels of Action Plan: 

- Level 1 - Safer foundations Level 2 - Safer foundations and activities 

- Level 3 - Safer foundations, activities and practices 

## **Overall Progress** 

**75% progress** has been made towards the mandatory requirements of the Church of England. 

P a g e | **24** 



## Policies and Action Plan 

**Status Notes** Updating on next P.C.C. 10th **Safeguarding Policy Approval** The PCC has adopted June 2025 The PCC must approve a parish safeguarding 'Promoting a Safer Church' as its policy which complies with Church of England own safeguarding policy. requirements. Will be renewed at the next **Safeguarding Policy Promotion** Promoting a Safer Church' must be publicised 'Promoting a Safer Church' is P.C.C. on 10th June 2025 and promoted, and all Church Officers must have publicised and promoted, and all access to it. Church Officers have access to it. **Safeguarding Action Plan** The PCC last reviewed their Will be renewed at the next Safeguarding Action Plan on P.C.C. at A.P.C.M. 8th May The PCC must approve a Safeguarding Action Plan 20/01/2026. 2026 and review it at least once a year. **Recruitment of Ex-Offenders** The PCC last reviewed their policy regarding the recruitment of exThe PCC must have a policy regarding the offenders on 10/03/2026. 

The PCC must have a policy regarding the 

## Safeguarding Procedures 

|||**Status**|**Notes**|
|---|---|---|---|
|||||
|**Responding to Concerns or**<br>**Allegatons**||The PCC reviewed their procedure on<br>20/01/2026.|<br>Will be renewed at the A.P.C.M.<br>on 08/05/26|
|The PCC must approve a procedure to deal||||
|promptly with any safeguarding concern or||||
|allegaton (including any suspicion of abuse).||||
|||||
|**Lone Working**||The PCC is following guidance||
|The PCC must follow the Church of||regarding lone working with children||
|England’s safeguarding guidance regarding lone||or vulnerable adults.||
|working with children or vulnerable adults.||||
|||||
|**Appropriate Boundaries**||The PCC is following guidance||
|The PCC must follow the Church of||regarding appropriate boundaries||
|England’s safeguarding guidance regarding||with children or vulnerable adults.||
|appropriate boundaries with children or||||
|vulnerable adults.||||



P a g e | **25** 



## Safeguarding Roles 

|Safeguarding Roles||||
|---|---|---|---|
|||**Status**|**Notes**|
|**Parish Safeguarding Ofcer**<br>The PCC must safely recruit a suitable person (not||A Parish Safeguarding Ofcer was<br>appointed on 13/05/2025.|We have two Safeguarding Ofcers.|
|the incumbent or his/her partner) to the role of||||
|Parish Safeguarding Ofcer. The appointment is to<br>be made in accordance with natonal 'safer||||
|recruitment' guidance.||||
|||||
|**Churchwardens**||||
|The churchwardens must be made aware of their<br>safeguarding responsibilites.||The churchwardens are aware of<br>their safeguarding responsibilites.||
|||||
|**Lead Recruiter**||The PCC has appointed at least one|We are currently going through|
|The PCC must appoint at least one Lead Recruiter||Lead Recruiter.|changeover in Lead Recruiter|
|who is responsible for the administraton of DBS<br>applicatons. This role||||
|may be carried out by the Parish||||
|Safeguarding Ofcer.||||



## Training for Key Roles 

|Training for Key Roles||||
|---|---|---|---|
|||**Status**|**Notes**|
|||||
|**Parish Safeguarding Ofcer**<br> The PCC must ensure that the Parish Safeguarding<br>Ofcer undertakes the required safeguarding<br>training.||The Parish Safeguarding Ofcer has<br>completed the required safeguarding<br>training.||
|||||
|**Churchwardens**||||
|The PCC must ensure that all||Churchwardens have completed the||
|Churchwardens undertake the required||required safeguarding training.||
|safeguarding training.||||
|||||
|**Lead Recruiter**||||
|The PCC must ensure that Lead Recruiters<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.||Lead Recruiters have completed the<br>required safeguarding training.||
|||||
|**PCC Members**|||P.CC. Members have been|
|The PCC must ensure that all their members<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.||PCC members have completed the<br>required safeguarding training.|asked to confrm their training|



P a g e | **26** 



**Status** 

**Notes** 

## Displayed Information 

|**Safeguarding Policy Notce**<br> Each church building must display a notce about<br>its safeguarding policy.<br>A notce about our safeguarding<br>policy is being displayed in each<br>church building.<br>Change Photos|**Safeguarding Policy Notce**<br> Each church building must display a notce about<br>its safeguarding policy.<br>A notce about our safeguarding<br>policy is being displayed in each<br>church building.<br>Change Photos|
|---|---|
|||
|**Safeguarding Who's Who**<br> Each church building must display contact details<br>for people who have safeguarding roles.<br>Contact details are being displayed<br>in each church building.<br>Change Photos||
|||
|**Safeguarding Poster**<br> Each church building must display a 'Promotng a<br>Safer Church' poster.<br>A poster is being displayed in each<br>church building.||
|**Parish Website**<br> Safeguarding arrangements must be clearly<br>visible on the front page of a parish website (if<br>you have one).<br>Safeguarding arrangements are<br>clearly visible on the front page of<br>our parish website.<br>Add Diocesan Safeguarding Link||



## Reviews and Reports 

|Reviews and Reports|Reviews and Reports|
|---|---|
|**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|**PCC Agendas**<br>Safeguarding must be a standing agenda item at<br>every PCC meetng.<br>Safeguarding is a standing agenda<br>item at every PCC meetng.||
|**Reports to the PCC**<br>The Parish Safeguarding Ofcer must give regular<br>reports to the PCC regarding safeguarding in the<br>parish.<br>The PCC last received a safeguarding<br>report on 13/01/2026.||
|||
|**Reports to the APCM**<br> At the Annual Parochial Church Meetng, the PCC<br>must report on safeguarding in the parish.<br>The APCM received a safeguarding<br>report on 13/05/2025.||
|||
|**Review List of Church Actvites**<br> The PCC must confrm that the list of Church<br>Actvites on this dashboard is complete.<br>The PCC reviewed the list of Church<br>Actvites on 15/04/2026.||



P a g e | **27** 



## Church Activities 

**By approving this Action Plan,** the PCC confirms that the following list includes **every** church activity that involves teaching, training, instructing, caring for, supervising or transporting children (under 18) or vulnerable adults.  Any other church activity that is organised primarily for children or vulnerable adults is also listed. 

- **Adult Church Choir** 

- **Caring and Sharing** 

- **Junior Church** Church Sunday School 

- **Junior and Youth choirs** Children's choirs. 

- **Ladies' Fellowship** 

- **Messy Church** 

- **Seedling Drop in Cafe** 

Community inclusion of all ages. 

- **Summer Holiday Club** Holiday club put on in the Summer 

- **Very Chatty Cafe** Safe warm space initiative. 

- **Young Bellringers** Two boys training as Bell ringers 

- **Church Cleaning Squad** Church Cleaners 

The status of all actions associated with Church Activities are shown below. 

## Adult Church Choir 

|Adult Church Choir|Adult Church Choir|
|---|---|
|**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 27/03/2026.||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||
|||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 10/02/2026.||
|||
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>10/02/2026.||



P a g e | **28** 



|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.|
|---|---|
|||
|**Safeguarding Training**<br> The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.<br>Training was last reviewed on<br>06/03/2026.||
|**Support and Oversight**<br> The PCC must ensure that everyone who has<br>substantal contact with children, young people or<br>vulnerable adults has ongoing support and<br>oversight.<br>All leaders and helpers have<br>atended appropriate support and<br>oversight meetngs||



## Caring and Sharing 

|Caring and Sharing|Caring and Sharing|
|---|---|
|**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 18/03/2026.||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 11/03/2026.||
|||
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>11/03/2026.||
|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.||



P a g e | **29** 



**Safeguarding Training** Training was last reviewed on The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers 18/03/2026. undertake the required safeguarding training. **Support and Oversight** All leaders and helpers have The PCC must ensure that everyone who has attended appropriate support and substantial contact with children, young people or oversight meetings vulnerable adults has ongoing support and oversight. 

## Church Cleaning Squad 

|Church Cleaning Squad|Church Cleaning Squad|
|---|---|
|**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 17/03/2026.||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 13/04/2026.||
|||
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>14/04/2026.||
|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.||
|**Safeguarding Training**<br> The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.<br>Training was last reviewed on<br>14/04/2026.||



P a g e | **30** 



**Support and Oversight** All leaders and helpers have The PCC must ensure that everyone who has attended appropriate support and substantial contact with children, young people or oversight meetings vulnerable adults has ongoing support and oversight. 

## Junior Church 

|Junior Church|Junior Church|
|---|---|
|**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 10/02/2026.||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||
|||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 10/02/2026.||
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>10/02/2026.||
|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.||
|||
|**Safeguarding Training**<br> The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.<br>Training was last reviewed on<br>10/02/2026.||
|**Support and Oversight**<br> The PCC must ensure that everyone who has<br>substantal contact with children, young people or<br>vulnerable adults has ongoing support and<br>oversight.<br>All leaders and helpers have<br>atended appropriate support and<br>oversight meetngs||



P a g e | **31** 



## Junior and Youth choirs 

|Junior and Youth choirs||
|---|---|
|||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 01/09/2025.||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||
|||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 10/03/2026.||
|||
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>10/03/2026.||
|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.||
|||
|**Safeguarding Training**<br> The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.<br>Training was last reviewed on<br>10/03/2026.||
|||
|**Support and Oversight**<br> The PCC must ensure that everyone who has<br>substantal contact with children, young people or<br>vulnerable adults has ongoing support and<br>oversight.<br>All leaders and helpers have<br>atended appropriate support and<br>oversight meetngs||
|Ladies' Fellowship<br>**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||



P a g e | **32** 



|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>Acton is required.<br>Is being requested|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>Acton is required.<br>Is being requested|
|---|---|
|||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>Acton is required.||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Acton is required.||
|||
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>Acton is required.||
|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include<br>an appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>Acton is required.||
|**Safeguarding Training**<br> The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.<br>Acton is required.||
|**Support and Oversight**<br> The PCC must ensure that everyone who has<br>substantal contact with children, young people or<br>vulnerable adults has ongoing support and<br>oversight.<br>Acton is required.||
|Messy Church<br>**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 11/10/2025.||
|||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||



P a g e | **33** 



|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 07/10/2025.|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 07/10/2025.|
|---|---|
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>07/10/2025.||
|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.||
|||
|**Safeguarding Training**<br> The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.<br>Training was last reviewed on<br>07/10/2025.||
|||
|**Support and Oversight**<br> The PCC must ensure that everyone who has<br>substantal contact with children, young people or<br>vulnerable adults has ongoing support and<br>oversight.<br>All leaders and helpers have<br>atended appropriate support and<br>oversight meetngs||



## Seedling Drop in Cafe 

|Seedling Drop in Cafe|Seedling Drop in Cafe|
|---|---|
|**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 02/01/2026.||
|||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 14/04/2026.||



P a g e | **34** 



## **Support and Oversight** 

All leaders and helpers have The PCC must ensure that everyone who attended appropriate support and has substantial contact with children, young oversight meetings people or vulnerable adults has ongoing support and oversight. **DBS Checks** DBS checks were last reviewed on The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and 14/04/2026. helpers are DBS checked every three years. **Induction and Settling-In Period** This activity has an appropriate For roles that involve substantial contact with induction process and settling-in children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC period. must ensure that all new appointments include an appropriate induction process and settling in period. **Safeguarding Training** Training was last reviewed on The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers 14/04/2026. undertake the required safeguarding training. 

## Summer Holiday Club 

|Summer Holiday Club|Summer Holiday Club|
|---|---|
|**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 28/07/2025.||
|||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||
|||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br> Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 17/04/2026.||
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>17/04/2026.||



P a g e | **35** 



|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.|
|---|---|
|||
|**Safeguarding Training**<br> The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.<br>Training was last reviewed on<br>17/04/2026.||
|**Support and Oversight**<br> The PCC must ensure that everyone who has<br>substantal contact with children, young people or<br>vulnerable adults has ongoing support and<br>oversight.<br>All leaders and helpers have<br>atended appropriate support and<br>oversight meetngs||
|Very Chaty Cafe<br>**Status**<br>**Notes**||
|**PCC Authorisaton**<br> The PCC must authorise any church actvity<br>involving children, young people or vulnerable<br>adults.<br>The PCC has authorised this church<br>actvity.||
|**Risk Assessment**<br> The PCC must ensure that an 'actvity risk<br>assessment' is completed and reviewed regularly.<br>A risk assessment was last reviewed<br>on 13/02/2026.||
|**Insurance Cover**<br> The PCC must provide appropriate insurance<br>cover for this actvity.<br>This actvity is covered by our<br>standard church insurance policy.||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br>Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 14/04/2026.||
|||
|**DBS Checks**<br> The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>14/04/2026.||
|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br> For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.||



P a g e | **36** 



||||
|---|---|---|
|**Safeguarding Training**||Training was last reviewed on|
|The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers||14/04/2026.|
|undertake the required safeguarding training.|||
||||
|**Support and Oversight**<br> The PCC must ensure that everyone who has<br>substantal contact with children, young people or<br>vulnerable adults has ongoing support and||All leaders and helpers have<br>atended appropriate support and<br>oversight meetngs|
|oversight.|||



## Young Bellringers 

|**Status**<br>**Notes**|**Status**<br>**Notes**|
|---|---|
|||
|**Safer Recruitment**<br>Leaders and helpers must be appointed in<br>accordance with the Safer Recruitment and<br>People Management Code of Practce.<br>Safer Recruitment was last reviewed<br>on 14/04/2026.||
|**DBS Checks**<br>The PCC must ensure that all eligible leaders and<br>helpers are DBS checked every three years.<br>DBS checks were last reviewed on<br>20/03/2026.||
|**Inducton and Setling-In Period**<br>For roles that involve substantal contact with<br>children (under 18) or vulnerable adults, the PCC<br>must ensure that all new appointments include an<br>appropriate inducton process and setling in<br>period.<br>This actvity has an appropriate<br>inducton process and setling-in<br>period.||
|**Safeguarding Training**<br>The PCC must ensure that all leaders and helpers<br>undertake the required safeguarding training.<br>Training was last reviewed on<br>20/03/2026.||
|**Support and Oversight**<br>The PCC must ensure that everyone who has<br>substantal contact with children, young people or<br>vulnerable adults has ongoing support and<br>oversight.<br>All leaders and helpers have<br>atended appropriate support and<br>oversight meetngs||



_Rhian Cottrell and Sandie Boniface_ 

P a g e | **37** 



## Fabric and Maintenance Report 

In March the Diocese appointed Architect carried out the Quinquennial Inspection of the church and, although the paperwork was not received by the end of the year, the feedback given during the inspection was that the general condition of the church and the maintenance was good and no major work was required. Comment about the requirements for the render and paint finishes we need to consider for planned work to the stairwells was also given. 

Thorough the year the routine maintenance was carried out with activities such as gutter clearing, electrical testing, fire extinguisher servicing, boiler servicing and lightening conductor testing completed. As a result of the lightening conductor testing a new electrical surge arrestor was fitted to ensure the electrical system protection meets regulation. 

Work to preserve and improve the church and Belmont Centre was also undertaken. This included: 

_**Choir Vestry Window Refurbishment**_ – The removal and refurbishment of the crittall framed leaded light windows, replacement of the oak frame and windowsill and decoration. This work and the associated application to the DAC for special dispensation from the Chancellor was managed by our Major Projects Manager, Mr Paul Kennedy. 

_**Choir Vestry Walkway Roof**_ – During the Quinquennial Inspection the Architect recommended fitting some collars (also known as struts or ties) to the roof rafters of the walkway as some cracking due to the weight of the clay-tiled roof was noted. This is due to the roof slowly pushing the walls apart due to a lack of support in some areas. This work was undertaken in October. 

_**Belmont Centre Lighting**_ – The lights in the Foyer and the Cardale Hall were swapped to LED units as the old lighting units were starting to fail which presented the opportunity to upgrade to new energy efficient lighting. 

_**Church Carpet Replacement**_ – New carpet was fitted to the dias, the welcome area, the memorial area and the chapel area. Large matching loose carpet squares were also supplied to use under floral arrangements to minimise water damage on the new carpet. 

_**USB Sockets**_ – These were installed at two locations in the church (located on Emergency Lighting units) to provide power connection for video cameras to enable a planned project to install video streaming of services. 

_**South Entrance Ramp and Powered Door**_ – Thanks to the work of our Major Projects Manager, Mr Paul Kennedy, the faculty for the planned work to improve accessibility to the church was obtained. Mr Kennedy then also identified and appointed the contractors to complete the works. A suitable date was not available before the end of the year but everything was in place and the work to the entrance ramp was arranged for January 2026. 

_**Choir Vestry Walkway**_ – As part of the works noted above the need to repair the cracks in the Choir Vestry corridor walls and the redecoration of a three light window on the south side of the Choir Vestry porch was noted. This work will be progressed in 2026. 

P a g e | **38** 



_**South Churchyard Entrance Light**_ – During the year this light failed and it was found that the fittings had been removed. It is thought that local residents could have been impacted by the light and had taken action. On attempting to repair a possible cable fault was found. It is now proposed to fit a low-level light to illuminate the step and leave the hanging light in place as it was donated to the Church. This will be undertaken in 2026. 

_**Church Pointing and Sandstone Repairs**_ – The contract to provide three visits a year to attend to the stonework on the church was performed by Rother Stone whose owner has since retired. Mr Kennedy put a new proposal to the P.C.C. for approval for Thorogood Building and Roofing to provide 3 man days per year. This was agreed and the first day of pointing work was undertaken in October. 

_**Festival of Christmas Trees [FOCT] Cabling**_ – Following the Electrical Safety Testing of the cable runs prior to FOCT one of the long runs had to be replaced as it failed the testing. Additional cable and metal clad sockets have been purchased to enable other runs to be replaced in 2026. 

## **Health and Safety Report** 

- Health and Safety Policy is kept in the cupboard in the Sacristy. Also there is computer memory stick with all the word documents for this H & S document hanging on the Right Hand Hook in the cupboard. 

- The church Lightning Conductor was tested and passed in September 2025. Thank you to Paul Kennedy for organising this. This is carried out every year. 

- Fire Extinguisher annual maintenance continues to be carried out. 

- The cables and extension leads for FOCT were checked and problems were rectified in November 2025. The front upstairs south side cable assembly was replaced with new cable and metal boxes by Paul Kennedy. This was subsequently checked by Ian MacDonald. Ian McDonald then PAT tested all the cable assemblies for FOCT. My thanks to Paul Kennedy for his help on the preparatory work. 

- H & S for FOCT showed no major cause for concern during the event at the beginning of December 2025. 

- The Annual Christmas Tree Festival is monitored by volunteers within the church at strategic points. 

- We continue to do Risk Assessments for special events such as the Festival of Christmas Trees and other special events including the Palm Sunday walk from the centre of town and on Church Street. In April 2026 we had helpers wearing Hi-Vis jackets direct people across the Church Street at the Palm Sunday walk where the pavement stops. 

- We still need to do the light at the bottom of the long path from the municipal car park up through the graveyard to the church. 

_John Pontefract_ 

P a g e | **39** 



## Financial Review 

As the Trustees Report details 2025 has been another very successful year for the church family and its outreach into the local community with fantastic support for the various activities and events throughout the year. Financially the accounts show a deficit of £8,513 for the year but if we put aside the major projects expenditure, listed below, the day to day activities show a healthy surplus of £7,281. A very positive year thanks to the generosity of the church family, the efforts of the events and fund raising teams and the support of the local community. 

During 2025 the following major works, totalling £15,794, have been undertaken which are outside of our normal day to day expenditure: 

- Upgrade to LED lighting in the Belmont Centre - £6,392 

- Refurbishment and repairs to the Choir Vestry Window - £7,206 

- Initial works for the disabled ramp and door opener - £2,196 

During the later part of 2023 the PCC decided to allocate £100,000 of the proceeds of the sale of the former curates house to generate additional income for the unrestricted PCC funds. In 2025 this has generated £3,868 income. 

## **Incoming and outgoing resources** 

Total receipts on general unrestricted funds, which are detailed in the Financial Statements, were £161,741. This is £9,715 more than 2024, as a result of a very successful Festival of Christmas Trees, a legacy and increased Belmont Centre hire income. 

Our biggest source of income, the regular giving from the church congregation, was slightly down on 2024. The 2025 total (via bank deposits, weekly envelopes and cash collections) was £57,246 down from £61,676 in 2024. The number of regular givers at the end of 2025 was 89 a net increase of 3. The generosity of these regular givers, a total of £48,277 excluding cash collections, means that the average amount per giver per month is just over £45. This is a return to the 2023 value which is £2 less than 2024. 

Thanks to the efforts of our fund raising teams and their supporters, organising the Festival of Christmas Trees, the Christmas Fair, Jumble Sales, Spring Fair and many other smaller events throughout the year, a fantastic £25,476 of profit was generated in 2025, a slight increase over 2024. A wonderful reflection of their hard work and also the support that Holy Cross Church has within the congregation and the local community in the increasingly challenging economic situation facing everyone. 

Receipts from hiring fees for the Belmont Centre and Church were up just over 10% on 2024 at £31,717, resulting from a slight price increase and more hires. Expenditure for The Belmont 

P a g e | **40** 



Centre during 2025 was £24,169 which is higher than 2024 mainly due to the replacement lighting project at £6,392. This gave a surplus of £7,548 for church funds. 

## **Sharing the ministry costs of the Diocese of Chichester** 

The largest expenditure of the P.C.C. was the sum of £70,000 paid to the Diocese to cover ministry costs. The parish contribution in 2025 was used towards the stipend, pension and housing costs of the clergy, and a standard sum for diocesan costs, clergy training and a contribution to national church funds. For 2025 we agreed to support the Diocese with the same amount as 2024 to help return our accounts to a surplus position with a planned increase in the 2026 budget approved by the P.C.C. 

## **Staf costs** 

Since April 2016 a part-time Parish Administrator has been employed to run the Parish Office. From 2020 the Director of Music and Assistant Director of Music (currently vacant) payments are recorded as salary having previously been recorded as upkeep of services. This is following guidance that these roles do not have the autonomy required to be classed as self-employed. During 2025, our staff did not meet the HMRC thresholds for tax purposes or for the pension auto-enrolment scheme. From 1 Jan 2025 a 3% salary increase was applied to the Director of Music and the Administrator and in the period January 2025 to June 2025 honoraria totalling £863 was paid to a Pastoral Assistant, making the staff costs for 2025 £17,502, £598 more than 2024. 

## **Missionary and Charitable giving** 

For 2025 the Giving sub-committee had been allocated £2,300 of missionary and charitable giving but by the close of the year the recipients had not been agreed so the funds have been accrued. 

## **Funds** 

During 2025 a review of the Restricted funds was undertaken to remove any Designated funds from the Restricted balance. Designated funds are ones where the P.C.C. has the authority to change the use of the fund and there is no donor instruction as to the use of the funds. 

The result of this review has been £109,519 re-assigned to the Un-restricted balance. This is to ensure our reporting of the funds is in accordance with the reporting requirements. 

## **Fixed Assets** 

The Belmont Centre remains at the previous valuation of £1,370,000. 

## **Reserves Policy** 

During 2025 the minimum balance on the general unrestricted funds (excluding property) remained at approximately 6 months of unrestricted payments. The financial situation and unrestricted reserves held at the end of 2025 have been reviewed and, with the 2026 budget 

P a g e | **41** 



approved by the P.C.C., show that the Uckfield Parochial Church Council is expected to continue as a going concern for the 2026 financial year. 

It is P.C.C. policy to retain any funds not required for day to day transactions on deposit at the bank. During 2023 a 95 day notice account was opened to take advantage of higher interest rates to hold around 90% of the funds on deposit. 

## **Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others** 

The P.C.C. acts as a custodian trustee for the assets of the Edward Holmes Baldock Charity which was established in 1845 for the benefit of poor persons in the parish. Its sole asset is 36.38 income units invested in the COIF Charities Investment Fund. 

As at 31 August 2025, its latest valuation date, the value of the investment was valued at £700.98 a decrease from 2024 which was £741.73. The income in its financial year was £21 which is topped up by the P.C.C. and distributed to suitable recipients. The charity is administered by the P.C.C. with the Churchwardens acting as trustees of the charity and is segregated from the assets of the P.C.C.. 

There have been no movement of funds during 2025 so the funds held remain at £429. 

A sum of £250 is held as a deposit for the long term rental of part of The Belmont Centre by the Spire Pre-school. At the end of 2025 the Spire Pre-school closed and gave notice to the P.C.C. so this deposit will be returned during the next financial year. 

P a g e | **42** 



## Statement of Financial Activities 

The financial effect of our activities during the year can be summarised as follows: 

||**Unrestricted**<br>**Fund**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**|**Total Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total Funds_<br>_2024_<br>**_Notes_**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Income and endowments from:**<br>Donatons and legacies<br>Charitable actvites<br>Other trading actvites<br>Investments<br>Other receipts|**£**<br>108,578<br>7,969<br>38,242<br>3,868<br>3,084||**£**<br>5,231<br>-<br>-<br>4,323<br>-||**£**<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**113,809**<br>**7,969**<br>**38,242**<br>**8,191**<br>**3,084**|_£_<br>_115,940_<br>_5,608_<br>_33,148_<br>_9,632_<br>_13,777_|
|**Total income**|**161,741**||**9,554**||**-**|**171,295**|_178,106_<br>_2_|
|**Expenditure on:**<br>Raising funds<br>Charitable actvites<br>Other trading actvites<br>Other expenditure|7,633<br>141,021<br>24,654<br>-||-<br>5,281<br>-<br>1,220||-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**7,633**<br>**146,302**<br>**24,654**<br>**1,220**|_6,643_<br>_140,350_<br>_16,006_<br>_1,199_|
|**Total expenditure**|**173,308**||**6,501**||**-**|**179,809**|_164,198_<br>_3_|
|Net gains (or losses) on investments|**-**||**-**||**-**|**-**|_-_|
|**Net income or (net expenditure)**|**(11,567)**||**3,053**||**-**|**(8,513)**|_13,908_|
|**Transfers between funds**<br>**Other recognised gains/(losses):**<br>Gains/(losses) on revaluaton of<br>fxed assets<br>Other gains/(losses)<br>_Reconciliaton of funds:_|**109,551**|**(109,551)**|||**-**|**-**|_-_<br>_10_|
||97,984<br>-<br>-|(106,498)<br>-<br>-|||-<br>-<br>-|(8,513)<br>**-**<br>**-**|_13,908_<br>_-_<br>_11_<br>_-_|
|**Net movement in funds**|**97,984**|**(106,498)**|||**-**|**(8,514)**|_13,908_|
|Total funds brought forward<br>Correcton (see Note 18)|1,419,298<br>(4,529)|228,492<br>4,529|||-|**1,647,790**<br>**-**|_1,633,882_<br>|
|**Total funds carried forward**|**1,512,753**|**126,523**|||**-**|**1,639,276**|_1,647,790_|



P a g e | **43** 



## Balance Sheet 

Our financial position and summary of funds at the year end were 

||**Total Funds**|_Total Funds_||
|---|---|---|---|
||**2025**|_2024_|**_Notes_**|
||**£**|_£_||
|Intangible assets|**-**|_-_||
|Tangible assets|**1,370,000**|_1,370,000_|_12_|
|Heritage assets|**-**|_-_||
|Endowed investments|**-**|_-_|_11_|
|||||
|**Total fxed assets**|**1,370,000**|_1,370,000_||
|||||
|Stocks|**-**|_-_||
|Debtors|**11,269**|_4,374_|_14_|
|Investments|**-**|_-_||
|Cash at bank and in hand|**264,633**|_281,300_||
|||||
|**Total current assets**|**275,902**|_285,674_||
|||||
|Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year|(6,626)|_(7,884)_|_15_|
|||||
|||||
|**Net current assets or (liabilites)**|**269,276**|_277,790_||
|||||
|**Total assets less current liabilites**|**1,639,276**|_1,647,790_||
|Creditors: Amounts falling due afer more than one year|**-**|_-_|_16_|
|Provisions for liabilites|**-**|_-_||
|||||
|**Total net assets or (liabilites)**|**1,639,276**|_1,647,790_||
|||||
|**The funds of the charity:**||||
|||||
|Restricted income funds|**126,523**|_228,492_|18|
|Unrestricted funds|**1,512,753**|_1,419,298_||
|Revaluaton reserve|**-**|_-_||
|**Total unrestricted funds**|**1,512,753**|_1,419,298_||
|||||
|**Total charity funds**|**1,639,276**|_1,647,790_|13|



This Financial Report for the year ended 31st December 2025, including the notes following, was approved by the P.C.C. and signed on its behalf by The Revd. Canon John Wall, P.C.C. Chairman: 

……………………………………….……………………….. 

Date ………….…27[th] April 2026…………………… 

P a g e | **44** 



## Notes to the Financial Report 

## **1 Accounting policies** 

## **Basis of preparation** 

The P.C.C. is a public benefit entity within the meaning of FRS102. The financial statements have been prepared under the Charities Act 2011 and the Church Accounting Regulations 2006, in accordance with applicable accounting standards and the current Statement of Recommended Practice, Accounting and Reporting by Charities, (SORP (FRS 102)). 

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention as modified by the inclusion of investments at market value and the revaluation of fixed assets. The financial statements include all transactions, assets and liabilities for which the P.C.C. is responsible in law.  They do not include the accounts of church groups that owe their affiliation to another body, nor those which are informal gatherings of church members 

## **Funds accounting** 

Funds held by the P.C.C. are: 

_Unrestricted funds_ - general funds which can be used for P.C.C. ordinary purposes 

_Restricted funds_ - a) income from trusts or endowments which may be expended only on those restricted objects provided in the terms of the trust or bequest; b) donations or grants received for a specific object or invited by the P.C.C. for a specific object.  The funds may only be expended on the specific object for which they were given.  Any balance remaining unspent at the end of the year is carried forward as a balance on that fund 

## **Income and endowments** 

All income and endowments, accounted for without deduction for any costs of receivability, are recognised when there is evidence of entitlement, receipt is probable, and the amount can be measured reliably 

## **Donations and legacies** 

_Collections_ are recognised when received. 

_Planned giving receivable_ is recognised when there is evidence of entitlement, receipt is probable, and the amount accords with the Gift Aid declaration or other record of intention to donate 

_Gift aid recovered_ is recognised when the income to which it is attached is recognised 

_Grants and legacies_ are recognised when the formal offer in writing of the funding, is received by the P.C.C. 

## **Charitable activities** 

## **Other trading activities** 

Trading activities are where income is receivable in return for selling goods or providing services.  Income from trading is recognised either: a - when received, or b - in the case of concerts: for the year in which the event occurs, irrespective of date of receipt. Advance bookings are included in creditors until the concert has taken place 

Sales of magazines are recognised when received 

Rents from property are recognised in accordance with the rental agreements, when receipt is probable 

## **Investment income** 

Dividends are accounted for when due and payable. Interest entitlements are accounted for as they accrue 

P a g e | **45** 



_Notes to the Financial Report_ 

## **All other income** 

All other income is recognised in accordance with the above overall policy 

## **Gains and losses on investments** 

Realised gains are recognised when the investments are sold 

Unrealised gains and losses are accounted for on revaluation at 31 December 

## **Expenditure** 

Expenditure is recognised when there is evidence of entitlement, payment is probable, and the amount can be measured reliably 

## **Grants** 

Grants and donations are accounted for when paid over, or when awarded where the award creates a binding obligation on the P.C.C. 

## **Church activities** 

The diocesan parish contribution is accounted for on an annual basis, reflecting the allocation set by our Deanery.  Any parish contribution unpaid at 31 December is provided for in these accounts as an operational (though not a legal) liability and is shown as a creditor in the balance sheet 

## **Fixed assets** 

## 

Consecrated and beneficed property of any kind is excluded from the accounts by s.10(2) of the Charities Act 2011. 

Movable church furnishing held by the Vicar and Churchwardens on special trust for the P.C.C. and which require a faculty for disposal, are accounted as inalienable property unless consecrated.  They are listed in the church's inventory which can be inspected but are not included in the financial statements 

All expenditure on consecrated or beneficed buildings and individual items costing under £1,000 are written off in the year they were incurred 

## _Depreciation_ 

Depreciation is calculated to write down the cost of tangible fixed assets, excluding freehold properties, over their expected useful lives.  The rates generally applicable are: 

|Fixtures and ftngs|20%|
|---|---|
|Audiovisual equipment|33%|
|Ofce equipment|25%|



No depreciation is provided on freehold buildings as the useful economic life of these assets exceeds 50 years and residual values so high that potential depreciation would be immaterial.  It is the P.C.C.'s policy to maintain these assets in a continual state of sound repair.  Resulting from regular impairment reviews, provision will be made if there has been any permanent diminution in value 

## **Investments** 

Investments are stated at market value at the balance sheet date 

## **Current Assets** 

Amounts owing to the P.C.C. at 31 December in respect of fees, rents or other income are shown a debtors, less provision for amounts that may prove uncollectible 

Short-term deposits include cash held on deposit either with the CBF Church of England Funds, or at the bank 

P a g e | **46** 



_Notes to the Financial Report_ 

## **2 Analysis of income and endowments** 

||**Unrestricted**<br>**Fund**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**|**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Planned giving (via standing order)<br>Planned giving (via weekly envelopes)<br>Loose cash collectons<br>Christmas Tree Festval<br>Other Fund Raising Actvites<br>Other donatons<br>Gif Aid recoverable<br>Legacies<br>Grants|£<br>48,040<br>237<br>11,159<br>18,793<br>9,517<br>3,084<br>12,248<br>5,500<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>38<br>-<br>-<br>5,193<br>-<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**48,040**<br>**237**<br>**11,197**<br>**18,793**<br>**9,517**<br>**8,277**<br>**12,248**<br>**5,500**<br>**-**|_£_<br>49,211<br>960<br>11,505<br>17,345<br>10,391<br>13,025<br>12,503<br>_1,000_<br>_-_||
|**Donatons and legacies**|**£108,578**||**£5,231**||**-**|**£113,809**|_£115,940_||
|Fees for weddings & funerals - P.C.C.<br>Fees for weddings & funerals - Clergy<br>Fees for weddings & funerals - DBF<br>Fees for weddings & funerals - Other<br>Wedding|3,723<br>30<br>3,779<br>437||-||-|**3,723**<br>**30**<br>**3,779**<br>**437**|1,455<br>_664_<br>2,884<br>_605_<br>||
|**Charitable actvites**|**£7,969**||**-**||**-**|**£7,969**|£5,608||
|Big Day, Xmas Fair & Festval of<br>Christmas Trees<br>Other fund raising actvites<br>Parish magazine<br>Belmont Centre hiring fees|5731<br>-<br>225<br>32,286||-<br>-<br>-<br>-||-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**5,731**<br>**-**<br>**225**<br>**32,286**|<br>4,393<br>-<br>228<br>28,527<br>||
|**Other trading actvites**|**£38,242**||**-**||**-**|**£38,242**|£33,148||
|Bank deposit interest<br>Rent from letng of investment<br>property<br>Proceeds from Sale of Assets|3,868<br>-<br>-||4,323<br>-<br>-||-<br>-<br>-|**8,191**<br>**-**<br>**-**|<br>9,632<br>-<br>-<br>||
|**Investments**|**£3,868**||**£4,323**||**-**|**£8,191**|£9,632||
|Other receipts|3,084||-||-|**3,084**|<br>_13,777_<br>||
|**Total income and endowments on all**<br>**funds**|**£161,741**||**£9,554**||**-**|**£171,295**|£178,105||



P a g e | **47** 



_Notes to the Financial Report_ 

## **3 Analysis of expenditure** 

|**3 Analysis of expenditure**|||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Fund**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**||**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**||**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total_<br>_Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|Uckfeld Festval Big Day<br>Festval of Christmas Trees<br>Stewardship costs (printng etc)<br>Other fundraising (non-trading) costs|£<br>-<br>6,084<br>-<br>1,549||£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**-**<br>**6,084**<br>**-**<br>**1,549**|_£_<br>-<br>4,981<br>-<br>1,662<br>||
|**Cost of raising funds**|**£7,633**||**-**||**-**|**£7,633**|£6,643||
|Missionary and charitable giving<br>Ministry: Diocesan Parish Share<br>Ministry: Other Clergy costs<br>Staf: Admin<br>Upkeep of services<br>Church running costs<br>Junior Church and Clubs (e.g. Choir)<br>Church maintenance and repair<br>Piano / Organ maintenance and repair<br>Holy Cross School Support<br>Major Works<br>Miscellaneous<br>Bank charges<br>Messy Church/Holiday Club/Outreach<br>Fees - Paid to Clergy<br>Fees - Paid to DBF<br>Fees - Paid for Wedding Extras|2,116<br>70,000<br>8,652<br>17,502<br>4,006<br>16,464<br>-<br>12,980<br>482<br>-<br>-<br>3,255<br>771<br>1,042<br>109<br>3,172<br>470||-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>1,880<br>-<br>863<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>2,538<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-||-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**2,116**<br>**70,000**<br>**8,652**<br>**17,502**<br>**5,886**<br>**16,464**<br>**863**<br>**12,980**<br>**482**<br>**-**<br>**2,538**<br>**3,255**<br>**771**<br>**1,042**<br>**109**<br>**3,172**<br>**470**|<br>6,068<br>70,000<br>8,138<br>16,904<br>3,108<br>12,759<br>1,159<br>12,932<br>351<br>-<br>-<br>2,536<br>894<br>1,256<br>374<br>_3,125_<br>_745_<br>|_4_<br>_6_<br>_5_<br>_8_|
|**Cost of charitable actvites**|**£141,021**||**£5,281**||**-**|**£146,302**|£140,349||
|Uckfeld Festval Big Day<br>Festval of Christmas Trees<br>Other events<br>Belmont Centre running costs<br>Parish magazine costs<br>Other trading costs|-<br>932<br>-<br>23,722<br>-<br>-||-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-||-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**-**<br>**932**<br>**-**<br>**23,722**<br>**-**<br>**-**|<br>-<br>414<br>-<br>15,592<br>-<br>-<br>||
|**Cost of other trading actvites**|**£24,654**||**-**||**-**|**£24,654**|£16,006||
|Other Expenditure|-||1,220||-|**1,220**|1,199||
|**Total expended on all funds**|**£173,308**||**£6,501**||**-**|**£179,809**|£164,197||



P a g e | **48** 



_Notes to the Financial Report_ 

## **4 Missionary and charitable giving** 

||**Unrestricted**<br>**Fund**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**|**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total_<br>_Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Overseas:**<br>_Total_<br>**Home:**<br>_Total_|£<br>-<br>2,116||£<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**-**<br>**2,116**|_£_<br>_2,273_<br>_3,795_||
||**2,116**||**-**||**-**|**2,116**|_6,068_||



## 

|**5 Staf costs**|||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Fund**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**||**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**||**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total_<br>_Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|**Remuneraton**<br>_Wages and salaries_|£<br>17,502||£<br>-||£<br>-|**£**<br>**17,502**|_£_<br>_16,904_||
||**17,502**||**-**||**-**|**17,502**|_16,904_||



## **6  Payments to P.C.C. members** 

## **Trustee payments and expenses** 

The P.C.C. support the Rector, Chair of the P.C.C., by paying Council Tax of £4,456, water and environmental charges amounting to £1,167 for the Rectory, plus other costs towards travel, hospitality, telephone, internet and postage totalling £2,395 in 2025. 

## **7  Transactions with persons related to P.C.C. members** 

Since the appointment of a new Treasurer in June 2019, all payments to the Parish Administrator are connected to the trustees as the Treasurer is married to the Parish Administrator. P.C.C. procedures are in place to ensure at least two others are aware of expenditure, other than regular commitments and pre-agreed works, before payment is made. Financial reporting to the P.C.C. and the P.C.C. Standing Committee contains financial detail to ensure transparency. No other payments have been made to persons related to or connected to the trustees. 

## **8   Transactions with related charities** 

Since the closure of the Holy Cross Church of England Primary School on 31[st] December 2023 there are no transactions with related charities. 

P a g e | **49** 



_Notes to the Financial Report_ 

## **9   Governance** 

|**9   Governance**||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**||**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**||**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**||**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2024**|_Total_<br>_Funds_<br>_2023_|**_Notes_**|
|_Accounts producton_||£<br>-||£<br>-||£<br>-|**£**<br>**-**|_£_<br>_-_||
|||**-**||**-**||**-**|**-**|_-_||



## **10  Transfers between funds** 

|**10  Transfers between funds**||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**||**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total_<br>_Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|_Re- allocaton to separate Restricted and_<br>_Designated Funds_|£<br>109,551|£<br>(109,551)||£<br>-|**£**<br>**-**|_£_<br>_-_||
||**109,551**|**(109,551)**||**-**|**-**|_-_||



## **11 Fixed assets** 

## **a  Investments** 

|**a  Investments**||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Fund**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**||**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**||**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|**_Notes_**|
|Market value 1 January 2024<br>Disposals at carrying value<br>Purchases at cost<br>Net gains and revaluaton|£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**||
|**Market value 31 December 2025**|**-**||**-**||**-**|**-**||



P a g e | **50** 



_Notes to the Financial Report_ 

## **12 Fixed assets** 

## 

|**Tangible fxed assets**||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||**Freehold**<br>**land**<br>**and**<br>**buildings**|**Audio visual**<br>**equipment**||**Ofce**<br>**equipment**|**Total fxed**<br>**assets**|**_Notes_**|
|**Cost or valuaton**<br>At 31 December 2024<br>Additons<br>Disposals<br>Revaluaton|£<br>1,370,000<br>-<br>-<br>-|||£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br> <br>**1,370,000**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**||
|At 31 December 2025|**1,370,000**|||**-**|**-**|**1,370,000**||
|**Charge for impairment**<br>At 31 December 2024|-|||-|-|<br>**-**||
|At 31 December 2025|**-**|||**-**|**-**|**-**||
|**Net book amounts**<br>**At 31 December 2025**|**1,370,000**|||**-**|**-**|<br>**1,370,000**||
|_At 31 December 2024_|_1,370,000_|||_-_|_-_|_1,370,000_||



The freehold land and buildings comprise the Belmont Centre, Belmont Road.  The Belmont Centre remains valued at £1,370,000 as at 31 Dec 2025. 

## **13 Net assets by fund** 

|**13 Net assets by fund**||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**||**Total Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|Fixed assets for church use<br>Current assets (except cash)<br>Cash at bank and on deposit<br>Current liabilites<br>Long term liabilites|£<br>1,370,000<br>11,270<br>138,110<br>(6,626)<br>-|£<br>-<br>-<br>126,523<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**1,370,000**<br>**11,270**<br>**264,633**<br>**(6,626)**<br>**-**|_£_<br>_1,370,00_<br>_4,374_<br>_281,300_<br>_(7,884)_<br>_-_||
||**£1,512,753**|**£126,523**||**£-**|**£1,639,276**|_£1,647,790_||



P a g e | **51** 



_Notes to the Financial Report_ 

## **14 Debtors** 

|**14 Debtors**||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**||**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**||**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**||**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total_<br>_Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|Income tax recoverable<br>Prepayments and accrued income<br>Other debtors||£<br>4,535<br>6,735<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**4,535**<br>**6,735**<br>**-**|_£_<br>_2,624_<br>_1,750_<br>_-_||
||**£11,270**|||**-**||**-**|**£11,270**|_£4,374_||



## **15 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year** 

||**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**|**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Restricted**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowed**<br>**Fund/s**|**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total_<br>_Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Deferred income<br>Accruals for utlites and other costs<br>Other creditors||£<br>-<br>5,947<br>679||£<br>-<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**-**<br>**5,947**<br>**679**|_£_<br>_-_<br>_7,204_<br>_680_||
||**£6,626**|||**-**||**-**|**£6,626**|_£7,884_||



## **16 Creditors: amounts falling due after one year** 

||**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**|**Unrestricted**<br>**Funds**|**Restricte**<br>**d**<br>**Fund/s**|**Restricte**<br>**d**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowe**<br>**d**<br>**Fund/s**|**Endowe**<br>**d**<br>**Fund/s**|**Total**<br>**Funds**<br>**2025**|_Total_<br>_Funds_<br>_2024_|**_Notes_**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Deferred income<br>Accruals for utlites and other costs<br>Other creditors||£<br>-<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-||£<br>-<br>-<br>-|**£**<br>**-**<br>**-**<br>**-**|_£_<br>_-_<br>_-_<br>_-_||
|||**-**||**-**||**-**|**-**|_-_||



## **17  Statement of funds** 

## **Restricted Funds -** The purpose of the restricted funds are as follows: 

- _**Organ Repair Fund**_ – holds funds for repairing and maintaining the Church Organ. 

- _**Window Appeal Fund**_ – established in 2019 to raise funds to repair and maintain the church windows. 

- _**Childrens Work**_ – established during 2021 for funds specifically supporting the children’s activities and groups in Church. 

- _**Clergy Housing**_ 

- _**Flower Fund**_ – established in 2021 to maintain the funds relating to floral tributes in Church. 

- _**In Memory of D Youngman**_ – established in 2022 from a donation in memory of the Late Mr D Youngman. 

- _**Disabled Access**_ – established in 2024 to restrict funds donated for an access ramp and powered doors. 

- _**Hymn Books**_ – established in 2025 to provide replacement Hymn Books. 

P a g e | **52** 



_Notes to the Financial Report_ 

**Designated Funds –** Funds managed by the PCC are as follows: 

- _**Sunday Refreshment Fund**_ – holds the proceeds of contributions given at coffee after the 9.30am service. 

- _**Screen and AV Fund**_ – established in 2018 for provision of appropriate technology to support services. 

- _**Youth Club Fund**_ – holds funds for the Youth Club which has been reintroduced during 2023. 

- _**Ukraine Donations Fund**_ – established in 2022 to allow donations to support Ukrainian conflict victims. 

- _**Action Aid Fund**_ – holds first £234 of Cash Collections to cover monthly donation to a Guatemala child. 

- _**Children’s Society**_ – used in 2021 to restrict funds from collections not dispersed by the close of the year. 

- _**PCC Investment**_ – agreed in 2024 to allocate £100,000 of Clergy Housing to generate interest for PCC use. 

**Designated and Unrestricted funds** are not subject to any donor restrictions and can be spent as the P.C.C. decides. 

## **18 Summary of funds** 

Figures in the 2024 Finance Report relating to the interest received for the PCC Investment amount being recorded as Restricted funds have been updated to align with the underlying records to show the transfer to designated funds. Fund income and expenditure are as follows: 

||**Balances**<br>**b/fwd**<br>**1 Jan 2025**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers,**<br>**other gains**<br>**and losses**|**Balances**<br>**c/fwd**<br>**31 Dec 2025**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Restricted Funds**<br>Organ Repairs<br>Window Appeal Fund<br>Children’s Work<br>Clergy Housing<br>Flower Fund<br>In Mem. D Youngman<br>Disabled Access<br>Hymn Books<br>Transfer to Designated<br>Correcton (PCC Interest)|£<br>_11,908_<br>_1,605_<br>_3,713_<br>_89,454_<br>2,361<br>4,236<br>_10,193_<br>_-_<br>_109,551_<br>_(4,529)_<br>|£<br>1,265<br>-<br>844<br>-<br>1,242<br>-<br>-<br>1,880<br>-<br>-|£<br>-<br>-<br>862<br>-<br>1,220<br>-<br>2,538<br>1,880<br>-<br>-|£<br>441<br>56<br>130<br>3,148<br>83<br>149<br>315<br>-<br>(109,551)<br>4,529|**£**<br>_13,614_<br>_1,661_<br>_3,825_<br>_92,602_<br>_2,466_<br>_4,385_<br>_7,970_<br>_-_<br>_-_<br>_-_|
|**Total of all restricted**<br>**funds**|**_228,492_**|**5,231**|**(6,500)**|**(100,700)**|**_126,523_**|
|**Designated Funds**<br>Sunday Refreshments<br>Screen and AV<br>Youth Club<br>Ukraine Donatons<br>Acton Aid<br>Children’s Society<br>PCC Investment|£<br>_2,190_<br>_2,444_<br>_362_<br>_11_<br>-<br>15<br>_104,529_<br>|£<br>790<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>234<br>-<br>-|£<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>-<br>234<br>-<br>-|£<br>91<br>86<br>13<br>0<br>-<br>0<br>3,677|**£**<br>_3,071_<br>_2,530_<br>_375_<br>_11_<br>_-_<br>_15_<br>_108,206_|
|**Total of all designated**<br>**funds**|**_109,551_**|**1,024**|**(234)**|**3,867**|**_114,208_**|



P a g e | **53** 



## Independent Examiner’s Report 

## **for the Year Ended 31[st] December, 2025** 

This is my report to the Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish (P.C.C.) of the Church of the Holy December 2025 set out within this document. Cross, Uckfield, on the annual report for the year ended 31[st] 

**Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner** 

The P.C.C. members are responsible for the preparation of the annual reports. The P.C.C. members consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Charities Act”) and that an independent examination is needed. 

It is my responsibility to: 

1. examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act, 

2. to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act, and 

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

**Basis of independent examiner’s statement** 

My examination was carried out in accordance with 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 the 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 (other than that disclosed below in Section B *) 

1. which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements: 

      - a. to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; and 

   - b. to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Act 

   - have not been met; or 

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

- _Please delete the words in the (brackets) if they do not apply_ 

## **Examiner’s signature** 

**Examiner’s name** _CAPITALS_ 

**Date** 

**Relevant professional qualification(s) or body** _if any_ **Examiner’s address** 


## BRIAN DAVID JACOBS 

28[th] April 2026 

Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales 

12 Silverdale Keymer Hassocks, BN6 8RD 

P a g e | **54** 



## **Section B                                 Disclosure** 

**Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material problems** _for example:_ 

- accounting records have not been kept in accordance with s132 of the Charities’ Act 2011 and those accounts do not comply with the requirements of the 2008 Regulations setting out the form and content of charity accounts; 

- • any material expenditure or action which appears not to be in accordance with the trusts of the charity; 

- any failure to be provided with information and explanations by any past or present trustee, officer or employee; and 

- any material inconsistency between the accounts and the trustees’ annual report. 

**Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose** 

55