2022-12-31-accounts - The Parochial Church Council Of The Ecclesiastical Parish Of The Ascension, Hanger Hill With West Twyford, St Mary

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Parish of the Ascension Hanger Hill with West Twyford St Mary

Annual report of the Parochial Church Council for the year ended 31st December 2022

1 Reference and Administrative Information

The Parish of the Ascension Hanger Hill with West Twyford St Mary is situated in the northern part of the London Borough of Ealing and is part of the Willesden Area of the Diocese of London within the Church of England.

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) was registered with the Charity Commission on 5[th] October 2010. The Charity name is The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of the Ascension, Hanger Hill with West Twyford, St Mary. The Charity number is 1138274.

The PCC’s correspondence address is: The Ascension Vicarage, Beaufort Road, London, W5 3EB

The PCC’s bankers are:

Co-operative Bank plc, PO Box 250, Skelmersdale, WN8 6WT

The PCC’s solicitors are:

Prince Evans Solicitors LLP, Craven House, 40-44 Uxbridge Road, W5 2BS

The PCC’s independent examiner is:

Data Developments,Creative Industries Centre, Wolverhampton Science Park, Glaisher Drive Wolverhampton WV10 9TG

The PCC members who served during the period covered by this report are:

Vicar: The Revd Simon Reed (PCC Chair) Minister at St Mary’s: The Revd Pete Harris (PCC Vice Chair) Pastoral Assistants: Mrs Elizabeth (Liz) Williams (PCC Secretary) Ms Rachel White Churchwarden: Mr Colin McKenzie (to 03/04/22) Deputy wardens: Mrs Rosy Sookias (A) Mr Arby Ghazarian (M) Deanery Synod Representatives: Mr Kester Worme Elected members: Mr Ben Atuobi (to 03/04/22) Mrs Denise Avanessian, Ms Annlinda Buckingham (to 19/09/22), Ms Philippa Bird (from 03/04/22), Mr Amir Zarifnia (to 03/04/22)

2 Structure, Governance and Management

The PCC is a corporate body established by the Church of England and operates under the Parochial Church Council (Powers) Measure 1956. The method of appointing PCC members is as set out in the Church Representation Rules and in the Parish Scheme as approved by the Bishop’s Council on 29[th] October 2002 and subsequently amended on 2[nd] October 2006. All members of the congregation are encouraged to apply for membership of the Electoral Roll and stand for election to the PCC.

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In addition to ad hoc working parties, there are three subordinate bodies which report to the PCC, namely:

1) the Standing Committee which is empowered by the PCC to transact business between Council meetings and which, for the period covered by this report, comprised the Vicar, Minister at St Mary’s, Church Wardens, Deputy Church Wardens, PCC secretary and the Parish Treasurer.

2) the Church of the Ascension District Church Council to which the PCC delegates the day to day management of the Church of the Ascension part of the parish and which comprises some PCC members and some directly elected members according to the requirements of the Parish Scheme. For the period of this report this comprised the Vicar, the Minister at St Mary’s, the Pastoral Assistants, the Church Warden, the Ascension Deputy Church Warden , the Parish Treasurer, Ascension elected PCC members and the following elected members: Mrs Iyabo Adeola, Mrs Stella Bell(from 03/04/22) Mr Lee Dewsnap, Mrs Susan Lawes (to 03/04/22, then co-opted from 12/05/22), Dr Lucy Pavesi.

3) the St Mary’s District Church Council to which the PCC delegates the day to day management of the St Mary’s part of the parish and which comprises some PCC members and some directly elected members according to the requirements of the Parish Scheme. For the period of this report this comprised the Vicar, the Minister at St Mary’s, the Pastoral Assistants, the Church Warden, St Mary’s Deputy Church Warden, the Parish Treasurer, St Mary’s elected PCC members and the following elected members: Mr Kester Worme.

3 Objectives and Activities

The PCC (the Trustees) confirm that they have referred to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit when reviewing the charity’s aims and objectives, in planning future activities, and setting the grant making policy for the year.

The PCC has the responsibility of co-operating with the Incumbent, the Revd Simon Reed, in the promotion of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the doctrines and practices of the Church of England and in promoting within the parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelical, social, and ecumenical.

The PCC also has responsibility for the financial affairs of the parish and for supporting the District Church Councils as they strive to achieve the ideals embraced by their respective vision statements:

The Church of the Ascension – “To create community and grow community” St Mary’s West Twyford - “To be a church growing closer to God, each other, and our community.”

4 Achievements and Performance

The PCC met six times during 2022 with an average attendance of 66%. The two District Church Councils each met on six occasions. The Ascension DCC had an average attendance of 64% participating members (one ex officio St Mary’s member did not attend and is not included in the statistics). The St Mary’s DCC had an average attendance of 66% (the one ex officio Ascension member did not attend and is not included in the statistics). The deliberations of both DCCs were reported to the full PCC and discussed where necessary.

In addition to routine business and receiving reports from subordinate committees, the PCC or Standing Committee considered the following matters in particular:

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Parish budget and Common Fund contributions
Parish external mission giving
Repayment of the St Mary’s Restoration Project loan
Bank account switch
Setting up of Finance Committee
Appointment of an adviser on energy efficiency
Appointment of Hall Bookings manager
Annual Safeguarding update and PCC training
Parish Mission Strategy Group
Ascension & St Mary’s Mission Action Plans
Review of Parish policies

In addition to routine business, the Ascension DCC considered the following matters in particular:

Mission Action Plan update Inc. Alpha
Social events
Installation of bike racks
Church heating system
Hall kitchen upgrade
Church and Hall maintenance, including Quinquennial works

In addition to routine business, St Mary’s DCC considered the following matters in particular:

Mission Action Plan inc. Alpha
The Open Door
Montessori School proposal
Energy consultant report
Future direction for St Mary’s
Social events
Boundary fence with 46 Brentmead Gardens
Twyford Abbey development
Church and Community Hall maintenance, inc. Quinquennial works

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At the time of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting on 23 April 2023, the Electoral Roll stood at 96 with 69 members belonging to the Church of the Ascension and 27 to St Mary’s. The figures for 2022 were 97, 69 and 28 respectively.

5 Report on the Activities of the Parish Generally in 2022

Sunday service attendance figures still cannot be directly compared with previous years due to the impact of lockdowns and the introduction of online worship and hybrid services. In 2022 there was a total average Sunday morning attendance at the Ascension of 34 people (20 adults, 4 u16s, 6 online). At St Mary’s the average was 19 people (14 adults, 5 u16s; plus two joined the Ascension online service. The online evening service, The Sunday Word, had an average attendance of 7 people.

2022 was the first time since 2019 that we had a full year without lockdowns, although Covid still caused disruptions, particularly at Easter. Across the world there has been a widespread and understandable desire to return to the pre-pandemic normal, but it is increasingly apparent that in the church, and probably other contexts, things will not be the same. The situation we saw emerging at the end of 2021 was confirmed in 2022: reduced church membership and attendance, fewer volunteers, and (less openly discussed) high levels of ongoing fatigue among clergy and other leaders. Looking back over the year, it took a great deal of energy just to maintain what we were doing. Nearly all of our leadership team, Pete, Liz, Rae and myself, supported by Rosy, Arby and Colin, saw increased demands, for various reasons, on our own time and energy.

Despite the difficult context, the year was not without positives. Despite sometimes large weekly fluctuations, attendance at both churches has held steady, and although there have been some departures, we have significantly also seen new members at both the Ascension and St Mary’s. One important feature of this year has been a focused effort to think more strategically about mission and evangelism. Assisted by a Deanery Mission grant we have been able to carry out commercial mail drops for the St Mary’s Barbecue, the autumn Alpha, and the parish Christmas services. This has brought new people to our events and services. We only need small regular gains to grow. We ran face-to-face Alpha for the first time in at least five years but a lack of guests meant it did not take off, and it seems likely that it is now less effective as means of outreach than it once was. Much contemporary mission is focused around community initiatives and we also spent time carefully planning for the launch of the Open Door Café offering food and clothing support, initiated and led by Rae. We were also able to engage with our neighbourhoods through an Ascension Spring event in Audley Road, and the St Mary’s Barbecue.

Autumn was over-shadowed by the need to replace the Ascension Church boiler which failed in the summer, and whose working life we were not successful in extending. Philippa Bird brought her planning expertise to the task of organising a replacement, for which we were all grateful. Worshipping in the hall and in a church with temporary heating was a stretching challenge but we got through it.

The heating crisis was helped by the fact that the Eco team had already begun considering improvements to our heating. Philippa reports as follows: “During 2022 the Parish Eco team has consolidated its activities. After receipt of the Eco Church Bronze Award we have started to work towards the Silver level and are further reviewing the performance of the parish in eco terms. As part of that a major report covering all buildings in the parish was commissioned from Ray Gooder of Gooder Technical Services Ltd which advised on a range of strategies to make our premises more energy efficient, less carbon hungry and requiring lower energy bills. This has stood the Ascension in good stead when seeking a replacement boiler. Meanwhile monthly articles have been published in the Parish Magazine and the nature area has continued to develop at the Ascension with a first family of blue tits making one of our nest boxes their home!”

Given the challenging circumstances in which we, like most churches, find ourselves, it is not an insignificant achievement not only to be offering regular Sunday worship with a solid core of worshippers, but also to be reaching out in mission and service to our community, with a desire to do more. We thank God for that, and for all who make it possible.

Revd Simon Reed (Vicar of the Parish)

6 Financial Review

In 2020 we outsourced our bookkeeping to Kevin Ogilvie of Charity Bookkeeping and Examination Services, and in the process changed our accounting systems and made some small amendments to the way income and expenditure is reported. This arrangement continued in 2022.

In November 2022 we switched our bank account from HSBC to Co-operative Bank. The main reason for this was the charges that HSBC had begun to levy for operating the account.

As with most churches our income and expenditure were affected by the Coronavirus pandemic, but there was a good recovery in 2022. Income from lettings of both churches and halls nearly doubled compared to 2021, and is now close to pre-pandemic levels.

Membership of the Planned Giving Scheme was 52 at 31st December 2022, with 37 members belonging to the Church of the Ascension and 15 to St Mary’s. The figures for 2021 were 52, 35 and 17 respectively. During the year, more parishioners joined the Parish Giving scheme, to give a total of 20, all but two from the Ascension, and a total income for the year of £19612 before tax recovery. Other planned giving income was £17251 for the Ascension, and £13096 for St Mary’s, so overall planned giving was around 30% higher than in 2021. In addition, we were very grateful to receive a substantial anonymous donation of £31000, which was added to the Legacy Fund for major expenditure.

It has been the practice in previous years for the Parish to pay less than one twelfth of its Common Fund each month, with a balancing top-up at the end of the year. This year, the total given was £36,000 (2021: £50,000), so there was no end of year top-up. This is still much less than we were paying before the pandemic.

At the end of the year, the amount outstanding on our loan from the diocese was £13674, a reduction of £11689 from the previous year. The legacy fund stood at £108,177.

I am pleased to report, that excluding the large donation, parish income exceeded expenditure by about £16,000, but this is mainly due to the reduced Common Fund contribution.

Colin McKenzie (Treasurer)

7 Reserves Policy

It is PCC policy that the value of unrestricted funds should not exceed the value of approximately six months’ unrestricted payments. The balances at 31[st] December 2022 comply with this policy.

It is PCC policy to invest funds not immediately required with the Church of England Central Board of Finance.

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Revd Simon Reed: _____
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Independent Examiner’s report

Accounts for the year ended 31[st] December 2022 Respective responsibilities of the Trustees and the examiner

The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts and they consider that an audit is not required for the year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed. It is my responsibility to:

Examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act

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

to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of the Independent Examiner’s statement

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with these records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required for 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 material matter has come to my attention which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:

Accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act, or the accounts do not accord with the accounting records

I have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Date: 19[th] April 2023

Signed:

Stephen Hendy

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Statement of Financial Activities

UnrestrictedDesignatedRestrictedEndowment TotalPrior year funds funds funds funds fundstotal funds	UnrestrictedDesignatedRestrictedEndowment TotalPrior year funds funds funds funds fundstotal funds
Income and endowments from:
Giving
CoA	40,858 31,000 250 — 72,108 29,730
St M	11,485 — — — 11,485 15,813
Parish	5,298 — 460 — 5,758 33,604
Tax Recovery
CoA	3,446 — — — 3,446 6,717
St M	2,619 — — — 2,619 3,388
Church Halls
CoA	38,352 — — — 38,352 22,541
St M	6,037 — — — 6,037 3,038
Other income	— — — — — 344
CoA	6,098 — — — 6,098 2,187
St M	6,940 — — — 6,940 2,375
Parish	5,728 900 — — 6,628 3,597
Total income	126,861 31,900 710 — 159,471 123,333

Expenditure on:
Churches	591 — — — 591 —
CoA	14,193 — — — 14,193 10,790
St M	20,463 — — — 20,463 16,409
Church Halls
CoA	14,891 — — — 14,891 5,263
Parish Staf	5,384 — — — 5,384 6,392
Work of the Church	51,645 — 1,348 — 52,993 68,507
Miscellaneous	2,846 468 (156) — 3,158 5,637
Total expenditure	110,014 468 1,191 — 111,673 112,998

Net income / (expenditure) resources before transfer	16,847 31,432 (482) — 47,797 10,335

Transfers
Gross transfers between funds - in	— — 8,025 — 8,025 250
Gross transfers between funds - out	(200) (7,825) — — (8,025) (250)
Other recognised gains / losses
Net movement in funds	16,647 23,606 7,544 — 47,797 10,335

Total funds brought forward	11,526 84,571 (19,868) — 76,228 65,894

Total funds carried forward	28,173 108,177 (12,325) — 124,026 76,228

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Balance sheet

Class and code Description	This year Last year


Current assets
6501 HSBC current account	— 29,044
6502 Co-Op Bank	23,514 —
6505 Bank deposit account	— —
6510 CCLA (CBF) deposit account	84,187 47,737
6590 Cash in hand	— 2,320
6595 Tax Reclaim	34,430 30,169
Z05 Accounts Receivable	— 477
Total Current assets	142,131 109,746

Liabilities
6699 Agency collections	952 737
9902 LDF Loan	13,674 25,363
Z04 Accounts Payable	3,479 7,256
Total Liabilities	18,105 33,356

Net Asset surplus(defcit)	124,026 76,390

Reserves
Excess / (defcit) to date	47,635 10,335
Z01 Starting balances	76,390 66,056
Total Reserves	124,026 76,390


Represented by funds
Unrestricted	28,173 11,526
Designated	108,177 84,571
Restricted	(12,325) (19,868)
Endowment	— —
Total	124,026 76,228

Signed

Signature ___ ___ Name ___ __ Position ___ ____ Date ___ _______

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Fund movement by type

Opening Incoming Outgoing TransfersGains/losses Closing

	Opening Incoming Outgoing TransfersGains/losses Closing
ARepair - Ascension Repair Fun
Restricted	(1,117) — — — — (1,117)
Sub-total for ARepair	(1,117) — — — — (1,117)


Legacy - Legacy Fund
Designated	84,571 31,900 468 (7,825) — 108,177
Sub-total for Legacy	84,571 31,900 468 (7,825) — 108,177

Mission - Mission Fund
Restricted	— 460 560 — — (101)
Sub-total for Mission	— 460 560 — — (101)


Pastoral - Parish Pastoral Fund
Restricted	1,355 250 — 200 — 1,805
Sub-total for Pastoral	1,355 250 — 200 — 1,805

Rest - St Mary's Restoration
Restricted	(22,159) — (156) 7,825 — (14,177)
Sub-total for Rest	(22,159) — (156) 7,825 — (14,177)

Synod - Deanery Synod Grant
Restricted	2,052 — 788 — — 1,264
Sub-total for Synod	2,052 — 788 — — 1,264

General - General fund
Unrestricted	11,526 126,861 110,014 (200) — 28,173
Sub-total for General	11,526 126,861 110,014 (200) — 28,173

Grand total	76,228 159,471 111,673 — — 124,026

Analysis of income and expenditure

					Total
	Unrestricted		Designated		Restricted
	Endowment		This year	Last year
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS
Giving - CoA
CoA Planned Giving	13,805	—	—	—	13,805	25,457
PGS Giving	19,612	—	—	—	19,612	1,031
CoA Gift Aid	—	—	—	—	—	80
CoA Loose plate collections	310	—	—	—	310	1,335
CoA Unrestricted Donations	2,273	31,000	—	—	33,273	1,370
CoA Restricted Donations	—	—	250	—	250	200
Tax recovered on PGS Giving	4,858	—	—	—	4,858	258
COA
Total	40,858	31,000	250	—	72,108	29,730
Giving - St M
St M Planned Giving	10,477	—	—	—	10,477	12,229
St M Gift Aid	424	—	—	—	424	411
St M Loose plate collections	546	—	—	—	546	513
St M Unrestricted Donations	38	—	—	—	38	2,640
St M Restricted Donations	—	—	—	—	—	20
Total	11,485	—	—	—	11,485	15,813

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Giving - Parish Other planned giving Parish Restricted Donations On Line donations Donations to Mission Legacies Total Tax Recovery - CoA CoA Tax Recovered on Planned Giving Total Tax Recovery - St M St M Tax Recovered on Planned Giving Total Church Halls - CoA CoA Church hall lettings Total Church Halls - St M St M Church hall lettings Total Other income Insurance claims Total Other income - CoA CoA Fundraising/Events CoA Church Lettings CoA Welcome Area Lettings Total Other income - St M St M Fundraising/Events St M Church Lettings Total Other income - Parish Non-recurring one-of grants Other funds generated Parish Magazine Parish Fundraising/Events Bank and building society interest Fees for weddings and funerals Magazine income - advertising Parish magazine sales Unidentifed Income	5,298 — — — 5,298 5,196 — — — — — 1,900 — — — — — 10 — — 460 — 460 —
	— — — — — 26,498
	5,298 — 460 — 5,758 33,604
	3,446 — — — 3,446 6,717
	3,446 — — — 3,446 6,717
	2,619 — — — 2,619 3,388
	2,619 — — — 2,619 3,388
	38,352 — — — 38,352 22,541
	38,352 — — — 38,352 22,541
	6,037 — — — 6,037 3,038
	6,037 — — — 6,037 3,038
	— — — — — 344
	— — — — — 344 2,304 — — — 2,304 650 3,704 — — — 3,704 1,537
	90 — — — 90 —
	6,098 — — — 6,098 2,187 2,114 — — — 2,114 520
	4,826 — — — 4,826 1,855
	6,940 — — — 6,940 2,375 4,641 — — — 4,641 2,100 (421) — — — (421) 24 — — — — — 138 937 — — — 937 1,556 — 900 — — 900 6 50 — — — 50 (1,389) 106 — — — 106 160 415 — — — 415 300
	— — — — — 702
Total	5,728 900 — — 6,628 3,597
INCOME TOTAL	126,861 31,900 710 — 159,471 123,333

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EXPENDITURE

Churches Costs of stewardship campaign Costs of fetes & other events Total Churches - CoA COA Restricted Donations Expenditure CoA Church Running - Upkeep of Services CoA Church running - electric CoA Church running - gas CoA Church running - water CoA Church running - Insurance CoA Church maintenance CoA Church Running - Equipment CoA Church Running - Cleaning CoA Site - Equipment Total Churches - St M StM Church Running -upkeep of services St M Church running - electric St M Church Running - gas St M Church Running -water St M Church Running - insurance St M Church Running - Maintenance St M Church Running - equipment St M Church Running - Misc St M Church Running - cleaning St M Church Running - Consumables and ge St M Site - routine maintenenace StM Fundraising Costs Total Church Halls - CoA CoA Hall running - Electricity CoA Hall running - gas CoA Hall running - insurance CoA Hall running - maintenance CoA Hall running - Hall Booking Secretary CoA Hall running - Cleaning Total Parish Staf Working expenses - Vicar Book Allowance - Vicar	57 — — — 57 —
	534 — — — 534 —
	591 — — — 591 — — — — — — 2,000 9 — — — 9 220 1,319 — — — 1,319 — 5,457 — — — 5,457 2,584 542 — — — 542 — 1,756 — — — 1,756 1,422 3,839 — — — 3,839 1,462 136 — — — 136 2,135 993 — — — 993 967
	141 — — — 141 —
	14,193 — — — 14,193 10,790 30 — — — 30 50 5,036 — — — 5,036 — 564 — — — 564 326 230 — — — 230 707 4,904 — — — 4,904 4,664 5,934 — — — 5,934 6,950 1,160 — — — 1,160 2,109 120 — — — 120 38 1,734 — — — 1,734 1,501 235 — — — 235 62 204 — — — 204 —
	313 — — — 313 —
	20,463 — — — 20,463 16,409 1,505 — — — 1,505 — 7,137 — — — 7,137 1,542 1,460 — — — 1,460 1,678 2,499 — — — 2,499 495 773 — — — 773 —
	1,517 — — — 1,517 1,549
	14,891 — — — 14,891 5,263 350 — — — 350 1,033 120 — — — 120 —

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Housing - Vicar Housing Community Minister Secretarial Support Total Work of the Church Education Youth Work Expenses Outreach/Mission Children’s Work Upkeep of services COA Organist St M Keyboard player Common Fund Charitable giving Church ofce - telephone Bookkeeping Governance costs examination/audit fee Total Miscellaneous Administration - Bank charges Administration - Telephone Administration - Ofce Supplies Administration - Misc Misc/Subs/Licenses Printing costs Loan Interest	— — — — — 337 — — — — — 343
	4,914 — — — 4,914 4,680
	5,384 — — — 5,384 6,392 — — — — — 17 — — — — — 1,118 572 — 1,348 — 1,920 — 362 — — — 362 727 405 — — — 405 144 6,141 — — — 6,141 6,208 2,417 — — — 2,417 2,232 36,000 — — — 36,000 50,000 2,800 — — — 2,800 4,503 36 — — — 36 — 2,292 — — — 2,292 2,708
	620 — — — 620 850
	51,645 — 1,348 — 52,993 68,507 156 — — — 156 12 767 — — — 767 873 563 — — — 563 482 (1,112) — — — (1,112) 1,238 451 — — — 451 295 2,022 — — — 2,022 1,799
	— 468 (156) — 312 938
Total	2,846 468 (156) — 3,158 5,637
EXPENDITURE TOTAL	110,014 468 1,191 — 111,673 112,998

GRAND TOTAL	16,847 31,432 (482) — 47,797 10,335

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