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2020-12-31-accounts

APCM Report 2020

St Peter’s, Maney Sutton Coldfield

Annual Report

2020

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APCM Report 2020

TABLE OF CONTENTS

AGENDAS 115[th] Annual Meeting of Parishioners…………………………………………………………………4 102[nd] Annual Parochial Church Meeting ………………………………………………………..... 4 MINUTES Annual Meeting of the Parishioners ……………………….………………………………….………5 Annual Parochial Church Meeting ……………………………..…………………………………… 6 VICARS REPORT ............................................................................................................ . .. 11 ELECTORAL ROLL………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 14 ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT AND STATEMENTS .............................................................. 15 PCC MEMBERSHIP AT MARCH 2021 .................................................................................. 32 SUMMARY OF OFFICE APPOINTMENT………………………………………………………………………… 33 PARISH REPORTS Churchwardens’ Report on the Church Fabric, Ornaments, Hall and Grounds……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..35 Report from the Parochial Church Council 2020…………………………………………..…….36 Safeguarding Co-ordinator’s Report…………………………….……………………………………. 37 Group Council….……………………………………………………………………………………….……..…38 Churches Together in Central Sutton Coldfield……………………..……………………………38 Aston and Sutton Coldfield Deanery Synod……..…………………………………………………38 Diocesan Synod……………………………………………….…………………………………..….…………39 Parish Administrator………………………………………,………………………..…………………….….39 Mission, Life & Worship Committee……………………………………………………………..…….40 Children’s Ministry………………………………………………………………………………………………41 Music at Maney in 2020…………………………………………………………………………………..….42 Care Team………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 42 Social committee 2020……………………………………….……………………………………………..…43 Eco Maney …………..…………………………………………..………………………………………………….44

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Cedar Group……………………………………….……………………………………………………….…..…44 Church Mission Society………………………………………………….………………………….……….45 Christian Aid……………………………………………………………………………………………..……….45 Church Army Report…………………………………………………………………………………………..46 Carpenter’s Arms Community Centre………………………………………..……….………………46 Mothers Union……………………………………..……………………………………………………………47 Church Fellowship………………………………………………………………………………………………48 7th Sutton Coldfield Scout Group……………………………………………………………………….48

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A G E N D A S

Annual Meetings Sunday 25th April 2021

  1. Opening Prayers.

  2. Apologies for absence.

115[th] Annual Meeting of Parishioners

  1. Minutes of 114[th] Annual Meeting of Parishioners

  2. Election of Churchwardens

102[nd] Annual Parochial Church Meeting

  1. Minutes of 101[st] Annual Meeting on 13[th] September 2020

  2. Matters Arising from the Minutes

  3. Presentation of the Electoral Roll

  4. Treasurer’s Report and Financial Statement

  5. Churchwardens’ report

  6. Written reports circulated in advance of the meeting with questions

  7. Appointment of Independent Examiner of the Accounts

  8. Election of 1 member of Parochial Church Council to serve for 3 years

  9. Election of Sides people

  10. Vicar’s remarks

  11. Any Other Business

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APCM Report 2020

Minutes of the 114[th] Annual Meeting of Parishioners of St Peter’s Church, Maney, at 12 noon on 13 September 2020 in the church.

1.Present: Revd Rebecca Stephens, Vicar, in the Chair,

Revd Andrew Ball, Anne Ball, Frank Buzzard, Barbara Chappell, Sonia Clucas, Rosemary Coombes, Movita Dening, Ruth Dineley, Phil Fox, Graham Gomm, Sheila Gomm, Ro Evershed, Elena Grant, David Griffiths, Hazel Hallas, Janet Harley, Malcolm Harley, Sheena Heaton, Frances Heywood, John Heywood, Michelle Holland, Jane Jenner, Paul Jenner, Naomi Johnson, Sheila Richmond, Eric Swindells, Sue Taylor, Margaret Turner, Tony Wells, Margaret Weale (née Gomm), Ann Willis, Christine White, Garth White.

Apologies: Neville Benyon

The Vicar welcomed everyone and opened the meeting with Prayer.

  1. The Minutes of the 113[th] Annual Meeting were accepted as a true record and signed by the Vicar.

  2. Motion to waive the 6 year rule on tenure of Churchwardens to allow Malcolm Harley to continue in office until the next Annual Meeting (hopefully to be held in April 2021)

This was proposed by Garth White and seconded by Paul Jenner. All voted in favour.

  1. Retirement of Graham Gomm as Churchwarden

Becky asked Malcolm to say a few words about the long and dedicated service Graham had provided to the church over the years. Graham was coming to the end of his second period of service as a Churchwarden. Malcolm spoke of Graham’s dedication, his determination to see a job through and the wealth of knowledge he had about the church and its business. He was grateful that Graham would continue to help the church with its insurance arrangements. He expressed thanks on behalf of the whole congregation and made a presentation to Graham in recognition of all he had done.

Graham thanked everyone and said how much he had enjoyed working with Malcolm.

  1. Election of Churchwarden

There was one nomination for the post vacated by Graham – Paul Jenner, who was proposed by Hazel Hallas and seconded by Janet Harley. Those present then voted unanimously for Paul’s election.

Becky thanked Graham, Malcolm and Paul for the huge support they had given her since she became Vicar and during some of the most difficult of times as a result of the Coronavirus.

This concluded the meeting.

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Minutes of the 101[st] Annual Parochial Church Meeting held on Sunday 3 September 2020 in the church.

Attendance : Revd Rebecca Stephens, Vicar, in the Chair,

Revd Andrew Ball, Anne Ball, Frank Buzzard, Barbara Chappell, Sonia Clucas, Rosemary Coombes, Movita Dening, Ruth Dineley, Phil Fox, Graham Gomm, Sheila Gomm, Ro Evershed, Elena Grant, David Griffiths, Hazel Hallas, Janet Harley, Malcolm Harley, Sheena Heaton, Frances Heywood, John Heywood, Michelle Holland, Jane Jenner, Paul Jenner, Naomi Johnson, Sheila Richmond, Eric Swindells, Sue Taylor, Margaret Turner, Tony Wells, Margaret Weale (née Gomm), Ann Willis, Christine White, Garth White.

Apologies : Neville Benyon

1.Minutes of the 100[th] Meeting

These were agreed and signed as a correct record

2.Matters arising from the Minutes

There were none

3.Presentation of the Electoral Roll

Elena reported that the Roll had been revised between 1 and 29 March 2020. 3 members had died; 5 had been added. There was a total of 138 which was an increase of two on the previous year. Of these 45 (32.6%) were resident in the Parish and 93 (67.4%) lived outside the Parish. This was a slight increase in the number of residents. A copy of the Roll was available for inspection in the church porch.

A change in the rules regarding the Electoral Roll meant that addresses were no longer included in the inspection copy. There would also be an option for including email addresses on the new form.

Becky expressed her gratitude to Elena for all her work.

4.Treasurer’s Report and Financial Statement

Paul Jenner confirmed that he would be willing to continue in post as Treasurer in addition to acting as Church Warden. Becky said how grateful everyone was and pleaded with people not to overburden Paul. Paul expressed his thanks for the faith people had placed in him.

The accounts had been prepared for the APCM which had to be cancelled (because of the coronavirus pandemic) in April 2020. These had been approved by PCC by email. They had been inspected and approved by the examiner this week.

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The last six months had been difficult. Hall Income (normally c. £2,000 a month) had been zero although users had been returning to the Hall since August. However there were concerns about possible further lockdowns. All appropriate precautions were being taken in the Hall.

The church was currently solvent but there were concerns about the rest of the year, in particular the likelihood that Christmas would not provide the usual money raising opportunities. Paul thanked those who had maintained their gifts throughout the period and those who had changed to Standing Order, Parish Giving or Direct Debit.

Giving had been very generously maintained. £2,400 had been raised for Christian Aid, £357 for CMS, as well as money for a gift to Laura Ward on her ordination and a gift for Maxine. There were no questions to Paul who received a round of applause in recognition of all he does.

Becky added her thanks to Paul and also to Rosemary for all she was doing to keep the hall viable.

5.Churchwardens’ Report

There were no questions. The Wardens were thanked for all they have done

6.Written Reports

As these had been printed and circulated to everyone the Minutes will only refer to comments, questions or discussion arising.

Becky said the Group Council had not met because of the pandemic but was hoping to meet more regularly as were Churches Together.

Parish Administrator’s Report. Becky paid tribute to Maxine and the tireless way she had worked. She asked us to keep Maxine and her family in all our prayers.

Mission, Life and Worship. It was gratifying to see how much effort went into the life and worship of the Parish. It was hoped that House Groups might be developed when circumstances allowed.

Music. Thanks were expressed for all that Eric Swindells and others had done. It was lovely to be able to hear the organ even if we could not sing. There was a round of applause for Eric.

Church Army. Thanks were also expressed to Sue Taylor for all she does particularly organising the carol singing at Tesco.

CMS Garth White was thanked for his efforts.

Children’s Society. Joan Bradley will continue to look after the boxes and was thanked for her work. It was hoped to hold a Christingle service to raise funds.

Mo Dening and Rosemary Coombes were thanked for all their efforts with Cedar Group.

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Sonia Clucas said it was so important to maintain contact with people during this time and that the Social Committee was doing what it could.

Mo, Sonia and Barbara Chappell were all thanked for their on-going work with Children and Young People. The Zoom recordings had been much enjoyed and appreciated.

Safeguarding Report – there were no questions or concerns.

Care Team. It was reported that the care team continued to keep in touch with people by telephone and offers of help with shopping etc. There had been over 400 contacts made during the year.

John Heywood and the committee of Eco Maney were thanked for their efforts.

Sheena Heaton reported that the Trust governing the Carpenter’s Arms had now been dissolved and the work would be continued by the Roman Catholic diocese and St Nicholas’s Church.

Sonia was keeping in touch with Mothers’ Union members who were continuing with their children’s work.

Deanery Synod. The new Aston and Sutton Coldfield Deanery was now up and running under the leadership of Ann Richardson the new full-time Area Dean.

Enormous thanks were expressed to Frances and John Heywood for their work for Christian Aid especially for raising the enormous sum of £2,400 in spite of the lockdown.

The Uniformed Organisations were not able to meet but were keeping in touch with each other by email and Zoom.

7.Appointment of Independent Examiner.

Paul praised the work of Hannah Tipper and proposed that she be re-appointed for a further year. This was seconded by Tony Wells and carried nem con.

8.Election of Members of Parochial Church Council

Three members due to retire in 2020 were willing to stand for re-election. There were no other nominees. Sonia Clucas, Michelle Holland and Solomon Salawu were re-elected to serve until 2023.

There were two further vacancies and two nominees: Janet Harley and Naomi Johnson were elected until 2024.

This would hopefully allow continuity of membership as approximately one third of members will retire each year.

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The four members of Deanery Synod, Rosemary Coombes, Sheila Richmond, Sue Taylor, and Ann Willis, had indicated that they were willing to continue and were duly elected.

9.Election of Sides People

There were 21 people on the list of Welcomers. All were prepared to continue with 13 out of the 21 prepared to attend during the current restrictions. There were 3 young people willing to serve as Welcomers. They would carry out somewhat limited duties. The list of Sides People was approved by all.

10.Vicar’s Remarks

Becky welcomed Naomi and Janet as new members of the PCC.

She reminded everyone that the Lockdown had started 9 days before she took up her new position as our Vicar. She thanked everyone who had contributed to keeping the Church and Parish going during the Interregnum and to all those who had made her and her family feel so welcome.

During the last six months she had been able to get to know many people and had been so impressed by all the work that continues to be done and by the faithfulness of people who had kept smiling in the face of so many problems. These were times like no other. She reminded us to keep each other in our prayers and especially the Care Team and the vulnerable people they were supporting.

She had been impressed by the range of gifts and talents present at St Peters. She was delighted that Paul Jenner had agreed to be Churchwarden and would very much appreciate his wisdom and support. Becky again thanked Graham for the long years of faithful service he had given to St Peter’s. She was pleased we would still be able to access his knowledge, experience and wisdom.

Becky said how much we all missed Maxine and her efficient execution of her duties. Interviews would be taking place this week for a new Administrator. She wanted Maxine to know how much she was appreciated for her wisdom, patience and endurance. She thanked all those who had helped to keep the Parish office going during Maxine’s illness.

It was good to know that Sheila Richmond and Ann Willis were now out of ‘shielding’ and would be able to resume their ministry as Readers. She also thanked Andrew Ball for his ministry and support during the recent months. She was looking forward to working with them and to the year ahead.

11.Any Other Business

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11.1 Mo Dening asked if it would be possible to run a ‘virtual’ Christmas Fair. This was agreed to be a good idea and a meeting would be held to explore the suggestion further.

11.2 Sue Taylor wanted to acknowledge the help she received from Garth and Christine White in her work with Church Army.

The meeting finished with the Grace

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APCM Report 2020

Vicar’s Report

My licensing at St Peter’s took place on 1[st] April 2020 via Zoom. Only a few of us were present at that gathering including Malcolm, Graham and Sheena. It has been a year we cannot quickly forget. The Covid-19 pandemic has meant that we have had an unpredictable year where we learnt to worship in new ways and to stay together as a church family through post, telephone and Zoom. The reports that follow pay particular tribute to so many of the challenges we have faced and the commitment of so many to navigate the pandemic. I am particularly grateful to the churchwardens, Malcolm and Paul, for their support throughout this year.

Worship

I began my ministry the week before Holy Week. After consultations with the churchwardens and Standing Committee, we decided we would stream worship online live from the vicarage. The first service which appeared on our Facebook page was on Palm Sunday. Since that day, we have offered an online service on every Sunday when it has been possible. Through these services we have been able to engage with people who are not ordinarily members of our congregation. Some of these people are house bound or vulnerable who have worshipped with us in the past, others are completely new to our congregation and are now fully a part of our worshipping community.

At the beginning, we were live streaming worship. However, this became rather frustrating as we were not able to hear the voices of other members of our congregation. This led to us prerecording worship so that we could have other people leading intercessions, readings, hymns and more. I edited these together and we put them out on a Sunday morning. These services were welcomed by the congregation as there was a sense of familiarity in seeing church family members.

In addition to Sundays, we have also offered Morning Prayer live on Facebook each Tuesday and Thursday morning, which had a daily reach of around 8 people watching live and a further 20-30 households watching throughout the day.

Music has been a challenge in lockdown. I have felt very blessed by the musicians among us who have recorded songs and music for us, particularly Eric, Naomi and Owen. My thanks to Eric particularly for his devotion to ensuring we were all able to worship through music in many creative ways, including Zoom Songs of Praise and the outdoor Carol services. We are delighted that he has taken on the role of Director of Music.

It has been difficult to enable all of our worship leaders to participate in leading worship online. I have been overwhelmed at how the people of St Peter’s have embraced learning the skill of offering worship online by recording readings, sermons and prayers. Thank you to all those who have been a part of leading worship, especially to Andrew, Sheila and Ann, our ministry team.

Sonia has worked wonders in keeping in touch with our young families. We held some online services for children but in the summer we decided to begin some in person services which we

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called Pebbles. It has been such a joy to get to know our children and young people through these gatherings. My thanks to Sonia, Rosemary, Mo and Barbara for being a part of this team.

Before we were able to return to in person worship, we were able to open for private prayer once a week. This was a valuable space for many people who found comfort in being within the church building. Thank you to all those who volunteered to be in the church during Thursday mornings.

For the weeks where we did return to in person worship, we continually adapted our risk assessment to ensure the safety of all attending. The guidelines were continually updated, meaning we had to ensure we were worshipping within current guidelines. My thanks to everyone who was a part of ensuring the church building remained Covid safe.

Mission

As well as placing services online, we aimed to engage with our local community by offering ways to worship, reflect and pray outside. These have included items for people to take from the steps, a net to tie ribbons on for Remembrance, a cross to fill at All Souls, a nativity scene and the Maney Christmas Tree to decorate. We also posted out orders of service, prayers and the newsletter and created worship bags for special services.

At Christmas time, the residents of Maney Hill Road wanted to be a part of lighting up the church grounds. They generously donated Christmas lights in abundance. Three memorable services were the outdoor carol services. We welcomed people from around Maney as we sang carols. People brought their own chairs and mulled wine as they listened and joined in with the choir. My thanks to everyone who has contributed in any way to ensuring we have reached so many people and offered God’s love.

We have also been able to send out a newsletter to everyone who wanted to receive one. Frances has been instrumental in the creation of the idea and the newsletter. She continues to receive entries and information which she edits together with love. Thank you, Frances.

To support our community, we have been involved in collecting items for the Foodbank arranged by Sheena. We also gathered together to make ‘ear savers’ which were delivered to the hospital for staff to wear at the back of their masks to stop them from rubbing their ears.

Roles and responsibilities

This year we have seen considerable change among those who have roles within the church. Those who have handed on responsibilities are:

Graham Gomm; Churchwarden Diane Littler; Sacristan and Verger Mary Robinson; care and cleansing of altar linen Barbara Chappell; Safeguarding Co-ordinator

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Sadly, Maxine Hill our Parish Administrator, passed away in September following a diagnosis of cancer. We continue to give thanks for her time with us and hold Russell, Christian and Alex in our prayers.

We have been delighted to welcome new members into the roles which have been made vacant.

Paul Jenner; Churchwarden Naomi Johnson; Sacristan Michelle Holland and David Griffiths; Vergers Ann Willis; Safeguarding Co-ordinator Fay Moore; Parish Administrator

It is always a joy to see the gifts of God’s people being used to build God’s Kingdom. We thank all those who have offered their time and gifts in the past and those who are now offering themselves in service to God at St Peter’s.

Occasional offices

During this year, we have sadly held many more funerals than St Peter’s is used to. In 2020, we took 19 funerals. Among them were some beloved members of our church community; it will feel strange to many as we return to normal services without them with us. May they all rest in peace and rise in glory.

We have not been able to hold weddings during lockdown but there was one wedding in February taken by Rev Paul Duckers. We have also only been able to do two baptisms as we welcomed Theo and Ava to God’s family.

The Hall

One huge loss has been not being able to use the hall. It has been sad that we have not been able to welcome the groups into the hall. We have lost financially as well as socially but we have been glad to receive some grants for loss of income. We have also had to furlough Maxine, and subsequently Fay, alongside Ian. We are looking forward to welcoming them back for their full hours, as well as seeing the hall busy again.

Overseeing the hall and its users has been a huge challenge and I am incredibly grateful to Paul and Rosemary for navigating this on our behalf.

Conclusion

There is so much to share, much of which you will read throughout this report. I feel hugely privileged to be in the parish of Maney, even though we journey together through challenging times. My thanks to everyone for all you have given during this time. I am so sorry I could not mention every name, but please know how grateful I am.

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ELECTORAL ROLL

Current Electoral Roll cycle 2019 - 2025

Year Total on Electoral Roll Resident Non-resident
2018 - 2019 136 40 (29.4%) 96 (70.6%)
2019 -2020* 138 45 (32.6%) 93 (67.4%)

*Data as at the end of the revision period on March 29th

An inspection copy of the revised Electoral Roll and details of the changes were posted on the noticeboard in the main entrance porch after the revision period.

The data were presented at the delayed Annual Parochial Church meeting on September 13[th] , 2020.

Due to a change in the Church Representation Rules in 2020, addresses are no longer included in inspection copies of the Electoral Roll. The new Electoral Roll forms contain a space for the optional addition of an email address. In addition to paper copies of the Electoral Roll application form, an electronic version is available on the church website.

The revision period for 2021 will take place between March 7[th] and April 4[th] .

Elena Grant Electoral Roll Officer

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ST PETER’S CHURCH, MANEY SUTTON COLDFIELD

ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT AND STATEMENTS

OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Charity Number: 1140021

INCUMBENT

The Revd Becky Stephens St. Peter’s Vicarage Maney Hill Road Sutton Coldfield B72 1JJ (From April)

BANK

The Co-operative Bank PO Box 250 Delf House Southway Skelmersdale WN8 6WT

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

Mrs H Tipper (ACA – ICAEW)

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Accounts Page 2 of 16

TREASURER’S REPORT FOR YEAR ENDING 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

The year of 2020 will go down in history as the year of the COVID pandemic. The impact on St Peter’s finances was that income was lost on general giving (collections), down from £3,995 to £1,129; on envelope giving, from £9,299 to £4,203; and on hall lettings, down from £23,502 to £9,766. I’m grateful to everyone who helped in our good housekeeping which reduced our costs, and to the receipt of over £8,500 in Government grants, which kept our deficit to a minimum.

The Statement of Financial Activities (Income and Expenditure Account) on page 4 of the accounts shows the deficit on Unrestricted Funds of £3,432. Surprisingly, our investments all showed an increase. This helped reduce that deficit to £1,215. Income from donors, which includes the weekly envelope scheme, regular giving by standing orders and direct debits, general and special collections and the recovery of tax by Gift Aid, reduced this year by £8,210 to £59,526. Of this, Planned Giving reduced by £4,577 (or 9.2%) to £45,200.

The Diocese Common Fund this year was £49,380 which we were able to pay in full and which included a contribution to support poorer parishes. This was a drop of £4,261 due to the method of calculation. With the decrease in income, our charitable giving decreased to £3,500. There was a reduction in total Unrestricted expenditure of 11% from 2019 to £87,961. The Fund ended the year at £108,577.

Designated funds at the end of the year were Quinquennial (£6,044), Church Emergency (£43,453), Hall Roof (£30,000), residue of Defibrillator (£239), Stone House, which funds our Youth work, (£259,080), Organ Repairs (£10,621) and Church Fabric (£2,142). We also have residue of accounts covering office computer and fire safety actions of £11,152. There was a surplus in Designated accounts of £10,026 reflecting the fact we did not have a Youth Worker throughout the year and there was a sizeable increase in investment values. A new boiler for the hall came from the emergency fund, leaving Designated funds standing at £362,731 at the end of the year.

The total of Restricted funds is now £3,008. Details of all funds can be seen in Note 11 on page 14.

2021 has started in the same fashion that 2020 ended; both church and hall are closed thus limiting income but cost savings are also limited because of the need to keep the buildings heated to a minimum level. A deficit budget has been set and, to minimise this deficit, the PCC have decided to reduce the Diocese Common Fund contribution until a review is held mid-year when restrictions may have been reduced.

At the end of the year the accounts show total funds of £474,316. The Balance Sheet on page 5 and Note 8 (Investments) on page 13 show where those funds are held with £220,451 on deposit with the Central Board of Finance (CBF) and investments (£243,712) representing longer term funds which are all invested in funds of the CBF.

Paul Jenner Hon Treasurer

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Accounts Page 3 of 16

Independent Examiner’s Report To the Parochial Church Council of St. Peter’s, Maney

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of St Peter’s Maney PCC for the year ended 31[st] December 2020 which are set out on pages 4 to 15. This examination took place on the 3[rd ] March 2021.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As the charity trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”).

I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:

1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act; or

2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

3. the accounts do not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

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

A signed copy of this statement is held in the accounts file.

Name: Mrs H Tipper

Relevant professional qualification of membership of professional bodies:

ACA-ICAEW

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PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Accounts Page 4 of 16

Note Unrestricted Designated Restricted
TOTAL		 FUNDS
Funds Funds Funds 2020 2019
£ £ £ £ £
INCOME from:
Donations 2,4 68536 451 5798 74785 93032
Charitable Activities 2,4 10966 0 0 10966 24597
Other Trading Activities 2,4 3197 0 0 3197 6682
Investments 2,4 1830 7630 0 9460 10414
______ _____ _____ ______ ______
TOTAL INCOME 84529 8081 5798 98408 134725
===== ===== ==== ===== =====
EXPENDITURE on:
Raising Funds 3,5 13342 2704 0 16046 16167
Charitable Activities 3,5 74619 0 4779 79398 84714
______ _____ ____ ______ ______
TOTAL EXPENDITURE 87961 2704 4779 95444 100881
===== ===== ==== ===== =====
NET INCOME/(EXPENDITURE) (3432) 5377 1019 2964 33844
GAINS/(LOSSES) ON INVESTMENTS 8 2217 4649 0 6866 22648
______ ______ ______ ______ ______
NET INCOME (1215) 10026 1019 9830 56492
TRANSFERS BETWEEN FUNDS 12 0 0 0 0 0
_ ______ ______ ______ ______
NET MOVEMENT IN FUNDS (1215) 10026 1019 9830 56492
TOTAL FUNDS AT 1ST JANUARY 2020 109792 352705 1989 464486 407994
______ ______ _____ ______ ______
TOTAL FUNDS AT 31ST DEC 2020 11 108577 362731 3008 474316 464486
===== ===== ===== ===== =====

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PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

BALANCE SHEET AT 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 5 of 16

2020 2019
Notes £
£		 £
FIXED ASSETS
Church hall and equipment 7 1 1
Investments 8 243712 236846
______ ______
243713 236847
______
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors and payments in advance 9 3979 2570
Cash in Hand 0 81
Balance at bank 13799 23591
Short term deposits 220451 209379
______ ______
238229 235621
LIABILITIES: amounts falling due within one year 10 7626 7982
______
NET CURRENT ASSETS 230603 227639
______ ______
NET ASSETS 474316 464486
===== =====
REPRESENTED BY PARISH FUNDS 11
Unrestricted 108577 109792
Designated 362731 352705
Restricted 3008 1989
______ ______
474316 464486
===== =====

Approved by the Parochial Church Council on 16[th] March 2021, where, further to a review of the draft financial statements, the trustees agreed that there were no concerns over the ability to continue as a going concern. A signed copy of this SOFA is held in the accounts file.

……………………………………………………………………………………… Revd Becky Stephens (Chairman)

……………………………………………………………………………………… Mr Malcolm Harley (Warden)

The notes on pages 6 to 15 form part of these accounts.

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PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 6 of 16

1. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The financial statements have been prepared under the Church Accounting Regulations 2006 in accordance with the current Statement of Recommended Practice, Accounting and Reporting by Charities and applicable accounting standard FRS102.

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention except for investment assets, which are shown at fair valuation. The financial statements include all transactions, assets and liabilities for which the PCC is responsible in law. They do not include the accounts of church groups that owe their main affiliation to another body, nor those that are informal gatherings of church members.

Funds

Funds over which the PCC control is limited by statute or the terms of a trust deed, or which are restricted in their use have been defined as “restricted funds”. Funds which are controlled by the PCC and over which there are essentially no restrictions as to their use have been defined as “unrestricted funds”. Designated funds are unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the PCC for purposes designated by PCC policy. Such designations may be set aside from time to time according to policy decisions.

Restricted Funds comprise (a) income from endowments which is to be expended only on the restricted purposes intended by the donor, and (b) revenue donations or grants for a specific PCC activity intended by the donor.

Unrestricted Funds are income funds which are to be spent on the PCC’s general purposes.

Designated Funds are general funds set aside by the PCC for use in the future. Project funds are designated for particular projects for administration purposes only. Funds designated as invested in fixed assets for the PCC’s own use are abated in line with those assets’ annual depreciation charges in the SOFA. Designated funds remain unrestricted and the PCC will move any surplus to other general funds.

Funds Policy

The PCC have decided that, for 2021 onwards, the Unrestricted Funds are intended for short-term investment for income (up to £55,000) and 6 months operating expenditure (£55,000), and the remainder, surplus from legacies received in 2016, to be subject to PCC decisions for the time being.

In 2016 the PCC decided that the following will be designated: a buildings fund to allow items from the Quinquennial Report to be implemented together with emergency requirements (£140,000); a church fabric fund for items within the church (£5,000); a hall roof fund for the imminent repair (£30,000) and other small items (£1,100). The accounts show where spending has already taken place within these funds.

Income

All income is included in the Statement of Financial Activities when the PCC is legally entitled to them as income or capital respectively, ultimate receipt is probable and the amount to be recognised can be quantified with reasonable accuracy.

Planned giving, collections and similar donations are recognised when received. Tax refunds are recognised when the income to which they are related is received.

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 7 of 16

Grants received which are subject to pre conditions for entitlements or use specified by the donor which have not been met at the year end are included in creditors to be carried forward to the following year. Dividends and rents are accounted for when declared receivable, interest as and when accrued by the payer.

All income is accounted for gross.

Expenditure

Liabilities are recognised as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the PCC to pay out resources. Expenditure is included on an accruals basis under the following headings; all costs are allocated under a specific category:

Costs of raising funds

These are the costs associated with the PCC’s fundraising activities such as parish magazine printing, summer fete and Christmas bazaar event costs and church hall running costs.

Charitable expenditure

Charitable expenditure is analysed between ministry and mission expenditure. Ministry expenditure includes the direct costs of running the church such as the diocesan parish share, church building and service costs. The diocesan parish share expected to be paid over is accounted when due. Mission expenditure includes mission giving and donations, outreach in the community activities, messy church and associated staff costs.

Support costs consist of central management, administration and governance costs such as the independent examiner fees. These are costs which are directly attributable to a specific charitable activity.

Grants and donations payable are accounted for when authorized, when the award of the grant/donation has been specifically communicated to the recipient and when the PCC have agreed to pay the grant/donation without condition, or any condition attaching to the grant/donation is outside the control of the PCC. Grants/donations offered subject to certain conditions which have not been met at the year end are noted as a commitment, but not accrued as expenditure. Grants and donations are accounted for when paid over, or when awarded, if that award creates a binding or constructive obligation on the PCC.

Expenditure is accounted for gross.

Tangible Fixed Assets and Depreciation

Movable church furnishings held by the vicar and churchwardens on special trust for the PCC and which require a faculty for disposal are inalienable property, listed in the church’s inventory, which can be inspected (at any reasonable time). For anything acquired prior to 2000 there is insufficient cost information available and therefore such assets are not valued in the financial statements. Subsequently no individual item has cost more than £1,000 so all such expenditure has been written off when incurred.

Land and buildings owned by the Church are depreciated on a straight line basis over 25 years.

Equipment used within the Church premises is written off when the asset is acquired.

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APCM Report 2020

Page 8 of 16

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

______________

Financial Instruments

The PCC has elected to apply the provision of section 11 “Basic Financial Instruments” and section 12 “Other Financial Instruments” of FRS102 in full to all of its financial instruments.

Debtors which are receivable within one year and which do not constitute a financing transaction are initially measured at the transaction price. Debtors are subsequently measured at amortised cost being the transaction price less any amounts settled and any impairment losses.

Creditors payable within one year and which do not constitute a financing transaction are initially measured at the transaction price. Creditors are subsequently measured at amortised cost being the transaction price less any amounts settled.

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 9 of 16

2. INCOME

Unrestricted Designated Restricted
TOTAL		 FUNDS
Funds Funds Funds 2020 2019
£ £ £ £ £
Donations:
Planned Giving 45200 0 0 45200 49777
Collections 1129 0 0 1129 3995
Sundry Donations 1703 0 4798 6501 1910
Legacies 0 0 0 0 20500
Gift Aid Recovered 11494 0 1000 12494 13400
VAT Reclaimed 358 451 0 809 3450
Grants 8652 0 0 8652 0
______ _____ _____ ______ ______
Total Donations 68536 451 5798 74785 93032
===== ===== ==== ===== =====
Charitable Activities
Fees for weddings and funerals 1105 0 0 1105 851
Hall lettings 9766 0 0 9766 23502
Magazine Sales 95 0 0 95 244
_____ _____ ____ _____ _____
Total Charitable Activities 10966 0 0 10966 24597
===== ===== ==== ===== =====
Other Trading Activities
Magazine Adverts 233 0 0 233 277
Christmas Craft Fayre 1022 0 0 1022 2319
Other Fund Raising Activities 351 0 0 351 2381
Solar Panel Income 1591 0 0 1591 1505
Miscellaneous 0 0 0 0 200
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____
Total Other Trading Activities 3197 0 0 3197 6682
==== ==== ==== ==== ====
Investments
Dividends 965 7558 0 8523 8912
Interest 865 72 0 937 1502
____ ____ ____ ____ ____
Total Investments 1830 7630 0 9460 10414
==== ==== ==== ==== ====
TOTAL 84529 8081 5798 98408 134725
===== ===== ==== ===== =====

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020 Page 10 of 16

3. EXPENDITURE

Unrestricted Designated Restricted
TOTAL		 FUNDS
Funds Funds Funds 2020 2019
£ £ £ £ £
Raising Funds
Magazine Costs 30 0 0 30 183
Hall Costs 9341 2704 0 12045 11228
Fundraising Costs 0 0 0 0 352
Support for Raising Funds 3971 0 0 3971 4404
_____ ____ _____ _____ _____
Total Raising Funds 13342 2704 0 16046 16167
===== ==== ==== ===== =====
Charitable Expenditure
Resourcing Ministry
Diocesan Parish Share 49380 0 0 49380 53641
Clergy Expenses 571 0 0 571 855
Cost of Services 1964 0 20 1984 4918
Church Running Costs 10178 0 0 10178 11674
Church Repair & Maintenance 3274 0 557 3831 3553
Support for Resourcing Ministry 4916 0 0 4916 4772
Resourcing Mission
Child Mission 217 0 0 217 211
Charitable Giving 3579 0 4202 7781 4900
Special Appeals 0 0 0 0 0
Youth Work 0 0 0 0 0
Miscellaneous 345 0 0 345 190
COVID Costs 195 0 0 195 0
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____
Total Charitable Expenditure 74619 0 4779 79398 84714
===== ===== ===== ===== =====
TOTAL 87961 2704 4779 95444 100881
===== ===== ===== ===== =====

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 11 of 16

4. INCOME for 2019

Unrestricted Designated Restricted TOTAL FUNDS
Funds Funds Funds 2019
£ £ £ £
Donations:
Planned Giving 49777 0 0 49777
Collections 3995 0 0 3995
Sundry Donations 610 0 1300 1910
Legacies 20500 0 0 20500
Gift Aid Recovered 13354 0 46 13400
VAT Reclaimed 196 3254 0 3450
Grants 0 0 0 0
______ _____ _____ ______
Total Donations 88432 3254 1346 93032
===== ===== ==== =====
Charitable Activities
Fees for weddings and funerals 851 0 0 851
Hall lettings 23502 0 0 23502
Magazine Sales 244 0 0 244
_____ _____ ____ _____
Total Charitable Activities 24597 0 0 24597
===== ===== ==== =====
Other Trading Activities
Magazine Adverts 277 0 0 277
Christmas Craft Fayre 2319 0 0 2319
Other Fund Raising Activities 1550 0 831 2381
Solar Panel Income 1505 0 0 1505
Miscellaneous 200 0 0 200
_____ _____ _____ _____
Total Other Trading Activities 5851 0 831 6682
==== ==== ==== ====
Investments
Dividends 937 7975 0 8912
Interest 1375 127 0 1502
____ ____ ____ _____
Total Investments 2312 8102 0 10414
==== ==== ==== ====
TOTAL 121192 11356 2177 134725
===== ===== ==== =====

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 12 of 16

5. EXPENDITURE for 2019

Unrestricted Designated Restricted TOTAL FUNDS
Funds Funds Funds 2019
£ £ £ £
Raising Funds
Magazine Costs 183 0 0 183
Hall Costs 11228 0 0 11228
Fundraising Costs 352 0 0 352
Support for Raising Funds 4404 0 0 4404
_____ ____ _____ _____
Total Raising Funds 16167 0 0 16167
===== ==== ==== =====
Charitable Expenditure
Resourcing Ministry
Diocesan Parish Share 53641 0 0 53641
Clergy Expenses 620 0 235 855
Cost of Services 3637 240 1041 4918
Church Running Costs 11674 0 0 11674
Church Repair & Maintenance 3093 460 0 3553
Support for Resourcing Ministry 4772 0 0 4772
Resourcing Mission
Child Mission 211 0 0 211
Charitable Giving 4900 0 0 4900
Special Appeals 0 0 0 0
Youth Work 0 0 0 0
Miscellaneous 59 28 103 190
_____ _____ _____ _____
Total Charitable Expenditure 82607 728 1379 84714
===== ===== ===== =====
TOTAL 98774 728 1379 100881
===== ===== ===== =====

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31STDECEMBER 2020 Page 13 of 16 Page 13 of 16
_____________
2020 2019
6. STAFF COSTS
£ £
Wages and salaries 12196 13450
===== =====
No member of the PCC received any remuneration or reimbursement of expenses other than the Vicar as
shown in Note 3. 2020 includes Office Administrators and Caretaker.
7. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS
£ £
Cost of Church Hall Building 23902 23902
Less accumulated depreciation 23901 23901
______ ______
1 1
===== =====
Net Book Value at 31stDecember 2020 1
Net Book Value at 31stDecember 2019 1
8. INVESTMENTS
£ £
Valuation as at 1stJanuary 2020 236846 214198

Increase/(Decrease) in valuation		 6866 22648
Investments/(Disposals) --- ---
______ ______
Valuation at 31stDecember 2020 243712 236846
===== =====
Government stocks --- ---
1,681 shares in CBF investment fund 34450 32233
Stone House – 6,525 shares in CBF investment fund 133697 125094
Stone House – 58,392 shares in CBF property fund 75565 79519
______ ______
243712 236846
====== ======
2020 2019
9. DEBTORS
£ £
Gift Aid Recoverable 2051 2419
Solar Panel Feed-in-Tariff 151 151
VAT Reclaim 809 -----
Insurance Claim 968 -----
_____ _____
3979 2569
==== ====

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 14 of 16

_________________ 10. CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR

2020 2019
£ £
Gas Accrued 616 953
Electricity Accrued 236 364
Water Accrued ----- 98
BDBF Assigned Fees 1200 320
Copier Usage Charge 47 170
Advanced Receipts for Weddings ----- 50
Committed Donations to Charities 3664 4764
Organ Tuning ----- 332
Telephone & Internet 58 ----
Vicar Expenses 659 ----
Sundry Supplies 424 81
Repairs & Grounds Maintenance 722 850
_____ _____
7626 7982
==== ====

11. MOVEMENT IN FUNDS

Balance Capital Balance
1/1/2020 Income Expenditure Transfers Movements 31/12/2020
£ £ £ £ £ £
Restricted Funds
Memorial Book 66 5 20 0 0 51
Choir 587 80 0 0 0 667
Discretionary Poor Fund 315 0 0 0 0 315
Hall Sound System 300 0 0 0 0 300
Church Sound System 21 0 0 0 0 21
Ministry 700 0 0 0 0 700
Eco Planters 0 50 0 0 0 50
Vestry Steps 0 625 557 0 0 68
Charity Collections 0 4475 4202 0 0 273
LED Lighting 0 563 0 0 0 563
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ ____
1989 5798 4779 0 0 3008
==== ==== ===== ==== ==== ====
Unrestricted Funds
Designated Funds
Sale of Stone House 246800 7630 0 0 4649 259080
Quinquennial Fund 6044 0 0 0 0 6044
Church Emergency Fund 45707 451 2704 0 0 43453
Hall Roof 30000 0 0 0 0 30000
Defibrilator 239 0 0 0 0 239
Church Fabric 2142 0 0 0 0 2142
Computer 13 0 0 0 0 13

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APCM Report 2020

Fire Safety 11139 0 0 0 0 11139
Organ Repair 10621 0 0 0 0 10621
__ ______ _ _ ______ _
352705 8081 2704 0 4649 362731
General Fund 109792 84529 87961 0 2217 108577
______ ______ _ _ _____ ______
464486 98408 95444 0 6866 474316
====== ===== ====== ====== ==== =====

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 15 of 16

The Discretionary Fund for the Poor is the result of anonymous donations for the Vicar to use at his/her discretion. The Stone House fund continues to support the Youth work in the parish; in 2020 there was no Youth Worker and the increase in fund value was due to 12 months of vacancy. The Quinquennial Fund remains to support the new review report of 2020.

12. TRANSFERS BETWEEN FUNDS

General Designated Restricted Total
Funds Funds Funds
£ £ £ £

No Transfers were made.		 ----- ----- --- 0
_ ______ _____ _____
Total Raising Funds ----- ----- - 0
====== ===== ==== ====

13. ANALYSIS OF NET ASSETS BY FUNDS

Unrestricted Designated Restricted
TOTAL
TOTAL
Funds Funds Funds 2020 2019
£ £ £ £ £
Tangible Fixed Assets 1 0 0 1 1
Investments 34450 209262 0 243712 236846
Debtors due within one year 3411 451 117 3979 2570
Short Term Deposits 63342 153018 4091 220451 209379
Cash 0 0 0 0 81
Bank 13799 0 0 13799 23591
Creditors due within one year (6426) 0 (1200) (7626) (7982)
______ ______ _____ ______ ______
108577 362731 3008 474316 464486
===== ===== ==== ===== =====

14. ANALYSIS OF SUPPORT COSTS

Raising Resourcing TOTAL Raising Resourcing TOTAL
Funds Ministry 2020 Funds Ministry 2019
£ £ £ £ £ £
Parish Administrator 3699 2466 6165 4183 2788 6971
Printing & Stationery 207 1862 2069 154 1382 1536
Telephone & IT 65 588 653 67 602 669
Governance --- --- --- --- --- ---
____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____
3971 4916 8887 4404 4772 9176
==== ==== ==== ==== ==== ====

The administrator’s time is split 60% managing hall lettings and 40% resourcing ministry; equipment and materials are split 10% raising funds and 90% on resourcing ministry.

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APCM Report 2020

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST. PETER’S, MANEY

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] DECEMBER 2020

Page 16 of 16

15. DONATIONS TO CHARITIES 2020

Unrestricted
Restricted
Funds
Funds
£
£
Charitable Giving from PCC
Malawi
650
Water Aid
570
Inclusive
570
Church Urban Fund
570
YMCA
570
Cherished
570
Mothers’ Union (from Sunday Coffee)
78
__
_
3,578
=====
=====
Charitable Giving from Special Collections (including Gift Aid)
Fellowship
181
CMS (in lieu of Lent Lunches)
366
Christian Aid (in lieu of envelopes)
2435
Children’s Society (Harvest)
225
Food Bank (cash)
38
Birmingham City Mission (Quiz)
375


3,620
=====
=====
Other Charities (not in accounts)
Children’s Society boxes
Church Army (Sue Taylor’s Walk)

___
=====
=====
TOTAL
3,578
3,620
=====
=====		 Total
£
650
570
570
570
570
570
78
__
3,578
=====
181
366
2435
225
38
375
_
3,620
=====
684
1005
___
1,689
=====
8,887
=====

31

APCM Report 2020

ST. PETER’S PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL;

MEMBERSHIP FOR 2020-21

MEMBERSHIP FOR 2020-21

Sheena Heaton
(Vice Chair / Diocesan Synod)
Paul Jenner
(Churchwarden / Treasurer)
Malcolm Harley
(Churchwarden)
Peter Thorn
Neville Benyon
Owen Cain
(Deputy Churchwarden)
Eric Swindells

Tony Wells
Sonia Clucas
Michelle Holland
Solomon Salawu
Janet Harley
Naomi Johnson
John Heywood
(Diocesan Synod)
Rosemary Coombes (Deanery Synod)
Sheila Richmond
(Deanery Synod)
Suprabha Taylor
(Deanery Synod)
Ann Willis
(Deanery Synod)
Hazel Hallas
(Deputy Churchwarden)
Philip Fox
(Deputy Churchwarden)		 Year to retire/re-elect

2021
2021
2022
2022
2022
2022
2023
2023
2023
2024
2024
2021
2023
2023
2023
2023

September 2020

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APCM Report 2020

St Peter’s Church, Maney.

Summary of Office appointments and representation for the year to 2021

Vice Chairman Sheena Heaton Secretary Vacant Treasurer Paul Jenner Deputy Wardens Phil Fox, Owen Cain, Hazel Hallas Committee Chairs B&G – Becky Stephens F&S – Becky Stephens Worship & Planning – Becky Stephens Mission & Outreach - Becky Stephens Eco Maney – John Heywood Social – Sonia Clucas

Electoral Roll Officer Elena Grant Director of Music Eric Swindells Children’s Ministry Sonia Clucas Safeguarding Officer Ann Willis Children’s Advocate Sonia Clucas Vulnerable Adults Rosemary Coombes Care Team Rosemary Coombes Health and Safety Officer Solomon Salawu Christian Aid John and Frances Heywood Children’s Society Joan Bradley CMS Garth White Church Army Su Taylor Weekly Planned Giving Envelopes Hazel Hallas Bible Reading Fellowship Sheila Richmond

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APCM Report 2020

Bible Society Vacant
Church Fellowship Sheila Richmond
Cedar Group Rosemary Coombes / Phil Fox
Flower Guild Bunny Gasson
Servers Guild Lorna Scully
Sacristan Naomi Johnson
Verger Michelle Holland
Carpenter’s Arms Neville Benyon

34

APCM Report 2020

PARISH REPORTS

Churchwardens’ Report on the Church Fabric, Ornaments, Hall and Grounds, 2020-2021

This year has been difficult due to Covid19 restrictions imposed on building works and access to buildings. The latest Quinquennial Inspection was completed in late 2019. The work required was mainly outdoor pointing, minor roof and gutter repairs. PCC agreed the work and it is to be done during the spring. In addition, internal church walls are to be cleaned to remove efflorescence and check that water ingress has stopped. This will complete all the work listed in the Quinquennial Report.

A full 5 yearly electrical survey of wiring has been done on the church and hall and the report is awaited. The vestry steps, wall and handrail have been repaired following a collision by the Scouts’ minibus. In August we suffered a burglary in the Hall and office when damage was done to doors, the computer and a filing cabinet from which a small amount of cash was taken. Immediate repair was done and a new cabinet and computer bought. Data was retrieved from the cloud backup system. Insurance covered the whole cost apart from the excess.

Both horse chestnut trees which were outside the church north door have been felled due to disease. They are to be replaced as soon as practicable, probably with crab apples. Dead trees on the embankment behind the hall have also been removed.

The hall boiler failed early in the year and has been replaced. A new floor buffing machine has been purchased to enable the hall floor to be maintained more easily. A broken metal downpipe on the hall has been replaced with plastic.

Following a fire safety report, the rear fire escape door in the hall is being replaced with a larger size exit. Fire resistant doors and hatch are being fitted in the kitchen. Work will be in early spring, before hall usage increases following the lifting of lockdown restrictions. As the hall letting is seen as a big source of our income, it was felt that the hall should be supported by a Hall Management Group. This group has been set up to oversee the smooth running of the hall with regard to emergency contacts and liaison with the hall users.

Other works which will need addressing in the future include;

All the above work must be prioritised against available funding.

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APCM Report 2020

Once again, we must thank the Buildings and Grounds Committee for their hard work and dedication, without which all the above could not have been achieved.

A further group of volunteers (Church Working Party) has been meeting on the second Tuesday of each month between 9.30 and 12 noon with the objective of maintaining the Church, hall and grounds in a safe and tidy condition at a minimum cost. We would like to say thank you to all who help in this way. This year, unfortunately, numbers have dwindled and most effort has been put into maintaining Tower Walk. In addition, due to Covid-19 lockdown and movement restrictions, there have been no recent gatherings. EcoManey have now taken over the running of these sessions and hope to start again in the spring. New helpers will always be welcome so if anyone could spare an hour or two, not necessarily on a Tuesday morning, then please speak to a member of the EcoManey team.

The contents of the Church are in sound condition and are as listed in the inventory. Due to constant cleaning and disinfection necessary to keep the church available for worship, some stripping effect has been noticed on the surfaces of the pews. This will have to be addressed when church usage returns to normal. There has not been an opportunity to update the inventory this year due to very restricted guidelines for access to the church building. We have to thank the stalwart small group of volunteers who polish the brasses and silver and keep our church looking clean and tidy throughout the year. Again, if anyone can spare an hour on a Friday morning, please let us know.

Malcolm Harley Paul Jenner

Churchwardens

Report from the Parochial Church Council 2020

The Church Council met 5 times during the year 2020 - 2021. The meeting arranged for 17 March 2020 did not take place because of concerns over coronavirus and the Annual Church meetings were postponed from their original date in April until September 13[th] . Since May, all PCC and committee meetings have been held on Zoom.

An additional meeting at which the Standing Committee was delegated to take action on behalf of the PCC, took place on Sunday 23 February 2020 to deal with urgent safeguarding decisions required by the Diocese. Some decisions, such as approval of the accounts for 2019, have been taken by email.

The new Vicar Becky Stephens took up her post in March 2020 and was licensed in a service on Zoom on 1 April 2020. A celebration of her induction will take place when we are able to meet together in person.

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APCM Report 2020

There are currently 21 members of the PCC and 5 sub-committees plus the social committee. Attendance at all meetings has been very good.

Sub-committees have met regularly and provided reports to the Council. Mission, Life and Worship Committee was split into two groups on a trial basis – Mission and Outreach and Planning Worship.

In spite of taking on additional duties as Churchwarden, Paul Jenner continues to keep our finances in good order and provides excellent and informative reports. Our charitable donations for 2021 will go to Malawi, Water Aid, the Church Urban Fund, Inclusive Church, Cherished, and the local YMCA,

Sheena Heaton

Safeguarding Co-ordinator’s Report

St Peter’s church and PCC are committed to;

  1. Promoting a safer environment and culture

  2. Safely recruiting and supporting all those with any responsibility

  3. Responding promptly to every safeguarding concern or allegation

  4. Caring pastorally for victims/survivors of abuse

  5. Responding to those who may pose a present risk to others.

The Parish will create a safe and caring place for all.

A new safeguarding co-ordinator (Mrs Ann Willis) and a new Children’s Advocate (Mrs Sonia Clucas) have been appointed.

The Parish Safeguarding policy has been updated.

The co-ordinator works with the team at the Diocesan Office Support Team and refers to them for advice when necessary. The Diocesan Team produce new policies which the co-ordinator reads and assures all Volunteers are aware of.

The Co-ordinator is working to assure that all volunteers have up to date Disclosure and Barring Checks and training. This requires updating every three years. Volunteers include members of the Care Team, the Children’s Team, members of PCC, Church officers and others.

Ann Willis

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APCM Report 2020

Group Council

Although there is no formal report, the Group of Anglican Churches in Sutton Coldfield continue to meet and work together. There are plans to hold joint service and a study group in the new year.

Churches Together in Central Sutton Coldfield

Again, although there is no formal report, the churches in central Sutton have met monthly for support, encouragement and sharing of mission throughout the pandemic. At St Peter’s we have supported the Foodbank at Sutton Baptist Church throughout the year but particularly at Harvest and in Advent. My thanks to Sheena for arranging the Advent collection which was hugely welcomed.

Aston and Sutton Coldfield Deanery Synod

There have been 3 meetings via Zoom this year. At the December meeting, the Area Dean, Rev Ann Richardson, outlined the purposes of the Deanery Synod

The big issue of Climate change and specifically progress towards Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2030 is a regular item raised by our own John Heywood. It seems there are now plans in motion for a Deanery element to the Diocesan Plan for a way forward for this.

At the June meeting, Ben Franks spoke about the workings of the General Synod. Parish speakers shared their individual insights into coping strategies employed at their churches during Lockdown.

Guy Donegan Cross and Paul Lacey were the guest speakers at the most recent meeting. Guy talked about the Everyday Faith initiative (a 2yr project linking people’s home and work with church) Paul described the life and mission work of the Aston Lee Abbey Community of which he is a member. It has been a presence over the past 32 years in the Aston area, offering care and practical support to those in need from all faiths and none.

Andrew Ball, Rosemary Coombes, Sheena Heaton, John Heywood, Sheila Richmond, Sue Taylor, Ann Willis

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APCM Report 2020

Diocesan Synod

St Peter’s continues to contribute at diocese level by membership of Birmingham Anglicans for Climate Action (BACA), the Diocesan Advisory Committee and the newly formed Net Zero Energy Group. The two important issues at synod were the budget and the formation of the Bishop’s Environment Board. This year’s budget will only be balanced by the use of national funds that have to be repaid, and sale of assets. The Environment Board will oversee the gradual move of all parishes towards net zero carbon by 2030.

Sheena Heaton; John Heywood, Diocesan Synod Members.

Parish Administrator

I joined the team at St Peters on 1st October 2020, at a time when we were hopeful groups would be able to continue using the hall on the reduced attendee and enhanced cleaning rules. This unfortunately did not happen and since that time the hall has been open in a variety of ways (reduced numbers and only children’s groups) until we entered complete lockdown and all activity stopped from Christmas onwards.

Under the current roadmap our hope at the time of writing this report is that from 12th April Children’s groups will be allowed to return, then adult groups from 17th May with usual service resuming from 21st June. Unfortunately, at this point we know some of our groups won’t be returning, which is a great loss. However given our robust COVID-19 guidelines we have had a number of new enquiries from local groups. I have also created a Facebook page for the Hall, which in the coming weeks I will use to promote our activities and facilities.

There are a number of risk assessments now drafted for various opening scenarios and I have also been drafting a COSSH risk assessment and plan, to be used from when we reopen.

Ian, our Caretaker, has worked his hours flexibly to suit the different opening and usage of the hall. However, since December he has been on full Furlough. Over the next few weeks we will be working on a plan to get the hall back open.

Working with Becky on Church Services and activities we have implemented booking systems for weekly services, Carol services and the collection of items from the hall e.g. Lent and Advent packs. Weekly notice sheets have now been emailed out to maintain regular contact as well the website content being updated on a regular basis.

As this report is written, Weddings and Baptism bookings are coming in for late summer, which gives hope for things to start returning to normal. I have been working with Becky to update documents and paperwork which has changed since we have been in lockdown.

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Thanks to the cloud-based filing system, I have been able to work from home when needed and provide a more flexible cover during the lockdowns. I am currently on a flexible furlough which can change week on week to suit the needs of the Church.

Although I have not been able to meet many of you face to face or only with a mask on, I would like to take this opportunity to say Thank You for welcoming me with your kind phone calls and emails.

Even in such a difficult time it has been wonderful working with you and witnessing your community come together. This was particularly evident when I acted as steward for one of the Outdoor Carol Services. I look forward to what the next 12 months hold.

Mission, Life & Worship Committee

The committee has continued to meet regularly on Zoom. At the beginning of the year our main topic concerned the best ways of making services available on line, the pattern of our worship, and how we should support our parish community during the coronavirus pandemic, while adapting to the various changes of government policy. In this we were deeply indebted to our new Vicar, who had not been formally inducted to St Peter’s or taken a service in the church, but led us with innovative ideas and practical advice so that we were able to keep contact with as many people as possible. This was helped by the fortnightly newsletter which originated with Frances Heywood, and to which many people enjoyed contributing.

In the summer we were able to worship in church again, and the newsletter became monthly, but by September we were returning to stricter rules and were able to rely on the experience of earlier months to assist our planning. We also had time to consider other topics, in particular whether we should join Inclusive Church and demonstrate that we welcome everyone without discrimination on any grounds. We decided to divide the committee into Mission and Outreach and Worship Planning; one reason for this was the amount of work to do on all the special services from Harvest to Christmas. Mission and Outreach discussed Inclusive Church further, recommending that we apply for membership; and also noted the new Diocesan Discipleship Course and the necessity for beginning to make a Transforming Church Action Plan. Arrangements were discussed for the Virtual Christmas Market and a ‘Talking Heads’ Nativity play, and consideration was given to the YMCA’s request for a closer relationship with St Peter’s.

Most recent discussions have included arrangements for Lent with the other two churches in our group, and the subjects we would need to consider in order to fulfil our remit as members of Inclusive Church. We hope for an easing of restrictions during the summer and the changes this will mean, and we look forward to welcoming our new curate in June.

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Children’s ministry in 2020

Children’s Team: Sonia Clucas, Mo Dening, Barbara Chappell and Rosemary Combes.

We started 2020 as usual running Sunday Club each week and planning Messy Church sessions. Then came lockdown and we had to start thinking about doing things differently so we could continue to support our children and young people. Sonia kept in touch with families via Emails and post. We sent birthday cards and Easter gifts to our Sunday Club children.

Even when we were able to worship in church during the Spring, we were not able to provide the children’s corner or Sunday Club. Of course, by then we had our lovely new vicar, Becky, who was a great support and inspiration to the children’s team. We started making videos for families to watch on Facebook. These contained a Bible story, prayers and craft activity. We hope these were useful to families – we certainly enjoyed planning and making them!

From August we started “Pebbles” which was held at 12 noon on the first Sunday of each month until November. We took an Old Testament story each time and found various ways to share this including involving some families in acting out the story. There were also craft activities and prayers but sadly no songs. We were able to cater for 8 families and all was done to keep everyone safe. On Christmas Eve we held a special Christmas Pebbles session and were joined by 7 families. We were also able to go outside to see the wonderful Nativity display, hang our decorations on the Christmas tree and sing Away in a manger.

Becky provided Christingle bags for adults and children and this was another way of supporting families. Sonia has continued to send out the Roots materials to families as well as a few suggestions for home learning.

It was great to see many of our young people taking part in the Talking heads Nativity as well as other services. They are such an important part of our church family and we are so proud of them.

Before lockdown some of the team attended the Messy Church hub meeting at St John’s Walmley and Sonia also joined the Zoom meeting during lockdown. We have met together many times on Zoom to plan our activities. Thanks to the wonderful team and support and inspiration from Becky the children’s work has continued during this difficult year.

Sonia Clucas

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Music at Maney in 2020

It has been gratifying to see how the friendship across the choir has resulted in members keeping in touch with one another in the difficult and challenging times we have encountered. Although we have not been able to meet and sing together the music at St. Peter’s has not been neglected. The highlight of the year was being able to lead the singing during the Communal Carols in the church grounds at Christmas. Hymns for services have been chosen from the online library created by the choristers and organists of St. Martin’s in the Field to match up with the liturgy and readings for the day. Organ music, sometimes with soloists from the choir, has been recorded in church for inclusion in filmed services broadcast on Facebook. Their help is greatly appreciated and acknowledged.

The band has not been able to play in church due to Covid rules governing positioning of performing musicians. However, Owen has made some delightful recordings at home, sometimes with the assistance of Naomi singing from her home. As a result there is now a very good library of music for use in services. It has been a great pleasure to hear them on Facebook on Sunday mornings. Many grateful thanks to Owen for this splendid work.

As I type this report – actually on the day we await the road map for relaxation of the recent Covid lockdown – I look forward to all our choristers and musicians getting back into harness again, leading St. Peter’s congregations in live services in church. As we do move forward may I remind everyone that we have only a small dedicated and loyal group of choristers and would very much like to have people who like to sing join. Attendance at every service and rehearsal is not expected. Both adults and children will be welcome and the children will be paid.

Eric Swindells Director of Music.

Care Team

The Care Team continues to show the love and care of God through its network of support. We offer phone calls, texts, emails, letters and practical help where possible to members of the congregation and community. This has been of even greater importance in maintaining links during the pandemic where face to face contact has not been possible.

Gill and Tony Wood moved down south during the year and Gill resigned from her role within the team. Sadly, Tony has since died. Gill retains her links with many individuals and continues to offer valuable support from a distance.

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Two Zoom meetings were held in July and January to review ongoing needs. Safeguarding Training will be arranged to ensure every member of the team is updated as soon as this is possible.

Under the chairship of Becky, the rest of the team comprises Anne Ball, Rosemary Coombes, Mo Dening, Elena Grant, David Griffiths, Sheila Richmond, Jean Walford, Christine White and Ann Willis. The help of many church members who regularly contact others is gratefully acknowledged. Please contact any of us if you know of members of the congregation who are unwell or need assistance so we can be in touch, if desired.

Thanks to all for their valuable contributions.

Rosemary Coombes Tel: 354 9676 rosemary.coombes1@gmail.com

Elena Grant Tel 240 8204 elegra@blueyonder.co.uk

Anne Ball Tel 243 1948 anneball@virgin.net

Social committee 2020

Committee: Janet Harley, Ruth Dineley, Sonia Clucas, Frances Heywood, Sue Griffiths, Fiona Baker and Simon Baker.

Much of what was planned for 2020 had to be cancelled, postponed or adapted. At the beginning of the year, we were busy planning a celebration to welcome Becky to St Peter’s.

This is still on hold. One day we will have a party!!

Some activities did go ahead including two very enjoyable Zoom quizzes organised by Simon. As well as having a lot of fun we were able to raise money for Birmingham City Mission and the Robinson family (Mission workers in Thailand).

Frances has been wonderful keeping the church family in touch through the newsletters and many people have contributed to these. There was also the wonderful “Talking Heads Nativity” which showed an amazing array of talents from people of all ages. This was written by Ro Evershed from an idea by Anne Ball.

The outdoor Nativity scene was a great success. John Heywood and family constructed and decorated a wonderful background and scenery to display Sonia’s knitted figures. Passers by as well as church families really appreciated this and it was an opportunity to share the Christmas story even when we were not able to do this in the church building. It was great that the local community contributed to the lovely Christmas lights which lit up the church grounds.

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Many people have worked hard to keep in touch and show care to others during the year. We would especially like to mention our own “Captain Tom”, Sue Taylor, who raised £1,005 for the Church Army Marylebone project by walking round her garden in the grimmest weather of October – December. Truly wonderful!

Becky has kept us in touch using Zoom for coffee times and Songs of Praise. I’m sure we have all learned a lot about technology this year. We look forward to having more times together in person later this year.

Sonia Clucas

Eco Maney

Despite lockdown restrictions imposed by the pandemic, Eco Maney continued its work within St Peter’s, the Deanery and local faith groups. Led by Ann Richardson (Area Dean), we contributed to plans for reducing church carbon emissions in the deanery. We continued encouraging other Anglican churches to join Eco Church and worked with local faith groups to spread an ecological message. A Climate Sunday presentation and Creationtide Newsletter contained ideas for further reducing St Peter’s carbon footprint and an explanation of the C of E’s national programme to reduce the church’s carbon emissions. We highlighted the importance of purchasing Fairtrade and Traidcraft items and made plans for Fairtrade Fortnight in February 2021.

John Heywood, Sheena Heaton, Sue Fenoughty, Anne Ball, Jim McAvan, Andrew Ball.

Cedar Group

Our last meeting of the Cedar Group was in February 2020. During the lockdown, we have kept in contact with members via phone calls, birthday cards, notes, letters and the occasional face to face chance encounter.

Sadly two of our members: Olive and Bill, have died during the year and they are fondly remembered.

We miss the companionship, informal chat, cuppa, cake and Phil’s excellent quizzes. We hope to be able to see each other again before too long.

Movita Dening, Rosemary Coombes

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Church Mission Society

We have continued to receive regular e-mails and quarterly newsletters from our partner, Dr Nicci Maxwell, in Uganda. If you would like to have sight of these please let me know (351 7338).

As with most of us, 2020 turned out very differently from how Nicci had planned. She had hoped to visit her mother, in South Africa, for a couple of weeks before flying back to the UK for a much needed holiday and tour of her partner churches. Well, she enjoyed the holiday - six months in S Africa (!) trapped by swift border closures due to the pandemic.

Finally, Nicci returned to Kisoro, Uganda, on 4th December, where she was very warmly welcomed by all the staff at Potter's Village Medical Centre, as there had been no doctor on site during her absence. Perhaps fortunately, there had been fewer patients than usual due, in part, to fears of Covid, but more to severe economic hardship caused by lockdown, complete absence of tourism and an extremely poor harvest.

Please continue to pray for Nicci and the whole team. Perhaps we may meet her, at last, in 2021! Garth White

Christian Aid

2020 was a year like no other in the history of Christian Aid collecting at St Peter’s, for, as the spread of Covid19 gathered pace and Government regulations grew tighter, it became clear that the usual door-to-door street collection would be out of the question. This was in some ways a huge relief: no need to recruit collectors, count out envelopes, go out and brave the public or do any of the usual tasks. And for collectors, a happy year off. Wonderful! But then came the thought, ‘What about those in need across the world?’ The money is so desperately needed, how are we going to raise it? Well we didn’t raise it all. Even when the people who gave direct to Christian Aid and so were not included in our total are taken into account, we were probably well short of the previous year’s best-ever total of £3,000. But it seemed to us still another St Peter’s miracle. Naomi raised extra by selling her crafts. Sheila Richmond dropped envelopes into the homes of her neighbours in College Hill and had good returns. And for the rest, we asked the congregation in a note to give as usual, with a bit extra if they were able to. The total was a magnificent £1,757 (with gift aid £2,175). A big thank you to Paul for the processing involved, and the biggest thank you of all to everyone who gave. For 2021 it will have to be something similar. Let’s hope we can do even better.

And what of the Charity itself?

Covid had a serious impact on Christian Aid in this country. They had to furlough staff and make others redundant. But they have been using the time to reflect hard on the way they do things in

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the light of the world-wide Black Lives Matter campaign, and reconsider their relations with the people with whom they work. In the meantime, in the world, over-all poverty is expected to have increased for the first time since 1998. The impact of the pandemic on the poorest people is reversing past gains. We have heard this directly from our missionary links in Thailand and Uganda. There is much to do, even to keep existing programmes going, and whether they are about education, water supplies and sanitation, health care or being able to grow enough food to survive they are vital to give our neighbours a chance.

As the charity says in its most recent report: ‘Christianity underpins our core values.’ So it does ours. Thank you everyone for putting this into practice.

Frances and John Heywood

Church Army Report

The Church Army works amongst the homeless, those who self-harm, with youth centres, school children, elderly care and often take the message of Christ to comfort the broken-hearted. Unfortunately in 2020 we were not able to hold our usual cake sale in the church hall as we were unable to get together for refreshments after the service. We were also unable to sing carols in Tesco which are usually appreciated by staff and customers alike every festive season. One of our guest singers, Lydia, who regularly comes to join our festive fundraising came up with the idea of a sponsored walk/run from Nazareth to Bethlehem which is approximately 90 miles. We split the distance between us. She jogged 60 miles over six weeks and I walked 30 miles over the same period doing laps of my garden. Thanks to the generosity of the congregation of St. Peters and other friends and family members we raised £1005 for the Church Army’s Marylebone Project which supports homeless and vulnerable women. Rev Steve Hollinghurst has expressed his thanks to everyone for their generous support on behalf of the Church Army. We hope and pray that this year we will be able to hold our usual fundraising events.

Sue Taylor

Carpenter’s Arms Community Centre

We would like to thank St Peter’s Church for its support over nearly twenty years and advise that the responsibility for the Carpenter’s Arms Community Centre in Boldmere has now been transferred from Sutton Central Churches Trust to the Parish of St Nicholas Roman Catholic Church.

The change was necessary because it was no longer possible to maintain the Trust in its original form and satisfy the regulatory requirements set out in the original trust Deed. The formal

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process required the Surrender of the Lease and Dissolution and Deregistration of the Trust. These were legally assisted processes and took over six months to complete.

Our difficulties began during recent years as Trustees left for various reasons and despite our efforts to recruit replacements from the volunteers who were part of the original group and our source of continuity, this, unfortunately, could not be achieved. Following a meeting early in 2020 with some of the original founding members of the Trust it was agreed that the Carpenter’s Arms had succeeded in its original aims and fulfilled its mission to: “show the Love of Jesus through service in the community.”

It is hoped that once the present issues associated with the Pandemic and Lockdown have eased the Centre will resume its vibrant presence for the people and community it serves.

NB

Committee for St Peter’s Church Branch:

Branch Leader: Sonia Clucas Treasurer: Janet Harley

Secretary: Ann Willis Committee member: Barbara Chappell

The theme for 2020 was “Building hope and confidence”. We have all certainly needed that during the past 12 months!

At the beginning of the year none of us realised what the full impact of the pandemic would be. So, we planned as usual for a full 12 months of meetings, projects and activities. In January we had a visit from Deirdre Moll, Birmingham MU Diocesan President. Deirdre introduced our theme for the year. Also in January, we met at Eric’s home for the Wave of Prayer to pray for our MU Links around the world. Then in February we held our AGM. This is always a great opportunity to review the past year and look forward too.

We had planned a joint meeting with the Church Fellowship during Lent but that was when things changed and we had to cancel. It was very sad that we were not able to provide the daffodils for Mothering Sunday as usual.

During lockdown the Birmingham Members’ Meetings have been held on Zoom and it was good to hear from members across the city. Information from Mary Sumner House and Birmingham MU has been passed on to members by Email or post. Members have also kept in touch by phone.

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We attended 3 baptisms during the year and gave cards and teddies. Cards and diaries were ordered from MU for members and we provided some colouring cards for the Epiphany bags. Membership remains steady but we will miss Gill Wood who moved home during the year. There are also some members who have been in poor health. We continue to pray for the work at St Peter’s as well as the many MU projects around the world.

Sonia Clucas

Church Fellowship

On February 25[th] 2020, as it was Shrove Tuesday, we enjoyed an afternoon of fun with a Pancake Party and Beetle Drive. At the time we were discussing future events, such as where we should go for our outing in May; but a month later we were in lockdown, with everything put on hold, including our fund raising for Macular Degeneration and the Leprosy Mission. We had hoped to start a new season in September 2020, but here we are a year later, hoping to begin in September 2021, and to use some of the plans we had already made. During the year we have kept in touch with each other, but have been saddened by the death of one of our newest members, Olive Parry, and the serious illness of Molly Cooper, who had volunteered to join the committee. Like the MU and the Cedar Group, we look forward to the time when we can worship together, and when Tuesday afternoons are once again a time for renewing our friendships in the family of St Peter’s Church and welcoming new members into our fellowship.

Sheila Richmond

7th Sutton Coldfield Scout Group Report 2020/21

As with any organisation the last twelve months have been unimaginably strange for everyone connected with the 7th Sutton Coldfield Scout Group. However, the good news is that we are still active and have continued to provide Scouting for all of our sections: Beavers (6 to 8), Cubs (8 to 10½) and Scouts (10½ to 14½).

We have not been able to hold face-to-face meetings between any members of the Group (including leaders) since March last year, but we have made good use of technology to keep things going. Initially we provided weekly YouTube videos for Cubs and were then able to move to weekly Zoom meetings for Beavers and Cubs from May half-term. It proved to be more challenging for Leaders to dedicate the time and energy for regular Scout meetings but

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we provided periodic activities for the Troop during the year. All three sections have been enjoying regular Zoom meetings since Christmas.

It is understandable that the lack of face-to-face meetings has taken its toll on numbers. Online meetings are not for everyone and we completely appreciate that some families have had higher priorities to deal with. Therefore, I am very pleased that we have managed to maintain 51 young people on our books, although this is a drop from 65 in the year before. We have managed to deliver a varied programme through the online activities. This has included indoor and outdoor camping at home, outdoor challenges, cooking (with the mess in the parents kitchen rather than the church hall), craft, quizzes, moments of reflection and lots of games. We were proud to help the Church on Remembrance Sunday by providing some pre-recorded prayers and readings.

Many of our members have also taken advantage of a ‘Badges at Home’ scheme to earn a whole host of activity badges during the period. We will have a mass awards ceremony when we get back together.

Our members have also enjoyed activities and challenges provided by the County and District Teams of the Scout Association. This has included Faiths for Fun, badge weekends, hike challenges and fund raising opportunities to support families in need across Birmingham.

We continue to be well supported by a dedicated team of talented leaders, all of whom have found the time and energy to support the Group despite having all of the other family, work and health challenges that have affected so many since the start of the pandemic. My thanks go to Julie Ellis, Eileen Lyndon, Josh Holmes, Dave Archer, Lorna Scully, and our team of young leaders; Abbie, Megan and Katie for their tireless enthusiasm. I would also like to express my thanks to Andy Worship who has left the Group having served with distinction for the last few years as Scout Leader.

Finally, I would like to thank the Parents of our Members, everyone at St Peter’s and, most of all, our Beavers, Cubs and Scouts for the continued support throughout the year.

Mark Ellis Group Scout Leader

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