BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH
ANNUAL REPORT
AND
STATEMENT OF ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
COMPANY REGISTRATION No: 07886329 CHARITY REGISTRATION No: 1145615
Independent Examiners Ltd
2 Broadridge Business Centre Delling Lane Bosham
West Sussex PO18 8NF
BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH
(A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
CONTENTS
Page 3 Legal & Administrative Information.
Pages 4 to 12 Report of the Directors.
Page 13 Independent Examiner's Report on the Accounts.
Page 14 Statement of Financial Activities.
Page 15 Balance Sheet.
Pages 16 to 21 Notes to the Financial Statements.
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
CHARITY NUMBER: 1145615
COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 07886329
DATE OF INCORPORATION: 19[th] December 2011
START OF FINANCIAL YEAR: 1st January 2023
END OF FINANCIAL YEAR: 31st December 2023
DIRECTORS: Angela Farmer, Timothy Paul Spencer, Madeline Bird (formerly Thomson), Jessica Livingstone
CHURCH LEADER Tom Callister
GOVERNING DOCUMENT Memorandum and Articles of Association Incorporated 19th December 2011.
OBJECTS
To advance the Christian religion either in the United Kingdom or overseas and furtherance of that objective:
a) The proclamation and furtherance of the Gospel of God concerning his son Jesus Christ our Lord and the preaching and teaching of the Word of God.
b) The organisation, sponsorship and promotion of interdenominational Christian work throughout the United Kingdom and elsewhere the object of which of which shall be:
i. To seek to present the Gospel to every creature by every means possible and lead men and women and children to saving faith by our Lord Jesus Christ and help and encourage them in the service of God. ii. To promote, organise and conduct meetings for this purpose.
WEBSITE : www.blesscc.org
REGISTERED ADDRESS: Grove Mews, 42 The Grove, Ealing, London, W5 5LH
BANKERS: Barclays Bank plc, 53 The Broadway, Ealing, London, W5 5JS
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER: Independent Examiners Ltd, 2 Broadbridge Business Centre, Delling Lane, Bosham, West Sussex
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Bless Community Church
Annual Report of the Trustees 2023
Overview
Bless Community Church is a charismatic community church in West London and part of the Pioneer Network. The church has a vision to live up to its name and Bless the City. The church encourages people to embrace the love shown through the person of Jesus and endeavour to equip people for Christian life in the 21st Century.
It seeks to follow Jesus by sharing the gospel, worshipping, serving, learning, and sharing life together. The church is deeply involved in our local community, often taking a leading role in ecumenical inter-church activities and also within the Pioneer Network and Pioneer London Region.
Bless meets in person at Christ the Saviour Church of England Primary School in the heart of Ealing but also now have an online presence. For more information or to contact us go to www.blesscc.org.
Structure, governance and management
Bless Community Church (Bless) is a charitable company (no: 07886329) under Memorandum and Articles of Association dated 23[rd ] October 2011 and a registered charity (no: 1145615).
Trustees normally serve for three years after which they can put themselves forward for reappointment by the board of trustees for two further terms. New trustees are recruited from Bless members by interview. The induction and training of trustees is set out in the Trustee Agreement and will vary according to the needs of the individual trustee. In addition, training is provided for specific areas such as safeguarding, GDPR and other legal changes.
The day-to-day work of Bless is delegated to the staff led by the Church Leader and assisted by many church members acting in a voluntary capacity. The trustees make decisions needed between the quarterly trustees’ meetings by extra meetings, usually telephone conferences.
The trustees and leadership are aware of the major risks to which the charity is exposed. They review the financial position at each meeting of trustees and take action accordingly. They continue to develop policies and procedures to manage risk and use risk map analysis for review and action, reviewing this annually. They updated our Safeguarding Policies in April 2022 alongside which we updated our Safeguarding Statement which can be found on our website https://blesscc.org/safeguarding. Our Social Media policy and an additional statement are found on our website. https://blesscc.org/social-media-statement
Bless is a part of the Pioneer Network and of the Evangelical Alliance. Bless also plays a significant role in the interdenominational activities of churches in West London both in leadership and through the service of Bless members.
Public Benefit
The trustees consider that the work of the charity continues to comply with S4 of the Charities Act 2006. It Is considered that the following summary of our activities demonstrates their public benefit.
Bless Community Church is a Christian Church that is part of and active in the local community. They hold meetings of worship, prayer, proclamation, encouragement and teaching the good news of Jesus Christ both in person and online. They proclaim the gospel together with other churches. They provide training courses and special events. They run groups and activities for children, youth and adults both within the church and open to anyone in the community. They are actively involved in serving the community with other churches through
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Ealing Street Pastors, the Churches’ Winter Night Shelters in Ealing, and Ealing Foodbank, youth work and through other local charities and organisations. They support the work of specific organisations, other churches and those working in line with our objects both locally and internationally. They support church members in short- and long-term Christian work overseas. Many visitors, both Christian and non-Christian, attend Bless church services and social events. All the activities described above, and others are carried out on an unpaid voluntary basis by church members with support from a team of part-time staff. They also encourage individual public service by our members which includes service on other charity boards, magistrates, school governors and prison workers.
Bless ensures that the public can benefit not only from community service activities but also by participating in church services and many other activities. Most activities are open to all irrespective of race, colour, origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age or disability. A few are restricted to one sex or age group by virtue of the subject matter or to specific groups as they provide training, for example for potential leaders or specific roles within the church. Accessibility to activities includes physical accessibility and the use of accessible venues wherever possible. By meeting at ‘Christ the Saviour’ Church of England Primary School on Sundays the church is visible to people who might not otherwise be aware of the charity, and all visitors are warmly welcomed. By choosing to meet in the school the church also contributes into the funds of the school through rent. Most activities are free although there is a fee for a few activities, such as church weekends; however, the church ensures that activities are accessible to all wherever possible through subsidies.
Objects and Activities
Objects
Bless’s objects are to advance Christianity in the UK or overseas by proclaiming and furthering the gospel of Jesus Christ and promoting interdenominational Christian work. The church seeks to bless others of any or no faith and to live out Jesus’ command to ‘love God with all our heart and soul and mind, and to love our neighbours as we love ourselves’.
Spiritual Leadership
The Church Leader Tom Callister was commissioned into his new role on 7[th] January 2023, and has regularly met with a leadership team throughout the year. They guide the spiritual direction of the church and act as the organising body for Bless activities.
The leadership team have continued to draw from the Leader of Pioneer International for ‘outside oversight’, meeting him three times during the year, including individual feedback opportunities for each leader, to ensure the health of the team, and their ability to speak candidly about any concerns they might have.
The leadership team also drew from the Bless ‘Advisers’ group, meeting three times in 2023, for discussion and feedback in key vision areas of Church life, including the Church’s mission, Funding / resource development, the development of Children and Families work, and other strategic topics.
The leadership team has begun discussions with three individuals about exploring senior leadership within the Church going forward. The plan for 2024 is that they would join the leadership team meetings once a month, to help expose them to that level of leadership experience, to gauge capacity, calling and team dynamics, before discerning together whether their involvement should be made permanent in 2025.
More widely, most church members are also volunteers. They share the work of the church whether in setting up the hall; welcoming visitors or managing the sound desk on a Sunday; leading or helping with the children’s and youth work; teaching; helping lead worship; leading groups; providing hospitality; serving the community; or in one of many other tasks or roles without our gatherings and community.
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Meetings
The church continues to have Sunday teaching which is designed to help us understand the practical aspects of being a Christian as well as developing our understanding of God through the Bible. Our teaching is accessible on the Bless website at www.blesscc.org and on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=bless+community+church for anyone who wishes to hear it.
Bless also operate with mid-week Connect groups which enable members to share together, to encourage and support each other to grow in Jesus and serve him. The church runs weekly and occasional prayer meetings. Bless continues with a hybrid of face to face and online access, although encouragement to attend in person is now featured, to get the most out of being community together whenever possible.
Achievements and Performance
The aims for 2023 progressed as follows:
Church Overview
2023 was a year of significant growth for Bless Community Church.
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During 2023 the Church saw more visitors each week and new people joining.
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The Church is delighted to have seen a continued rise in the number of new international households that have joined, continuing to make the Church far more diverse and multicultural in its make up.
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On average at the end of 2023 there were around 60 people in person each week with another 5 or so devices live on YouTube.
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The charity also saw early fruits from a newly devised Children and Families ‘5 Year Plan’ seeing the Children’s work more than double in attendance, and far more engagement from ‘fringe’ families on Sundays, along with the birth of several babies within the Church, all playing their part in transforming the feel of our gatherings as a ‘family Church’.
Leadership team and Governance
2023 was a year for consolidation and small but significant adjustments with a new Church leader (Tom Callister) in place after over 25 years of the previous incumbent (Linda Ward) in the role.
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The leader of Pioneer International met with the Bless leadership team throughout 2023 to provide input and support (see spiritual leadership report above).
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In relation to the trustees, (Madeline Bird (formerly Thomson) (chair), Angela Farmer, Jessica Livingstone and Timothy Paul Spencer) continued to closely monitor finances and worked through a rolling programme of compliance review of policies and procedures. In particular, whilst celebrating the work of the Basement project, we identified this as a significant safeguarding risk and requested a separate policy be written and adhered to. This was achieved by the end of 2023. A new regular report format was welcomed - enabling a much more streamlined production for annual report achievements. A 4% Cost of Living rise for our staff was agreed and implemented in 2024, and it was agreed to work towards recognition of Tom Callister’s leadership and development to be reflected in a grade and salary uplift in 2025, when he will have been in post for 2 years.
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The staff continued to manage expenditure and reduce costs where possible due to the challenging financial position supported by the trustees.
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Embracing God
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The Church continued to develop and grow diverse ways for people to encounter God together both through large gatherings, small groups, and virtual opportunities.
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Teaching for Sundays was planned a term ahead by the leadership team and they introduced several new meeting leaders and speakers to the team.
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‘Bless Little ones’ continued as a great resource for our youngest children on Sunday mornings, and ‘Bless Kids’ was re-established for older children as a weekly resource for families. A new monthly ‘Praise Party’ for children was started, and the Church saw an increase in the frequency of ‘Messy Church’ Sunday meetings, which has seen a large increase in families from the community coming to Bless, often from Playtime and other family ministries, for the first time.
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The Children and Families pastor continued to meet parents on a one- to-one basis each week, and has established two new support groups for parents – Playtime Plus for parents of kids aged 1+ and a ‘New Mum’s group’ for brand new parents.
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The leadership team appointed a new volunteer ‘Worship Team’ Leader. They have developed new team meetings, resources, and encouraged attendance at external training opportunities. They also organised a creative away day for members of the Church in Hampton Wick, which was well attended and featured teaching from an expert in this field.
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‘Bless Young Adults’ (20-30s) group ran a monthly gathering called ‘Spirit filled lives’ which included a meal together, a talk from a member of the community to encourage a more holistic spiritual walk, and prayer opportunities.
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Bless hosted an ‘Away Day’ in January for Bless and invited fellow local Pioneer Churches ‘Latymer’ and ‘Refresh Church Molesey’ to join us, as we started the new year. We had a guest speaker who joined the churches to bring teaching that day.
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The Church have continued to develop monthly ‘Embrace’ evenings. The vision of Embrace is to bring the Church into a prophetic encounter with God through worship, prayer and the impartation of the Holy Spirit.
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Occasional Encounter Prayer sessions continued online with 6 – 10 people at each event and included those from other churches.
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The monthly prayer calendar continued to be used by many Church members.
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Bless developed a series of Podcasts to further equip and encourage the Church in its Christian teaching and understanding of the Bible.
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The Church also trialled a new form of Church worship called ‘Wild Church’ helping people engage with God through the outdoors, and nature. This has had a couple of trial sessions so far.
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Bless participated in a unity service with various Anglican Churches on Pentecost Sunday, contributing in the worship, teaching and prayer as a Church.
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In September Bless held a very special Celebration afternoon of Baptisms at which 3 young adults were baptised, which was attended by around 50 people.
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Equipping the Church
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The ‘Bless You’ course - for newer attendees at Bless – was adapted from four sessions previously, to one condensed evening, which seemed to work well, especially for busy working adults.
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Connect groups, the business group, 20s to 30s, youth group and children and families’ groups continued to do an excellent job at helping people connect and care for one another.
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The Church helped equip people wanting to explore Mission and Evangelism, with a ‘Evangelism Training Day’, which was attended by 24 people, with outside input.
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The teenagers continued to enjoy weekly sessions on a Wednesday with the youth team, looking at issues impacting them. Each young person continued to receive monthly sessions with a mentor too.
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One of the young people began a part time internship at Bless in September, with a focus on administration, technical development, and youth work. This internship was voluntary and unpaid. The intern has been provided with a mentor, line manager, and external training, provided by DNA.
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A new support group for creatives in the Church called ‘The Space’ was formed - and which met 4 times in 2023. This space helped encourage artists, writers, songwriters, poets, actors and musicians to creatively develop their gifts, and culminated in a private ‘concert’ for friends and family of new material written and presented.
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A new ‘Village People’ group for adults exploring having families, providing them with a space for discussion, support and advice was formed.
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The Church hosted a thank you ‘cheese and wine’ event in the summer to recognise, thank and celebrate all those who make Bless the community it is, with their volunteering and service.
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Members of the leadership team have strategically mentored some young leaders, as they further consider Church Leadership.
Blessing the City
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The Alpha course continued as a regular opportunity for people to explore faith and the big questions of life. Alpha ran twice in 2023 – in the Spring and Autumn. These courses were held in person, the autumn one at a new coffee shop managed by a member of Bless. The Autumn course was well attended and several of the cohort on the course have joined Bless as a result.
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The Church hosted a community ‘Coronation’ party with bouncy castle, face painting, free food, drink and music for the local community which was well attended.
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The Parent and Toddler group ‘Playtime’ continues to thrive. The group regularly has attracted up to 40 families a week. We have a strong team led by paid staff and assisted by volunteers.
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Alongside ‘Playtime’, a ‘Playtime Plus’ group has been formed - for parents looking to explore ‘faith, family and friendship’ – a small group with a manned creche and discussion space for parents to receive support from one another.
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An ever-increasing number of Playtime families attended “Messy Church” services. This was due in no small part to the hard work and relationships built by the Playtime team.
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Bless’s youth leader, continued to visit Ealing Fields Secondary school with the church’s intern, and began facilitating a weekly Alpha course there for students.
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Bless served weekly alongside other local Churches to facilitate the ‘Winter Night Shelter’ in the winter months of 2023.
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The Church held a special Family BBQ on Sunday 4[th ] June, which was attended by around 75 people, including lots of our ‘fringe’ who we don’t see very often. It was regarded as a fantastic Church family event.
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The ‘Basement’ youth café has continued to draw young people to its weekly sessions, with significant connections and contact made with over 200 teenagers in 2023. The charity successfully received further funding from the Young Ealing foundation and a Christian donor who donated £10k to the project which has helped pay for a lot of the activities run there.
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The ‘Basement’ young people were invited to a special Fireworks, Dinner, and Games night at Haven Green Baptist Church, which was attended by over 80 young people, and this was followed up with an invitation to our Christmas Carol Service, where over 20 young people attended Church for the first time in their lives.
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The Christmas services – ‘Messy Christmas’ and ‘Christingle’ for families, and our annual ‘Carol Service’, were attended in total by over 250 people, many of whom were guests new to Church and to Bless. Bless also connected with a local community gospel choir ‘Sing Gospel’ to help us lead the Carol Service. The Christmas events were a real highlight of the year and helped the Church engage more significantly with the local community.
Training Opportunities
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A large group from the Church attended the Annual Pioneer Leadership Conference in Southampton in the Spring. This conference encourages spiritual development, networking, and is regarded as a time of retreat and refreshing for leaders, both paid and volunteers. Over 12 Bless members attended.
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The leadership team attended a one-day conference run by Saint and KXC Churches on revival / awakening within the UK and Churches in the USA, which is helping to shape how we ‘host the Holy Spirit’ in our meetings and encourage freedom in worship.
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A couple of our leaders were invited to a Pioneer Retreat for young leaders, whilst members of the leadership team were invited to a ‘Team Leaders’ retreat’ for Pioneer Church leaders.
West London Leaders
- Bless helped facilitate over 50 local church leaders meet regularly together with other local stakeholders (including the Police and Council) to discuss and potentially develop new local resources in various areas – with focuses on ‘The Police’, ‘Youthwork’ and two discussions on ‘Mental Health and well-being’, led by experts in their field.
Pioneer London Leaders’ Gatherings
- Regular Church Leader gatherings were re-instigated, helping Pioneer Church leaders to gather for networking, support, prayer and strategic planning for the region.
Financial review
Reserves policy – We review our policy each year to ensure that our reserves will always cover the costs of all obligations if we had to close. Currently this figure is £20,664
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Funding sources – Almost all our income is given by members and increased with Gift Aid. Most of this is given monthly. We also had a vision offering for the work of the church which in 2023 raised £13,851. Our Income excluding Grants dropped by £5,372.
We received the following grants: Pathways £10,849 Young Ealing Fund £5,000 Just Sow £10,000
Expenditure - The largest single item of expenditure is on salaries and external contractors, followed by hall hire. Please see our financial statement for details. The annual budget, including all giving, is recommended by the Church Leader after consultation with the Leadership Team and approved by the trustees. We continue to keep a careful control on our expenditure and in 2023 our Income exceeded our expenditure by £3,455.
Plans for 2024
In addition to the ongoing work of the charity, the church have the following plans for 2024:
Church Overview
The leadership is keen to keep a focus on all three strands of our vision: Embracing God, Equipping the Church, and Blessing the City.
Overall, Bless is passionate about seeing the Church grow both spiritually in depth and numerically with new members. To achieve this, there will be a review of structural factors including – venue (do our venues remain fit for purpose – could the Church have more of a visible ‘home’?), how does the Church grow its income (through better discipleship and looking at charitable funding grants), and staffing (how does the Church run its operations?) in 2024 onwards.
Leadership team and Governance
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The Church is exploring widening our leadership team with three exceptional candidates meeting with the existing team to explore their leadership calling.
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The Trustees hope to recruit a new trustee and to ensure that as a charity it remains compliant, safe and holds to the objects of the charity. The trustees and leadership will continue to manage the expenditure and reduce costs where possible due to the challenging financial position.
Embrace God
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Bless are also planning a Weekend Away for the Church for January 2024, at Alexandra House near Swindon, with special guest speakers who head up Pioneer UK and Fusion. This will be in conjunction with Latymer and Refresh Churches from the Pioneer Network.
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The leadership want to ‘sharpen’ and ‘polish’ Sunday Morning gatherings – making sure communication, teaching and the ‘newcomer experience’ are the very best they possibly can be.
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The Church is keen to continue to develop a powerhouse culture of prayer.
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The Worship Team are keen to explore ideas of worship song writing and a possible ‘worship recording’ (album) to encourage creativity from our songwriters and musicians.
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The Church has a committed group of people skilled in the prophetic. They are hoping to train and equip others in the prophetic, and offer regular prophetic appointments in 2024.
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Equip the Church
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There is a need to create at least two new Connect Groups to add capacity for those wanting to join midweek discipleship groups.
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The leadership would like to continue to invest in the next generation of leaders, with a new ‘Women’s Learning Community’ and mentoring for key young leaders in 2024.
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The leadership are planning a special teaching series called ‘The Life Course’ which will feature in Sunday and Connect Group Teaching – around fully living for God in today’s culture.
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There is a desire to support creatives through ‘The Space’ and see what might emerge in terms of new creative projects and work.
Bless the City
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Bless are keen to find new ways of connecting with the community – with community events in consideration including a summer BBQ with fun activities.
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The Basement Youth Club is thriving. The charity is keen to build stronger relationships with those teens who are regular, and is planning a number of overt faith sharing events, and are exploring the idea of a residential with the teenagers too.
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Our youth worker is also helping to coordinate Borough Wide Youth Work initiatives across the Churches in 2024, which may well include worship gatherings for young people, and more outreach events.
West London Leaders
- Bless continues to lead and influence the Unity movements of ‘West London Leaders’ and ‘Pioneer London’.
Other Developments
- The charity is looking to explore buildings for a missional base for the Church to help the church be more accessible (particularly midweek) to our community.
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS (continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
STATEMENT OF DIRECTOR'S RESPONSIBILITIES
The Charities Act and the Companies Act require the Board of Directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity as at the end of the financial year and of the surplus or deficit of the charity. In preparing those financial statements the Board is required to :-
i. select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
ii. make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
iii. prepare financial statements on a going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the company will continue in business;
iv. state whether applicable accounting standards and statements of recommended practice have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements.
The directors are also responsible for maintaining adequate accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and which are sufficient to show and explain the charity's transactions and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006 and comply with regulations made under the Charities Act. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
The directors are also responsible for the contents of the Report of the Directors, and the responsibility of the independent examiner in relation to the Report of the Directors is limited to examining the report and ensuring that, on the face of the report, there are no inconsistencies with the figures disclosed in the financial statements.
These accounts have been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime.
I approve the attached statement of financial activities and balance sheet for the period ended 31st December 2023, and confirm that I have made available all information necessary for its preparation.
Approved by the Directors on : 15 August 2024
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Signed on their behalf by Director :
Print Name: M Thomson
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT ON THE ACCOUNTS
I report to the charity trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Company for the year ended 31 December 2023.
RESPONSIBILITIES AND BASIS OF REPORT
As the charity’s trustees of the Company (who are also the directors of the company for the purposes of company law), you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 (“the 2006 Act”).
Having satisfied myself that the accounts of the Company are not required to be audited for this year under Part 16 of the 2006 Act and are eligible for independent examination, I report in respect of my examination of your charity’s accounts as carried out under section 145 of the Charities Act 2011 (“the 2011 Act”). In carrying out my examination, I have followed the Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S STATEMENT
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention which gives me cause to believe that:
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accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 386 of the Companies Act 2006; or
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the accounts do not accord with such records; or
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the accounts do not comply with relevant accounting requirements under section 396 of the Companies
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Act 2006 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; or
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the accounts have not been prepared in accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS102).
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.
K Gomes MAAT FCIE Independent Examiners Ltd
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2 Broadbridge Business Centre Signed : Delling Lane Bosham West Sussex Date: 15.8.24 PO18 8NF
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
(Incorporating Income & Expenditure Account)
| Note INCOME Income from: Donations and Legacies 3a Charitable Activities 3b Other Income 3c TOTAL INCOME EXPENDITURE Expenditure on: Charitable Activities 4a TOTAL EXPENDITURE NET INCOME/ EXPENDITURE Transfers between Funds Funds Brought Forward TOTAL FUNDS CARRIED FORWARD |
Unrestricted Designated Restricted TOTAL TOTAL Funds Funds Funds 2023 2022 £ £ £ £ £ 121,904 13,576 2,636 138,116 158,857 73 2,689 38,047 40,809 13,126 29 - - 29 6 |
|---|---|
| 122,006 16,265 40,683 178,954 171,989 |
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| 128,744 12,916 33,839 175,499 166,504 |
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| 128,744 12,916 33,839 175,499 166,504 |
|
| (6,738) 3,349 6,844 3,455 5,485 - - - - - 52,465 842 6,619 59,926 54,441 |
|
| 45,727 4,191 13,463 63,381 59,926 |
Movements on all reserves and all recognised gains and losses are shown above. All of the organisation's operations are classed as continuing.
The notes on pages 16 to 21 form part of these financial statements.
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH
(A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31ST DECEMBER 2023
| Note Fixed Assets Tangible Assets 2 Current Assets Debtors & Prepayments 8 Cash at Bank and in Hand 7 Total Current Assets 9 NET CURRENT ASSETS NET ASSETS Funds of the Charity General Funds Designated Funds 6 Restricted Funds 5 Total Funds TOTAL ASSETSless current liabilities Creditors:amounts falling due within one year |
Restated Unrestricted Designated Restricted 31-Dec-23 31-Dec-22 Funds Funds Funds Total Total £ £ £ £ £ 2,964 - - 2,964 3,952 |
|---|---|
| 2,964 - - 2,964 3,952 27,699 - - 27,699 8,705 37,667 4,191 13,463 55,321 53,825 |
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| 65,366 4,191 13,463 83,020 62,529 |
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| (22,603) - - (22,603) (6,555) |
|
| 42,763 4,191 13,463 60,417 55,975 |
|
| 45,727 4,191 13,463 63,381 59,926 |
|
| 45,727 4,191 13,463 63,381 59,926 |
|
| 45,727 - - 45,727 52,465 - 4,191 - 4,191 842 - - 13,463 13,463 6,619 |
|
| 45,727 4,191 13,463 63,381 59,926 |
Directors' Responsibilities:
For the financial year ending 31 December 23 the charity was entitled to exemption from audit under section 477 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies.
- The members have not required the charity to obtain an audit of its accounts for the year in question in accordance with section 476; and
• The directors acknowledge their responsibilities for complying with the requirements of the Act with respect to accounting records and the preparation of accounts.
These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the special provisions relating to companies subject to the small companies regime within Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006.
The financial statements on pages 14 to 21 were approved by the trustees, and authorised for issue and signed on their behalf by:
Approved by the Directors on : 15 August 2024
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Signed on their behalf by Director :
Print Name: M Thomson
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH
(A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Basis of Preparation
The financial statements have been prepared on a historical cost basis of accounting in accordance with Charities Act 2011, Statement of Recommended Practice "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" (SORP 2015), applicable accounting standards and Companies Act 2006. The accounts are prepared on an ongoing concern basis. The church meets the public benefit entity definition (FRS102). Restatement was not required in making the transition to FRS102. The date of transition was 1st January 2015.
Advantage has been taken of Section 396(5) of The Companies Act 2006 to allow the format of the financial statements to be adapted to reflect the special nature of the charity's operation and in order to comply with the requirements of the SORP.
The company has taken advantage of the exemption in Financial Reporting Standard No 1 from the requirement to produce a cash flow statement.
Changes in Accounting Policies and Previous Accounts
There has been no change to the accounting policies since last year and no changes in the previous accounts.
Incoming Resources
Recognition of Incoming Resources
These are included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) when:
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the charity becomes entitled to the resources;
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the Directors are virtually certain they will receive the resources; and
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the monetary value can be measured with sufficient reliability.
Incoming Resources with Related Expenditure
Where incoming resources have related expenditure (as with fundraising or contract income) the incoming resource and related expenditure are reported gross in the SOFA.
Grants and Donations
Grants and Donations are only included in the SOFA when the charity has unconditional entitlement to the resources.
Tax Reclaims on Donations and Gifts
Incoming resources from tax reclaims are included in the SOFA in the same financial period as the gift to which they relate.
Contractual Income and Performance Related Grants
This is only included in the SOFA once the related goods or services has been delivered.
Gifts in Kind
Gifts in kind are accounted for at a reasonable estimate of their value to the charity or the amount actually realised. Gifts in kind for sale or distribution are included in the accounts as gifts only when sold or distributed by the charity. Gifts in kind for use by the charity are included in the SOFA as incoming resources when received.
Donated Services and Facilities
These are only included in incoming resources (with an equivalent amount in resources expended) where the benefit to the charity is reasonably quantifiable, measurable and material. The value placed on these resources is the estimated value to the charity of the service or facility received.
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)
Incoming Resources (continued)
Volunteer Help
The value of any voluntary help received is not included in the accounts but is described in the Report of the Directors.
Expenditure and Liabilities
Liability Recognition
Liabilities are recognised as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to pay out resources.
Governance Costs
Governance Costs include costs of the preparation and examination of statutory accounts, the costs of the Directors' meetings and cost of any legal advice to directors on governance or constitutional matters.
Grants with Performance Conditions
Where the charity gives a grant with conditions for its payment being a specific level of service or output to be provided, such grants are only recognised in the SOFA once the recipient of the grant has provided the specified service or output.
Assets
Fixed Assets
These are capitalised if they can be used for more than one year, and cost at least £500. They are valued at cost or, if gifted, at the value to the charity on receipt.
Depreciation is calculated at a rate to write off the cost of tangible fixed assets on a reducing balance over their estimated useful lives. The rates applied per annum are as follows:
| Computer | & Audio Equipment | 25% | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2. TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS | Unrestricted | Total | |
| Computer & Audio Equipment | |||
| £ | £ | ||
| Cost | 01-Jan-22 | 17,315 | 17,315 |
| Additions | - | - | |
| Disposals | - | - | |
| Cost at | 31-Dec-23 | 17,315 | 17,315 |
| Depreciation | 01-Jan-22 | 13,363 | 13,363 |
| Disposals | - | - | |
| Charge | 988 | 988 | |
| Depreciation at | 31-Dec-23 | 14,351 | 14,351 |
| Net Book Value | 31-Dec-23 | 2,964 | 2,964 |
| Net Book Value | 31-Dec-22 | 3,952 | 3,952 |
There are no commitments under non-cancelling operating leases and capital commitments (2022: None)
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
3. INCOME
| 3. INCOME | 3. INCOME | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted | Designated | Restricted | TOTAL | TOTAL | |
| Funds | Funds | Funds | 2023 | 2022 | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| a) Donations and Legacies | |||||
| Gifts & Donations | 79,287 | 13,576 | 500 | 93,363 | 121,024 |
| Gift Aid | 21,425 | - | 2,136 | 23,561 | 24,322 |
| Faith Target Income | 21,192 | 21,192 | 13,511 | ||
| 121,904 | 13,576 | 2,636 | 138,116 | 158,857 | |
| b) Income from other Charitable Activities | |||||
| Events Income | 73 | 2,689 | 2,240 | 5,002 | 13,126 |
| Grants | - | - | 35,807 | 35,807 | - |
| 73 | 2,689 | 38,047 | 40,809 | 13,126 | |
| Miscellaneous | 29 | - | 29 | 6 | |
| 29 | - | - | 29 | 6 | |
| 4. EXPENSES | |||||
| Unrestricted | Designated | Restricted | TOTAL | TOTAL | |
| Funds | Funds | Funds | 2023 | 2022 | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| a) Expenditure on Charitable Activities | |||||
| Bank Charges & Interest | 277 | - | - | 277 | 191 |
| Children/Youth/Students Outreach | 2,305 | 564 | 6,296 | 9,165 | 4,570 |
| Church Giving | - | 10,593 | 11,909 | 22,502 | 25,563 |
| Depreciation | 988 | - | - | 988 | 1,439 |
| Events | 6,204 | 1,119 | 2,397 | 9,720 | 15,226 |
| Hall Hire | 12,764 | - | 920 | 13,684 | 10,698 |
| Hospitality | 1,350 | - | - | 1,350 | 1,642 |
| Independent Examiners Fee | 1,056 | - | - | 1,056 | 1,153 |
| Insurance | 748 | - | - | 748 | 739 |
| Loss on disposal of asset | - | - | - | - | 367 |
| Miscellaneous | 606 | - | - | 606 | 650 |
| Office | 1,452 | - | - | 1,452 | 3,858 |
| PA/Music | 642 | - | - | 642 | 561 |
| Payroll Expenses | 94,861 | - | 11,183 | 106,044 | 93,322 |
| Publicity | 1,707 | - | - | 1,707 | 1,367 |
| Speakers | 120 | - | - | 120 | 520 |
| Telephone | 43 | - | - | 43 | 422 |
| Training | 2,975 | 640 | 1,053 | 4,668 | 3,279 |
| Travel | 646 | - | 81 | 727 | 936 |
| 128,744 | 12,916 | 33,839 | 175,499 | 166,504 |
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
5. RESTRICTED FUNDS
| Away Day 2023 Bursary Fund Youth Work Grant - Just Sow Ten Wedding Pathways DNA/Training Youth Ealing Fund Special Needs Basement Youth Café Gift -Linda Ward |
Balance Balance 01-Jan-22 Income Expenditure Transfers 31-Dec-23 £ £ £ £ £ - 2,081 2,081 - - 235 - - - 235 - 10,160 4,566 - 5,594 37 - 37 - - (312) 300 - (12) 2,491 10,849 10,931 - 2,409 - 1,825 976 - 849 - 5,000 612 - 4,388 959 9,604 10,563 - - 2,764 - 2,764 - - 445 864 1,309 - - |
|---|---|
| 6,619 40,683 33,839 - 13,463 |
The restricted funds are wholly represented by the Charity's cash reserves.
6. DESIGNATED FUNDS
| Bless Time church meetings Church Giving Faith Sharing Workshop Creative Day Pioneer events Playtime West London Leaders Youth Summer Camp |
Balance Balance 01-Jan-22 Income Expenditure Transfers 31-Dec-23 £ £ £ £ £ - 512 512 - - 27 13,576 10,593 - 3,010 - 82 82 - - - 67 67 - - 40 756 640 - 156 629 814 564 - 879 - 458 458 - - 146 - - - 146 |
|---|---|
| 842 16,265 12,916 - 4,191 |
The designated funds are wholly represented by the Charity's cash reserves. Church Giving - The church allocates 10% of unrestricted voluntary receipts for this purpose.
| 7. CASH AT BANK AND IN HAND Current Account |
Restated Unrestricted Designated Restricted Total Total Fund Fund Fund 31-Dec-23 31-Dec-22 £ £ £ £ £ 37,667 4,191 13,463 55,321 53,825 |
|---|---|
| 37,667 4,191 13,463 55,321 53,825 |
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
8. DEBTORS AND PREPAYMENTS
| Prepayments Other Debtors |
Unrestricted Designated Restricted Total Total Fund Fund Fund 31-Dec-23 31-Dec-22 £ £ £ £ £ 14,289 - - 14,289 3,101 13,410 - - 13,410 5,604 |
|---|---|
| 27,699 - - 27,699 8,705 |
9. CREDITORS AND ACCRUALS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR
| Accounts Payable Accruals and Prepaid Income Payroll Liabilities |
Unrestricted Designated Restricted Total Total Fund Fund Fund 31-Dec-23 31-Dec-22 £ £ £ £ £ 185 - - 185 367 22,415 22,415 6,022 3 - - 3 165 |
|---|---|
| 22,603 - - 22,603 6,555 |
10. CREDITORS AND ACCRUALS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE IN MORE THAN ONE YEAR
There were no Creditors or Accruals falling due in more than one year during this financial year (2022: None).
11. STAFF COSTS AND NUMBERS
| Gross Wages and Salaries Employer's National Insurance Costs Pension Other |
2023 £ 103,506 - 1,295 1,243 106,044 |
2022 £ 90,959 - 985 1,378 |
|---|---|---|
| 93,322 |
| Employees who were engaged in each of the following activities: (Full time equivalent ) 2023 TOTAL Activities in furtherance of organisation's objects 2 Management and administration 0.4 Total 2.4 |
2022 TOTAL 1.8 0.3 |
|---|---|
| 2 |
No employees (2022: None) received emoluments in excess of £60,000. Staff are paid through the PAYE system.
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BLESS COMMUNITY CHURCH (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE)
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2023
12. DIRECTORS AND OTHER RELATED PARTIES
No payments were made to directors or any persons connected with them during this financial period. No material transaction took place between the organisation and a trustee or any person connected with them.
Donations received from the trustees and related parties during the year were £13,895(2022: £12,772)
13. RISK ASSESSMENT
The directors actively review the major risks which the charity faces on a regular basis and believe that maintaining the free reserves stated, combined with the annual review of the controls over key financial systems carried out on an annual basis will provide sufficient resources in the event of adverse conditions. The directors have also examined other operational and business risks which they face and confirm that they have established systems to mitigate the significant risks.
14. RESERVES POLICY
See Report of the Directors.
15. PUBLIC BENEFIT
See Report of the Directors .
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