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St Bride’s Church, Old Trafford
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Annual Report 2020 ## St Bride’s Church, Old Trafford Annual Parochial Church Meeting **Sunday 18th April 2021 at 1 pm** Our Annual Church Meeting is an opportunity to deal with the business of the church, to discuss issues that are concerned with our community life, and to think creatively about our future as we follow God’s leading. Inside this booklet are reports on the activities of the church, which I ask you to read, and so be able to come to the meeting with well prepared questions and ideas for discussion. Thank you for all that you have done and contributed during this past year, but, most of all, thank you for being part of the family here at St Bride’s. _“Be ready for whatever comes, dressed for action and with your lamps lit, like servants who are waiting for their master to come back from a wedding feast. When he comes and knocks, they will open the door at once.” – Luke 12: 35-36 (GNB)_ ## St Bride’s Church St Bride’s Way, Old Trafford, Manchester, M16 9NW. Parish Office: 0161-226 3047 Email: admin@stbrides.uk ## Priest in Charge: Rev. Peter Matthews St Bride’s Rectory, 33, Shrewsbury Street, Old Trafford, Manchester, M16 9BB. Tel: 0161-226 1251 Email: peter@stbrides.uk ## Ordained Local Minister: Rev. Viv Eccles c/o St Bride’s Parish Office, St. Bride’s Way, Old Trafford, Manchester, M16 9NW. Tel: 0161-226 3047 Email: vivme@btconnect.com ## Churchwardens 2020/2021: (vacant) ## Parochial Church Council Secretary 2020/2021 Graham Cooper, 119, Northumberland Road, Old Trafford, Manchester, M16 9PY. Tel: 0161-872 4140 Email: graham@stbrides.uk ## Bankers: Royal Bank of Scotland, Drummond House Branch, 1 Redhaughs Avenue, EDINBURGH, EH12 9JN. ## Independent Examiner: Mr. John Holdsworth B.A., F.C.C.A., C.Ed. The Parochial Church Council is registered charity no. 1146679 2 St Bride’s Church ## Contents |Rector’s Introduction|4| |---|---| |Agenda For Annual Meetings|6| |Annual Meeting of Parishioners Minutes|7| |Annual Parochial Church Meeting Minutes|8| |Electoral Roll Offcer Report|9| |Secretary to the PCC Report|10| |Safeguarding Report|11| |Parish Policy On Safeguarding Children|12| |Parish Policy On Safeguarding Adults|13| |Fabric Report|14| |Treasurer Report|16| |Other Events And Gatherings|23| |St Bride’s Youth|24| |St Bride’s Kids|26| |St Bride’s Project|27| |The Big Breakfast|30| |Bizzy B’s|33| |Church Weekend Away at Scargill|34| 3 Annual Report 2020 ## Rector’s Introduction The year 2020 will not be easily forgotten as we began it with news of a strange disease making its way around the world causing governments to begin bringing in certain controls, and even lockdowns. It was no real surprise to find ourselves also brought to a shutdown with places of worship unable to hold services in their buildings. In March, after the church weekend away which, due to a new and persistent cough I was unable to go on, we began to stream Sunday worship services on our St Bride’s Old Trafford Youtube channel. We made the decision to be as live as possible while other churches chose to pre-record aspects, and some all, of their services. We felt that resources were already out there which church members could access and we wanted to be gathered in time, if not in the same physical space, and use the chat function to build one another up and encourage the whole church. People from outside our normal catchment, but who predominantly have links to our church community, began to see us as their online church. As we were able to have limited numbers return for worship in the building from the Summer we formed an Admin Team to organise us and with the Steward Team have held Sunday Services both online and onsite, with the latter ending in communion. Video chat (mostly using Zoom) became the main way to meet for small midweek groups, prayer meetings, occasional events and now and then Bizzy B’s. A pastoral team was put together to make sure that people were made contact with, especially those with health issues or were isolated. Naturally people found this whole situation difficult and a number began to disconnect, with some then finding their way to link with other churches and then others realising that this was going to last more than a few weeks and in beginning to learn that these technological ways of being community were better than nothing, and in some cases had aspects that were more beneficial than how things were pre-covid-19 (the disease in question), they connected back in to St Bride’s. Online messaging services like WhatsApp have become more important to ministry and it’s been wonderful to see the prayerful care and concern people have shown each other especially in times of crisis and loss. Beginning with the Wednesday evening meeting, and now becoming a whole church concern, it was felt that we should support St Moses in Uganda as they were (are) struggling far more through this time than us and we desire to help our brothers and sisters in Christ and those in dire need. To re-deepen our relationship with them has been an encouragement and blessing to us. Seeing the photos and videos sent to us to show that our giving has made a real difference has made even me quite emotional at times! We don’t know how 2021 will be but hopefully we will have learnt to be more prayerful and have become more attentive to the voice of our Good Shepherd and to know how better to follow his guidance. Thank you all for your godly persistence, for your encouragement to those who have struggled at times and for your prayers, practical help and involvement. We have all, myself included, had dark days and times of struggle so the fact that you are still with us and part of the family of this small church here in the heart of Old Trafford is fantastic - and know that you are valued and appreciated. Do please read the rest of this report and let us continue together in the ministry and mission that God has called us to, running the race that he has set before us. God bless you in the name of Jesus, ## **Rev Peter Matthews, Rector of St Bride’s** 4 & Annual Report 2020 ## Agenda For Annual Meetings **18th April 2021** ## Meeting of Parishioners (Open to everyone on the Electoral Roll plus all Local Government Electors in the Parish) 1 Prayer - 2 Apologies for absence - 3 Minutes of the meeting held on 31st October, 2020 These minutes were approved by the PCC on 26th November, 2020 - 4 Election of 2 Churchwardens for 2021/2022 Churchwardens are PCC members ex officio. ## Annual Parochial Church Meeting (Open to everyone on the Electoral Roll of the Church. Non-voting observers are welcome.) - 1 Apologies for absence - 2 Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting held on 31st October, 2020 These minutes were approved by the PCC on 26th November, 2020 - 3 Identification of issues for discussion at the APCM or future PCC meetings Anyone on the Electoral Roll may suggest an item for discussion, but PLEASE be sure to let Peter Matthews or Graham Cooper have notice of the item by Tuesday, 13th April, 2021. - 4.1 Report of Rector - 4.2 Report of Electoral Roll Officer - 4.3 Report from PCC - 4.4 Report from Deanery Synod (Nothing to report) - 4.5 Report of Parish Safeguarding Officer - 4.6 Parish Policy on Safeguarding Children 4.7 Parish Policy on Safeguarding Adults - 4.8 Fabric Report - 5.1 Report of Treasurer and Presentation of Accounts for 2020 - 5.2 Budget for 2021 - 5.3 Independent Examiner for 2021 - 6.1 Report of Small Groups - 6.2 Report of St Bride’s Youth - 6.3 Report of St Bride’s Kids - 6.4 Report of St Bride’s Project - 6.5 Report of Big Breakfast - 6.6 Report of Bizzy B’s - 6.7 Report on Church Weekend Away at Scargill - 7 Election of 2 Deanery Synod Representatives (for 2 years) - 8 Election of 6 Members of the Parochial Church Council Subject to drawing lots for 3 places for 3 years, 1 place for 2 years, and 2 places for 1 year - 9 Issues for discussion at the APCM (as identified above) - 10 Praying for the work of the church 6 St Bride’s Church ## Annual Meeting Of Parishioners Minutes **31st October 2020** ## In Attendance: Angela Cooper, Graham Cooper (minutes), Susanna Hewitt, Chara Hosie, Douglas Matthews, Penny Matthews, Rev. Peter Matthews (chair), John Myring, Linda Penrose, M-J Sharp, Jennifer Williams. ## Apologies were received from: Alison Bell, Rachel Dean, Rob Eccles, Rev. Vivien Eccles, Clare Myring, Rebecca Rank, Lynda Sterling. - 1 Rev. Peter Matthews opened the meeting with a reading from Philippians 3: 12-14, followed by prayer. - 2 The minutes of the meeting held on 14th April, 2019, which had been approved by the - 3 Parochial Church Council on 13th May, 2019, were approved. There were no nominations for candidates for election as churchwardens for the year 2020/2021. 7 Annual Report 2020 ## Annual Parochial Church Meeting Minutes **31st October 2020** ## In Attendance: Angela Cooper, Graham Cooper (minutes), Catherine Fyfe, Scott Hewitt, Susanna Hewitt, Chara Hosie, Douglas Matthews, Penny Matthews, Rev. Peter Matthews (chair), John Myring, Linda Penrose, M-J Sharp, Jennifer Williams. ## Apologies were received from: - 1 Apologies were received from: Alison Bell, Rachel Dean, Rob Eccles, Rev. Vivien Eccles, Clare Myring, Rebecca Rank, Lynda Sterling. - 2 The minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting held on 14th April 2019, which had been approved by the Parochial Church Council on 13th May 2019, were approved. - 3 No items for discussion had been notified in advance to the chair or to the secretary. Officers’ Reports - 4.1 Rev. Peter Matthews read the Policy Statement on Children, Young People and the Church of St Bride’s, Old Trafford, which with the appointment of Angela Cooper as safeguarding officer, was approved by the PCC on 13th May 2019. - 4.2 Rev. Peter Matthews read the Church’s Policy on Safeguarding of Adults in the Church, which was approved by the PCC on 13th May 2019. He expressed his thanks to Angela Cooper for her work behind the scenes. - 4.3 The reports of the Electoral Roll Officer, the Secretary to the PCC, the Deanery Synod Representative, and the Safeguarding Officer were received. - 4.4 John Myring presented the Fabric Report adding that the redecoration of the worship space had now been completed with better quality paint, and the floor mended, but there was still a leak over the emergency staircase, on which he and Peter Matthews were taking professional advice in the hope that it might be repaired under the terms of the builder’s indemnity contract. ## Finance - 5 John Myring presented the annual financial report adding that during the Covid-19 pandemic church members’ financial support had been largely maintained leading to an expectation of a small surplus at the end of 2020, and he proposed the reception of the report and the appointment of John Holdsworth as Independent Examiner for the forthcoming year. - Proposed by John Myring, seconded by Angela Cooper, carried unanimously. ## Reports of Activities - 6 The reports on Prayer Ministry, Small Groups, St Bride’s Youth, Bizzy B’s, the Destitution Project, the Big Breakfast, and St Bride’s Kids were received. Elections - 7 There were no candidates nominated for the 2 vacancies to represent the church with the clergy on Stretford Deanery Synod for 3 years. (It was noted that in 2021 the deanery was to be amalgamated with 2 other deaneries, but with the same representation from parishes as currently.) - 8 The following 6 lay people were elected to sit on the Parochial Church Council for 1, 2 or 3 years according to lots drawn leaving 4 vacancies: Kwami Ankra, Douglas Matthews, John Myring, Linda Penrose, Fred Waters - 9 There were no items requested for discussion. - 10 Church members joined in prayer. 8 St Bride’s Church ## Electoral Roll Officer Report In 2017 a new Electoral Roll was compiled. In each subsequent years the Electoral Roll has been revised. At the time of the last Annual Parochial Church Meeting on 31st October, 2020, the Electoral Roll recorded 63 names. Since that time there have been no names added or removed from the Roll. The Electoral Roll on 21st March, 2021, recorded 63 names. Demographic Composition of the Electoral Roll on 21st March, 2021. The figures for the Roll on 14th April, 2019, appear in brackets below. 17 (12) people live in St. Bride’s parish 27% (22%) 46 (41) people live outside St. Bride’s parish 73% (78%) 40 (32) people live in Old Trafford 63.5% (64%) 23 (21) people live outside Old Trafford 36.5% (36%) Of the people living outside Old Trafford 17 (15) live very close to the boundary of Old Trafford. **Graham Cooper, Electoral Roll Officer** 9 Annual Report 2020 ## Secretary to the PCC Report - 1 At the beginning of 2020 the elected members of the P.C.C. were Alison Bell, Angela Cooper, (Deanery Synod representative), Graham Cooper (Secretary), Robert Eccles, David Henningham, Sam Marriott, Douglas Matthews, Clare Myring (Vice-Chair), John Myring (Treasurer), and Linda Penrose. Rev. Peter Matthews (Chair) and Rev. Viv Eccles were members by virtue of their office as clergy. There were no churchwardens. - 2 Because of restrictions imposed from March, 2020, by the Covid-19 pandemic the A.P.C.M. was delayed until 31st October, 2020, and was held as a virtual meeting by Zoom, when the following people were elected to positions on the P.C.C. for the number of years shown in brackets: Kwami Ankrah (3), Douglas Matthews (1), John Myring (2), Linda Penrose (3), and Fred Waters (1) leaving 4 unfilled vacancies, and 2 unfilled vacancies for Deanery Synod representatives. Rev. Peter Matthews (chair) continued as chair by virtue of his office as rector. No-one was elected as a churchwarden. Rev. Viv Eccles’ status as a member of the clergy changed because of her age, and she was no longer eligible for a seat on the P.C.C. by virtue of her office. - 3 The P.C.C. co-opted Graham Cooper, and appointed for the year: Linda Penrose-vice-chair; John Myring-treasurer; Graham Cooper-secretary and electoral roll officer. - 4 The P.C.C. met on 6 occasions. The last 4 meetings were virtual meetings by Zoom because of the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, and only the last meeting in 2020 was a meeting of the newly elected P.C.C. The Standing Committee met between P.C.C. meetings to deal with urgent business and to agree the next P.C.C. agenda. - 5 The P.C.C. complied with the duty under section 5 of the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016 (duty to have regard to the House of Bishops ‘ guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults). - 6 Each meeting included prayer and usually a Bible reading, routine reports on finance, safeguarding, children, youth, maintenances of the building with health and safety, and concluded with a review of how the meeting had gone. 7 The P.C.C. responded to a diocesan consultation on proposed new large area deaneries. In the proposal Old Trafford would be part of a deanery extending from Flixton to Fallowfield and from Wythenshawe to St. Ann’s Square in the centre of Manchester. Another diocesan consultation concerned new mission districts comprising several parishes: the draft proposal was for a mission district comprising All Saints and St. Matthew’s Churches, Stretford, St. Hilda’s Church, Firswood and Gorse Hill, and St. Bride’s and St. John the Evangelist’s Churches in Old Trafford. - 8 Other business considered by the P.C.C. included a giving policy, the week-end away, the mission action plan, and most notably responding to the restrictions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The church was organised for socially distanced attendance, services were live-streamed, and meetings were held by Zoom. ## **Graham Cooper, Secretary** 10 St Bride’s Church ## Safeguarding Report ## Responsibilities The Church of England is committed to the protection of all children and adults, especially those who may be vulnerable, for example due to illness or disability. St Bride’s has adopted safeguarding policies which should be reviewed at the A.P.C.M each year. The policies help us to create a safe environment for both children and vulnerable people. They are designed to ensure that volunteers are better prepared to respond to suspicion or allegation of abuse whether the alleged abuse is outside or within the church; also, that the risk be reduced of someone using a position in the church to exploit a person. Safe recruitment and training procedures are in place to enable high standards of care. ## No-one should drift into helping Any vacancies in should be advertised with a job description. Volunteers need to make a ‘Confidential Declaration’ regarding their suitability to be involved in the area of work. The volunteer is required to make a paper application and references will be taken up. There needs to be an interview and if the person appears to be suitable for the role an application can be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service. The Safeguarding Officer is informed of anything that would make the person unsuitable for the role. The volunteer is then required to take complete on-line training prior to taking on their new role. The Diocese provides training throughout the Diocese which the volunteer is required to attend. A record of agreement is signed, and they receive a copy of our ‘Good Practice’ guidelines. ## Support Working as teams and offering encouragement and constructive criticism is the best safeguard against poor morale and slipping standards. The support of our youth and children’s workers with prayer is the collective responsibility of the church. ## Risks If the church does not strive to adhere to the policy, the church’s insurance company may refuse to deal with a claim by a child that he or she has been harmed by the negligence of someone acting on behalf of the church. By their hiring agreement the Arabic Church undertakes to follow our child protection policy. ## Practicalities It has proved difficult to practically help those wanting to take up posts on PCC to manage the technology involved in applying for a DBS certificate and completing the mandatory on-line training. Hopefully as restrictions ease it will become easier to assist those who are keen to serve in this way. The Children’s and Vulnerable Adult’s Safeguarding Policies are on display in the narthex as required by the Diocese. The church website includes Safeguarding information. The Safeguarding Officer’s photograph and contact telephone number are on display in the Narthex (also required by the Diocese). A copy of the Diocesan Safeguarding Policy is available on the bookshelf against the office wall in the church foyer where anyone can access it if they so wish. ## **Angela Cooper, Parish Safeguarding Officer** 11 Annual Report 2020 ## Parish Policy On Safeguarding Children This statement was agreed at the Parochial Church Council meeting held on 8th May 2017. It will be read at the Annual General Meeting held in the month of April each year where progress in carrying it out will be monitored. Children and young people are part of our church. They have much to give as well as to receive. We will listen to them. As we nurture them in worship, learning, and community life, we will take into account the wishes and feelings of children and young people. - As members of this church, we commit ourselves to the nurturing, protection, and safekeeping of all, especially children and young people. - It is the responsibility of each one of us to prevent, or to prevent the continuation of, any physical, sexual, and emotional abuse of children and young people of which we become aware, and to report any abuse discovered or suspected. - We recognize that our work with children and young people is the responsibility of the whole church. - Our church is committed to following the policy and procedures published by the Diocese. - The parish will adopt good practice guidelines. - Each worker with children and young people must undertake Diocesan Safeguarding Training, know the guidelines and undertake to observe them. Each shall be given a copy of the Parish’s agreed procedures and good practice guidelines. As part of our commitment to children and young people, the P.C.C. has appointed Angela Cooper to be the Parish Safeguarding Officer from April 2018. 12 St Bride’s Church ## Parish Policy On Safeguarding Adults This policy will be reviewed each year to monitor the progress which has been achieved. - 1 We recognize that everyone has different levels of vulnerability and that each of us may be regarded as vulnerable at some time in our lives. - 2 As members of this parish we commit ourselves to respectful pastoral care for all adults to whom we minister. - 3 We commit ourselves to the safeguarding of people who may be vulnerable, ensuring their wellbeing in the life of this church. - 4 We commit ourselves to promoting safe practice by those in positions of trust. - 5 The parish commits itself to promoting the inclusion and empowerment of people who may be vulnerable. - 6 It is the responsibility of each of us to prevent the physical, emotional, sexual, financial and spiritual abuse of vulnerable people and to report any such abuse that we discover or suspect. - 7 We undertake to exercise proper care in the appointment and selection of those who will work with people who may be vulnerable. - 8 The parish is committed to supporting, resourcing, training and regularly reviewing those who undertake work amongst people who may be vulnerable. - 9 The parish adopts the guidelines of the Church of England and the Diocese. - 10 Each person who works with vulnerable people will agree to abide by these recommendations and the guidelines established by this church. 13 Annual Report 2020 ## Fabric Report ## Outside space Big thank you to those who have made sure it is clean and tidy in our church garden and car park with a special thanks to Fred Waters and Simon Dean who have made sure the bins have been put out when they should have, that the weeds have been kept back, the lawn mown and pretty much anything that has been needed to be done. ## Inside space ## Decorating: The damage from the water coming from the roof into the worship space and back stairwell was sorted and redecorated and refloored. We have made sure the roof is regularly cleared of debris but the back stairs is still getting water coming in as there is a problem with the roof itself which is being looked into. ## Kitchen: The extraction system was cleared, netting put on to stop any more pigeons getting inside and the whole of that and the kitchen deep cleaned. ## Fire alarm and emergency lighting: These have been regularly checked on contract and some of the emergency lights required new batteries. Boiler: The boiler has been serviced and the heating set up correctly for use with underfloor heating in a way that should require very little adjustment. ## Signage and work for being COVID-19 secure: Temporary signs have been placed around the site indicating directions of travel, sanitation procedures and other info as well as some semi-permanent signs like direction stickers and paint on the floor and ground. Thank you to John and Clare Myring for all the time and effort they have put into making sure so much of this work has been achieved throughout this difficult year. 14 Annual Report 2020 St Brides's Old Trafford Treasurers Report for Year to 31st December 2020 It is with a sigh of relief that, despite all that has happened, lor not, in the case of Church activltiesl, l am able to report that 2020 has proved to be a 5ati5factory year for the Church's finances. Overall there was a surplus of £8.800. with the majofity of this due to the impact of activities of the Destitution Project. It is 8ood to note that the General Fund has a small surplus of £2.200. continuin8 to maintain the level of funds here at a satisfactory level, and enabling the implementatlon of the PCC policy of making donations to other organisations. The Destitution Project had an overall surplus of £6,000, mainly reflectin8 the reimbursement of previous years, Running Costs from the British Red Cross. Geneml Fund The General Fund is where the day to day Income and Expenditure of keepingthe Church running is recorded. In 2020 our income exceeded our running Costs by £2.200. a reductlon on the surplus of £5,9LKI in 2019. Overall income reduced by £1,3￿ (3%). which In the circumstances was very encouraging. Regular giving and the related redaimed Gift Aid rose by a small margin, and we are to give thanks that the majority of the congregation were able to continue thelr re8ular 8iving throughout the year. With the curtailment of the activities of both the Bi8 Bieakfast and Busy Bees Income from their use of the buildin8 was down in the year. As we move into another year of Lockdown and econornic challenge5 we all need to be aware of the impact thi5 will have on the Church's incorne stream in the forthcoming year. An increase of £2,300 in expenditure is primarily due to increases in expenditure in maintenance, and thi5 is a trend that is likely to continue in coming year5. With the surplus we managed to increase the level of the General Fund to £19,9(K) at the year end. leavin8 the General Fund in a satisfactory position. although the challenges of the current ¢risi5 and its impart on finances are still slightly unknown. Income In the year of £44,817) is slightly lowerthan the previous year. The overall level of Regular Giving and related Gift Aid increased slightly year-on-year as individual members circumstances chan8ed, and again the number 8ivin8 re8ularly has tncreased in the year. Income from the use of the building was lower a5 the restrittions on its Use were Implemented. Donations and Fundraising were both lower, emphasizing the neèd to continue to focus on increa5in8 the regular giving to ensure we maintain a satisfactory financial position. Expenditure in the year of £42,6(X) is 6% hi8her than in 2019. The major item of expenditure is the Parish Share. paid to the Diocese, which Is a contribution towards their costs of providing us wwth our incumbent. This year it was £17,71XI, reflectin8 the small Inttease in line with our agreement with the Diocese. The costs of running the building ' have, as anticipated, increased by £2,1(K). Maintenance costs have increased significantly as the re8ular maintenance programme is started to be implemented. but the￿ were savings with the Cleaning contrart being suspended during the Building closure. Cler8V costs were lower with less activrties and the retirement of our Curate during the year. I St Bride's Church am pleased to report that we were able to give small donations to activitles wlth whSth the church has a connettlon in the year, whith we hope and Pray will have an Impact on the work that they do. The proposed Budget for 2021 reflects the impact of known and anticipated redurtion5 In giving from members of the Church, together with a lower income from the use of the Church building as we have to anticipate that artlvitle5 will continue to be curtailed for some months. Expenditure will be higher. with the increase in Parish sha￿ and provlsion for increasin8 Costs of maintenance. Work will continue in controlling running costs. but it is to be expected that there will be a deficlt in the year, funded out of the reserves. Designated Funds Overall these showed a surplus in the year, a very changed picture from previous years. but as usual this statement doesn't reflect fully the blessings and challenges in a number of areas: _ Youth and Children's Work - Following the chan8es to the work with our Youth and Children, running t05ts have been slgnfficantly lower than previous years. We continue to be blessed that the financial support of this work has continued, and we were able to ensure that all the young people who wanted to go to the Church Weekend away in early 2020 were able to do so. Destitution Project- the Pandemic meant that by April the entire way the project was n changed. Instead of receivin8 3 hot meal and a weekly food parcel the Clients could only attend every two weeks and were supported by increased cash donations, mostly funded by the Red Cross. We were blessed by two Community Grants. totallng £8.300 from Trafford Housing Trust which enabled us to provide a little more money on top of that provided by the Red Cross. As the accounts show the running costs increased by almost 50% over the previous year and the re-imbursement from the Red Cross was more than double the prevlou5 years. Wewere also blessed that ourfriends In the Big Breakfast who usually met monthly in the building and contribute their surplus income to the projert, moved online and continued to support the Projett with various Fundraising activities so that the fundraisin8 income was only 14% lower than the previous year. Unfortunately. due to the Global demands on their resources, British Red Cross had to reduce the funding available to their projects and the level of support to the Clients had to be reduced in the closing weeks of the year. One of the bi8 uncertainties of the ongoin8 pandemic is how our clients are to be sUPPOrted 80ing forward; as the numbers of people irt need show no si8ns of declining. Church Equipment. A further £1SCXJ was spent in the year. mainly on Items to enable the Church to continue to meet through You Tube and Zoom during the year, and in making the buildin8 Covld secure, particularly for those that came for support through the Destitution Project. Other Fund5 - These funds are for income and related costs for Churth activlties that have taken place over the year, princlpally the Church Weekend at ScarBill House in March. John Myrin8 PCC Treasurer February 2021 17 Annual Report 2020 St Brldes Church Okl Trafford Income & Expendlture 12 months to 31st DOG 2020 Balance at 01101r2020 Income In Year Expenditure Balan￿ at In Year 3111212020 Fund Name General fund Youth & Childrens Work Destitution Fund (British Red Cross) Churth Equipmont other £17.717 £8,974 -£2,699 £2,479 £2,408 £44,775 £3,805 £79.468 £42.597 £1.619 £73.348 £1,543 £5,824 £19,895 £11,160 £3,421 £936 £2,273 £5,689 Totals £28.879 £133,737 £124.931 £37,685 Funds Represénted by 3111212019 3111212020 CurTenl Account £500 £500 Paid in 2020 re 2019 Cheques Drawn not processed Cheque presented in 2020 re 2021 £1.135 -£1.173 £1,760 £0 £0 £1.170 Deposit Account £24.619 £30.435 Total £26.841 £32.105 Accounts Receivable - HMRC Gift Aid - British Red Cross £2,038 £0 £3,035 Total Funds £28,879 £37,685 18 St Bride's Church 2M• £31642 G(ftA4J Clown £7.410 £120 £3.420 £4.440 £l.t)32 ¢3•Mr•l Fund u4.771 £17,￿1 £Q181 £1YM61 £17An £22C £1.746 233 0,103 £1112 £0 £17.4rd Cl¢srwrvJ Chwth RuMtr¢. Ga8 £1,955 £2￿16 É1.562 Churth RunrMw.W È13.443 £1.012 £1.142 £1. £275 £1 £10.8Kt £1230 £1.W5 £526 £1210 £5,317 £1 Jr2 £2,052 £681 4n3 £S70 £397 £4.823 £4.463 £3005 £4,455 Èlomp £eiOZO £28,132 Youth &¢hlhlr•n* Yr8th & ClihJreD'$ ¥Stsk Ew*¢B £1.619 £73J £l.S43 £5024 £0 £1.484 E50.015 £1.191 £3.8 T*Jtal Fu•d• Toial ForY•w t131737 £12WI 19 Annual Report 2020 St Brides Church Okl Trafft>rd Budget 2021 12 Months to 315t Decemb 2020 Bud8et Z020 A¢tuals Full Ythv £33.X £3,805 E316 £3,420 £6,838 £69S 2021 Budget Proposed £28.350 £3.255 £2,640 £2,610 £6,615 £700 INCOME Re8ular Gi¥in8- Church Regular GfvinB- Youth & Children'5 Work Collertions Donations & Fund Rai￿ Income from USÈ of Buiwing GrftAid Redaimed Er*ergy RÈbates1Solarl £32,750 £4,465 £1.630 £4,320 £7,865 £700 Total In¢tyn• lorY•ar £51,730 £48,580 £414.2 EXPENLXTURE Parlsh Share Gas E*trlc Water Insur4rK• £18,IX)O £2.400 £17.651 £1.955 £2,816 £18,500 £2,21XI £2300 £1.5 £1.562 £1,6 Maintenance & Decoratir SanFtsry & Nappy eins aeanirg Cortract & Supplies £4.8CQ £546 £1,4C £6,181 £0 £365 £7,0(10 £273 £7CA) Curate5 Plonorarfum VScars expenses £1,650 £1,440 £1.012 £659 Coundl Tax Water Rates £2,CQO £575 £1.999 £275 £575 Chjrth Offjce Phones & Internet Churth Offke Cop Audlt Fee Bank Char8es Sub5UiPtbons & Payroll £760 £2,532 £200 £811 £2￿42 £200 £783 £0 £825 £2,500 £200 £750 £0 £60 Yotrth Wcfk Chlldren's Work Youth & Children at kar8ill W/End Giving Ajphalmission Church Breakfast CCLI & other Llcen¢es El.2CQ £435 E40 £1.144 £StsJ £5 £1.5LMI £0 £3C £i.Ico £700 £L2rx) £0 £1,21YJ £3Crf) £276 £i,CP36 £870 £1,2C £i,C•JO T¢)tsl E¥pendllweforY&ir £478￿23 £44216 £46,￿3 SuWus/(Defidt) for Period £2,807 £4,364 -£2,703 20 St Bride's Church INDEPENDENT EXAMIN RE THE COF T. BRIDE I reN)rt on the financial sla1¢m￿ of the PCC for th¢ year ¢llded 31# D*embeT 2020. which are set out on pages RESPECflVE RESPONSIBILITIES OFTHE PCC AND THE EXAMINER As metnber5 of the PCC you are JETonsibk f(K the prep8ratiLm of the fina￿la1 stat¢mMts: you consider that an audit is not wuired for this year under the Regulation and under se¢tion 14412) of the Charities Act 2011(the 2011 Act) and that an Indep￿dent exam1tL*ii￿ ' n¢cded. It is my reS￿nsibIlity lo i&su¢ this rep)rt on; those fioancial stslements under section 145 of the 2011 Act: . follow th¢ PTocedurcs laid dovm in the gencral directions given by the Charity Commission under 5￿tIOn 145{5Xb) of the 2011 Ac¢ and . state whether prticular It￿ttEr3 have come to my allentiott. This repoT( including my statemen( has t￿en for and onty for the charity's trnstee as a body. My WOTk has t¢en undertaken $0 ihat I might the charity's trnslee those matters l am rquired to state to them in an indyndent examin¢T'S r¢port and for no other purFKJse. To the fullest extert permitted by law. I do not aLYept or assume resTX)nsibility to anyone other than the charity and the charity"S trustee a b(￿Y for my examination wotK for this rewJr¢ or for the st*ements I hav¢ made. BASIS OFTHIS REPORT My examination was ¢arrid out in a¢cordan¢e with the G¢n¢ral DiTe¢ti(K]s given by the Charity Commission. An examinatiiyn includes a review of the accounting records k¢pi by the PCC and a c4)mFJarison of the fitwicial ststements pRsented wtth those records. It includes considering any unusual tterns or diKlosuffs in the financial stalements and seeking exp]anaiions from you as trnstees concerning any such matters. The prc￿edUreS undertaken do not provide all the ¢vid¢n¢e tha¢ would be required in an audiL and wnsequently no opinion is given 8S to Mthether the financial statsments pres¢nt 8 'In￿ and fair view. and the [c￿rt is limi1￿ to those matters set out in the statement below. II¥DEPENDE]¥T EXAMINER'S STATEMENT tn connection with my exarninati￿ no matter has come to my attention: ' which gives me Thsonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirtm¢nts: . to keep accounting r￿ordS in acc(rdance with section 130 of the 2011 Act. . to prepare financial statements vthich acc(xd with th¢ x¢ountin8 records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 aJMI have not been meL or to which. in my Opinio￿ atlenlion should be drawn in order lo enable a Fyoper undeTSt8nding of the financial stgtements to be reache . SIGNED Jolm ThomL% Holdsworth BA C Ed. 15 LymnLNJth Avenue. Flixtory M416FB 21 ## Other Events & Gatherings Throughout 2020 small groups and other gatherings and events have continued and moved to online only and many smaller ‘gatherings’ have been produced often on messaging apps found on smartphones. Morning prayer, Wednesday Night Homegroup and a Sunday evening gathering all became events held on Zoom, a video conferencing app. The morning prayer and Wednesday meeting also had a messaging group each where things of importance - and occasionally some silliness and fun! - were communicated, and we began to learn how we could pray for one another and build each other up without necessarily seeing one another. A WhatsApp group was continued for the Knitting Group and one was started for the parents of St Bride’s Kids and one was begun for the whole church. After the church service a Zoom fellowship meeting was set up so that some face time could be had for those who wanted and it has been great to even reconnect with people from St Bride’s past. When there were opportunities for twos or small groups to meet people were taking these up to help, pastor and pray for and with each other as well as ‘just’ spend time in each other’s company. Being in people’s homes via webcams and chatting while they prepare meals or lounge in their sofas has actually been on occasion fun, revealing and quite intimate! We still do look forward to the days when we can gather together in person once again and share food as well as fellowship. 23 Annual Report 2020 ## St Bride’s Youth We started 2020 strong at St Bride’s Youth. At Thursday Night Youth (formerly Youth Discipleship), we did Pete Greig’s Prayer Course, which is an 8-week course all about what prayer is, how to do it, and why we do it, all using the structure of the Lord’s Prayer. Alongside Thursday’s sessions, we were also running Alpha Youth on Friday nights, which we ran as a youth drop-in. The youth turned up, played some games such as table tennis, air hockey or giant knock-off Jenga, and then had some free takeaway. After eating we would then run the Alpha session from 8pm-8.30/45pm depending on the length of the video. We started with 7 youth joining us, which doubled the following 2 weeks and after that, we had around 20 regulars, plus the occasional extras. It was great having them turning up weekly to have fun together, eat together and learn more about Jesus together, and it was a shame that we had to stop this weekly event once the lockdown started. The first week of lockdown, we instantly started meeting on Thursdays using Zoom continuing the Prayer Course for the last couple of sessions. Once the Prayer Course was over, we decided to spend the rest of the academic year looking at the same Bible passages that we were reading on Sundays with the Bible in a year. We invited all of the youth that joined us on Fridays to join us, which a couple of them accepted. After the summer holidays, we continued meeting on Zoom with a year-long aim of looking at the Spiritual Disciplines. We started with the “vision series” for the youth, which, like 2019, was called Heart Conditions, looking at the condition of our hearts. We also looked at the disciplines of Study and Self-Examination. During the lockdown and into December, we also ran a weekly 5-15 minute podcast on Youtube based on the Psalms. We had a couple of special guests such as Brittany White from Red Church in Melbourne, Australia and Beth and Jamie Pritchard from The Lantern Church in Wimborne, Dorset. I’d like to thank the youth team: Rachel Dean, MJ Sharp and Malc Sterling for all of their help and hard work. Yes, the year has been tough and we have Zoom-fatigue, but it has been amazing seeing all that God has done. ## **Doug Matthews, Youth Lead** 24 Illb_ Annual Report 2020 ## St Bride’s Kids Two children’s groups ran on Sunday mornings from January to March 2020; our programmes were based on the bible readings used in the adults’ group. The last time the children were able to meet together was during our Church Weekend Away at Scargill House where the in-house team provided fun activities for them. A WhatsApp group was set up following the initial lockdown in March for parents and leaders to facilitate the sharing of ideas and activities for the children to enjoy and to encourage each other. A few leaders met in the park to discuss the option of restarting groups. Group leaders were canvassed about contributing to face to face groups but at that time it was decided face to face was not a good idea. The option of Zoom was discussed but this was not met with much enthusiasm; there were concerns about using the technology and also of how beneficial it would be for the younger children. At Easter some activity packs were distributed to some of the younger children for whom we had addresses. In between lockdowns we had a socially distanced picnic in Hullard Park which a few families were able to attend. ## **Angela Cooper, Kids Team** 26 St Bride’s Church ## St Bride’s Project The Project, serving destitute asylum seekers, in partnership with the British Red Cross, began 2020 in our usual way – providing food parcels and a hot meal every Thursday – but as the pandemic took hold it became increasingly obvious that we would need to change! In early March we swiftly put social distancing measures , hand sanitisers etc in place but as lockdown approached we took the decision on March 19th to give 2 weeks support - one food parcel and £10 for the 2nd week, telling people to return on 2nd April, trusting that we would find a way to continue by then. Following numerous Zoom meetings with BRC, continuous scrutiny of Government, Church of England and BRC regulations we established that a minimal service was feasible every 2 weeks. Many thanks to Peter and Laura who kept it going for the Church as most of the usual volunteers were instructed to shield. They established a system where service users queued outside at a distance and entered the building singly to receive their money, which had been enveloped in advance. BRC had moved their casework onto phone calls only so were in attendance only to record service users and direct newcomers to the phone service. We had to resort to giving money each fortnight as buying and packing food became untenable. This put a huge strain on our budget but Praise God for Trafford Housing Trust who gave us an emergency grant and to the Big Breakfast team who continued to fund raise, in an increasingly varied and creative way, for us even though they couldn’t meet . Thank you to John for going to the bank, Clare standing in for Laura, Graham for managing the grants and Tony and his team for fundraising. As restrictions lifted slightly in August more of us were able to come to the building and we re-established the clothes stall – this time with new clothes only, quarantined for 72 hours. Many thanks to Grace, Mark and Gloria for managing this. As time went on we were able to recruit more people to steward and so enable 2or 3 service users to be in the building at a time. Thank you to all the Big Breakfast volunteer stewards. A big thank you to Laura who has spent the whole winter manning the queue outside in the cold!! We managed to give everyone – 97 people – a gift at Christmas. Thank you to everyone involved in providing those. Special thanks to Ros in Liverpool and her son for providing 32 gift bags of presents for children. Altogether a challenging year but Praise God for His provision. ## **Linda Penrose, St Bride’s Project Lead** 27 Annual Report 2020 ## The Big Breakfast Wow, what can I say, 2020 has been a big year for the Big Breakfast. On 8th February we celebrated our 3rd year anniversary. The monthly event was well established bringing in over 120 customers each time and making north of £800 profit per event for the St Bride’s Destitution Project. At our anniversary event we made £895 profit. Not bad for 3 hours of cafe. Alas with the Covid outbreak March was our last event. The heart of the project however remained the same, to support St Bride’s Destitution Project, to bring the community together and to be a bridge between the church and the local area. Therefore we looked to continue the mission in innovative ways. In April 2020 we had an online gathering, hosted by Tony Vino with a live cooking demo from Bec Chow. Alongside that we set up a Just Giving to continue fundraising for the project. Our Just Giving raised over £1500. For May we had a Zoom family party games get together and launched another fundraiser this time raising £664. In June we did a zoom gathering with Lynda Sterling running a family craft workshop. At July’s gathering we had Louise from ‘Simply Singing’ running singing rounds, warm ups and tongue twisters alongside another Just Giving netting £420. In August Janet ran a Big Breakfast fundraiser table on the OT Jumble Trail. The pandemic was dragging on and we wanted to get more creative in fundraising as well as look at a sustainable ongoing income if we found ourselves unable to host the live event for some time. Therefore in September we began the initiative to produce a Big Breakfast cookbook with recipes donated by supporters and Old Trafford residents to reflect the diversity of the area. In October we put out to our supporters to provide new clothing to be supplied to be given out at the St Bride’s Project. For November we had another online gathering and a Just Giving fundraiser alongside this time raising £2115. We produced a Big Breakfast fair trade tea towel, design by Stanley Chow. We printed 100, which sold instantly at £10 on _thebigbreakfast.bigcartel.com_ Crowdfunder for cookbook was launched in earnest in November 2020 and we managed to raise £8,780 ( + est. £1757.75 giftaid) which was enough to fund the design and printing of the cookbook which will be released in 2021. Check out the video _youtu.be/ IM3l3MQpeug_ A local artist and BB Supporter Ana Lucia Cuevas designed and produced and sold posters donating profits going to The Destitution project. Sharon Church gracefully offered to host a paired down coffee and cake breakfast back in the Autumn, covid safe under the Tier system but as we got closer to the event the logistics and viral safety issues meant we cancelled. We are committed to bringing back the live gathering at St Bride’s as soon as possible. Big thanks to all our amazing supporters, volunteers and steering group. Special mention to Bec Chow who has been pioneering the CookBook and tea towels, Stanley Chow for his design support on the tea towels, Mishka our cookbook designer, and as always the continued leadership and support from Jo, Will, Alys, Louise, Ian, Janet, Grace, Mark and so many more. ## **Tony Vino, Founder of The Big Breakfast** 30 b* YIIE IBIGI BREAKFAST eat glve Tll¥flif.r¢: :, St Bride’s Church ## Bizzy B’s As for so many, it has been an unusual year for Bizzy B’s! At the start of 2020 Bizzy B’s was thriving, serving our community of Old Trafford parents and carers by meeting at St. Brides church to connect and spend time together. As the pandemic of Covid-19 prevented us from meeting in person, Bizzy B’s moved onto Zoom and met online on a Friday morning. We would play games, share arts and crafts, read a story, sing songs and give time for each child to show and tell something that they wanted to share with the group. In September 2020 our older Bizzy B’s children moved on to school and nursery and people were tiring on meeting online as the pandemic continued to prevent us from meeting in person. There wasn’t an uptake for our Zoom meetings, so Bizzy B’s has been in a state of pause! In January 2021 we were all set to launch a small Baby B’s group for new parents, but as the country went back into lockdown and Covid case numbers were very high in the area we put the new group on pause. The good news is that the roadmap to being able to gather again in person is becoming clearer and we would love to find a way to restart Bizzy B’s outside in the Summer months and hopefully, eventually back in the church building. Charlotte Bushell (who attends Ivy Church) leads Bizzy B’s with faithful members of St Bride’s helping run the group - Linda Penrose, Clare Myring, Barbara S and Penny Matthews. We look forward to rebuilding this team and growing again a committed core team of parent/carer volunteers. If you would like to get involved, please do get in touch! ## **Charlotte Bushell, Bizzy B’s Lead** 33 Annual Report 2020 ## Church Weekend Away at Scargill A good time was had at St Bride’s Church weekend away at Scargill House in North Yorkshire in March 2020. It was the last bit of normality we had before everything changed because of the Covid pandemic, although already some people were self-isolating and were unable to come, including Peter, Penny, Doug, Viv and Rob, so our leadership missed out. A total of 50 of us went, which included 13 children 12 or under, and 5 young people 13-16. Everyone appeared to enjoy themselves over the weekend. New friendships were made and old ones strengthened. People relaxed as time went on, and the children obviously felt at home as they played together. They also appeared to really enjoy the sessions held for them while the adults were meeting. The theme for the weekend was ‘Community’. We had 3 teaching sessions for the adults, led by Phil Stone which were well attended and thought provoking. The food was good and the Scargill kitchen attempted fairly successfully to cater for the special diets. Saturday evening we got together for ‘St. Bride’s Got Talent Version 2’ where yet again a variety of talents were displayed! 34 &riilidin