_Church from Scratch and Shared Space Wood Camping Weekend - October 2025_ **Annual Report and Impact Statement** for the year ending 31 December 2025 charity registered in England No 1147116 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Table of Contents** |Table of Contents|Page 2| |---|---| |Annual Report and Impact Statement|Page 3 - 11| |Independent Examiner Report|Page 12 - 13| |Statement of Financial Activity|Page 14| |Statement of Assets and Liabilities|Page 15| |Notes to the Accounts|Page 16 - 19| Page 2 www.churchfromscratch.org **Annual Report and Impact Statement for the year ending 31 December 2025** ## **Charitable status** Church from Scratch is a registered charity in England, No. 1147116. Principal address: 34 Cranley Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, SS0 8AL. ## **Trustees serving during 2025:** Alex Emery (stepped down January 2025) Emma Nash (appointed January 2025) Mary Blake (stepped down January 2025) Peter Dominey Simon Hill (appointed January 2025) The charity is established by means of a constitution with trustees appointed by the Partners (members). ## **Summary of Objects and Activities** Church from Scratch is a Christian church, a member of the Baptist Union of Great Britain and the Eastern Baptist Association. The principal purpose of the Church is the advancement of the Christian faith according to the ways of Jesus as found in the Bible and which uphold the fundamentals of the Baptist denomination. The Church also advances education and carries out other charitable purposes in the United Kingdom and other parts of the world. In addition to the reports set out below, our activities include holistic mission, public worship, prayer, Bible study, teaching, baptism, communion, pastoral care and social action, through a community comprising of many disadvantaged and marginalised people. ## **Public Benefit Statement** The charity’s trustees continue to have regard for both the charitable objects set out in the governing document and to ensure that the activities of the charity, as described, meet the public benefit test. In so doing, they take account of the Charity Commission’s public benefit guidance when planning the charity’s programme of activities. The Trustees of Church from Scratch are confident that the activities of the charity demonstrate strong evidence of public benefit. Page 3 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Nature of the Church** Church From Scratch is a Jesus centred network of relationships, projects and initiatives; it is a Baptist church in south-east Essex; which responds to local needs and opportunities. The heart of the church is an inclusive family, many of whom are marginalised and disadvantaged by the ways of the world. The church acts as a pathfinder in Christian mission and as a change-agent. ## **A network of Community Groups in south-east Essex** Community Groups are integral to Church From Scratch, usually gathering in homes with weekly meetings and meals to explore what it means to follow Jesus. These groups foster discipleship and growth, creating bonds of trust through shared food and life experiences. One group uses British Sign Language to welcome deaf participants. Facilitators, supported by church leadership, guide each Community Group. An in-house team develops discipleship materials for group meetings. Throughout the year, members of CFS have deepened their faith, welcomed newcomers, and supported one another—especially those dealing with serious mental or physical illnesses and challenging home situations—by sharing life and offering practical help. ## **The values of CFS** The four values of CFS have stood the test of time and continue to guide our actions as we explore evolving opportunities for their expression. They anchor us to the principles of Jesus and are central to both the identity and aspirations of CFS. **We value Jesus at the Centre:** doing it his way; changing as we follow him deeper; relying on him; recognising we're a little bit of his worldwide church; realising Jesus' Spirit is at work now. **We value Building Community:** building real and loving relationships as we rely on each other; growing up in faith together; giving our community away to others. **We value All people:** moving wider to all; encouraging participation by all; standing up with those who need us. **We value Living life to the full:** finding Jesus in all parts of life; holding on to faith as we take risks; helping each other to grow into the full and unique people God wants. Page 4 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Activities, events and programmes during the year** This has been a good year for Church From Scratch. We saw growing numbers of people in our Community Groups (house churches), strengthening leadership as we followed Jesus. This good news was reported in our email news and three times a year ‘Share and Scratch News’ newspaper which is written jointly with our sister social enterprise, Shared Space. Church From Scratch had a good year, with increasing attendance in the Community Groups – think of them as ‘house churches’. Updates were shared via email news and the triannual 'Share and Scratch News' newspaper, produced with Shared Space. **Monthly Gatherings -** brought together individuals from both the church and Shared Space at different venues, offering new opportunities for people to explore and grow in their faith by discerning Jesus’s purpose for them, engaging in musical worship, and deepening their understanding. ## **January** ## **Partners Promise Meeting** The Partners Promise Meeting is a significant event where individuals in the church make a commitment to one another to be ‘Partners’ for the coming year. This pledge involves actively living out the values of CFS together, fostering a sense of unity and shared purpose within the community. The meeting also included a Safeguarding Policy reminder to emphasise the importance of keeping one another safe, ensuring that everyone remains protected and cared for within the group. ## **February** ## **Carroty Wood Weekend** This Kent residential brought together CFS community members and Shared Space volunteers. Attendees made new friends, joined four sessions on Jesus, cooked in teams, and took part in various activities. ## **Radical Roots is launched** CFS teamed up with Lynn Green, General Secretary of Baptists Together, and the Baptist Historical Society to introduce Radical Roots. _Radical Roots_ is a collection of short films and an accompanying course produced by CFS in collaboration with the Baptist Historical Society. The series highlights the lives of five historic Baptists, aiming to help Baptist churches gain insight into their heritage and the core values of Page 5 www.churchfromscratch.org Baptist life. In 2025, CFS expanded the Radical Roots project by creating five additional videos to further enrich the resources. ## **CFS and Shared Space Leaders Consider Enhanced Collaboration** A joint away day involving leaders from both CFS and Shared Space examined potential avenues for closer cooperation, given their closely aligned values. Subsequent work through the year confirmed significant interest in developing a deeper partnership between the two organisations. ## **March** For each of the three weeks prior to Easter, CFS hosted Night Owl, an evening Zoom gathering where participants joined in with their hot chocolate, tracing Jesus’s final week. Notably, each Night Owl session was co-led by two individuals, one of whom was not a regular leader at CFS. ## **April** During Easter week, we hosted five **Passover Meals** for over 45 people to deepen our understanding of Jesus through themes of death, slavery, and freedom. Easter Sunday featured a BBQ celebrating resurrection. ## **May** **Bless Week** featured three days of unique events at the end of May. ## _**Day 1: Be Blessed**_ _Southend’s LGBT+ chaplain, joined with CFS to lead a retreat day._ _**Day 2: Bless Jesus** We held a worship banquet with musical performances, where our refugee friends prepared the meal._ _**Day 3: Bless Others** CFS members had the chance to volunteer at Shared Space during a shift and learn more about what Shared Space offers._ ## **Sponsored Walk** CFS joined with Shared Space volunteers to do a sponsored walk to raise money for MIND, the mental health charity as part of a week focused on mental health. ## **WhatsApp Groups** We transitioned from Facebook groups to WhatsApp groups to enhance communication and strengthen relationships within CFS, aiming to foster deeper community throughout the week. Page 6 www.churchfromscratch.org **June A quiet month** with our Community Groups meeting each week and a gathering for all towards the end of the month. ## **July** **A Camping and Discipleship Weekend** on Mersea Island featured four interactive teaching sessions. The event provides an opportunity for many who would not otherwise have the chance for a holiday, including opportunity for those who are not Christians and refugees to participate. ## **Southend Pride** Members of Church from Scratch and Shared Space participated in the parade, and festival, with some helping to staff the churches' together stall. ## **August** ## **Pizza and Worship BBQ** We joined together for an afternoon of worship and wood-fired pizza. ## **CFS Fundraiser begins** We started a fundraiser to hire a bidwriter, aiming to secure charitable grants for CFS in 2026 and boost our impact. ## **Table Talk Event** A learning meal focused on faith, spirituality, and mental health. ## **September** ## **'GATHER' begins** This is our new monthly event with a team cooking for each one. At the first meeting, we worshipped, prayed for, and sent off a Pakistani asylum-seeking family relocated to London. ## **Sign Language learning workshop** A session on **British Sign Language** , facilitated by a deaf member of the church, was well attended by both the public and individuals involved in CFS and SS. Additional ad hoc BSL training was also conducted throughout the year. Page 7 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Forge Wood trip** We camped in the woods in Sussex for a discipleship weekend. ## **Introduction of New CFS Community Group** Due to the increasing size of the Monday night Community Group, an additional group was formed. Both communities have successfully been established and continue to experience steady growth. ## **October** ## **Away Day** We spent the day together exploring the values of CFS and began to consider the future direction for both CFS and SS. We baked scones, walked in the rain, prayed, laughed, and enjoyed many other activities! ## **November** ## **Table Talk Meal- including Each Other** During this learning meal, we discussed exclusion and how CFS embraces everyone regardless of gender or sexuality. We are an inclusive church! ## **GATHER worship banquet** We gathered, ate and worshipped! ## **December** ## **Advent Together Week:** A total of 35 participants attended events at six different venues, designed to facilitate exploration of the advent of Jesus beyond our regular home settings. Additionally, one session was conducted via Zoom to ensure accessibility for those unable to participate in person. ## **Pantomime Excursion** Joint with Shared Space we went to an alternative local pantomime. ## **We met in various other groups and gatherings** **to** experience and explore the news that God became one of us – Christmas! Page 8 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Resource creation and sharing** **This year, we developed several small group resources for CFS and the wider church, as well as some single-use materials.** ## **The series we created included:** - What matters? - a deep dive into the CFS values - Radical Roots - Life of Jesus - Easter and Resurrection - Mental Health and following Jesus - Sensing Jesus - a series that involved all of our sensing - Communion - different ways of seeing - Rhythms of life - God is close - a Christmas series - Several one-off resources ## **Radical Roots** As the principal partner, we have successfully completed production of Radical Roots, a dramatic series comprising ten videos, small group resources, and supplementary materials intended for Baptist churches nationwide. We held a national launch happened earlier in the year with our partners. It was a privilege to collaborate with the Baptist Historical Society on these resources, which examine Baptist distinctives across our four-century history as a movement. This project was developed in partnership with Baptists Together and also support by seven Baptist associations and two Baptist colleges. ## **Partnership with Shared Space** Shared Space, a social enterprise founded by CFS, and is the key partner of Church From Scratch. In partnership together we run groups, residentials, training, and initiatives; their team includes over 100 volunteers, and our minister leads the Shared Space charity. Shared Space support has enabled CFS to lessen its reliance on Baptist funding, progressing us towards self-sufficiency. At the start of 2026, we will host a further day to discuss further cooperation and integration between CFS and Shared Space. ## **Together Free** Our minister continues to serve as a founding trustee of this national charity, based in Southend. Together Free works towards ending modern slavery and human trafficking. Page 9 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **CFS Aims for 2026 includes** - **Centre all we do on Jesus, so we become more like him.** - **To live and express the values of CFS in all we do.** - Develop and work from the **CFS Development Plan.** - Work at becoming an increasingly **multi-voiced church** , where all are priests, and none are excluded from leading us in the ‘holy’ things. - Equip people of CFS to express in practical ways and share the **good news of Jesus,** so people in and beyond Southend are transformed. - **Write and publish** small group courses and videos, to assist CFS and other churches in their mission and discipleship. - Build upon our partnership with **Shared Space social enterprise** , further replicating the Shared Space model and working with Shared Space in mission, finding new ways to partner with Shared Space around new and existing leaders. - Have a larger, **more diverse leadership** that better reflects the diversity and make-up of the church. - Develop the **Community Groups** in depth and number so we become more authentic and prevalent. - Identify, train and nurture CFS people, so **leadership** is shared, and new Community Groups can be formed. - Encourage greater **generosity** of time and money within and beyond CFS, to release resources for the mission we are called to. - Work with a **professional bid-writer** , with the intention to access grant funding that will help us increase our impact across church life. - **Support Baptists and others in pioneering** so other people venture out in incarnational mission. - **Share our resources and insights** through developments to the CFS website and through training events including Immersive Experiences. - Be **receptive** to the opportunities and needs as they present, responding with agility so we don’t miss the party. - Run **residential mission and discipleship events** as capacity allows, including weekends and holidays. Page 10 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Accounting Basis** The accounts were prepared on a receipts and payments basis. ## **Reserves Policy** - Reserves will be maintained to ensure core activity can continue during any period of unforeseen difficulty. - A proportion of reserves will be maintained in a readily realisable form. - The calculation of the required level of reserves is an integral part of the organisation's planning, budget and forecast cycle and it considers: - Risks associated with each stream of income and expenditure being different from that budgeted - Planned activity level - The church’s commitments On this basis, and having reviewed the policy during the year, the Trustees believe that for the year ahead we should work towards holding a reserve equivalent to six months’ running costs. The reserves policy will be reviewed annually. Signed: Peter Dominey on behalf of the trustees 28.2.26 Page 11 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Independent Examiner’s Report** Page 12 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Independent Examiner’s Report continued…** Page 13 www.churchfromscratch.org **Statement of Financial Activity for the year ended 31.12.2025** Page 14 www.churchfromscratch.org **Statement of Assets and Liabilities for the year ended 31.12.2025** Page 15 www.churchfromscratch.org **Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 31.12.2025** Page 16 www.churchfromscratch.org **Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 31.12.2025** Page 17 www.churchfromscratch.org ## **Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 31.12.2025** Page 18 www.churchfromscratch.org **Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 31.12.2025** Page 19 www.churchfromscratch.org