CHRISTCHURCH ANNUAL REPORT, 2022/23 Page 1 ## **CHRISTCHURCH CLARENDON PARK (BAPTIST/METHODIST)** ## **ANNUAL REPORT, YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023** ## **Administrative information** Christchurch Clarendon Park is a Baptist/Methodist Local Ecumenical Partnership (LEP), formed in 1992 by the former Clarendon Park Baptist and Clarendon Park Methodist Churches. The church meets in the premises of the former Methodist Church, which were extensively remodelled and refurbished in 1996/7. We are members of the Leicester Trinity Methodist Circuit (23/7), the East Midland Baptist Association and the Baptist Union of Great Britain. The address is Christchurch Clarendon Park 105a Clarendon Park Road LEICESTER LE2 3AH Tel. (0116) 270 5369 Website: www.christchurchcp.org.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/christchurchcp Twitter: www.twitter.com/christchurch_cp Email: enquiries@christchurchcp.org.uk General correspondence should be addressed to the Church Secretary: Mr Chris Whitford, 23 Brinsmead Road, Leicester LE2 3WD Correspondence concerning the accounts should be addressed to the Church Treasurer: Miss Jennifer Whillis, 90 St Leonard’s Road, Leicester LE2 1WR ## Christchurch is **Registered Charity No.1148934.** Risk Assessment and review is carried out by the Resources Team (in respect of buildings and health and safety) and by the Executive concerning the future viability of the Church. The number of church members at the beginning and end of this period was ||31|August|2022|31|August|2023| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |Baptist||15|||13|| |Methodist||34|||29|| |Joint||37|||37|| |||86|||79|| In addition, there are approximately a further 50 people on the community roll and a considerable number of contacts through groups which use the church premises on a regular basis. CHRISTCHURCH ANNUAL REPORT, 2022/23 Page 2 The Managing Trustees are the members of the Executive. Ordained ministers in pastoral charge are _ex officio_ members of the Executive. The other members are elected by the Annual Church Meeting. The Trustees have the power to co-opt up to a further four Trustees. The current Trustees and those who served during the year ended 31 August 2023 are Mr Mark Asher Mr Alan Stead Miss Alison Charlesworth Mr Chris Whitford (Secretary) Rev Kate Cook Miss Jennifer Whillis (Treasurer) Mr David Eyre Dr Lawrence Whittaker ## **Independent Examiner** Alison Murray, 184 Howard Road, Leicester LE2 1XL ## **Bankers** Barclays Bank, 1–3 Haymarket Towers, Humberstone Gate, Leicester LE1 1WA National Westminster Bank, 1 Granby Street, Leicester LE1 6EJ ## **Aims and organisation** The purpose of Christchurch is to advance the Christian faith primarily in Clarendon Park, Knighton, Knighton Fields and Stoneygate, in the city of Leicester. In achieving its purpose, the Church engages in a range of activities both on its own and with others, as described later in this document. The agreed aims and objectives are the responsibilities of a number of Teams and Committees, especially the Executive, the Mission & Ministry Team and the Resources Team. During the year, pastoral oversight was provided by Rev Kate Cook, a Methodist supernumerary Presbyter. Rev Kate has also made herself available for a further year. A Baptist input was maintained by our Associate Baptist Minister Rev John Rackley, who conducted services and gave other input when requested. ## **Public benefit** The Trustees are aware of the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit in “The Advancement of Religion for the Public Benefit” and have regard to it in their administration of the Church. The Trustees believe that, by fulfilling their responsibility to work together with the ministers and co-operate in all matters of concern and importance for the promotion of the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical, they provide benefit to the public by: -  Providing resources and facilities for public worship, pastoral care and spiritual, moral and intellectual development, both for the Church members and for anyone who wishes to benefit from what the Church offers; -  Promoting Christian values and service by members of the Church to the community, to the benefit of individuals and society as a whole; -  Providing attractive meeting facilities to a wide range of community groups. ## **Safeguarding of children, young people and vulnerable adults** There were no _serious incidents_ or other matters relating to Christchurch during the year ended 31 August 2023 which the Trustees should have brought to the attention of the Charity Commission. CHRISTCHURCH ANNUAL REPORT, 2022/23 Page 3 ## **Review of significant events, progress and achievements** The Covid pandemic now seems a distant memory but it has had a lasting impact on the church. In the four years since 2019 membership is down by 30% and attendance at Sunday services has dropped by 35%. We remain positive about the future however. In 2022 when the Methodist Circuit went through its annual stationing process no minister was appointed to take charge of Christchurch in 2023, and Revd Kate Cook agreed to continue for another year. The church is very grateful to her and appreciates her ministry with us. We have been assured that a new minister will be appointed in this year’s round, to start in September 2024. Meanwhile the call for a part-time Baptist minister has moved forward with the Church’s profile entered on to the Pastoral Vacancy List. Revd John Rackley continues to provide valuable service. The pattern of Sunday services is unchanged, with two services a month in the hall and the remainder in the Worship Centre, while a new mid-week service has begun fortnightly on Wednesday mornings. Services in the Worship Centre continue to be streamed on Zoom but this hasn’t really developed and is mainly used by regular congregation members if they can’t get to a service. A series of Sunday evening discussion gatherings was held after Easter, which will be repeated in the autumn. Meanwhile the Bible study group and the contemporary theology group continue and a new study group is to begin in the autumn. Monthly ‘Prayer Breakfasts’ are being held on Saturdays. A series of interfaith dialogues, “A Taste of Faith” is also planned for the winter months. In common with many other churches and organisations, the church operated a ‘Warm Space’ one afternoon a week throughout the winter. This was well supported by volunteers from the church but only a small number of visitors came in. An exciting new initiative led by a former art teacher in the church is to investigate hosting an art exhibition from the Methodist Modern Art Collection (MMAC) in 2024. Discussions have been held with the MMAC management committee and a site visit made. We are now waiting to hear if the church is considered a suitable venue and if so, a formal request for the loan of the works will be made. ## **Financial review** Aided especially by a more equitable Assessment from the Methodist Circuit (taking better account of our Baptist responsibilities) and increased lettings income, we recorded an annual surplus for the first time for six years. The increased lettings were thanks largely to the energy and friendly approach of our Lettings Officer, Jean Baxter. We benefited too from personal giving being mostly maintained, even by those not attending worship, and by our fixed-price fuel contracts continuing throughout the year. More expensive fuel contracts have been agreed from autumn 2023 and the new year will also see increased expenditure on maintaining the property. CHRISTCHURCH ANNUAL REPORT, 2022/23 Page 4 ## _Reserves Policy_ Christchurch seeks to expand its membership amongst all age groups and makes provision for the expected expenditure in maintaining its witness. In common with most UK churches, however, its membership has declined in recent decades. The income of the church depends critically on some two dozen key supporters, any of whom could move away or otherwise cease to be with us. As the membership falls, there are fewer volunteers for the tasks of maintenance, necessitating increased expenditure on professional services. With buildings valued at £6.2m, some of which are more than 120 years old, there is also the risk of exceptional property expenditure, for example for a new roof or the remedy of an infestation of dry rot. The church therefore considers it appropriate to maintain financial reserves in the range £50,000 – £100,000, for uninsurable risks, such as loss of income and exceptional property expenditure. At 31[st] August 2022 the reserves (General Fund and Legacy Fund) amounted to some £55,100. There was one Designated Fund, a Renovation Fund (£19,900) for major maintenance of the fabric. The Reserves Policy is reviewed each spring by the Resources Team, whose recommendations are brought before the Trustees. ## **This Annual Report was approved by the Trustees** on 1[st] November 2023 and signed on their behalf by |(signature)
full name
office
(signature)
full name
office|| |---|---| ||Christopher Henry Whitford| ||Church Secretary| ||| ||Jennifer Whillis| ||Church Treasurer| Page 5 CHRISTCHURCH ANNUAL REPORT, 2022/23 ## **CHRISTCHURCH, CLARENDON PARK** ## **RECEIPTS & PAYMENTS ACCOUNT for the year ended 31 August 2023** |**_Notes_**
**_Receipts_**
Planned Giving
Loose Cash
Donations
Legacies
Interest
Tax recovered
Sundry
Lettings
Benevolence
Collections, etc, for external orgs
_3_
**_Sub total_**
Asset & Investment sales, etc
**_Total Receipts_**
**_Payments_**
Methodist Circuit
Baptist Ministry, etc
_4_
Charities
Benevolence
Communication
Utilities
_5_
Repairs & Maintenance
Sundry
Passed to external organisations
_3_
**_Sub total_**
Asset & Investment purchases
**_Total Payments_**
_Net of receipts/(payments)_
Transfers between funds
Cash funds last year end
**Cash funds this year end**|**Unrestricted**
**Funds, £**
**Restricted**
**Funds, £**
**Total**
**Funds, £**
**Last Year, £**
**£**
**£**
39,268
**39,268**
39,830
2,956
**2,956**
4,195
3,821
910
**4,731**
4,540
-
**-**
-
2,214
**2,214**
381
11,844
360
**12,204**
12,798
471
3,756
**4,227**
2,375
21,832
**21,832**
15,584
**-**
-
1,889
**1,889**
670
**82,406**
**6,915**
**89,322**
**80,373**
-
-
-
-
**82,406**
**6,915**
**89,322**
**80,373**
41,214
**41,214**
50,346
2,232
**2,232**
5,084
4,070
**4,070**
3,870
58
**58**
-
2,067
5
**2,072**
1,843
10,578
**10,578**
9,844
8,396
1,200
**9,596**
9,853
3,821
3,682
**7,503**
4,061
1,889
**1,889**
670
**72,377**
**6,834**
**79,211**
**85,570**
-
-
-
-
**72,377**
**6,834**
**79,211**
**85,570**
_10,029_
81
_10,111_
_(5,197)_
(58)
58
-
-
75,100
475
**75,575**
80,772
**85,072**
**614**
**85,686**
**75,575**| |---|---| Page 6 CHRISTCHURCH ANNUAL REPORT, 2022/23 |**ASSETS and LIABILITIES as at 31 August 2023**
**£**
**ASSETS**
**Cash Funds**
Barclays Bank
11,115
National Westminster Bank
1,081
CFB Deposit Account
36,928
Deposits with Baptist Union Corporation
36,447
Cash in Hand
115
**85,686**
**Investment Assets**
None
**Land and Church Buildings**
_Note 1.2_
606,381
**Tangible Fixed Assets**
Church contents, including furniture, fixtures,
_Note 1.3_
218,428
fittings, computers and other equipment
**LIABILITIES**
**Current Liabilities**
None
**Pension Scheme Liability**
_Note 7_
42,800|**Last Year, £**
5,918
6,047
28,161
35,304
144| |---|---| ||**75,575**
None
606,381
217,341
None
42,800| CHRISTCHURCH ANNUAL REPORT, 2022/23 Page 7 ## **NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - 31 August 2023** ## **1 GENERAL** - 1.1 The basis of preparation is in accordance with the Charities Act 2011, on a Receipts and Payments basis. - 1.2 The Church Land and Buildings are valued at cost, as follows: Land and original buildings (1900) 9,822 Refurbishment and new buildings (1996/97) 596,559 - 1.3 The Church Contents are valued as for insurance. - 1.4 The current Restricted Funds which had a balance at 31st August 2023 are the _Key Deposits Fund_ (£325), the Event _Deposits Fund_ (£242) and the WarmSpace Fund (£47.02). There is one Designated Fund, a _Renovation Fund_ (£19,954) for major maintenance of the fabric. The former unrestricted _Legacy Fund_ was merged into the _General Fund_ during the year _._ ## **2 INTERNAL ORGANISATIONS** The following organisations come within the control of the Church Meeting and operate their own independent accounts. Their transactions for the year, which have been independently examined, are summarised below: |Art Group
Junior Church
Luncheon Club
Parent & Toddler Group
Wesley Guild
_Wild Honey_Project
**TOTALS**|**Balance**
**31.8.2022**
**Receipts**
**Payments**
**Balance**
**31.8.2023**
97
134
231
-
830
-
-
830
1,505
2,149
2,229
1,425
1,440
523
463
1,500
203
-
203
-
788
525
1,313
-| |---|---| ||**4,863**
**3,331**
**4,439**
**3,755**| |**3 COLLECTIONS, ETC,**
**4 BAPTIST MINISTRY, etc**
**FOR EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS**
Baptist Pension Scheme
Christian Aid
735
Rev John Rackley
MHA Aigburth Amenity Fund
444
Crohn's and Colitis UK
345
Action for Children
117
**5 UTILITIES**
Spurgeon's Children's Charity
117
Gas
ShelterBox Trust
78
Electricity
Methodist World Mission
54
Water
**1,889**
Insurance|132
2,100| |---|---| ||**2,232**| ||4,683
2,078
213
3,604| ||**10,578**| CHRISTCHURCH ANNUAL REPORT, 2022/23 Page 8 ## **RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT for the year ended 31 August 2023** ## **6 BAPTIST FUNDS** Various Baptist monies are held for the benefit of the church by the East Midland Baptist Trust Company (EMBTC) as Custodian Trustee, and these are set out below:-. |(EMBTC) as Custodian Trustee, and these are set out|below:-.| |---|---| |Balances as at 1 September 2022
Capital appreciation
Dividend
Interest received
Balances as at 31 August 2023
The figures exclude accrued interest.|**Capital**
**Income**
**Total**
103,789
54,845
158,634
14,234
14,234
821
821
5,747
5,747| ||103,789
75,648
179,437| In early 2023, the EMBTC decided to sell their equity account holdings to reduce risk and simplify administration and to place our funds on deposit with the Baptist Union Corporation. As a result, we received a capital appreciation, as shown. The amount held on Income Account can be used for any purpose agreed by the Church Meeting. Capital Account represents the proceeds of sale of the Baptist manse in 1999 for £99,620 plus surplus on disposal of investments in which the proceeds were originally held. Income Account represents the accumulated interest, etc, since received on the Capital Account. ## **7 BAPTIST PENSION SCHEME LIABILIITY** The Church is an employer participating in the Baptist Pension Scheme (“the Scheme”), which is a separate legal entity administered by the Pension Trustee (Baptist Pension Trust Limited). The assets of the Scheme are held separately from those of the employer and other participating employers. Baptist Ministers of Christchurch are eligible to join the Scheme. The Scheme, previously known as the Baptist Ministers' Pension Fund, provided a Defined Benefit (DB) on contributions made until 31 December 2011. Since 1 January 2012, benefits have been provided through a Defined Contribution (DC) Plan. For many years the DB Plan had a significant deficit and member churches contributed monthly to reduce this. Recently the funding position has greatly improved, the Trustees of the Pension Scheme have signed an agreement with an insurance company to secure the DB Plan members' pension benefits and DB contibutions have been reduced to a nominal £1 per month for each participating church. Consequent upon the departure of the Baptist Minister from the Church in 2016, the Church could have had a **cessation event** under Section 75 of the Pensions Act 1995. This would make the Church liable for the proportion of the overall deficit (assessed by reference to the cost of securing benefits by the purchase of annuities) applicable to its previous Ministers who were members of the Scheme, calculated as at 31 October 2016. An estimate of this debt was £62,000. In order to prevent such a cessation event, the Church applied for a 'period of grace' before employing another member of the Scheme. The period of grace lasted three years, following which Rev John Rackley, a retired Baptist Minister, was appointed as Associate Minister. John is a interim member of the Scheme. The Church makes a nominal contribution on behalf of John to the DC Plan, and this prevents a cessation event from occurring. Should Christchurch fail to appoint a full member of the Scheme during the period for which the interim membership arrangement is allowed, this would trigger a cessation event for which he liability would be as at October 2016 less the contibutions already paid. The liability is estimated as £42,800. ##