Trustees Annual Report – 2022
Events post year end
As in the past there is often an overlap from the end of the financial year of 31[st] December in making this report, and with the onslaught of Covid-19 lessening throughout 2022 with no more lockdowns occurring we have been able to revert to worshipping as a fellowship in the church premises, with life seemingly returning to normal.
The economic challenges following the sharp increase in energy costs in 2022 hit us in November 2022 following the expiry of the gas fixed term contract. We have since moved supplier on a fixed 2 year contract, but the cost has dramatically increased over four-fold over what we had been used to. The electricity costs are on a fixed term contract expiring in September 2023 and are mindful that these prices will hit us hard when we have to renew.
Our worship via on-line conferencing software, continues to stream the live services to those who being unable to attend through illness or other infirmities. We continue to invite folk from other parts of the United Kingdom to join us in worship which are well received.
Our plans for 2022, following the cancellation of all bookings at short notice, we were unable to meet at Northiam Oasts, so as in 2021 we met for a reflection weekend in the Church. In 2023 we plan to replicate this arrangement, but for 2024 plan to meet at an external location to reflect on what God has in mind for His Church moving forward.
Regular public worship, prayer, Bible study, preaching and teaching
We are blessed that the teaching brought by Rev Freddy Farias Palacios has encouraged and directed the fellowship to the extent that we are exploring more in depth what God is wanting from us. In 2022, the Church was open every Sunday throughout the year as and when Government restrictions allowed to hold its Sunday morning worship service, typically but not exclusively led by the Pastor. The Elders have met together regularly with our m inister to pray and plan the way forward. We have a full team of Deacons. They all work together with the Elders and Minister in leading the Church forward on a day to day basis.
We continued to be supported during our worship services by a talented group of musicians. The Music Group has blessed us week after week with their songs of praise and worship and for responding to the call to lead us in prayer and preaching when asked. The Church and Music Group could not function without the support of the small team of computer operators who control the PA system and overhead projector , who of recent months have engaged themselves in the continued presentation of Sunday services, prayer and administrative meetings by means of Zoom conferencing. Attendance at Sunday Zoom Church averages in the order of 3 logins indicating a loyal attendance in the region of 6 to 7 people. This is in addition to the regular attendance in Church of between 45-55 people every Sunday.
A number of Home Groups exist and meet throughout the week in person and via Zoom to provide attenders with a Bible Study and fellowship opportunity. There is a new Monthly Prayer meeting for corporate prayer to complement the existing opportunities at various times during the week.
We hosted the Life Exhibition in June 2022 and invited pupils from years 5 & 6 from all the local schools. This was very well received and the pupils really enjoyed the interactive experiences. It is planned that we will repeat this in 2024.
Baptism, as defined in the Union's Declaration of Principle
There have been no baptisms or weddings during 2022, although we had 5 Baptisms in 2021 and have had a baptism in April 2023 .
The Communion of the Lord's Supper , which continues to be observed at least once a month. Throughout the year, Communion was held on every 1st and 3[rd] Sunday s during public worship. Communion was also held for specific reasons such as Maundy Thursday and Christmas Eve.
Evangelism and mission , locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.
Mission has always remained a priority in Zion as we continue to look beyond our building at the mission opportunities presented to us. The preaching series on various themes has helped to focus the church on our mission responsibilities.
Internationally we continue to support our Baptist Missionary Society link missionaries working overseas , and we also support and engage with Christian charities such as Mission Aviation Fellowship and Cry in the Dark. Fundraising for this work has been and is still ongoing.
Closer to home we continue to hold an informal Friday Coffee Morning meeting in the Church This was changed at the beginning of 2023 to a Thursday morning to allow the Church to be open for prayer on Friday mornings. We have found this invaluable in identifying social needs in non-church members and has resulted in us being able to offer advice and practical help where needed. The toddler group called Rainbow Tots under the leadership of Suzanne Martin and Christine Hendry, has been instrumental in identifying ongoing hardship. There is also a regular evangelistic presence in the High Street by two members of the church. In 2022 we were not able to have our “ Christmas Tree Festival”, but instead we had a “tree of peace” allowing folk to write and place on the tree prayers and messages of hope. Hopefully in 2023, we will again be able to revisit the event.
Regionally we are proactive with the South Eastern Baptist Association, the body that represents Baptist Churches throughout the South East region. More locally, we are encouraged to network with other Baptist Churches and we do this through the South Kent Network that consists of 17 Churches across Kent. Nationally, we are a member of the Baptist Union of Great Britain. We will seek to support, certainly by prayer, all current mission initiatives that they are engaging with across the UK.
Nurture and growth of Christian disciples
The Church through its elders and leadership team has concentrated on ensuring that those Christians attending Church are cared for and nurtured in their faith and growth. A preaching/teaching address is always available on a Sunday morning, all of which is intended to enable attenders to move on in the faith walk. Mid-week, at various times, home group meetings provide for the same.
Education and training for Christian and community service
There have been DBS checks made on all the trustees and leadership team, and those engaged in work with children and the community.
In 2022 saw Simon Black being accepted for ministerial training at Spurgeon’s College the course expecting to conclude in 2025. Simon is providing much needed youth ministry through his football outreach. The numbers of unchurched young people is continuing to grow, and we have hopes that in the coming months and years that they will start attending church.
Giving and encouraging pastoral care.
During the year our pastoral team have continued to assist the Pastor in offering much needed help and prayer to those within our fellowship and outside. There have as always been some intense needs over this last year due to illness, hospitalisation and bereavement and the team have dealt with them all with love and compassion dealing with spiritual and practical needs. We have been really blessed at Zion with the willingness of the fellowship to volunteer to help wherever needed which has meant that any new initiatives can move forward and existing ones to function fully.
Supporting and encouraging charitable social action in the United Kingdom and abroad. The use of the accommodation by the community continues. Local groups from the community use the building . We support debt counselling and other initiatives run by CTIT.
Communication
Throughout the year the church produces a regular monthly newsletter listing activities and containing a monthly message from the pastor. This is in print form available in the church and is sent to the membership in electronic form. A further weekly sheet was introduced prior to the lockdown giving details of upcoming events and a summary of that week’s preaching and will be reintroduced once we can meet normally. As nearly all the membership is now online, communication can be achieved quickly and economically by e-mail. The upgraded Church Web Site communicates general information to the wider world. We introduced a Church Management system early in 2020 which, due to the requirements of Data Protection, means that we are being compliant with the administration.
Refurbishment & fundraising
The building has disabled facilities to Building Regulations Part M so allowing the church to meaningfully engage with the needs of the disabled community in a new and contemporary way.
The Church continues to pay off its rebuilding loans and will have paid off the debts in 2023. The Church has been able to maintain its regular anticipated day to day income and expenditure and in doing so we have continued wherever possible to donate funds to help support other charitable groups.
1149069
Zion Baptist Church (Tenterden) 1149069 Receipts and payments accounts CC16a 31st December For the period 1st January 2022 To 2022 from
| Section A Receipts and payments | Section A Receipts and payments | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A1 Receipts | Unrestricted funds to the nearest £ 1,194 6,402 42,159 12,618 252 1,260 3,500 - 67,385 - - - 67,385 32,099 6,724 3,067 2,150 11,325 6,000 - - - 61,365 350 886 1,236 62,601 4,784 - 56,037 60,821 |
Restricted funds to the nearest £ 87 6,161 4,721 1,459 - - 270 - 12,698 - - - 12,698 14,411 3,513 418 18 784 - - - - 19,144 - - - 19,144 - 6,446 - 16,737 10,292 |
Endowment funds to the nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |
Total funds to the nearest £ 1,281 12,563 46,880 14,077 252 1,260 3,770 - 80,083 - - - 80,083 46,510 10,237 3,485 2,168 12,109 6,000 - - - 80,509 350 886 1,236 81,745 - 1,662 |
Last year to the nearest £ |
|
| Donations | 1,194 | 1,812 | ||||
| Other Giving | 6,402 | 68,547 | ||||
| Givingunder Gift Aid | 42,159 | 50,252 | ||||
| Tax Rebate from HMRC | 12,618 | 11,825 | ||||
| Interest | 252 | 3 | ||||
| Rents Received | 1,260 | 270 | ||||
| Other Revenu | 3,500 | 5,095 | ||||
| ~~l~~~~i f~~ | - | - | ||||
| ~~Sub tota~~~~(Gross ncome or~~ AR) |
67,385 | 137,803 | ||||
| A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table). |
||||||
| - | ||||||
| - | - | |||||
| Sub total | - | - | ||||
| Total receipts A3 Payments |
||||||
| 137,803 | ||||||
| Employment NIC & Pensions | 32,099 | 36,770 | ||||
| Administration | 6,724 | 15,176 | ||||
| Givingto otherc causes | 3,067 | 8,557 | ||||
| Mission | 2,150 | 887 | ||||
| Premises | 11,325 | 21,025 | ||||
| SEBA Loan repaymernts | 6,000 | 4,000 | ||||
| - | - | |||||
| - | - | |||||
| - | - | |||||
| **Sub total ** | 61,365 | 86,415 | ||||
| A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see table) |
||||||
| Floodlights for use with cameras | 350 | |||||
| Round foldingtables | 886 | |||||
| **Sub total ** | 1,236 | - | ||||
| Total payments Net of receipts/(payments) A5 Transfers between funds A6 Cash funds last year end Cash funds this year end |
||||||
| 86,415 | ||||||
| 4,784 | - 6,446 | - | - 1,662 |
51,388 | ||
| - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 56,037 | 16,737 | - | 72,775 | 21,387 | ||
| 60,821 | 10,292 | - | 71,113 | 72,775 |
CCXX R1 accounts (SS)
12/04/2023
1
Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
| Categories Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees B5 Liabilities B3 Investment assets B2 Other monetary assets B4 Assets retained for the charity’s own use B1 Cash funds |
Details 71 High Street, Tenterden Chapel - 69 High Street, Tenterden Contents of Church incl. furniture Details Total cash funds (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) Current Deposits Cash Details Details Equipment Details Signature |
Unrestricted funds Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ 6,355 - 53,819 10,292 647 - 60,821 10,292 OK OK Unrestricted funds Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - Fund to which asset belongs Cost (optional) General - General - General - - - Fund to which asset belongs Cost (optional) general 5,309 - - - - - - - Fund to which liability relates Amount due (optional) - - - - - Print Name Iain Bottrill Freddy Farias Palacios |
Endowment funds to nearest £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| OK | |||
| Endowment funds to nearest £ |
|||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| Current value (optional) |
|||
| 623,577 | |||
| 1,955,556 | |||
| 90,015 | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| Current value (optional) |
|||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| When due (optional) |
|||
| Date of approval |
|||
| Iain Bottrill | 20.04.2023 | ||
| Freddy Farias Palacios | 20.04.2023 |
CCXX R2 accounts (SS)
12/04/2023
2
CHARITY (OMMISSION FOR ENGtAND AND WAIES Independent examiner's report on the accounts Ind•p•nd•ttt ErnIn•• ft•wl R•port to the trustees Zion Baptist Church (Tenterden) On accounts for th• y•ar end•d 31¥ December 2022 Charlty no (If any) 1149069 S•t out on 9•5 I report to the truslees on rny examination ol the a¢¢vntS of the abovo tharity (Ihe Trust-) for the year ended 3111W2022. Responslblllti•s and basls of r•port As the chanivs Iruslaes. you are responsible lor the preparation of the accounts in ac(xxdance with the requlrements of the Charltles Act 2011 <"the Ad.). I report in respect of my examinalK*n of the TTusV$ accounts Garried out under seclion 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Dire¢tlons given by the Charity Commi391on under section 14q5Kb) of the Ad. Indendfjnt I have o)mpleted my exarnlnatlon. I confimi that no malerial matters havo •xamlner's statement come to my attention in connection with the examination which 9lves me cause to believe that in. any material respecl.. the accounling records were rKSt kept Ni acwdane8 with section 130 of the ChaTilies Act; or the accounts did not ac(x)rd with the accounting records. ¢X the accounts did not comply with the apFAicable requirements conceming the fom and nIent of accounts set oul in the Charities {Ac¢ounts and Reports) Regulations 2Cw)8 other Ihan any requirement that the accounts give a 'true and lairf view which Is not a mattèr consKleied as part ol an independent examination. I have no conGems arid have come across no other matters in ¢onnection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order lo enable a proper urerstandIng of the accounls to be reached. Slgned: Dat•: Olt-OF . l02S Namo: Relevant prolesslonal qualification{sl or body (If any): Address: Ttsjis IER Oct 2018
S•ctlon B Dli¢losur• (see CC32, Independenl examinatn ol charity occounls: directions and guidance lor examiners). Glve here brief detalls of any items that the examiner wlshos to dlscloso. IER Oct 2018