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2021-12-31-accounts

Annual Report for 2021 as presented at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting 25[th] April 2022

St Christopher’s Parish Office Springfield Road, Birmingham, B13 9NY Tel: 0121 325 5342 Fax: 0121 325 5358 Email: stchristopherschurch@hotmail.co.uk www.stchristopherspringfield.org.uk

Welcome to the St Christopher’s Annual Report for the year ending December 2021

The Reports

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||| |---|---| |INTRODUCTION|3| |Links with Other Organisation .......................................................................... 4| |FROM THE VICARAGE ................................................................................................... 5| |WORSHIP ....................................................................................................................... 8| |PASTORAL CARE ............................................................................................................ 9| |Anna Chaplaincy ......................................................................................................... 10| |CHILDREN & YOUTH ................................................................................................... 12| |MISSION ...................................................................................................................... 14| |Parish Missioner ......................................................................................................... 15| |Seedlings ..................................................................................................................... 16| |The Environment ........................................................................................................ 17| |THE SPRINGFIELD PROJECT ......................................................................................... 19| |CHURCH GOVERNMENT & ADMINISTRATION ............................................................ 20| |Church Wardens ................................................................................................ 20| |Deanery Synod .................................................................................................. 22| |PCC Secretary .................................................................................................... 23| |Safeguarding ...................................................................................................... 24| |Electoral Roll ...................................................................................................... 25| |Treasurer ........................................................................................................... 26| |Financial Statements ......................................................................................... 28| |KEY INFORMATION ON THE ST CHRISTOPHER’S, SPRINGFIELD PCC CHARITY ........... 34| |Membership of the PCC .................................................................................... 34| |Governing Documents for the PCC ................................................................... 35|

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INTRODUCTION

St Christopher’s Church, Springfield is located at the junction of Woodlands Road and Springfield Road in South East Birmingham about 3 miles from the city centre. It is part of the Diocese of Birmingham within the Church of England.

Aim and Purposes

The PCC has the responsibility of co-operating with the vicar in promoting within the parish the whole mission of the church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. The PCC is a registered charity (Charity no. 1151491). Further information about the charity and its trustees can be found in the section of this report headed Key Information on the St Christopher’s PCC Charity.

The PCC is also responsible for the maintenance of the church building and fabric. It also owns and uses the Springfield Centre which adjoins the church building, however the maintenance of this building is the responsibility of the Springfield Project.

Objectives and Activities

The PCC is committed to enabling as many people as possible to worship at our church and to become part of our community at St Christopher’s. In order to do so it has developed the following vision statement for St Christopher’s which it uses to guide its decisions.

Our Vision Statement – We want to be…

The PCC has adopted the strapline ‘ Growing together in Christ’ to summarise this vision in a more memorable form. It has also approved a ‘Transforming Church Action Plan’ in accordance with CofE Birmingham’s wishes as a way of encouraging a focussed approach to planning over the next five years.

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When planning their activities, the PCC has considered the Charity Commission guidance on public benefit and in particular, the specific guidance on charities for the advancement of religion. In particular the PCC seeks to enable ordinary people to live out their faith as part of the parish community through:

More information on all these activities can be found in the other sections of this report.

Links with Other Organisations:

Links with other local churches:

St Christopher’s is part of the Emmanuel Group; a group ministry with three other Anglican churches in the area:

St Christopher’s holds joint services from time to time with these local churches and shares resources where possible. St Christopher’s is also a member of the newly formed Yardley and Solihull deanery within Birmingham Diocese, which represents around 30 churches in South East Birmingham and Solihull. St Christopher’s sends up to three lay representatives to meetings of the Deanery Synod. We are delighted to welcome our new full-time area dean, Revd Nick Parker, to facilitate the new deanery.

Links with Other Charities:

The Springfield Project (www.springfieldproject.org.uk) is a charity that is closely connected to St Christopher’s. Although it is a separate charity (Charity no. 1134977) with its own trustees, it was founded by St Christopher’s, is located in the church buildings, and its activities are closely co-ordinated with those of the Church. Therefore a short report on its activities is included in this report, although a Trustees Report for the Springfield Project is also available by contacting info@springfieldproject.org.uk

St Christopher’s also has close links with the Feast (www.thefeast.org.uk), a charity that brings together teenagers from different faiths and cultures to build friendships, explore faith and change lives. In pre-pandemic times it worked with the Feast to run Hublife, a drop-in club for teenagers in the local community, located in the church building.

St Christopher’s supports an Anna Chaplain (https://www.annachaplaincy.org.uk/) who works with older people in the area. She is partially funded by the church and by grants from the Henry Smith Charitable Trust and other grant funding organisations. The work done by Debbie Gurling our Anna Chaplain is explained in her report on page 10.

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From the vicarage…

Given the relative freedom and normality we now enjoy, it’s easy to forget how much of 2021 was spent under Covid-restrictions and lockdowns. Although other churches took a different approach, we decided not to return to in-person worship at our main 10.45 service until September and even then, with a variety of measures to try to keep everyone safe. It has been a slow and at times painstaking return to what was familiar in pre-pandemic times. I’d like to thank everyone who has helped with this return and with the task of bringing some normality to church life, which still feels some way off. In fact, in many ways it feels like we’re still recovering from the pandemic and surely part of the call to follow Jesus in community is that we continue to do our utmost to show the extra kindness and generosity we all need as we emerge from what is (hopefully) a once-in-a-lifetime event.

2021 was also a year of sadness for other reasons, as we said farewell to two much-loved church members – Anne Dyer and Eddie Carey. Eddie was known to many as a cheerful, affable and kind man who loved his family deeply and had played a part in several local churches. Anne on the other hand had dedicated so much of her life to the one church of St Christopher’s and, in particular, to the work of the Sunday School. So many children and adults can thank God for the way her life touched theirs and quite simply enabled them to see Jesus. We thank God for them both, we pray for those who miss them most and we remember their place in our hearts and in our church.

Another farewell which came at the end of

2021 was to bless Lloyd and Debbie McKenzie as they moved on from St Christopher’s after some fifteen years or more of active service and ministry. It had been on Lloyd’s heart for many years to worship in the community where they live and it is good to affirm them in this desire to build Christian community. But we do miss them!

As well as these farewells, it was so good to be able to celebrate some very significant arrivals in 2021 in the beautiful forms of Amelia Garvey, Melvin Ndudiri, Chloe Nance and Levi Wetherell (as well as a sense of extended joy at hearing the news of the safe arrival of Elias Peryard-Benkamoun and Rory Miller). Although not 2021 babies, we can nonetheless also celebrate the joyful birth of Isaac Tustain and look forward to baby Quarton in the fullness of time. It is such a joy and blessing to be a tiny part of welcoming these children into the world and hopefully into a loving and caring church fellowship. Most of us won’t change nappies or give feeds, but we can do our utmost to pray for, encourage and above all love them and their parents into the fulness of life which comes from knowing Christ.

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In our ever-excellent Emmanuel Group of local churches, it was good to welcome another arrival with the licensing of Revd Toby Crowe as the new vicar of St John’s Sparkhill. We continue to thank God for the years of ministry undertaken by Toby’s predecessor John Self, but also look forward to the new things God will do in and through St John’s under this new leadership. At St Edmund’s it has been a joy to see leadership grow and develop as Ann Knight has been ordained deacon (and just recently priest) and Dot Pooler has been licensed as lay minister. There has been change too at Christ Church with Debbie Ducille leaving her role there and going on to be National Church Lead with Anna Chaplaincy (another example of Sparkhill speaking to the national church!). We pray for and with David Brogan and others on the core team at Christ Church as they look to the future. It is an honour and a joy to work with these folk and others across the Emmanuel Group and I hope very much that these relationships will continue to grow.

Other significant steps in ministry have come with Alison Ridge beginning her ordination training at St Melitus alongside an extended placement at St John’s. We also had the recent licensing of Philippa Grimes as our new reader and the acceptance of Fiona Hinds to train as a reader. We are very blessed! It is always a joy to see people stepping into new forms of ministry, and a particular joy when those are authorised and affirmed by the wider church. As each person goes into an authorised ministry, there is also the sense that the door is pushed a little wider so that others can consider their calling too.

I am delighted that our online Colour of Hope group has continued during 2021, encouraging us to persevere in the journey towards full equality in our church and society. We still have a

long way to go, but I hope this group will continue to play a key role in keeping this issue on our hearts and in our minds. In 2021 we also took a journey through the Living In Love & Faith initiative, which was commissioned and commended by the Bishops of the Church of England for use in local churches. Speaking honestly, it’s hard to look back at this part of 2021

without some pain. I am so grateful to those who came on the course (we ran it in two formats) and who contributed to those discussions, many of which were excellent. I’m also grateful to have had time to do some reading and reflecting on gender, sexuality, relationships and marriage. However, it was also painful to realise that, on this subject at least, it seems we are not yet ready as a congregation to engage with a spectrum of views and discuss these issues together in the way that I’d hoped. I pray for the day when we can have this conversation openly and honestly under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who leads us into all truth.

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Other significant events in 2021 included doing some much-needed work to our church car park and grounds. It’s good to have some new trees (currently in leaf!), to have trimmed our old trees, to have put in a new flower bed and some jolly clever retractable bollards, which have helped our security enormously. My thanks go to all those who worked and gave money to enable these things to happen, but especially to Phil Grimes who oversaw this (and much other work) during his time as churchwarden. I am so grateful for his knowledge and expertise and I know we will miss him in that role very much.

Finally can I say a huge thank you to everyone who has served at St Christopher’s in any way over the last twelve months. The Lord sees all your work for him and delights in you.

Tom Thomas

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St Christopher’s Church, Springfield

Worship Report for AGM 2021

Praise the Lord oh my soul, oh my soul

Worship his Holy Name

The worship groups have continued to lead the congregation through song and worship during another year of partial lock-down and uncertain times due to Covid.

I would like to give my sincere thanks to all those who have been involved in ensuring this happened through our Zoom meetings and then back in person from September 2021.

Many thanks to those involved in operating our P.A and enabling this to continue on a weekly basis. I know how much this is appreciated by those members of the congregation who cannot attend services in person.

Our Christmas Carol service was able to be held in person again in December which was lovely to see, and I’d like to thank David Pitches for organising this and for all who were involved including our young musicians who played their various wind instruments and those whose who read the bible passages reminding us of the true meaning of Christmas.

I would also like to give my thanks to Tom, who has been instrumental in organising rotas and integrating our worship each week.

Looking forward, I can see a change coming in how we deliver worship. We need to cry out to the Lord for direction and focus on how and where we need to change.

In the next few months, the worship team will come together for a time of prayer and to hear from God.

Our Lord has never failed us and will always provide our every need.

Margaret Gordon, Worship Steering Group

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PASTORAL CARE

Pastoral and Discipleship Steering Group Report

Members: Tom T, Kam K, Debbie G, Jean G, Ian H, Alison RH, Alex N

The Pastoral & Discipleship Steering Group has somewhat fallen into abeyance in 2021, having met just the once in January. However, much of what the group seeks to oversee has continued to happen:

In addition to all this there is of course the informal pastoral care offered and received by members of St Christopher’s as we seek to put into practice the Scriptural command to carry one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2). We know that we will always fall short of providing a perfect church, but we want to play our part in doing what Jesus commands and of fulfilling the part of our vision statement which says we hope to be:

“A loving community where genuine acceptance and deep relationships enable everyone’s well-being and continual growth.”

It is hoped very much that an organised approach to prayer ministry will soon begin again at St Christopher’s. We’re delighted that Alison and Julia are taking the lead in getting a new rota up and running and we look forward to seeing how this works out in the coming months.

Tom Thomas

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Anna Chaplaincy report for Emmanuel group AGM’s

“Even to your old age and grey hairs, I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you” Isaiah 46: 4

This past year has been one of both ebb and flow in the life of Anna Chaplaincy in the Emmanuel group.

2021 had already begun with saying goodbye to Michael Farrell (St John’s), however the day restrictions started to ease in May, Anne Dyer (St Christopher’s), suddenly died. This meant that at the time of national relief, as we could now embrace our friends, we were also grieving locally at this loss within our church family, as Anne had supported us all for a very long time.

After nearly two years of being apart, both the Good Companions club at St John’s and the Cloister café at St Edmunds, restarted. Whilst it was clear that many people had become frailer during the time of being in lockdown, everyone from both clubs were happy to get out and be reunited with their friends. For some, this was the only time they left their homes, so the restarting of clubs was a significant reintroduction to feeling a part of the community again.

In the summer, I took the opportunity to have a couple of local outings with two of our seniors, to Blackberry Way, or the path to Sarehole Mill. Again, this proved a special time for both to have company and be outside of their homes.

We then had the losses of both Dine Osbourne (St John’s), and Pat Boyes (St Christopher’s). Although both had not been seen for a while, as Pat had moved away, and Dine was no longer able to come to church, both women remain equally missed.

As a local Anna Chaplaincy team, Ann Knight stepped down from being an Anna Friend, but then was later ordained as priest for St Edmunds! However, in addition to Dot Pooler, (who like Ann had been with me from the very beginning), I had first Alison Hartley, then Jean Gethen, join me as Anna Friends – so for the first time we were a team of four.

Christmas time, saw 100 Advent bags being made, and many being given out to our seniors across the Emmanuel group, alongside Christmas cards from myself, and from children from the Sunday schools of both St Christopher’s and St John’s. Sadly, just before Christmas, Josie Henry (St John’s) died – the very first person that I had visited, after being commissioned as a chaplain in June 2019. Josie was also the first female church warden of colour at St John’s – a trailblazer in every sense!

In February 2022, Debbie Ducille started her new post as Church Lead for Anna Chaplaincy in the U.K. This meant that a ‘double act of Debbies’, were able to give a joint presentation

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about Anna Chaplaincy to the members’ meeting of the Mother’s Union in Birmingham a month later. This was well received, to the extent that at least one invitation to speak at a church in 2023 was given as a result.

Whilst formal groups have restarted, it has been a blessing to see that amongst the seniors within the churches, there is also informal support and connection, both practical and spiritual, taking place. Being in lockdown, and being cut off from one another, taught a lot of people a lot of things, and there were also a lot of losses, on every level during this time. However, one of the biggest gains has been the new renewed appreciation of the importance of relationship – with each other and with God

Debbie Gurling

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This year has been one of adaptation, from online to in-person groups, from socially distanced, gelled garden youth work to furniture-shifting creating welcoming indoor spaces for the church’s children to meet in. 50 under-18s have been registered with St Christopher’s in 2021, and 42 wonderful volunteers involved in caring, praying, teaching, playing and growing in faith alongside them. We have enjoyed Zoom sessions, Summer, Firework and Christmas Parties and spending time together being part of God’s Family.

Super Stars (under-5s) has seen rapid growth in numbers this year! 11 children are on the books and up to 6 attending the group without parents since September. I have been phoning and visiting parents to encourage them as they embark on their parenting adventure. A WhatsApp group helps us to share news and blessings and Alex Nance has been wonderful in organising meals for new parents. Having had the benefit of Fiona Hinds’ leadership for several years, Meike Merk has taken over and says “I love being with the children, showing them God’s love. I hope the seeds we plant will grow into a strong Christian faith”.

(5-11s) met on Zoom for the first half of the year, which worked really well for this age group and saw consistent attendance and engagement. They were really happy to meet in real life for their Summer Party and have continued in-person from September with energy and enthusiasm.

There are 13 children registered in this group, with up to 9 attending regularly. They use adapted Energize materials for a fun way to learn, experience, worship and pray while they explore the Bible together. Sarah Smith, their co-ordinator, says, “ I give thanks for their relationships with each other and the sense of JAFFA being a happy and safe place to be. I love watching them enjoying worshipping God through the

songs we sing together, and listen to their growing understanding of being a follower of Jesus ”.

(10-14s) started meeting again in September and while numbers have remained low, there is a lot of joy in this group, and some very interesting discussions! There are 13 registered in this age group, and up to 5 attend. Sharon Pitches says she enjoys: “watching the curiosity of FROG as they start questioning the Bible’s meaning and how faith plays a part in their own lives”.

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Sunday Hot Choc Caf é (15+)

met a few times in the Autumn, leaving the main Sunday Service early once a month to enjoy sweet treats, discuss what they had done and heard in the service and pray together. There are 14 registered over-15s, and up to 10 attended SHCC, with Fiona Lenton leading. She says she gives God thanks for: “Getting to know the young people better and enjoying discussion with them.“ While our older young people are not offered a weekly Sunday morning group, they are encouraged to get involved in services by volunteering in the younger groups, with worship and hospitality, building relationships with the wider church family and growing their skills. A Discipleship Mentoring scheme started this year, with 3 pairs meeting regularly so far.

(mid-week, school year 6+) We had great times in 2021 on Zoom, in the Vicarage and Slaters’ garden and in church, keeping our distance or cooking and eating together as we were allowed. Sam Quarton gives thanks for: “the number of times God has spoken to me through the young people at BLAST. It is a real encouragement to my faith!” Through it all, we laughed together, undertook ‘prayer experiments’, tried to be honest about our faith and feelings, and coped with Tom’s ultracompetitive attitude to hockey…! 24 young people are registered, with up to 14 attending regularly.

InfraRED (16-18s) continued to meet until July, under the leadership of Eve Brogan, on Zoom and in Church, and did some really interesting studies on challenging themes and people in the Bible, finishing with working through the ‘Beautiful Disciplines’ book by Martin Saunders. There were 6 registered in this age group, and 3-4 attended regularly.

What a privilege it is to have the blessing of so many young people and children in our church! What a joyful burden it is to remember, ‘it takes a church to raise a Christian child’ and for us all to take on the pleasure and responsibility of encouraging faith and celebrating God at work as their parents, friends, teachers, carers, observers, mentors and prayer champions! I am so thankful that Smeeee and Sarah Smith, Meike Merk and Babita Sagu have been a fantastic Advisory Group helping us all to ‘ Tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done.’ Psalms 78:4 .

Keep up the good work, everyone!

Rebecca Slater

Under-18s Ministry Facilitator

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MISSION

During 2021, we have continued to support our mission partners in two main ways. Firstly, in terms of individuals we have continued to pray for and support Liz and Sameh Khalil, Tiffany Atkins and Rachel Smith and secondly in terms of a particular outreach we have also supported Seedlings and Open Doors. As always, we hope that our support for these individuals and ministries will be a blessing to them and also a way for us to glimpse how God is at work in different ways and different places. It has certainly been salutary to be reminded how many of our brothers and sisters around the world live in fear as they seek to follow Christ. We hope we can use this knowledge as a spur to our prayers for them and to a deeper appreciation of the freedoms we enjoy here and now.

Seedlings remains a unique and remarkable opportunity for local mission as families come flocking into our building and give us the opportunity to serve, pray for and speak to them with the love of Christ in our hearts. Volunteering at Seedlings is not for the faint-hearted (!) and is clearly not open to the many who have daytime work patterns, but if you can be a part of it, it is wonderful. It has not been easy to find other organised forms of local outreach over the last year, as so often plans to invite people or to do a shared activity such as the Good Friday walk or carol singing have had to be abandoned because of Covid. We look forward to finding ways in which the daily witness of our lives can be helpfully translated into a shared opportunity for witness and to invite others to respond to Christ.

Tom Thomas & Mike Smith

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Parish Missioner

God has been working in me and through me in many ways giving me opportunities to minister to several members of one family. It has been encouraging and challenging, the experience has been helpful as I’m having to mediate within the family members. Through this amazing working with families, I’m helping them to see each other how God would see them. This work is continuing and is very much needed in this community especially in the Asian families. I’m truly blessed to be in a community that really need God, and I am given this opportunity, to share God’s love.

Asian Fellowship has not been running, but Vim and I had still been meeting (safely) and praying for the people that were attending before the pandemic also visiting them at their home.

I am reaching out to about 5 people a week and minister to them in many different ways, such as helping them with housing, listening to them and offering prayer to them and signposting them to the relevant organisations. Some of these people are from Seedlings parents and some of them are sign posted to me from Vim.

I still am ministering to the people, from the community. Some people are still worried about coming in contact with others people. I offer to meet in the prayer room if it’s not safe for me to go to their homes, or if I feel one is showing signs of isolation I encourage them to meet me in the church. We read the Bible together and pray. A couple of these ladies do not attend church regularly or have any other Christian input in their lives. We have had really good conversations in the one-to-one sessions and this then leads to these ladies grow in their faith and draw closer to God, which then I’m praying will lead to Baptisms.

My ministry with Muslim people continues and would appreciate if you could pray for me and for Gods protection on me. Last year in November I had felt really exhausted and God bought me to a standstill. I experienced something awful and had to turn to God afresh and He took me through this time. It was a lesson learnt, and I realised that I should listen to the Holy Spirit and to take time to process stuff that goes on in the ministry, and pray for protection as is very challenging as an Asian person to both minister and live in the local community.

Kam Kaur Parish Missioner

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There have been many big changes over the past year. We have now transitioned from having Seedlings sessions on Zoom to back in person. As a result of Covid the government guidelines have stated that we are only allowed between 10-15 families per session. This was a difficult decision, as we have over 100 parents that usually attend. Therefore, I have had to make the decision to choose priority families with additional needs. I was aware that these families had needs that were not being met as a result of the Covid restrictions, therefore they would massively benefit from coming to Seedlings. They still had to follow government guidelines such as; social distancing and wearing face masks. We have now returned back to full capacity, with up to 34 families attending per session.

During the summer term of 2021 we had a Teddy bears picnic party, in which the children brought in their favourite teddy bears. However, due to poor weather this had to take place indoors which both children and parents thoroughly enjoyed. We created a fun and engaging environment where families were able to share their picnic. The parents brought their own healthy snacks and we provided teddy bears crisps and ice-lollies.

I invited Avinash Kaur (Health Activity Worker, from The Springfield Project) to come in to provide information and advice on a variety of topics such as eating, sleeping and behaviour, which the parents were very happy to take part in, allowing them to share their concerns and get professional advice. Families have also now enrolled with Henry (Training Course) which allows them to gain knowledge and a clear understanding and learn about topics such as healthy eating.

During the last week of March 2022 we had a visit from Quench Arts. (Dalma Sinka) who provided lots of musical instruments for children allowing them to engage, explore and develop new interests so they can express themselves through music. Both parents and children were fully engaged during these activities.

In April we are having a Party Celebrating Easter. We are proving activities such as making Easter cards, chocolate nests, and having an Easter egg hunt. Tom will also come in to tell the Easter story to the children on Wednesday and Thursday.

Seedlings continues to remain extremely popular. We continue to get positive praise and thanks from parents for providing Seedlings in the local community. We have families attending Seedlings from Selly oak, Bournville, Acocks Green, Edgbaston, Small Heath and Solihull as well as our local areas. We pray that God continues to guide us and support us in Seedlings.

Chris Elswood Seedlings Coordinator

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Contribution to PCC AGM report covering Jan-Dec 2021

The environment – Caring for God’s creation

Caring for God’s creation is one of the five marks of mission set out by the Anglian Church and recognised by many other denominations.

We continue to work on the actions for improvement identified in our eco-church action plan as we move from ‘Silver’ to ‘Gold’ status. Simon Slater the designated eco-church coordinator by the PCC, has provided updates to the church council and worked with other members of the congregation.

Sharing good practice

As one of the few ‘silver’ eco-churches in Birmingham we have been asked to share our experiences on zoom to a Diocese-wide event in May, an international youth and faith event in July, and in person at a Birmingham faith leaders summit in December.

Wildlife Survey

Our young people carried out our first ever wildlife survey of the church grounds (including the vicarage garden used for events). We identified 88 different species of plants and animals and submitted this to annual church grounds wildlife database.

The children then helped the adults to use the techniques they used such as the ‘i-seek’ app to experience for themselves the diversity of God’s creation in our grounds as part of an activity during creation Sunday in September.

Campaigning

As part of the UK church campaign leading up to the UN Climate Summit in Glasgow, we took part by holding a ‘Climate Sunday Service’ in September. This included an activity to write petition postcards to the Prime Minister to urge more action and funding to tackle climate change as part of a Tearfund backed campaign.

In November several members of the congregation joined with other churches and faith groups to join 1,000s take part in a march in the city centre as part of a Global Day of Protest during the UN summit.

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Worship and teaching

We held open-air services in the church carpark in the spring and summer due to COVID restrictions. This helped us as a congregation as we worshipped our creator surrounded by his creation of the sun, wind, trees, birds and the noise and bustle of his world. We also tied ribbons to the old and new trees on our grounds as reminders of individual prayers for our community.

On Climate Sunday there was an activity that looked at the Bible’s teaching on caring for creation from Genesis to Revelation.

Another activity involved piloting a ‘What’s your sustainability shape’ lifestyle exercise with local charity ecobirmingham. This will be developed into a city-wide sustainable lifestyles advice tool which we can use next year.

Plans for 2022

The Church council has asked for the mission and social justice focus for 2022 to be on the environment. In addition to progressing the eco-church plan and holding a climate Sunday, we will aim to run a caring for creation group at Lent and support a Tearfund environmental campaign.

Simon Slater, eco-church coordinator April 2022

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As for many of us The Springfield Project has been seriously challenged by the pandemic. In addition to all the obvious challenges that many organisations have faced through covid we have also lost many of the lovely things that bring Church and Project together. Having said this we did experience an incredible community opera for tiny children performed in Feb half term reminding us of the power of the arts to bring people together with real benefit to language development.

We continue to be very grateful for those church members who volunteer or work at the project, keeping us connected. I would personally also like to thank the saints who serve on the Board for their faithful support and generous gifting of their time for the key business of governance and strategic thinking.

The headlines for the year are as follows:

People are the most important element to the Springfield project. It is wonderful that we continue to serve the needs of so many local families. This sadly even meant weeping with those who weep when one of the children from Park Road nursery was killed crossing the road in Tyseley.

Equally the people who work for us are absolutely key. It is therefore important that we fully acknowledge all that has been given to the project by people as they sadly move on. Two key people that many will know are Sue Round and Tina Brogan both of whom are at the end of their time working for the Project. They have both had a deep sense of God’s hand on the project for which we should be very grateful and will leave significant holes behind them. We have also carried other signifcant vacancies, particularly in finance and HR, so it is absolutely great news that we have just appointed to the role of Chief Operating Officer, responsible for both of these areas. Our new leader comes with really good experience and a strong Christian faith and will be a vital number two to Sarah. Please pray for both of them as they lead Springfield into a new chapter.

Tim Boyes

Chair of Trustees

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CHURCH GOVERNMENT & ADMINISTRATION

Church Warden Report

Well, what an amazing year we have had as we studied the scriptures together and hopefully learnt a lot more than we knew before. During lockdown much was still happening at church as well as online, to plan a more modest reordering after funding was denied for the BIG project previously planned.

We had drain surveys and visits from the Diocesan architects and Victorian society to look at our plans for a kitchen and upgrades to storage. As time went on, we had several focus groups to look at the best options and with the help of David Pitches and his family made model we were able to look at the many practicalities of keeping the sacred space at the front with all the instruments, singers PA and communion table.

Eventually we settled on the kitchen at the back of church and platform alterations will mean moving the congregation forward to allow room for this loss of space at the back. The plans are now at an advanced stage. Now as you know building costs have gone up massively [ a building project costing £50k prior to lockdown is now £90k. Therefore, we will have to pray how we can raise a good proportion of these funds as reserves will not cover it all. It must progress though a few more stages yet so watch this space. We also must think about heating as we will be losing a gas heater, the others gas heaters will also need replacing soon and they are not cheap!!

The trees I hope you agree are looking great now they have been trimmed and this allows the lovely cherry trees to blossom.

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We also had a very helpful visit from the diocesan disability advisor to look at the planned project and the rest of the church to make it more friendly for our congregation. Access to the garden is still a challenge there.

As many will know energy costs are rising FAST so we must prayerfully look at our giving as these costs for St Christophers will rapidly rise.

As well as this, in 2022 we have the 5 yearly MOT inspection of the church by the architect and no doubt he will find many jobs that need doing. Having an older building is always a challenge.

As we come out of the lockdown Covid 19 is an ever-present challenge so pray the PCC get the balance right to help us keep safe but relaxed.

Let’s pray we will know God’s wisdom in all these decisions as we seek to make St Christopher’s a more welcoming and friendly place for all.

Phil Grimes Churchwarden

April 2022

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Deanery Synod

During 2021 we were delighted to welcome Revd Nick Parker as our new, full-time Area Dean. It has been a joy to begin to get to know Nick and already he is proving to be a helpful, supportive and wise person to have around.

There were two meetings of the deanery synod during the year, one by Zoom and the other in person at St Michael’s South Yardley. At these meetings a variety of issues were discussed including:

As well as these meetings there was also a deanery social in August at Hampton-in-Arden Sports Club and a Deanery Mission Day on Saturday 14[th] August where people put the 5[th] mark of mission* into practice by helping to tidy up the Grand Union Canal bank.

Our thanks this year go especially to Mike Smith and John Dyer who have done valiant service as our deanery synod representatives. Both have expressed a desire to stand down so there will be openings for anyone who’d like to see something of the life of other local churches and see how they encounter and engage with issues very similar to our own.

Tom Thomas

*The ‘Five marks of mission’ are an outline of what mission is, composed by the Anglican Church. They are:

1. To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom

2. To teach, baptise and nurture new believers

3. To respond to human need by loving service

4. To transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and pursue peace and reconciliation

5. To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation, and sustain and renew the life of the earth.

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Church Council (PCC) Report

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) has an important role to play in the leadership of St Christopher’s. It has the ultimate responsibility for managing the church finances and deciding the strategic direction of the church. It also supports and oversees the activities of the church and encourages those leading the activities. PCC members are also the trustees of the charity that manages the church assets and income.

The PCC has met seven times as a council since the last APCM. We have gone back to meeting face to face on most occasions and meetings have taken place in church. It has been positive to see one another ‘in real life’ (if not a little cold at times!)

The following subjects occupied a significant part of the council’s time during the year:

“We welcome all people from every community. We welcome you to join us in worshipping God, praying and learning from His Holy Word together at St Christopher’s.”

We have also regularly discussed:

The PCC also has a list of rolling actions, which help us frame discussions and keep track of important actions. Once PCC minutes have been agreed, church members can request a copy from Tom.

Thank you to all PCC members for putting aside the time to attend these meetings. This has enabled us to bring a range of knowledge and experience to the discussions and decisions that were made this year.

Helen Cremins PCC Secretary

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Safeguarding

Safeguarding has become much more centralised (and rigorous) across Church of England Birmingham with a set of requirements for those holding most posts (paid and voluntary) in a parish church. This means that people in a volunteer role at St Christopher’s will need to complete a DBS application to check if they have previous convictions which would bar them from working with children or vulnerable adults. Then there are two courses which most people are asked to complete – Basic Safeguarding Awareness and Safeguarding Foundations. In addition, PCC members and Churchwardens are required to complete a third unit called Raising Awareness Of Domestic Abuse. Once completed, these courses are renewable after three years.

I am delighted that Rebecca Slater has enabled most volunteers at St Christopher’s to complete the first two courses, via training sessions in September and January. She and Lucy are also in charge of the process of DBS applications. We can also draw on the expertise of Claudia Gordon, our Parish Safeguarding Coordinator and her deputy Ang Leonard. So altogether we have an impressive team seeking to do all we can to keep children and vulnerable adults safe in our church. Further details of policies and procedures can be found on our website (stchristopherspringfield.org.uk) or on the CofE Birmingham’s website (cofebirmingham.com). However, as I’m sure you are aware, safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility so if you ever see or hear anything that gives you cause for concern, please remember these simple steps:

  1. Receive what the person is saying

  2. Reassure the person that it’s good they are telling you

  3. Record (write down) what you have seen or heard as soon as possible without adding or leaving anything out, sign and date it

  4. Report it to either Claudia or Tom (and give them your record)

  5. Breathe easy – your job is done!

Obviously if you simply observe something then simply put it in writing and pass it to Claudia or Tom. Claudia’s experience is invaluable in discerning what should then be passed on to the diocese or the police and what is simply behaviour we should be aware of and monitor. We want to be calmly vigilant and tread a healthy line between naivety on one hand and paranoia on the other.

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Electoral Roll

Within the Church of England the Electoral Roll is a list of all the members of the church. All baptised Christians over 16 who regularly worship at St Christopher’s are entitled to go on the Electoral Roll. These church members are then those entitled to attend and vote at the APCM (Annual Parochial Church Meeting.

The roll in 2021 had 119 members on it. Over the year one member who has passed away sadly had to be removed from the roll. 3 couples left the church reducing the roll by 6 members. One younger member of the church was added to the roll either because they have turned 16 or will turn 16 in the next 12 months. 4 members were added to the roll who were people who

had worshipped at the church for several years but had not previously asked for their name to be added to the roll. This means that the number on the roll has decreased by 2 members to 117.

The change in membership has increased the proportion of members who live in the parish from 33% to 37%. However the parish covers a relatively small area of just 24 streets, with a population of only 7,000, so it is possible to live 500 metres from the Church, but not live in the parish. Church members generally live close to the church with 50% living within 1 mile and over 70% living within 2 miles of the church building.

Mike Lenton Church Electoral Roll Officer

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Treasurer’s Report

The financial statements for the Year Ended 2021 (1[st] Jan to 31[st] Dec 2021) as presented shows a cash balance in equity calculated at £129,248.84. When compared to the previous financial year figure of (£149,201.79), this gives a reduction of £19,952.95 in equity, a reduction by approximately 13%. The main factor resulting in this was again due to the excess of making “Payments” over “Receipts” received.

We can all understand that the year 2021 was quite a difficult pandemic period to get through, with restrictions and losses being placed and met in our everyday lives, for many of us including most businesses and financial establishments it became a life changing experience, which to this very day whilst rules and various restrictions have been relaxed and lifted, are slowly restoring, and recovering to normality, inline and adhering to the Government and Health Department advice and rules. However, in the midst of this, St Christopher’s Church have tried to keep afloat financially without putting too much burden on our Reserves, we have kept our financial profile to an acceptable level and reach without making any hasty decisions in making ends meet financially without compromising our Mission Statement in serving our congregation and the local community. However, some expenses noted as “Payments” had been expected due to the unfortunate prevailing circumstances, which were unavoidable and had to be met, such as salaries, pension contributions, church repairs/maintenance all rising. Again, due to the changing circumstances, this unfortunately could not be offset by our income, noted as “Receipts” being received by the Church mainly due to some grants that were being received had come to an end, along with some congregation members leaving and relocating due to career changes. Some of the financial gains and losses that were noted, are briefly shown below:

Receipts

Areas that saw a decrease were:

Areas that saw an increase were:

Payments

Areas that saw a decrease were:

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Areas that saw an increase were:

In the meantime, I take this opportunity to thank Lucy Emo the Church Financial Administrator for her administrative and record keeping duties, along with Brian Wilkins and Tom Thomas for their support and help.

Steven Taggar (PCC Treasurer)

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St Christopher’s Church Woodlands Road Moseley Birmingham

Annual Report and

Financial Statements

Of the

Parochial Church Council

for the year ended 31 December 2021

Incumbent

Rev Tom Thomas The Vicarage Woodlands Road Moseley Birmingham

Independent Examiner:

Mr Brian Wilkins, ACIB 3 Springdale Gardens Selly Oak Birmingham B29 6DG

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Independent Examiner’s Report to the PCC of St Christopher’s Church, Moseley, Birmingham.

This report is on the accounts of the PCC for the year ended 31 December 2021 which are set out in the subsequent pages.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to

Basis of independent examiner’s report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the General directions given by the Charity Commission.

An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the PCC and a comparison of the accounts with those records. It also includes considering any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts.

Independent examiner’s statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:

Brian Wilkins

Date: 19/04/2022

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Sl Chrlitopherfs Parochlal Church COUKII FiMKial StatrAnents forthe yw endBd 31￿ December 2021 Recei andP ents Accounl Unmlrfcl•d Fund 2021 R•￿￿1•d Fund 2021 T￿412021 Tot•1 2020 85.828.98 34,883.60 120,712.58 125.285.78 hBnlat48 A£tiwls 9,393 9,399 15,211.10 nvesbymt Ir£•me 3,5c 1,136.60 1,136.50 1,249.63 otal Re¢*ipts 96,364.58 4883.60 131248.18 141,746.51 rth Pdwbbes Costs 62. 83.522.64 83.522.64 84,845.53 eS￿r£In9 m￿S1on 11.691. 55,986.99 67,678.49 59,520.97 otal Payments 95214.14 55,986.99 151201.13 144,366.50 cem of Receipts (￿￿ Payments 1,150.44 (21.103.J91 119.952.95) {2.619J91 ransfer Between Fun 11,150A41 1,150.44 Chaffje in Period (19,952.951 119,952.951 {2,619S91 30

81 Chrfthpl¢i p￿ChI￿ C1￿Ch Courrtl FkwKl•l 8t•l•wts lty th• J¥ •rthd 31it Drt•mbw21121 •ffAnt olAswts Ualth al 3111 DK•nb•f J)21 3111V1121 31112110 C¥h m Harml 168 71 11,B47.4J 11723170 131ffj7 17237 62 131I31Xs T￿1 Clvh w¥1 8wk Ihpo 129211.14 141.211.7• TOT￿ ASSETS iaJ48. 14•.111.T• 141,211.7• 1. BAgSOF PREPARAmll OF TrEA¢CWMTS I AMLYSIS Cf TIE IIOVEIIENT 11 THE FIAIDS DLNIIIIG YEAR UN•glri¢*d Fun 31

  1. KOIIE FROII INVESTIIENTS Ths o)nyses inlwest ￿ dopo&b ar•J cfjmF•isatsJn. irthlnj inknst cffl tr* rwtrthj lund balarus.
  2. ASSETS aTrJ li tr aCc￿nIS m KOYd￿ Twth 10 d lh8 Charitss ¢ Clh8r nth8tsry alqds for srns d8knfvJ by th• ponth fr pw has Ml y•t & FURTHER ANALYSIS OF RECEIPTS 2021 T(ial Reicd Fur Tthl F￿d Fur a. DONATIONS DireeiDth￿d SWdwJ Otders Cashand th4ue5 Wother Fur Total Pl￿Nd Gfj¥lr4 S.50 662Sfj 67,185. 6T.1￿￿) 6.482 B.625 8.625 CvtThP￿pDoThth 17.90 17 767.14 714. Gmnts AnnaChaFr W￿.re)J￿rlj Grai Totti G￿ 21.￿0 21. 5.913 3.9)0 5.913.60 3&0 TthdCo18ths CYC All¥4L?￿S1Cèrpal￿La￿ySc0F¢I Cmrch WcrfkDwatnn 0th81 Inwrf T•ial Donth 1.7.10 4.740 1J67.10 4.740 6270 6270 10,575 16 10.575 6 787.1 TOTAL DCIIATI)NS cHARrr￿LEAcT￿r￿8 12&$ BLthry¥VtA Feé U*01(￿￿ 7.075.10 7.075.10 9WO TOTAL CHARifABLE ACTibifES 15 ¢. &4NK INTEPEST TOTAL RECEJPTS 47A1 41 141746Jl 364J8 131248.18 32

& FURTHER JIALYSIS PAYME￿3 Te•1 ¢1 2fQl ¢1 4Y.n In1 611 zni 611 7AS97 275 17 .17 S￿5& 1 41ffj4 otsjL￿ 1W44 517JJ 51733 6494 24101 11¢.91 52116 52) 16 53751 31.38 43D 34 IJJ 2J17 CJtr• 5.795nJ 3JlS 5,195A13 3,379 Sm.10 3ffiJ21 Sm.10 3,W24 5.ST5 3.012. 5.75 3fj1295 ItAI51.4 1224147 12244.41 sx 2￿11.1) 16132 16 1076 19K3n 2m629 I9￿.￿ lQ832.16 T6. CYC&Kr<Akne $79 11&79 &Ja3 .168 321.47 16,Mn 18sr2.69 Ta•lY•thWfvCo TOTALAESOIAC*IGIIIIISTrY TOTALPAYME 1Y2•1.1) 33

KEY INFORMATION ON THE ST CHRISTOPHER’S, SPRINGFIELD PCC CHARITY

The St Christopher’s PCC is a body corporate (PCC Powers Measure 1956, Church Representation Rules 2011) and a registered charity. The Charity Registration number is: 1151491. The registered name of the charity is: The Parochial Church Council of The Ecclesiastical Parish of St Christopher’s Springfield although it is commonly called St Christopher’s, Springfield PCC.

Membership of the PCC

The Members of the PCC are the Trustees of the St Christopher’s, Springfield PCC. Charity. Members are generally elected at the Annual Parochial Church Council Meeting (APCM) usually for a period of three years.

PCC Membership

During 2021 the following people served as members of the PCC:

Clergy: Tom Thomas (Vicar)

Churchwarden(s): Phil Grimes (elected annually)

Representatives to the Deanery Synod: John Dyer (elected 2018) and Mike Smith (elected 2020)

Elected members: Catriona Heatherington (elected 2019) Stephen Taggar (elected 2019) David Hartley (elected 2020) Sue Green (elected 2020) Helen Cremins (elected 2021) Margaret Gordon (elected 2021) Alex Nance (elected 2021) Alison Roper-Hall (elected 2021)

PCC Officers: Chair - Tom Thomas Vice - Chair Alison Roper-Hall Secretary - Helen Cremins Treasurer - Stephen Taggar Electoral Roll Officer - Sheila Cardin Stewardship Secretary - Margaret Gordon

Although the Vicar is the Chair of the PCC as defined by the Church Representation Rules, it is the practice at St Christopher’s for meetings to be chaired by a lay member of the PCC i.e. the Vice-Chair.

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Governing Documents for the PCC:

As part of the Church of England the PCC follows the agreement between The Church of England and the Charity Commission that for all PCCs the “Governing Documents” for the charity will be:

  1. The Parochial Church Councils (Powers) Measure 1956 as amended

  2. The Church Representation Rules (contained in Schedule to the Synodical Government Measure 1969 as amended).

The PCC Powers Measure defines the powers of a PCC It states that the principal function, or purpose, of the PCC as “promoting in the parish the whole mission of the Church”. The full text of the PCC Powers Measure in its currently amended form can be found on the legislation.gov.uk database at: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukcm/Eliz2/4-5/3/contents The Church Representation Rules define how members are elected to the PCC, the rules for the Electoral Roll and how PCC Officers are appointed. The full text of the Church Representation Rules in its currently amended form can be found on the legislation.gov.uk database at: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukcm/1969/2/schedule/3

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St. Christopher's Church Growing together in Christ 36