2025-12-31-accounts

The Parish of Newport Pagnell

St Peter & St Paul, High Street, Newport Pagnell, MK16 8AR St Luke, Wolverton Road, Newport Pagnell, MK16 8JQ

ANNUAL REPORTS

for presentation to the

Annual Parochial Church Meeting on Monday 11[th] May 2026

1

Contents

	Page
Rector’s Report		4
Churchwardens Report		5
Parochial Church Council
- Secretary’s Report		6
- PCC membership and PCC Sub-Committees		6
Statistics		7
Safeguarding		8
Mothers’ Union		9
Sunday Club		10
Fabric Committee		12
Bellringers		12
Stewardship		13
Communications & Publicity report		13
Parish Visiting		14
Mission Group		15
CTNP		16
Treasurers Report		18
Appendix 1	Accounts

3

Rector’s report Rev Nick Evans

The past year has seen a growth in the number of new people who are now permanently attending church along with 11 adults and one child attending Confirmation sessions. The reasons for this growth are unclear but it could be that we have all worked hard to cultivate a welcoming church in which new folk often talk about their new ‘church family’. Others value the traditional but relaxed form of worship which we continue to practice.

There have been various social events including musical evenings which have engaged with the local community and formed the basis of the necessary statistics which we need so that we can further the church reordering process. We now have a project manager to steer us through this complex reordering process.

One of the biggest growth points has been the continued reach out to the local community through the ‘Cameo’ initiative. As we do not have our own parish hall this has resulted in nearly the whole of one side aisle being dedicated to this weekly family and toddler initiative. This group has been successfully and gently introduced to three Christian worship sessions at Easter, Harvest and Christmas on the same Monday mornings when the cameo group meets.

This has led to some baptism requests and a lot of conversations about the Christian faith initiated by the attendees.

Regarding regular Sunday services there is a steady increase in the amount of mixing between SSPP and St Luke’s. This reflects theological growth within the congregation in that who we worship is becoming less important than where we worship.

Attention and special thanks must be given to many who play their role in practising hospitality to the unchurched and new congregation members. This is expressed by involvement throughout the year in making cakes, serving in the kitchen area and being a friendly face that new people firstly encounter.

Supporting and encouraging each other and new people continues to be a hallmark of SSPP and St Luke’s. There is also a continuing thirst for more activities concerning learning more about the Christian faith which is reflected by 40 people were signing up for the ‘Big Read’ lent initiative.

As usual there are too many people to thank for all that occurs but special mention should go to the ministry team of our LLMs and church warden. Without them and the office my life would be considerately more difficult! Thanks too for our organist who continues to serve excellently despite the trying circumstances of a very ill spouse.

It is a great pleasure to be serving in such a mixed and diverse congregation so thanks to all of you who labour for God – whether it be ‘front of house’ or behind the scenes.

4

Churchwarden’s Report Jennifer Mazzone

I have continued to enjoy the challenging role of Churchwarden, and I am still learning all the time about what is expected of a Churchwarden.

Our Parish community continues to thrive. Many new people have been welcomed into church and have continued to attend services. Numbers at services continue to rise slowly and are being maintained.

Of course, the attendances were high at the Christingle service, the Carol service, the Crib service, Midnight Mass and Christmas Day. At several of these services the church was packed, which was good to see.

Many people enter the church during the week to pray, light a candle, add a name to the Prayer Cross or just to sit quietly.

Once again, the area used by Cameo has had to be extended. There is now an influx of new people attending with their babies. This is to be welcomed especially as many of the original group have moved on to nursery or school. The volunteers work hard to set up, clear away and provide refreshments. It is refreshing to see all the mums, dads, grandparents and carers bonding with each other and forming friendships.

Social activities are important as they provide an opportunity to get to know each other better. The Bazaar, the Christmas Tree Festival, the annual lunch at The Swan, to name a few provide such occasions and were well attended.

A piano recital was given by Gill Crossland who played on our baby grand piano so professionally and concerts arranged by Where Two Rivers Meet have been successful. One or two choirs regularly give concerts in the church. It was with sadness that the Jazz concert had to be cancelled due to lack of support.

As Churchwarden, I belong to the Mission group, the Events group and I am now chairing the Reordering committee as we begin to proceed with Phase 2. This committee is in the process of getting a Feasibility study done and preparing a Statement of Needs. Slowly but surely, progress is being made.

The church does not run smoothly without the help of unseen volunteers who often pop into church and do various tasks. Thanks must go to the flower arrangers, those who serve on the sidesman, refreshment and chalice assisting rotas. Their help is invaluable. Professional cleaners are employed to clean the toilets and the servery once a week.

Finally, I would like to thank the people who support me in my role as Churchwarden, especially Nick. Their support is invaluable.

5

PCC Report

The Parochial Church Council is a corporate body established by the Church of England. The PCC operates under the Parochial Church Council Powers Measure. The PCC is a registered charity.

Registered No: 1153668

The PCC met 7 times and the Standing Committee 5 times in 2025/2026

PCC membership

The appointment of PCC members is governed by and set out in the Church Representation Rules.

During the year, the following have served as members of the Parochial Church Council: Incumbent: Rev Nick Evans, Rector

Licensed Lay Ministers: Mervyn Evans and Karen Goff.

Churchwarden: Jennifer Mazzone

PCC Secretary: Lindsey Charlesworth

Deanery Synod representatives: Dick Smith (Treasurer), John Fowler, Mervyn Evans

Elected: Brenda Brand, Doug Hird, Beth Mackay, Ralph Mazzone, Celia Oldham Hazel Reynolds, Marlene Smith.

PCC Sub-Committees

The Parochial Church Council operates through several sub-committees which meet between full meetings of the PCC. They are:

Standing Committee: This committee comprises the Rector, Churchwardens, PCC Secretary and Treasurer. It has delegated powers to transact some of the business of the PCC between its meetings and deals mainly with housekeeping matters.

Fabric Committee: This committee attends to the maintenance of the Parish Church, St Luke’s Church and 3 Castle Meadow Close, and considers future projects.

Events Committee: Established in October 2018 as an overarching committee to support organisers of events, providing support, advice and identifying possible helpers. Also, will identify new events and provide advanced planning.

6

Re-order Steering group: This group was established in January 2019 and will oversee and guide the re-ordering project.

Parish Visiting team: Established January 2020 to oversee and provide for the needs of those who request visits.

Mission Group: This group arose as a direct result of our Mission Open Day held in October 2021. The group had its inaugural meeting on Thursday 20[th] January 2022.

Statistics

Statistics
	Baptisms	Thanksgiving	Weddings	Blessings	Church Funerals	Crem Funerals
2014	28	4	23	0	14	21
2015	35	2	19	1	20	12
2016	34	0	14	1	25	5
2017	25	0	16	0	26	6
2018	13	0	12	1	24	5
2019	15	0	7	0	21	6
2020*	3	0	3	0	8	**201 **
2021*	7	0	7	0	16	161
2022	5	0	5	0	19	6
2023	17	0	4	0	19	5
2024	4	0	7	0	18	10
2025	3	0	4	0	13	5

*Covid 19 restrictions 1 Includes Graveside services

7

Safeguarding Hazel Reynolds

1. PCCs are formally obliged to report to the APCMs on whether or not the PCC ‘has complied with the duty under section 5 of the Safeguarding and clergy discipline measure 2016 (duty to have due regard to House of Bishops guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults).’ We work in line with Church of England Safeguarding Policy and Practice Guidance and believe we have complied fully with our duties and obligations.

2 Safeguarding Roles The Parish Safeguarding Officer is Hazel Reynolds. The DBS Recruiter and Verifier is Malcolm Godwin.

1. Safeguarding Policy, Guidance and Information. Our Parish Safeguarding Policy is displayed in our benefice entrance lobbies and appears on our website. Safeguarding is on the agenda at every meeting of the PCC

2. Safeguarding Learning and Development. Safeguarding learning needs to be renewed every three years; Church Officers need to repeat the core safeguarding learning pathway that is the highest required for their role. 2025 was a year when many of us revisited our relevant training pathways, renewing our focus on the integral role we play in developing thriving, healthy and safe churches. Anyone undergoing Safeguarding training for the first time starts with Basic Awareness and then continues to complete the Foundation module. The additional safeguarding learning pathways (Leadership, Safer Recruitment & People Management and Raising Awareness of Domestic Abuse) also need to be renewed every three years as and where applicable. We didn’t mark Safeguarding Sunday in 2025 but plan to do so in 2026. In addition, we are considering whether we could offer the Basic Awareness course to all church members this year since safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.

3. DBS Comparatively few Church Officers hold roles necessitating DBS clearance, the guidelines being very precise nowadays Excluding members of our Ministry team (The Bishops’ office deals with their safeguarding and DBS clearance), less than a dozen roles are involved. DBS clearance also is refreshed every 3 years, and several church officers were rechecked during 2025.

4. Concerns raised No referrals needed to be made to the Diocesan Safeguarding Team in the past 12 months

5. Any other business: In December 2025 I attended a Parish Safeguarding Officers event at the area office in Stone with Tsungai Muchegwa, our Area Safeguarding Adviser (Buckinghamshire) and Bishop Dave. I’m afraid the Diocese has not as yet produced a poster for the back of toilet doors offering support to anyone experiencing domestic abuse, so we continue to rely on one sourced through the Mothers Union

8

Mothers’ Union Jennifer Mazzone

Our Branch has always been busy and active in many initiatives. The past year has not been any different. We are a strong group of committed members, and I am proud to be the Branch Leader.

Membership numbers remain stable and we are the largest branch in this area. Sadly, many branches have closed due to lack of support. Not all members attend meetings, but they support us in other ways.

Last year’s programme was both interesting and varied. It is not easy compiling the programme every year.

One of our members, Julie Parker, spoke about her visit to India which was fascinating.

We learnt about the work of the Camphill Community which is invaluable to so many people.

Our meetings led by members are always great fun. We shared our favourite books and poems with each other. So many of us remembered our childhood books.

Alina nurses, something we knew little about, was interesting as was Arlene Ormston, the local Community Policewoman, who warned us about the many scams that can take us in.

Paul Hawkes stepped in at the last minute for our September meeting and what a fascinating talk he gave on Rocks and Fossils. We learnt so much.

The Branch Festival was well attended and the speaker, Ruth Maxey, the URC Minister, gave a thought-provoking talk.

In place of the Quiet Afternoon, we hosted a Lenten Pause for Thought session led by Nick. This was popular so it will be repeated in 2026.

Sue Billington, the well-known local florist, demonstrated a Christmas arrangement which inspired us to go home and have a go.

The Afternoon Tea and the Cream Teas raised funds for Mothers’ Union Projects. The Cream Teas were held in St. Lukes. Both events provide lovely social events.

One of our members, Daphne Fowler, celebrated her 90[th] birthday with cake and wine. It was a very happy occasion.

Cameo is supported by MU members, and it continues to be very successful. We are always pleased to welcome new volunteers.

Our strong link with Woodhill Prison continues and many thanks go to Moira who works tirelessly with the prison.

9

Baby Basics is continuing to be well supported as the needs are still great.

We still participate in the Bazaar and Christmas Tree Festival both of which keep the Mothers’ Union in the public eye. Thank you to June who has retired from organising the raffle for many years. She is a hard act to follow.

Thanks go to Pauline for continuing to send cards to those celebrating special occasions and to those who are sick or suffering a bereavement. I know that these cards are really appreciated.

I continue to send cards to couples who are getting married in our church but numbers for this are dwindling.

Our Branch provides daffodils for Mothering Sunday.

The Branch does not run by itself. Behind the scenes there is a committee who works incredibly hard. So, I give a special thank you to June, Pam, Carolyn, Sophie, Julie and Margaret. Carolyn stepped into Sophie’s shoes as Treasurer while Sophie is in Singapore and for that we are grateful.

From January 2026, we are meeting in St. Lukes. The pre-school no longer meets there and since it is available and free to us, we think it is a sensible move as Brookland’s rent keeps increasing. Parking is easier and there is a ramp for the less mobile.

New members are always very welcome to join our thriving branch. Please spread the word about the work of the Mothers’ Union locally, nationally and worldwide. There are still many people who do not know about us or what we do and stand for. We are a strong force for good and we do make a difference.

Please do not hesitate to contact me at any time on 019098613088 or 07517439790 or at [e-mail]

Sunday Club Glenda Winfield

We have been delighted to welcome some new children to Sunday Club and now have a group of 6 children who attend regularly. In our sessions, held on the second and fourth Sundays of the month, we have continued to follow the lectionary, with the majority of our lessons reflecting the readings in church. We have a group of 7 dedicated Leaders, generously giving of their time and talents. All our Leaders keep up to date with appropriate Oxford Diocese Safeguarding Training courses, renewing their certificates and DBS certificates as and when necessary.

The Sunday Club offertory has continued to sponsor a young boy called Yonatan Darge, through the charity Hand in Hand Ethiopia, a small children’s charity working in Addis Ababa. The sponsorship money provides a daily meal, medical payments, school fees and materials, tutorials, clothes and shoes annually, entertainment and recreational activities.

10

Yonatan writes to us on a regular basis, thanking us for supporting him, and we receive regular newsletters from the charity. He has now completed his first year of vocational school and will continue his studies in the coming school year. Yonatan is reported to be in good health, participating enthusiastically in the summer personal development training. The charity comments that they are very proud of Yonatan’s achievements, his strong discipline and dedication. Sunday Club will endeavour to continue sponsoring Yonatan for the next 2 years, as he completes his education, However, with small numbers in Sunday Club contributing to the offertory, we have had to think of other ways to finance our sponsorship payment. The Hand in Hand project is due to close in 2028 as new initiatives by the Ethiopian government will address the issues for which the project was initially created.

.

The Christmas Fair in November again provided a great opportunity to do some Christmas Crafts with the children in our community. At the same time, we created the Children’s Tree, for the Christmas Tree Festival. This year the children who visited our stall created two Christmas trees. One used their white handprints on green paper plates, to form the shape of a Christmas Tree. The second tree was themed around the Christmas Hokey Cokey, a song which is a great favourite at the Crib Service. The children coloured in Nativity figures and hung them on the tree alongside the appropriate words of the song. As in previous years, the Christmas crafts table had very little space around it for most of the day. Many thanks to everyone who gave their time, talents and resources to ensure all the children enjoyed spending time with us.

The Christingle Service in early December was very well attended, with Karen Goff and her puppet Chris Tingle making his second appearance. He was a great hit with everyone and the atmosphere was amazing. Thank you to everyone who helped to assemble the various elements that made up the Christingles. We also took the opportunity at the service to begin the journey of the Travelling Crib, inviting families from the community to join in this tradition.

The Christmas Eve Crib Service was a very joyful, interactive service, with standing room only, when the Sunday Club children and leaders joined the children in a traditional Nativity Tableau. Thank you to the children who played their parts so well, their parents, the Sunday Club Leaders, Karen Goff and Nick Read.

Christmas time wouldn’t be the same without a trip to the pantomime. The Sunday Club children, their families and friends were back at The Venue, this time to see Snow White. As always, the pantomime was great fun and enjoyed by us all.

On Mothering Sunday this year, we put an extra Sunday Club session in. The children did a presentation to the congregation, holding up cards showing words, such as “hugs” and “nurse,” made using only the letters from the words “Mothering Sunday.” They read out short sentences to describe some of the different roles mother’s play. We were extremely proud of the children, who read beautifully. They were also most helpful in assisting

11

members of the Mothers’ Union to distribute bunches of daffodils to all the ladies in church.

We look forward to the joy of Easter Day and of course the traditional Easter Egg Hunt for the children around the church after the service.

As ever, grateful thanks go to each and every one of the Sunday Club Leaders for all of their great ideas and their dedication to our little group of lovely children.

Fabric Committee Doug Hird

The committee is a little reduced in numbers this year so the focus has been on organising activity more than actually fixing things. As a result, the main item was the replacement of the roof at St Lukes. The roof of the parish church has been significantly improved by the addition of many patches. There are now fewer leaks.

A plan of the benches in the parish church has been created which includes details of failures and photos.

The vestry rooms in St Lukes were re-decorated.

A local electrician is providing a quote for renewing lights and sockets, etc. in the tower. This needs to be done before the clock can be refurbished. For that, we need to remove some escaped mercury before the second clock firm will provide a quote.

Fabric committee members are:

Doug Hird, Nick Read, Rev Nick Evans, Jennifer Mazzone, Jenny Frost

Bellringers Doug Hird

Fortnightly practices are continuing and benefit both the Newport and Bradwell ringers. Three new ringers are making good progress and another three "had a go" during the year. Service ringing is still not possible as the small number of ringers in the area are already committed to ring at churches having more predictable service times. The more regular First Sunday Evensong service has been easier to arrange ringing for as there are few other Evensong services in the area. These have provided the opportunity to ring seven quarter peals. These have attracted the most capable ringers from North Bucks, Bedfordshire and Northants and so are of a high quality. A full peal was rung in February 2026. The local Facebook groups gave this a total of 175 "likes."

Wedding ringing has largely been a matter of supporting other villages in the Newport Deanery, providing both ringers and technical assistance. During the year two ex-ringers passed away: Ron Barclay - tower captain 1986 - 1988 Reg Wright - ringer 1982 – 1992

12

Stewardship Dick Smith

Planned Giving is a vital part of our income, and regular members of the congregation should commit to regular giving throughout the year. During the year we held a Stewardship Campaign in October. So far the results are that 16 current members increased their giving and 5 new members joined the scheme. Overall, our annual figure increased by £8,688, although in 2025 we only saw a small portion over the 2 months left in the year. However, our overall total for 2025 was higher than the previous year. Collections also saw a slight increase.

We receive no financial support from the diocese or national church, in fact half of what we spend has to be paid to the diocese to cover the costs of our clergy and towards diocesan and national church costs. We will do a follow up campaign in 2026 and hope to gain further new members. If you are not currently members of the scheme, please consider joining. I’m at both churches most Sundays if you want more information or I can be contacted by email [e-mail] or by telephone on 01908 730870 or 07736 840964.

Recovery of Gift Aid from HMRC consists of 2 parts. Firstly, we receive Gift Aid on a large part of our Planned Giving (some members of the scheme are not tax payers and therefore cannot Gift Aid their contributions) Secondly we are able to claim Gift Aid on small donations in our collections at services. Our claim for 2025 is slightly down again and therefore in 2026 our tax recovery income will decrease again slightly (we have to claim this in arrears) but hopefully will increase again next year with our increased Planned Giving.

Communications & Publicity report Moira Evans

Communication throughout the Parish seems to be effective with the dissemination of information flowing via several routes:

Pews News, email, Facebook posts, WhatsApp messages, Benefice planner and the website.

Facebook

The Parish Facebook page has continued to attract visitors and to date (18/03/26) the figures are:

• 642 Followers

(Likes has been discontinued by Facebook)

----- Start of picture text -----
Parish Facebook
800
600
400
200
0
Followers
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
----- End of picture text -----

The town Facebook pages such as Newport Pagnell What’s On and NP Chit Chat are supportive of our posts, and these are used to share big events and services to the town.

Website - used as a public facing portal for enquiries to find information they need. The ‘Stop Press’ feature on the Home Page is useful for highlighting the most imminent event.

Pews News and Parish Emails - are circulated electronically to the parish database and they are made available as a hard copy for those who do not use the internet.

13

WhatsApp is used by various different groups within the parish, and the main group currently has 55 members. The main group is used to transmit information and reminders to keep folk in touch.

Benefice Planner is available electronically and as a hard copy and contains the diary of events and services over a four-month period.

Zoom is used by one Discovery Group as well as the Confirmation Class and for meetings with church officials and the general public i.e. funeral arrangements.

Going forward it might be a useful exercise to circulate a form to all church attendees in order to capture any people that might not yet be aware of all these forms of communication.

Parish Visiting Beth MacKay

The Parish Visiting Team has been kept busy this past year visiting members of the congregations and others who have requested a visit from someone from one of our churches. On visits we’re happy to worship and pray with people, share Holy Communion, as well as have a good chat. Or we’ll just chat if that’s what people want. All team members are required to have regular DBS checks and relevant safeguarding training. In recent months a couple of us have also undergone bereavement support training, and, as team coordinator, I have recently enrolled on a course on pastoral care organised by the Oxford Diocese.

We visit parishioners in hospital if they want us to, and make home visits to people who are housebound or unwell or who have requested visits for any other reason. Communion Services have been held monthly at Lathbury Manor, Castlemead and Tickford Abbey as well as some very enjoyable carol services in December. We don’t currently hold services at Westbury Grange as it has its own chaplain who arranges regular services there but we do visit some of the residents on a fortnightly basis. Sadly, Lathbury Manor is due to close down soon and, at the time of writing, there will only be one more service there before it closes. Our prayers are with the residents and staff who have to find alternative accommodation and jobs.

We don’t just do visiting though. We also try to contact people who might need support and provide ad hoc help in cases of illness or bereavement, such as lifts to church/other places, or shopping/meals etc. Of course, we know that many other members of our church family are also regularly reaching out to others in this way and carrying out the same caring and support activities as those carried out by the team and this is exactly how it should be in a church community! Pastoral care isn’t just the responsibility of one person or one designated team. To be successful it has to be a shared ministry by the whole church family in response to Jesus’ command that we love one another as he loves us . And, as a team within the church, we very much rely on other people to alert us to situations where we may be able to help. We don’t want any of our church family to fall through the net and

14

think that there is no one they can call on for help! So if you, or someone you know, would like a visit from one of our team, please speak to any one of us to arrange.

Members of the current team are: Rev Nick Evans (Rector), Moira Evans, Mervyn Evans, Karen Goff, Carolyn Hawkes, Brian Hunt, Beth MacKay (Parish Visiting Coordinator), Pam Miller, Hazel Reynolds and Marlene Smith. If anyone would like to find out more about what we do, feel free to contact me by phone on 07989085318, by email [e-mail] or just come and talk to me at church.

Mission Group Karen Goff

This group arose as a direct result of our Mission Open Day held in October 2021 with its inaugural meeting in January 2022. This group has met 4 times since the last APCM.

Our aim is to try to fulfil the Five marks of Mission (adopted by the General Synod of the Church of England in 1996):

To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom (Tell)

To teach, baptise and nurture new believers. (Teach)

To respond to human need by loving service. (Tend)

To seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and to seek to pursue peace and reconciliation. (Transform)

To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth. (Treasure)

In May 2023 our first CAMEO (Come And Meet Each Other) group took place and has been running very successfully attracting a variety of carers, fathers, mothers, grandparents and their young children. The group meets on Monday mornings from 9.30 to 11.30 and continues during school holidays. Numbers of parents/carers with children continue to grow and many have become very regular. Opportunities to discuss baptisms, faith and other church events have arisen and been discussed.

A regular feature of these sessions is that a short, interactive, story, prayers and song are included at Harvest, Christmas and Easter and an appropriate gift or activity included. A Christmas Tree decorated by this group is also included in the Christmas Tree Festival.

It is lovely to see the young children with their adults wander round the church and feel very comfortable. Free refreshments are available and an opportunity to chat and get to know people from the congregation as well as other carers. Members of the congregation often pop in during the session enjoying refreshments and chatting to the attendees. Extra help is always needed for this group whether it’s setting up, clearing away, making drinks or just chatting with the children and their accompanying adults.

15

We continue to provide ‘Explore Christianity’ prayer cards on a variety of topics that people are welcome to take. These are proving very popular with visitors and members of the congregation. Posters from this company have also provided display material at Advent and Easter.

Following the success of the ‘Walk through the Bible’ event in July 2022 and a New Testament equivalent at St Luke’s in October 2024 another event ‘From Malachi to Matthew’ took place in June 2025. This explored what happened between the Old and New Testaments. It was very informative and enjoyable.

A small number from our congregation helped with CTNP Holiday Club and also a Light Party event as an alternative to ‘trick or treating’. This was held in Portfields Community Centre and a large number of families came in for refreshments and activities.

Throughout Lent 2026 using ‘Big Church Read’ material 3 groups met to discuss ‘The Greatest Story Ever Told’ by Bear Grylls. A morning, afternoon and evening (Zoom) session were made available and over 40 people attended. Moira also used this material with a group of prisoners during her prison visits. The material provoked great discussion and thought. Many people attended these groups who had not participated in similar events before. Many have already commented about wanting to do this again using another book maybe by Andrew Ollerton who helped Bear with this book.

Nick led a workshop for Eucharistic Ministers in November 2025. Further workshops are being planned for those interested in leading intercessions, reading in church services and speaking to people who come into church during the week.

We continue to think about our mission in rural parishes but await news of deanery reorganisation to move this forward.

CTNP Celia Oldham

Churches together Newport Pagnell are a group of Christian churches who meet regularly and share information. Joint services and events are held regularly in each of the churches and in the community to bring the Christian message to people in our town.

Holiday Club 2025

This was held at the Baptist church, which has proved to be a very suitable venue. Children joined a variety of Christian- themed activities. All volunteers worked very hard, including our younger helpers, to make the event as enjoyable as ever. The next holiday club will be held August 18th-21st, at Cedars school. This club is free and open to all primary-aged children in the community.

Easter biscuit Distribution

Easter biscuits, which included a Christian message, were distributed to shop keepers and people in the High Street on Easter Saturday.

16

Songs of Praise

This is an annual event which is held in the parish church in September. It is attended by members of all the Christian churches in Newport Pagnell. A member of each church chooses a hymn and gives their testimony.

Find the Nativity on the High Street

This was a lovely event for children and their families. They searched for 6 different venues to find scenes from the Nativity. The children collected tokens and received a small gift at the end.

New Year's Day walk

This was reported to be very enjoyable. A large number of people took part, visiting churches along the way, where they listened to a short reading. The final venue was St Luke’s church for welcome coffee and biscuits.

United service for Christian Unity

The service was held in the Baptist church, in January.

It was hoped that more families with children would attend.

World Day of Prayer

On the first Friday of March, each year, the same service is held in Christian churches around the world. This year the service was written by Christian women of Nigeria. The theme was 'I will give you rest, come.' It was held in the Parish church and was well attended. The service includes stories from 3 Nigerian women, highlighting the dangers of living as a Christian in their country.

Lent lunches

Again, these were well attended. Volunteers provided a delicious lunch of home-made soup, bread and cheese, followed by coffee and biscuits.

Medical Appointments Transport Service

323 journeys have been arranged over a 4-month period. The service's fund-raising party will be held at St Luke's on 27[th] June 2-4pm. The service is always looking for more volunteer drivers.

17

Treasurer’s report Dick Smith

Again, this year the basic figures look poor. We show an overall deficit of £40,605.40 of receipts over payments. However, there are different reasons. Phase 1 of the Re-ordering is complete and we have taken a pause before starting the next phase. On the Restricted Funds (mainly Fabric) we had a major cost when we had to have a new roof fitted at St Luke’s which was mainly funded through the legacy we received in 2024. We were able to return £10,000 to the Louise Moodie fund from the tax recovery on the Re-ordering project but unfortunately, we had to use the money during the year to cover General Expenditure costs. In March Northern Pastures Pre-School closed which resulted in a £15,000 hole in our rental income. Also in December our tenant moved out of 3 Castle Meadow Close and we will lose the £1,400 monthly income until we find a new tenant.

Legacies over recent years have helped support us financially, but we need to improve our general income to ensure we can fund everything we want to do. Our Stewardship Campaign in October saw a welcome increase in Planned Giving, but we have an increase in Parish Share of £5,000 and will have a similar increase for the next 2 years meaning in 2028 our Parish Share will be at least £15,000 more than in 2025.

Planned Giving was up £1,000 over the previous year and hopefully will be at least £10,000 more in 2026 after our Stewardship Campaign. Collections were also up slightly. Our energy costs appear to have dropped again, but we changed suppliers from 1 October, and they didn’t take any bills before 31 December. Payments were taken in January of just over £1,600 for the period which means our energy costs were on a par with 2024. There is also uncertainty about what will happen this year with the situation in the Middle East. Our Tax Recovery is likely to be on a par with last year.

Our general expenditure remained fairly static.

The value of our investments have remained fairly static over 2025, ending only a few hundred pounds below last year. However the dividends we receive have dropped. Interest on our deposits have showed an increase but are dropping again as interest rates fall.

The PCC continued to use an external accountant again this year for the independent examination of the accounts. The PCC approved the accounts at the PCC meeting at the end of March.

18

Appendix I Accounts 19

Parochial Church Council of Newport Pagnell

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 DECEMBER 2025

Receipts and Payments Accounts

Note RECEIPTS Voluntary Receipts Planned giving Collections at services All other giving/voluntary receipts 5a Tax recoverable Activities for generating funds 5b Investment Income 5c Church activities 5d Re-Ordering Project Total Receipts PAYMENTS Church activities Diocesan parish share Clergy and staffing costs 5e Church running costs 5f Parish house costs Mission giving and donations 5g Re-ordering Project Cost of generating funds Other Payments 3 Total payments Excess of receipts over payments Transfers between funds 4 Cash at bank and in hand at 1 January Cash at bank and in hand at 31 December	Unrestricted funds Restricted funds Endowment funds TOTAL funds 2025 TOTAL funds 2024 £ £ £ £ 35,406.67 0.00 0.00 35,406.67 34,481.31 8,141.66 0.00 0.00 8,141.66 7,453.58 3,304.08 5,000.00 0.00 8,304.08 35,884.69 10,927.94 0.00 0.00 10,927.94 12,898.43
	57,780.35 5,000.00 0.00 62,780.35 90,718.01 14,913.90 13,877.86 0.00 28,791.76 39,587.10 24,459.01 8,008.28 0.00 32,467.29 32,928.86 5,244.00 0.00 0.00 5,244.00 6,542.00 6,222.12 0.00 0.00 6,222.12 25,585.10
	108,619.38 26,886.14 0.00 135,505.52 195,361.07
	55,647.90 0.00 0.00 55,647.90 56,217.15 14,455.48 0.00 0.00 14,455.48 13,368.08 38,248.66 57,877.95 0.00 96,126.61 65,844.08 1,874.71 0.00 0.00 1,874.71 3,424.91 4,733.72 0.00 0.00 4,733.72 5,955.89 2,932.81 0.00 0.00 2,932.81 80,894.57
	117,893.28 57,877.95 0.00 175,771.23 225,704.68 339.69 0.00 0.00 339.69 241.23 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
	118,232.97 57,877.95 0.00 176,110.92 225,945.91
	(9,613.59) (30,991.81) 0.00 (40,605.40) (30,584.84) 11,793.49 (11,793.49) 0.00 0.00 20,000.00
	2,179.90 (42,785.30) 0.00 (40,605.40) (10,584.84) 5,592.72 53,664.34 0.00 59,257.06 69,841.90
	7,772.62 10,879.04 0.00 18,651.66 59,257.06

Parochial Church Council of Newport Pagnell

Statement of Assets and Liabilities

Note Cash funds Cash in hand Bank current account Deposit funds Retained Deposit on 3CMC Other monetary assets Gift Aid recoverable Other income due Investment assets Investment fund shares at market value 3 Assets retained for church use 2 Liabilities Mission giving Organist fees Clergy and staffing costs Employer contributions due to HMRC Church running costs	Unrestricted funds Restricted funds Endowment funds TOTAL 2025 Previous Year £ £ £ £ 0.00 0.00 0.00 624.19 6,731.00 7,355.19 11,829.14 7,148.43 4,148.04 11,296.47 49,042.92 0.00 0.00 (1,615.00)
	7,772.62 10,879.04 0.00 18,651.66 59,257.06
	10,214.89 10,214.89 10,433.20 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
	10,214.89 0.00 0.00 10,214.89 10,433.20
	200,937.27 91,081.01 138,296.70 430,314.98 430,716.56
	68,000.00 0.00 0.00 68,000.00 68,000.00
	1,077.09 1,077.09 835.63 394.80 394.80 429.00 0.00 0.00 384.72 669.80 669.80 650.00 3,207.35 0.00 3,207.35 2,027.69
	5,349.04 0.00 0.00 5,349.04 4,327.04

Notes

1. The financial statements of the PCC have been prepared in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations 2006 using the Receipts and Payments basis

2. Fixed assets retained for church use is the freehold house at 3 Castle Meadow Close, purchased in 1995 on behalf of the PCC for £80,000 less a 15% equity retention held by the Diocesan Trustees (Oxford) Ltd. On 4 December 2017 the 15% Equity Retention was gifted to the PCC by the Diocesan Trustees (Oxford) Ltd in recognition of the PCC having maintained the house in good order ever since. In 2018 £55,212.17 was spent renovating the property. The market value of the house is in the region of £450,000.

3. There are 3 endowment funds held on behalf of the PCC by the Diocesan Trustees (Oxford) Ltd . The Ecclesiastical Trust was established in 1990 from 69.25% of the sale of Church House. The trust is held in CCLA Church of England Investment funds for the purpose of furthering the religious and other charitable work of the parish and the income is unrestricted. The Elizabeth Darcy Charity was set up from 4 small charities to benefit the poor of the Parish The fund is held in the M&G Charity Multi Asset fund and the income is restricted. The Chancel Repair fund was established in 1972 and is held in a CCLA Church of England Investment fund for the purpose of repair and upkeep of the Chancel and the income is restricted.

There is 1 restricted investment fund, the Hayllar Fund, which was established in 1980 and is held in 2 investment accounts with Black Rock Charities UK Bond Fund A Inc and M&G Charifund. The purpose of the fund is for the upkeep of the churches and both the capital and income is restricted for that purpose.

Parochial Church Council of Newport Pagnell

Finally, there are 2 unrestricted investments, set up from the funds left in the wills of Louise Moodie and Iris Robinson. £150,000 of Louise Moodie's bequest was invested in the CCLA Church of England Investment fund during 2017 and £50,000 of Iris Robinson's bequest was invested in the same fund in 2020, to provide a reasonable return on the funds although the capital can be spent as and when necessary.

4 Fund Values

Fund Values
Ecclesiastical Trust CBF Investment Fund CBF Fixed Interest Securities Fund Elizabeth Darcy Fund M&G NAACIF Fund Chancel Repair Fund CBF Investment Fund Hayllar Fund M&G Charifund Black Rock Charinco Louise Moodie Fund CBF Investment Fund Iris Robinson Fund CBF Investment Fund	TOTAL to 31/12/25 TOTAL 2024 £ £ 73,520.77 76,582.38 9,444.24 9,218.60 2,544.13 2,283.62 52,787.56 54,985.78 82,921.92 70,675.20 8,159.09 8,035.64 141,495.77 147,018.53 59,441.50 61,916.81
	430,314.98 430,716.56

1. The movement in designated and restricted funds during the year were:

	Bal b/fwd	Receipts	Payments	Transfers	Bal c/fwd
Designated
Ecclesiastical Income Account	1,456.53	2,557.59	0.00	(3,000.00)	1,014.12
Louise Moodie Income Account	1,221.22	4,307.92	0.00	(4,000.00)	1,529.14
Iris Robinson Income Account	809.49	1,770.51	0.00	(2,000.00)	580.00
Sunday School	107.52	103.54	150.00	0.00	61.06
Memory Club	5,197.00	1,450.00	2,199.10	0.00	4,447.90
Organ Fund	19.58	5.59	0.00	0.00	25.17
Re-ordering Fund	(81,148.79)	6,222.12	2,932.81	73,700.99	(4,158.49)
Restricted
Rental Deposit on 3CMC	1,615.00	0.00	1,615.00	0.00	0.00
Fabric Current Account	11,128.24	25,324.20	57,877.95	28,156.51	6,731.00
Fabric Deposit Account	41,578.44	1,429.31	0.00	(40,000.00)	3,007.75
Hayllar Income Account	318.62	14.42	0.00	0.00	333.04
Darcy Fund Income Account	639.04	30.45	0.00	137.76	807.25

All transactions related to weddings, funerals, etc. are processsed through a separate Benefice account and the fees due to the PCC are transferred monthly in arrears into the general fund.

There are lines on the accounts for Re-ordering income and costs, and an additional page at the end of the accounts showing the Receipts and Payments for the overall project. The PCC decided to transfer the remainder of the legacy from David Lock (£12,087.83) and pay £22,500 from the Ecclesiastical Fund into the Re-ordering Fund. Now Phase 1 is complete, the £60,000 from the Louise Moodie Fund that was temprarily loaned has now been allocated permanently to the Re-ordering Fund. Other income has come from Grants, Donations and a Stewardship Appeal has been started. Money from the Iris Robinson Fund is being transferred to cover the deficit at present. As fundraising progresses this money will be returned to this fund.

The Rental Deposit on 3 Castle Meadow Close was returned on 19 December 2025 when the tenant moved out. When a new tenant is found the deposit will be held in the Deposit account but cannot be used for General Funds.

During 2025, £969.00 was received in Organ Fees and £530.00 was spent on Routine Maintenance. £439.00 will be transferred to the Organ Fund in 2026.

Parochial Church Council of Newport Pagnell

5. Further Analysis of Receipts and Payments

Note Receipts a) All other giving/voluntary receipts Donations Legacies Grants Copier Sunday School Memory Club Misc Fabric Donations & grants Rent Events (including Fetes) Special Collections c) Investment Income Dividends on Investment Fund Income from Investments Bank and Deposit Fund Interest d) Church activities Fees for Batism Certificates 4 Fees for Weddings 4 Fees for Funerals 4 Contributions for Heating 4 Organ Fees 4 b) Activities for generating funds	Unrestricted funds Restricted funds Endowment funds TOTAL funds 2025 TOTAL funds 2024 £ £ £ £ £ 1,265.73 0.00 0.00 1,265.73 1,070.52 0.00 5,000.00 0.00 5,000.00 33,240.16 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 40.00 329.00 0.00 0.00 329.00 207.70 103.54 0.00 0.00 103.54 97.51 1,450.00 0.00 0.00 1,450.00 1,066.00 155.81 0.00 0.00 155.81 162.80
	3,304.08 5,000.00 0.00 8,304.08 35,884.69
	1,000.00 13,877.86 0.00 14,877.86 17,234.43 8,079.03 0.00 0.00 8,079.03 16,979.55 5,365.11 0.00 0.00 5,365.11 4,418.74 469.76 0.00 0.00 469.76 954.38
	14,913.90 13,877.86 0.00 28,791.76 39,587.10
	8,405.87 6,534.10 0.00 14,939.97 14,760.54 15,630.00 0.00 0.00 15,630.00 16,800.00 423.14 1,474.18 0.00 1,897.32 1,368.32
	24,459.01 8,008.28 0.00 32,467.29 32,928.86
	93.00 0.00 0.00 93.00 0.00 1,392.00 0.00 0.00 1,392.00 1,890.00 1,642.00 0.00 0.00 1,642.00 1,872.00 1,148.00 0.00 0.00 1,148.00 1,515.00 969.00 0.00 0.00 969.00 1,265.00
	5,244.00 0.00 0.00 5,244.00 6,542.00

Parochial Church Council of Newport Pagnell

Payments

Note e) Clergy and staffing costs Clergy expenses Parish administrator f) Church running costs SSPP building running expenses SL building running expenses Insurance Vestry Costs Parish Office Training Social Events Choir Pay and Organists Church flowers 4 Misc. Sunday School 4 Memory Club 4 Organ Maintenance SSPP Maintenance (Fabric) SL Maintenance (Fabric) g) Mission giving and donations CTNP Christian Aid NP Christmas Lights The Childrens Society Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia Buildbuilder Trust Willen Hospice The Welcome Directory MK Night Shelter Water Aid MK Foodbank Medical Detection Dogs Hearing Dogs for the Deaf ODBF Admin Fund St Andrews Madrigal Group Walk Through The Bible Other	Unrestricted Funds Restricted Funds Endowment Funds TOTAL funds 2025 TOTAL funds 2024 £ £ £ £ 1,211.80 0.00 0.00 1,211.80 607.32 13,243.68 0.00 0.00 13,243.68 12,760.76
	14,455.48 0.00 0.00 14,455.48 13,368.08
	6,590.04 0.00 0.00 6,590.04 8,287.35 3,105.94 0.00 0.00 3,105.94 4,569.98 9,668.38 0.00 0.00 9,668.38 9,032.38 4,501.00 0.00 0.00 4,501.00 5,030.53 4,935.40 0.00 0.00 4,935.40 5,551.05 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1,060.91 0.00 0.00 1,060.91 878.40 4,579.90 0.00 0.00 4,579.90 4,523.40 448.00 0.00 0.00 448.00 748.10 479.99 0.00 0.00 479.99 9,804.94 150.00 0.00 0.00 150.00 0.00 2,199.10 0.00 0.00 2,199.10 1,656.50 530.00 0.00 0.00 530.00 5,470.00 0.00 12,561.18 0.00 12,561.18 7,173.00 0.00 45,316.77 0.00 45,316.77 3,118.45
	38,248.66 57,877.95 0.00 96,126.61 65,844.08
	100.00 0.00 0.00 100.00 100.00 145.15 0.00 0.00 145.15 285.88 150.00 0.00 0.00 150.00 150.00 835.63 0.00 0.00 835.63 720.01 800.00 0.00 0.00 800.00 800.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 800.00 800.00 0.00 0.00 800.00 800.00 800.00 0.00 0.00 800.00 800.00 800.00 0.00 0.00 800.00 800.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 700.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 177.94 0.00 0.00 177.94 0.00 25.00 0.00 0.00 25.00 0.00 100.00 0.00 0.00 100.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
	4,733.72 0.00 0.00 4,733.72 5,955.89

Parochial Church Council of Newport Pagnell

Re-ordering Project Designated Fund

As at 31 December 2025

RECEIPTS

Donation from John & Daphne Fowler	525.00
Donation in Memory of Thomas (Gordon) French	200.00
Donation in Memory of Derek Senior	250.00
Donation in Memory of Rita Millburn	350.00
Donation in Memory of Mel Partridge	118.80
Donation from Flower Festival June 2022	500.00
Anonymous Donations	900.00
Transfer of Residue of David Lock's Legacy from General Funds	12,087.83
Transfer from Ecclesiastical Fund	22,500.00
Transfer from Louise Moodie Fund	60,000.00
Gift Aid from Donations	2,469.37
Stewardship Appeal	11,417.50
Fundraising Concerts	10,057.22
		121,375.72
Temporary Transfers
From Iris Robinson Fund	4,158.49
		4,158.49
Grants
Oxford Diocesan New Projects	2,500.00
Oxford Diocesan Development Fund	30,000.00
Benefact Trust	3,750.00
Beatrice Lang Trust	5,000.00
Harry Middleton Gift	15,000.00
Newport Deanery	500.00
VAT Recovery	29,704.58
		86,454.58
Total Receipts		211,988.79
PAYMENTS
Architect Fees	(23,630.22)
Measured Building Survey	(5,148.00)
Croma Conservation Survey	(1,296.00)
AJS Contracting	(7,920.00)
Milton Keynes Council	(882.00)
DrainageSurvey	(564.00)
Statement of Significance	(1,500.00)
Subscriptions to 'Church Grants'	(98.00)
Project Management	(14,769.34)
Groundworks for Servery	(128.40)
Phase 1 (Servery, Toilets & South Porch)	(151,885.07)
Fundraising Concerts	(4,159.76)
Miscellaneous	(8.00)
Total Payments		(211,988.79)
Closing Balance		0.00

INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS REPORT TO THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF NEWPORT PAGNELL Thls report on the flnanclal ststeThEnts of the PCC for the year ended 31st December 2025 which a￿ set out on pages I to 4, is in respect of an examlnatlon carrled out In accordan with the Churth Accountlng Regulatlons 2006 (￿he Regulatkjns") and s.144 (2) of the Charities Act 2011 ("the Art".) Respettive responslbllltles of the PCC and the examlner As the fflembe￿ of the p￿ you are res￿nSIble for the preparatlon of financial siatements. You conslder that the audlt requiremert of Regutatlons and settion 144(2) of the Act do not apply. It Is my ￿pOnSIbIlity to issue thls report on those financkil ststements in accordan with the temis of the Regulations. Ba4s of thls report My examlnatlon was carrfed out in accordan￿ with the General Dlrectlons glven by the Charity Commlsslon under Section 14515)(b) of the Art and to be found in the Church guklan￿, 2¢)06 editlon, tS5ued by the ￿nance Division of Archbishop5' Counal. That examlnatton Indudes a revEew of the accounting records kept by the PCC and a comparfson of the accounts with those records. It also Includes consldering any unusual Stems or dtsdosures In the financial siatements and See￿ng explanations from you as trustees concernlng any such matters. The procedures undertaken do rKk provlde all the evideno that would be requlred In an audlt, and consequendy I do not express an audbt oplnton on the view giv￿ by the accounts. Independent examlnerfs ststement In connettion wlth my examlnatton, no matter has come to my attentton: (i) whlch glves me reasonabk cause to that In any materfal resp&t the requlrements to keep accounting records in accordan￿ wth sectlon 130 of the Act; and to prepare flnanclal statements, which accord with the accountlng records. and comply wlth the requlrements of the Art and Regulattons have not been met. or (2) to whtch, in my oplnlon, attentton should be drawn In order to enable a proper under5tsndlng of the accounts to be reached. J R COBLEY FCCA COBLEY DESBOROUGH Chartered Certified Acrountants Chartered Tax Advlsors Artlsans. House 7 Queensbrldge Northampton NN4 7BF Tel No. 01604 823560 26th March 2026