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2021-03-31-accounts

**THE

FRIENDS OF THE CITY CHURCHES**

Trustees’ Annual Report and Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

St Mary Abchurch Abchurch Lane, London EC4N 7BA

Telephone 020 7626 1555

Email: contact_us@london-­‐city-­‐churches.org.uk

Registered Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) 1155049

The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

**ANNUAL

REPORT, 1 APRIL 2020 TO 31 MARCH 2021**

In 2020/21 while the world was in a pandemic the FCC made every effort to maintain the activities appropriate to its stated objectives:

‘To preserve and protect for the public benefit:

**COVID-­‐19

restrictions**

As of 17 March 2020, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York instructed all the churches in their jurisdiction to suspend public services; with few or no resident congregations, most City churches closed entirely. Nationwide lockdown followed on March 23. This began to lift in May 2020, only to be followed by a three-­‐tier system of restrictions on October 14 and a second lockdown on November 5. That ended on December 2, but was followed by Tier 4 restrictions in London on December 21 and a third lockdown on January 6, which only began to ease in April 2021. Thus, when permitted, some City churches kept limited hours for private prayer and/or severely constrained services, while those with technical facilities began streaming services, talks and study groups, and some simply remained closed for weeks on end as clergy and administrators learned to work from home.

On 3 July 2020, the Charity Commission for England and Wales made a temporary amendment to the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 which allowed us to delay our AGM until 30 September 2020, thus overriding the timing required by our constitution. After consultation with the Charity Commission, the Trustees proposed the following course of action:

Comments were welcomed until 1 September 2020. After that date, we assumed tacit consent from those who did not positively object to any proposal, and thus submitted our annual return to the Charity Commission on 23 September 2020.

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

Trustees Oliver Leigh-Wood Chairman
David Jessop Vice-Chairman
Sonja Judith Guy-Briscoe Honorary Secretary
Rebecca Banfield Honorary Treasurer
Nancy Jane Branson
Brian Malcolm Evans
Signe Kjaere Hoffos
John Arthur Cecil Reynolds
Lesley Diane Thrift
Tony Tucker
Meeting observers Judy Stephenson Editor,Skyline
Karen Hearn Administrator (part-time)

**Structure,

governance and management**

FCC is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) and operates under the ‘Association Model’ constitution for such organisations.

Trustees are appointed by the Friends of the CIO at the Annual General Meeting and serve for three years (unless filling a place vacated by retirement or resignation) after which they may offer themselves for re-­‐election. Four of the Trustees are ex-­‐officio appointments: Chairman, Vice-­‐Chairman, Honorary Treasurer and Honorary Secretary. The recruitment and induction process for new Trustees. All Trustees are required to have read the ‘Guide to Trustees’ Duties’ and ‘Guidance on Public Benefit’, publications issued by the Charity Commission for England and Wales, and to update themselves regularly on matters associated with the operation of small charities. To that end, all Trustees are directed to the regular Newsletters of the Charity Commission and relevant points are highlighted for their notice.

The Trustees have complied with their duty under law (s17(5), Charities Act 2011) to have due regard to the Charity Commission’s public benefit guidance when exercising powers or duties to which the guidance is relevant.

FCC is fully compliant with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The Trustees do not carry on activities, whether voluntary or for profit, which conflict with their duties for FCC. Several Trustees, however, do have roles in other charities or in churches, or work for their own account. These activities are separate from their work for FCC. None of the Trustees receives remuneration for work for FCC. A policy for Trustee expenses claims is in place.

The Trustees hold ten meetings each year to discuss strategic planning and priorities, to receive and act on reports from subcommittees and working groups and to agree

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

financial commitments, including the award of grants under the FCC Small Grants Scheme. During the pandemic meetings took place via Zoom.

Judy Stephenson edits the Friends’ magazine, Skyline, and attends Trustees meetings as an observer. The editor, like the Trustees, is not remunerated but only reimbursed for direct expenses in line with FCC policy.

Membership

The Friends of the City Churches had 980 members, in single or joint accounts, in the database as of 31 March 2021. Of these, 26 have Life Membership (20 single, six joint). We also have a 27 honorary Friends amongst City clergy, parish administrators and eminent supporters of the charity, who receive Skyline without the events booking form.

The total figure also reflects 163 single or joint memberships 'in limbo' which are, despite several reminders, still paid by standing order at old subscription rates. As we explained at last year's AGM, we are keeping these Friends on the books as they are still paying but no longer sending them Skyline , as it seems unfair to the majority who are in good standing, to extend the same privileges to those who are now up to five years in arrears. Over the past year, as they have realised that they are not receiving Skyline , a number of these long-­‐standing Friends have contacted the office, amended their standing orders and paid their arrears, for which we thank them.

Skyline

Friends will have noticed that Grinling Gibbons (4 April 1648 -­‐ 3 August 1721) has taken pride of place this last twelvemonth. Of course he has, and we are beholden to Angelo Hornak, who has allowed us to make free with his photographs. The Gibbons’ tercentenary has helped us forge links with the Master Carvers Association, and tangentially Skyline has been offered articles by people other than Friends. This can only be to the good. Just as there are limits to how often we can say that Christopher Wren was a good egg, it is interesting to read about the growing and felling of timber suitable for carving. The editor is thrilled to have been invited to the preview of Bonham’s . exhibition Grinling Gibbons Centuries in the Making The more the Friends spread their net, the more interest in the history (and dilapidations needing repair) we generate.

Paul Faux has valiantly sought advertisers. We have had a reciprocal advertisement with SAVE Britain’s Heritage (no money changed hands, but we got an airing, as did they). We can only hope that as the City opens, and the economy picks up so will this source of revenue.

Despite being deprived of browsing in libraries and archives, Friends have continued to research and send valuable contributions. It cannot be said too often that the magazine is only as good as its contributors. John Finn, patient and imaginative designer that he is, deserves all our thanks. The editor could not keep a clear head without Nancy Branson, Brian Evans and Paul Simmons as advisors. Carol Stanley’s eagle eye is precious.

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

Museums, galleries, libraries and archives have recognised Skyline ’s worth in that they waive the usual copyright fees when we ask to print illustrations. Micropress, our printers, have not let us down even once throughout this difficult pandemic year.

It should be mentioned that by the time you read the Skyline report in the 2022 AGM papers, Judy Stephenson’s tenure as editor will have finished. A replacement is urgently needed.

_**City

Events**_

The City Events listing guide to services, concerts, talks and other special events is usually published monthly, online and in print for distribution throughout City churches and libraries. The March 2020 issue ironically began with ‘a significant number of events taking place in City churches’, not all of which saw the light of day. After several months, as lockdown eased, some churches felt able to hold services either online or (with appropriate measures) with congregations in the church. Also, several churches began to hold online recitals and a few began to hold public recitals.

Publication of City Events thus resumed online with a PDF downloadable from the FCC website, and the optimistic headline ‘Resurgam’ on 28 September 2020. By 29 March 2021, there had been 19 issues, at intervals varying from a few days to a fortnight at most as circumstances changed. City Events continues online as a PDF, with our grateful thanks to FCC Trustee John Reynolds and long-­‐serving Friend Ingrid Slaughter for their great efforts in keeping abreast of constantly changing church openings and events. Needless to say, we are monitoring the situation and remain cautiously optimistic about resuming our monthly printed edition later in 2021.

**Website

and social media**

Trustee Signe Hoffos currently maintains the FCC Web site at http://www.london-­‐city-­‐ churches.org.uk, with information about the Friends, Church Watching, Friends’ events, City Events , Friends’ merchandise, and the City churches themselves. The site has been growing organically within the constraints of the original design, with more aids over the past year particularly to help visitors to find the City churches online and book FCC online talks via Eventbrite.

Between April 2020 and March 2021, the website received 72,846 page views from 16,546 visitors, suggesting more engagement from slightly fewer visitors than the previous year. The FCC map of the City churches is much the most popular page and download, followed by City Events (with an inevitable peak in December as visitors sought Christmas services), and the free back issue of Skyline (which is rotated quarterly). Links from the Church Finder pages to photographs drawn from the FCC Flickr account are perennially popular. We would welcome more copyright-­‐free photos for that account, to support interest in the churches and the Friends.

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

FCC's Twitter account, @ChurchWatchers, now has 2,045 followers, slightly more than 2020, but both this and the FCC Facebook page are sorely under-­‐resourced for lack of a dedicated media-­‐savvy volunteer to supply content regularly. We have the skills and resources to design an effective social media campaign, but would appreciate a few volunteers to put more time into regular posts.

**FCC

members’ events**

At the end of March 2020, the Friends of the City Churches were on target for a record number of walks, talks, visits and special services, many in support of the Melba Coombs Memorial Fund. This initiative, commemorating the founder of the FCC’s volunteer Church Watching scheme, aims in part to raise a capital reserve to assist the future work of the Friends, with generous match-­‐funding from an anonymous sponsor; thus, we were hoping to prime that pump with a range of activities for FCC members and the public. In the event, we were overtaken by events which put an end to virtually all communal activity well into 2021.

When it became clear that we were in for the long haul, we issued credit vouchers to some 100 members in lieu of over 300 tickets purchased for forthcoming events. Very few asked for an actual refund, and we are grateful to those who donated the value of their tickets to support the Friends when our earned income was so suddenly compromised. We have a database of ticket sales, to ensure that members who have carried a credit for all these months will be offered priority booking wherever possible in 2022.

With this volume of activity, it was extremely useful to have email addresses for the great majority of Friends. We warmly encourage everyone to keep their contact details up to date by contacting the FCC office with any changes, and to supply an email address if possible.

We have new dates for a couple of scheduled tours which were cancelled at short notice in 2020; these places have been offered to those who originally booked, but we will strive to repeat popular visits, walks and talks whenever we can.

With the explosion of online talks during lockdown, we followed suit in March 2021 with a virtual tour of St Paul’s Cathedral by popular St Paul’s and City Guide Jill Finch, streaming live on the Zoom videoconferencing platform with booking through the Eventbrite ticketing service. Initial feedback demonstrated that, even without pandemic restrictions, able-­‐bodied Londoners appreciate the ease of logging in rather than travelling for an hour or more each way to a City venue, and that we are reaching many online who could not otherwise attend live events at all.

We have a Zoom Pro licence, which accommodates up to 100 people and meetings of unlimited duration; at £144, this is our most cost-­‐effective option, in that we can extend the licence for £48 a month to accommodate larger audiences when we receive sufficient

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

bookings. The licence also supports monthly Trustee meetings without the limitations of the free Zoom service with which the committee began to meet online in July 2020.

We are providing online talks primarily as a benefit to members but also an opportunity to raise awareness of the Friends more widely, since we can welcome non-­‐members. We offered the first four talks free to Friends with a discount code, and a modest £3 ticket fee (plus optional donation); after Eventbrite fees, we cleared £114 on the first talk, with 119 bookings altogether. We shortly learned to ask for a ‘suggested donation’ rather than a flat fee, in order to retain most of the income, and thus cleared £180 from a similar number of bookings for a talk later in the year.

As we return to live events, we will face some hard decisions, as we usually charge £10 for talks, and £9 for walks. This is much less than many other heritage societies or museum Friends, but we know that our members are price-­‐sensitive, and our main ‘competition’ online comes from subsidised institutions (particularly, libraries) which also offer a great many talks for free. The possibility of hybrid events – streaming a live lecture from a church or other venue – poses both technical and pricing challenges.

With so many Friends on email, we have also instituted a Mailchimp circulation list, which enables us to communicate between issues of Skyline , and to provide more information about forthcoming events than this quarterly magazine allows. Even those without online access can listen to Zoom lectures on the phone, so every issue of Skyline includes instructions and access codes for that option.

We will of course continue to offer events with limited numbers (such as live guided walks and visits) to all Friends through Skyline , with the usual ballot for oversubscribed events, but the email circulation list and online booking afford additional opportunities to keep in touch and stimulate sales.

We did enjoy one live event between lockdowns in 2020, as we held our annual celebration of lessons and carols on December 14 at St James Garlickhythe – with social distancing, masks, and singing only from professional soloists Cheryl Enever and Caroline Lenton-­‐Ward, with Andrew Baars at the organ. We are most grateful to Fr Tim Handley SSC, Priest in Charge, for leading the service, parish administrator Johanne Moss for coordinating our visit, and verger Ellis Pike for technical support, as well as FCC Trustees Nancy Branson and John Reynolds for their invaluable services in organising the event and producing the order of service.

The Carol Service was streamed live and then posted for a month on St James’ own YouTube channel, where it garnered over 300 views. What goes around, comes around: in the summer of 2020, the FCC’s Small Grants Programme made a substantial contribution to the installation of the audio-­‐visual equipment which enables St James Garlickhythe to stream regular services and special events, live and through YouTube.

Along with the Lord Mayor’s Appeal, the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists’ (WCIT) Charity and the VOCES8 Foundation, the FCC also benefited from a

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

magnificent virtual service, Carols for the City, which was live-­‐streamed from St Anne and St Agnes on December 8, and viewable online into the new year. To participate in this, we joined Virgin Money Giving, which proved to be the most cost-­‐effective channel for coordinating online donations. With a £180 one-­‐off joining fee and charges comparable to card services with annual service charges, this account supports special campaigns and one-­‐off donations alike. Largely through Carols for the City but also from other donations and private events at St Mary Abchurch, we raised over £4,000 through Virgin Money Giving by the end of March 2021, and continue to receive memorial and other donations monthly. [Postscript: Virgin Money Giving is closing in November 2021, so while we have had our money’s worth, we need to consider an alternative for 2022.]

Merchandise

Although we lost all our live selling opportunities during this financial year, bar the odd personal visitor at St Mary Abchurch, through Skyline and the FCC Web site we maintained a fair volume of mail order sales, particularly in the run-­‐up to Christmas. We had three new Christmas cards in 2020: the Nativity in stained glass from St Botolph Aldersgate (photo by Vanessa Morris), a banner depicting St Nicholas from St Mary Woolnoth (photo by Tony Tucker) and off-­‐duty policemen building a snowman in the churchyard of St Mary Aldermanbury (photo Adrian Bernard); all three will be available again in 2021, along with new cards.

**OUR

SUPPORT FOR CHURCHES**

**St

Mary Abchurch**

The Friends were asked by the Diocese of London to take over the running of this church in May 2013, since when it has usually been open every weekday for private prayer and quiet contemplation. It is now an important venue for many British and international visitors and tour groups. Many thousands come through the doors in a normal year. The building of course is also the headquarters of the Friends of the City Churches. Since the COVID-­‐19 pandemic struck, we have tried to keep the building open as much as we were allowed legally; in fact, for most of the second half of 2020 and since 1 March 2021, we have been able to keep the church open for a few hours, four days a week. Many people have appreciated this and from many comments we suspect St Mary Abchurch has sometimes been the only church observably open on our side of the City. The Bishop of London commended our efforts in keeping the doors open at an Evensong celebrating the life of Grinling Gibbons and blessing the new Beadle Wand in August 2021.

**St

Mary Abchurch, Services**

When permitted, we held a service of Holy Communion every Wednesday lunchtime during much of the COVID-­‐19 crisis, led by our chaplain, The Revd David Goodburn, who travelled regularly up from Folkestone to conduct it.

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

The Russian Anglican Chaplaincy have also continued to use the church on the first Sunday afternoon of the month.

Our resident organist, Ian Shaw, organised a weekly organ recital on Tuesdays at 12.30, again when regulations permitted. We had hoped to hold an Evensong in May 2020 to commemorate 75 years since the ending of the Second World War but unfortunately had to abandon this. In similar vein we had to cancel the Worshipful Company of Fruiterers’ annual service scheduled in January 2021.

**St

Mary Abchurch, Fabric**

We have now made a start towards the rewiring and relighting of St Mary Abchurch – work long, long overdue. This will be a mammoth project, particularly in coordinating material support from a range of grants, donations and fund-­‐raising activities. This of course does not fall directly on the Friends, but we hope to be closely involved with the project, and will keep our members informed as it develops.

**St

Mary Abchurch, Income generation**

The FCC usually lets out St Mary Abchurch, and the Vestry room in particular, for ecclesiastical and appropriate secular use. Weekly AA meetings were regularly held here, and many choirs used the space for rehearsals and concerts, including the London Chinese Philharmonic Choir, the Magnificat Choir and Stile Antico. Much of this activity ceased over the past year of course, and income generation has taken a significant hit. Fortunately, it now looks as though much of this activity is returning to St Mary Abchurch for the balance of 2021 and beyond.

We are grateful to Trustee David Jessop in his continuing role as Church Manager, coordinating all these activities. Volunteers Sue Anne James and Lynette Millson have continued with their regular efforts to keep the church clean. We also thank volunteer Janyce Rogers for her regular efforts to help with FCC administration.

**Church

Watching**

Church Watching is the very public face of FCC's role, keeping City churches open for visitors to enjoy their architecture and peaceful environments. Unfortunately this activity was thwarted by the COVID-­‐19 crisis as we immediately suspended church Watching. We hope to resume most of our Watching from the 1 September 2021, albeit with fewer churches than previously. It is a good start and we can only hope that January 2022 will see in a better year for us all.

Watchers’ sign-­‐up meetings will now be held at St Michael Paternoster Royal. This should provide us with good space for social distancing whilst achieving our popular sign-­‐up sessions.

Lesley Thrift is responsible for ensuring Watchers are aware of FCC’s Safeguarding Policy. She is very ably assisted by a reduced Rota Manager team: Judy Guy-­‐Briscoe, Helen

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

Passey, Marion Watson and Steve Welsh, with Vanessa Morris now also coming on board for a reduced but effective new team. Our thanks to outgoing Rota Managers Amanda Kuijvenhoven, Peter Eaton and Trevor Bates for all their hard work, for which we are very grateful.

Several new Watchers joined the scheme during the year but are only now being briefed. FCC is extremely grateful to Lesley Thrift, the Rota Managers, all Watchers, and to John Reynolds, who plays a pivotal role in checking and arranging the printed rota sheets and maintaining the Watchers’ directory.

**Small

Grants Programme**

Through the FCC Small Grants programme, Trustees can award a maximum of £5,000 per project to churches within the City of London for small-­‐scale repairs or improvements in or outside the building.

**St

Mary Aldermary**

In January £2,000 was requested for repairs to the north valley gutter and a leak in the church. On inspection, after lockdown restrictions were lifted, the leak had worsened, and the cost was £5,279.40. Trustees agreed to increase the grant to £5,000.

**St

James Garlickhythe**

In July 2020 £3,500 was requested to support the Streaming: Better Broadcasting Project. This was agreed by the Trustees. Services were broadcast daily during lockdown, and the church hosted the Friends’ Christmas Carol Service in December 2020.

**St

Nicholas Cole Abbey**

In September 2020, £3,081.82 was granted to repair the church kitchen and instal new cupboards.

**St

Mary le Bow**

In January 2021, £1,000 was granted to replace the failing carillon system.

**The

Dutch Church**

In February 2021, £5,000 was granted for conservation and re-­‐gilding of the weathervane on the steeple.

CONCLUSION

We extend our best wishes to all. We hope that you have enjoyed your … sabbatical year? Your long-­‐distance enthusiasm and generosity has helped us to maintain the FCC successfully in this most difficult time. As always, special mention must be made of our Administrator, Karen Hearn, whose diligence and patience are of paramount importance to the smooth running of the Friends. We are particularly grateful for the use of her conservatory as the FCC office annex during the COVID -­‐19 lockdown.

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The Friends of the City Churches {FCCI Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021 On behalf of FCC, our sincere thanks go to our Archdeacon, The Ven. Luke Miller; the Area Dean, The Reverend Katherine Hedderly,. Georgina Graham, Operations Manager, Diocese of London- and our patrons, the Rt Rev and Rt Hon Dame Sarah Mullally DBE, Bishop of London, and the Rt Revd and Rt Hon Lord Chartres GCVO Chstj PC FSA, for their continued support throughout the year. Also. we wish to thank the chaplain of St Mary Abchurch, The Revd David Goodburn, who is constantly helpful to FCC. Signed Oliver Leigh-wood, Chairman of the Trustees The Friends of the City Churches 16 September 2021 Page 10

The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

**FINANCIAL

REVIEW, 1 APRIL 2020 TO 31 MARCH 2021**

This has been a very challenging year for so many, but despite the difficulties faced by our members, they have continued to support the FCC through membership fees, donations and through attending online events. For this we are grateful. It has been truly a blessing to find the FCC is considered worthy of so much good will. Thank you all.

As a result of their support, the FCC continues to be a going concern. Our reserves of circa £240,000 continue to be used for the prime purpose of preserving and protecting the fabric of the City churches, in accordance with our Constitution and Reserves Policy.

Our combined funds show a surplus this year of £4,000.

**Detailed

Highlights**

Our revenue from subscriptions, donations, Gift Aid and bank interest shows an increase on last year. The Trustees were delighted to receive additional donations from the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists and the VOCES8 Foundation in partnership with the Lord Mayor of the City of London, who included us as a beneficiary for income generated by their Carols for the City.

Gift Aid is a valuable addition to our resources, and we would urge all those members who can sign up to the Gift Aid scheme as UK Taxpayers to do so. It might seem a small amount per member, but it adds up.

We are always so grateful to find that members have remembered us in their wills. We received one particularly generous legacy this year from a family who wish to remain anonymous.

Ticketed events were of course cancelled at short notice. Next year our accounts will show how the FCC has risen to the challenge of putting many events online, but these accounts reflect the suddenness of the requirement to cancel. We would like to thank those members who had purchased tickets, and either donated the value of their tickets to the FCC or agreed to take vouchers as credits to use for future events. This sign of your on-­‐going support is wonderful to see.

Our shop sales continued to make a small profit. The FCC does not include a high mark-­‐up on the price of the items so our profit margins are small. We regularly monitor stock levels and the sales of individual items, and add new products each year to keep the shop interesting.

Our popular quarterly magazine, Skyline , continued to be produced and distributed throughout the year. We keep a watchful eye on the costs, while seeking always to maintain the high standard and quality of production and content that our members expect and enjoy.

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Annual Report and Financial Review for the year ended 31 March 2021

The Melba Coombs Memorial Fund was established in 2018 with an anonymous donation of £50,000. The fund currently stands at a little over £77,000. We can use income generated by the fund for FCC heritage grants. The Fund has shown growth this year and as the financial markets strengthen can be expected to continue to grow.

The income generated from the fund supported our Small Grants to City churches, which this year fell a little short of £15,000. The FCC would be delighted to receive more applications from churches within the City of London for grants of up to £5,000 for small-­‐ scale repairs or improvements in or outside the building. The process to request funding is a simple one and the Trustees are always open to reviewing such applications.

**Reserves

and Investments**

We must maintain a small operational liquidity reserve, currently as a readily-­‐realisable cash deposit with CCLA (Churches, Charities and Local Authorities) charity fund management, to provide monetary cover in the event of an emergency.

Our investments have continued to be through deposit accounts protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. However, interest rates have fallen and continue to do so, and the Trustees are currently seeking financial guidance as we look to maximise return while keeping risk low. The Endowment Fund reserve is invested through the CCLA.

**Risk

Management**

We continue to pay the Diocese of London rent of £15,000 per annum for St Mary Abchurch, in accordance with the five-­‐year rental agreement negotiated from June 2019. Apart from this the FCC, has no significant contracts or liabilities, and no pending litigation or threat of litigation.

The FCC works with the Diocese to ensure consistency and completeness of insurance coverage and regularly reviews matters pertaining to health and safety.

**Financial

Controls**

The FCC follows guidance issued by the Charity Commission regarding internal financial controls. These are regularly reviewed and designed to be appropriate for the scale and nature of our operations.

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT

2019/20 2019/20 2020/21 2020/21 Combined Combined Combined Combined Funds Funds Funds Funds ST MARY ABCHURCH £ £ £ £ Income 9,509 Church Lettings (515) 1,615 Churchyard Revenue 0 5,473 16,597 Collections 780 265 __ __ Costs (15,500) Rent (15,000) (9,108) Other Costs (6,948) _ (24,608) _____ (21,948) _ NET DEFICIT _ (8,011) ST MARY ABCHURCH (21,683) _ _

FS 1

The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNTS

2019/20 2019/20 2020/21 2020/21 Combined Combined Combined Combined funds funds funds funds THE FRIENDS OF THE CITY CHURCHES £ £ GENERAL INCOME £ £ 30,565 Membership subscriptions, donations, Gift Aid 36,950 2,011 Interest and investment income 2,588 _ 32,576 _ 39,538 EVENTS 6,090 Events Income 153 (2,942) Events Costs (1,541) _ 3148 _ (1,388) TRADING 1,427 Shop sales net surplus 2,121 (308) Advertising and marketing (523) __ 1,119 __ 1,598 PUBLICATIONS (9,514) Skyline costs (8,894) 175 Skyline advertising revenue 30 _ (9,339) _ (8,864) (5,170) City Events costs (85) 1,410 City Events income 1,150 _ (3,760) _ 1,065 GOVERNANCE AND ADMINISTRATION (21,338) Governance and administration (20,386) _ _ 2,406 NET SURPLUS/(DEFICIT) FRIENDS 11,563 ______ OF THE CITY CHURCHES ___ TOTAL SURPLUS/(DEFICIT) (5,606) Before support and extraordinary items (10,118) SUPPORT COSTS TO CITY CHURCHES ( 503) Church Watching (31) (2,100) Grants to other churches (14,832) __ (2,603) _ (14,863) EXEPTIONAL REVENUE ITEMS (3,055) Unrealised profit/(loss) on investments 8,004 72,144 Melba Coombs Endowment Fund 1,204 Legacy 20,000 __ _____ 60,881 SURPLUS/(DEFICIT) for the period 4,226 __ ___

FS 2

The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2021

BALANCE SHEET

2019/20 2020/21 Combined Combined funds funds £ £ Fixed Assets 46,945 COIF Unit Trust Investment 77,364 _ Current assets 0 Debtors 0 7,433 Accrued revenue 1,500 259 Prepaid expenses 259 1,815 Merchandise Stock 1,272 _ _ 9,507 3,031 _ _ 51,715 Deposits Nationwide Building Society 51,932 74,961 Virgin Money plc 74,961 34,803 COIF Church of England Deposit Fund 34,905 200 COIF Church of England Melba Coombs 0 84,451 Skipton Building Society 84,451 ______ _______ 246,130 Total Deposits 246,249 _______ _______ 678 Current Lloyds Savings 678 25,630 Current Lloyds General Account 4,965 _______ ________ 26,308 Total Current Accounts 5,643 _______ ________ Liabilities less than 1 year 0 Creditors 0 2,889 Accrued expenses 2,948 930 Deposits held and income in advance 240 ______ _________ 3,819 Total liabilities 3,188 ______ ________ 278,126 Net Current Assets 251,735 Liabilities more than 1 year 8,637 Life membership – deferred income 8,435 _______ __________ 316,434 Total net assets 320,664 _______ _________ Financed by: General Reserves_ 255,553 Balances brought forward 316,434 60,881 Surplus/(deficit) for the year 4,226 _ _ 316,434 Balances carried forward 320,660 _ ______

The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2021

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES

2019/20 2020/21 Combined Combined funds funds £ £ Incoming Resources 36,038 Subscriptions, donations and gift aid 37,730 72,144 Legacies and gifts 21,204 7,500 Charitable activities 1,333 13,172 Other trading activities 3,173 2,011 Investment income 2,588 1,790 Other income 0 _ -_ 132,655 Total incoming resources 66,028 _ __ Resources expended 19,920 Raising funds 16,566 27,071 Charitable activities 32,854 21,728 Administration 20,386 _______ ________ 68,719 Total resources expended 69,806 _______ __________ Revaluation of assets _______ ___________ (3,055) Unrealised profit(loss) on investments 8,004 _______ ___________ 60,881 Net movement in funds 4,226 255,553 Funds brought forward 316,434 _______ ___________ 316,434 Funds carried forward_ 320,660 _ ____

FS 4

The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

Notes to the Financial Statements

1 Accounting Policies

Basis of preparation

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Financial Reporting standard (FRS) 102, the applicable Statement of Recommended Proactice (SORP) Charities Act 2011 and applicable regulations thereunder. They have been prepared under the historical cost convention, using the applicable concepts of going concern, accruals, prudence and materiality.

Fund Structure

FCC operates a single unrestricted (‘General’) fund, from which grants, on application, are made for the preservation and protection for public benefit of all City of London churches. Additionally, FCC is obliged and incentivised to maintain the fabric of St Mary Abchurch. Consequently, restricted funds are unnecessary and administratively burdensome to achieve the objective of maintaining the fabric of City churches, since that is the prime objective of the General Fund.

Within the General Fund, the Trustees from time to time may, at their discretion, establish designated funds for particular purposes.

Additionally, FCC may operate restricted funds, the funds of which are to be used solely in accordance with the restrictions imposed by the donor, will or trust deed. These may allow FCC to undertake restoration beyond the normal level of operating expenditure of the General Fund. So as to reduce the administrative burden, FCC will not usually wish to open restricted funds with an initial sum of less than £1000.

Income Recognition

Income is recognised when received or when receivable with sufficient certainty of timing and amount.

Life membership subscriptions are amortised over 15 years.

Gift Aid is accrued as the related subscription income or donation is credited.

……………...continued

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

Notes to the Financial Statements - Continued

1 Accounting Policies – Continued

Income Recognition – Continued

Grants or legacies are not accrued until the grantor/executor has indicated with adequate certainty the timing of receipt and the amount of the grant or legacy. Grants and legacies are accounted for as exceptional items.

Dividends are recognised when declared. Interest is accrued on bonds or other fixed term instruments including term deposits. Interest is also accrued on deposit accounts if credited at long intervals, eg over 6 months. Otherwise, a cash basis is used on the grounds that the result would not be materially different from a strict applicaion of the accruals basis.

All relevant income is allocated to designated and restricted funds, if material to the fund.

Expense Recognition

Liabilities are recognised when a binding commitment has arisen, or if there is an obligation which can be measured with sufficient certainty of timing and amount.

Governance costs are identified separately, and if material, will attract an allocation of overhead, though currently the relevant overhead cost is immaterial.

Merchandise deemed to be ‘low value’ items are written off in the year of purchase. Merchandise expense is confirmed by annual stocktakes.

Equipment, such as office computers, catering utensils or maintenance tools, are written off in the year of purchase. FCC would not normally capitalise single items less than £1000.

The full rent cost payable to the Diocese of London was by agreement reduced in 2019 dependent on the level of improvement made to St Mary Abchurch over a five year period. The current rent payable assumes these improvements will be made and is therefore the best estimate of the likely rent payable. The arrangement is reviewed annually.

……………….continued

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

Notes to the Financial Statements - Continued

1 Accounting Policies – Continued

Expense Recognition – Continued

Charitable activites comprise the City Events and Skyline publications, expenditure on St Mary Abchurch and other City Churches, including Watching costs. Trading activities, together with the associated cost of raising funds for these, comprise sales of merchandise as well as revenue from church lettings and from FCC’s programme of events.

All relevant expenditure is allocated to designated and restricted funds, if material to the fund.

Investments

Investments are made only in accordance with FCC’s Investment Policy, which prohibits investment in unquoted or complex financial instruments. Investments are revalued at period end to fair market value. Realised and unrealised gains and losses are recognised through the Income and Expenditure Account.

Listed equities are valued at closing mid-price. Bonds are valued including accrued interest. Broking charges and other investment costs are disclosed in a note, but are netted against investment income, this being deemed by the Trustees as a fair presentation.

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC) Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

Notes to the Financial Statements – continued

2 Designated, Restricted and Endowment Funds

The Trustees have ‘designated’ monies within the General Fund for the repair of church textiles and soft furnishings, to be known as the Textile Fund. A designated fund is not restricted.

During the year FCC continues to manage a restricted fund, the NADFAS (now known as the Arts Society) City Church Recording Fund. In addition FCC manages the Melba Coombs Memorial Endowment Fund. FCC can only benefit from the interest and dividend arising from the fund but cannot touch the capital. This founder wishes to remain anonymous.

BALANCE SHEET – Designated, Restricted and Endowment Funds

2019/20 2019/20 2019/20 2019/20 2020/21 2020/21 2020/21 2020/21
Textile Melba Melba NADFAS Textile Melba Melba NADFAS
Fund Coombs Coombs Fund Fund Coombs Coombs Fund
Designated Endowment Restricted Restricted Designated Endowment Restricted Restricted
£
£ £ £		 £ £
£ £
Current Assets
677 Lloyds Bank Saving 678
1,556 20,626 562 Lloyds Bank Current 1,556 1,204 2,220
200 COIF – Deposit acc
46,945 COIF – Unit Trust 77,364
2,793 Gift Aid Debtor
_____ _________
1,556 70,564 562 677 1,556 78,568 2,220 678
_____ __________
Reserves
1,556 1,475 0 677 Balances B/F 1,556 70,564 562 677
0 69,089 562 0 Surplus for the Year0 8,004 1,658 1
_____ ______ __
1,556 70,564 562 677 Balances C/F 1,556 78,568 2,220 678
_____ _________
INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT – Designated, Restricted and Endowment Funds
2019/20 2019/20 2019/20 2019/20
 2020/21 2020/21 2020/21 2020/21
Textile Melba Melba NADFAS Textile Melba Melba NADFAS
Fund Coombs Coombs Fund Fund Coombs Coombs Fund
Designated Endowment Restricted Restricted Designated Endowment Restricted Restricted
£
£ £ £		 £ £
£ £
72,144 Donations 1,204
562 Investment Income 1,658
1
(3,055) Unrealised (Loss)/Gain 8,004
__________ ________
0 69,089 562 0 Fund Income 0 9,208 1,658 1
__________ _________
__________ _________
0 69,089 562 0 Surplus for Year 0 9,208 1,658 1

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2021

Notes to the Financial Statements – continued

3 General Fund – detailed account analysis

Account caption headings for the General Fund are presented so as to show separate results (before Support and Exceptional items) for FCC’s functions as a charity and as the St Mary Abchurch (‘SMA’) churchmanager. The General Fund includes the designated Textile Fund. The detailed account analysis is shown below.

DETAILED ACCOUNT ANALYSIS – FCCGeneral Management

2019/20 2020/21 General General Unrestricted Unrestricted £ FCC Management £ 20,790 Membership subscriptions 26,094 4,086 Donations 9,801 5,689 Gift Aid 1,055 2,011 Interest and other revenue 2,588 __ _ 32,576 Total FCC income 39,538 _ _ Charitable Activities 9,339 _Skyline (net expense) 8,864 3,760 City Events (net expense) (1,065) 122 Archive 213 _ __ 13,221 8,012 _ __ Trading Activites (1,427) Shop Sales (net income) (2,121) 472 Website 59 308 Advertising and other expense 523 ( 3,148) Events and Activities net expenses (net income) 1,388 574 Equipment 40 _ __ (3, 221) (112) _ __ Administration 19,810 Office costs 19,314 360 Professional fees 760 _ _ 20,170 20,074 _ _ 30,170 Total FCC expense_ 27,974 _____ _ 2,406 Total FCC net income/(expense) 11,565 _ ___

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2021

Notes to the Financial Statements - Continued

3 General Fund – detailed account analysis – Continued

DETAILED ACCOUNT ANALYSIS – SMA Management

2019/20 2020/21 General General Unrestricted Unrestricted £ Income £ 11,124 Church Lettings (515) 5,473 Collections and poor box 780 __ _ 16,597 Total SMA Income 265 _ _ Expenses 181 Clergy and sacrament 0 16,198 Rent and insurance 15,964 6,620 Utilities 5,080 746 Repairs and maintenance 604 243 Security and fire 300 620 Organist and organ maintenance 0 _ _ 24,608 Total SMA expense 21,948 _______ ___________ ______ ___________ (8,011) Total SMA net expense_ (21,683) __ ___ (5,605) Deficit before Exceptional Items and Support (10,118)

4 Summary of reserves

The following summary shows reserves movements during the year

General Melba Melba NADFAS Combined Unrestricted Coombs Coombs Restricted Funds Endowment Restricted Balances B/F as at 1[st] April 2020 244,631 70,564 562 677 316,434 Surplus/(deficit) for year (5,437) 1,658 1 (3,778) Unrealised Profit/(Loss) on Investments 8,004 8,004 Balances C/F _________ at 31[st] March 2021 239598 78,568 2,220 678 320,660 __________

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The Friends of the City Churches (FCC)

Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021

INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS’ REPORT ON THE ACCOUNTS OF THE FRIENDS OF THE CITY CHURCHES (Charity number 1155049)

This report on the accounts of The Friends of the City Churches for the year ended 31[st] March 2021 is in respect of an examination carried out under Section 144 of the Charities Act 2100.

Respective Responsibilities of Trustees and Examiner

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

It is our responsibility to:

Basis of Independent Examiner’s Report

Our examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission. That examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by The Friends of the City Churches and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes considering any unusual items or disclsures in the accounts and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to wether the accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent Examiner’s Statement

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

Keith Raffan and Co (Signed) 12[th] September 2021 ----------------------------------------------------- Date -----------------------------------Keith Raffan and Co. Chartered Accountants 17 Short’s Gardens, London WC2H 9AT

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