2024-08-31-accounts - Inspire Movement

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REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER: 1156218

INSPIRE MOVEMENT CIO

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES AND UNAUDITED ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2024

CONTENTS OF THE ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2024

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS	1
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2024	2
Background to The Inspire Movement	2
Objectives and Activities	3
Achievements and Performance	3
Financial Review	5
Future Plans	7
Structure, Governance and Management of Inspire Movement CIO (UK)	8
RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS	10

Inspire Movement CIO 1156218

Annual Report 2023-24

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2024

Trustees Caroline Brown (Chair) Melvyn Cooke Michael Heathcote Secretary to the Trustees Samantha Meadows Principal address 10 Woodland Walk Chesterfield Derbyshire S40 4YB Registered Charity Number 1156218

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REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2024

The Trustees present their report with the receipts and payments accounts of the charity for the year ended 31 August 2024. The Trustees have adopted the provisions of CC16, provided by the Charity Commission, for charities under £250,000 receipts to use in line with the Charities Act 2011.

Background to The Inspire Movement

The Inspire Network was founded in 2008, by the international Director, Rev. Dr. Philip Meadows, with a small group of visionary people with a heart for abiding deeply with God and living missionally in the world. As the vision developed, the Network extended to form a School of Mission Spirituality (now called the School of Discipleship) and the Inspire Movement emerged as a synthesis of both of these activities and became registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation in the United Kingdom in 2014.

The aim of the Inspire Movement is to help ordinary Christians grow in their discipleship, and to equip church leaders for the task of making disciples in their local congregations. Inspire draws upon the historic tradition of Wesleyan spirituality but works ecumenically, partnering with people, churches and organisations from many different traditions and networks. Since its founding, the Inspire Movement has grown organically and internationally: with well-established participation across the UK, Ireland, and USA, as well as emerging relationships in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. We are a member of the Evangelical Alliance and are associated with a number of missional organisations.

There are different levels of participation to encourage people to deepen their discipleship. At every level of participation, people are encouraged to attend training through Teaching Retreats, Leadership Conversations and/or Learning Communities, to help them pursue this life of discipleship for themselves, and to equip them to develop disciple-making ministry. The evolving curriculum is offered through day retreats, learning communities and online training modules. As a spiritual movement, Inspire functions like a dispersed religious order, with a rule of life (called ‘the Way of Life’), and the core practices of: small group meeting (called ‘fellowship bands’) for mutual accountability and spiritual guidance; house fellowships for missional community; and learning communities for training and equipping. The School of Discipleship provides a training and mentoring platform for all of these things.

The Inspire Movement relies upon the voluntary support of Missioners. Missioners are catalysts for the Movement in their local contexts and some also serve the wider Movement.

Inspire Movement in the USA has been a registered 501(3)(c) non-profit organisation since November 2018. Inspire Movement CIO (UK) and Inspire Movement Inc (USA) operate as independent charities with in their respective jurisdictions. However, the decentralised nature of the Movement as a whole means the two entities can support one another as they are able. For example, funds from the USA are used to support

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international Movement activities such as the website, School learning platform and printing of publications. This allows Inspire Movement in the UK to focus on more localised disbursement of funds for supporting UK Missioners, training and networking.

Objectives and Activities

The objectives of the Inspire Movement CIO are the advancement of the Christian faith, particularly by (but not limited to) the promotion of discipleship and mission among Christians. This is achieved through the provision of education and training and in such other ways as the charity Trustees may from time to time think fit. To meet these objectives the Inspire Movement:

Develops and supports small groups to enable Christian mission and discipleship;
Promotes mission-shaped discipleship through a programme of retreats, learning communities, online courses and bespoke training to help people grow in Christian discipleship;
Provides advice, training, and resources open to members of the public at little or no cost, being largely sustained as a movement by charitable donation;
Offers education and accredited training through the Inspire School of Mission Spirituality, to which anyone may apply to enrol. Wherever feasible, training programmes are delivered on an at-cost basis and, in addition, provision to access training is made for those in hardship;
Benefits children and young people in their moral and spiritual development and growth by facilitating and equipping children and youth workers through training, resources and materials.

Achievements and Performance

The Annual Summit in June 2024 brought together Missioners to review the new organisational structures, envision for the year ahead and celebrate the achievements of the past year.
At the end of August 2024 there was a total of 42 Missioners recognised by the Inspire Movement as fulfilling the role of Missioner to different extents in various contexts around the world. Missioners are encouraged to meet regularly at the online Prayer Gatherings and Missioner Hangouts, and in person gatherings are held periodically in different regions. All Missioners are strongly encouraged to be in a Missioner fellowship bands with 2 or 3 other Missioners to meet regularly for mutual accountability and spiritual direction.
The online School of Discipleship has continued to grow and develop offering a variety of online courses. Participants enjoy the international flavour with people from the UK, Ireland, multiple states in the USA and other places. The community nature of the training is a significant encouragement to people as well as the learning they receive. Opportunities arise for in person training from relationships built on the online courses. The School also helps Missioners to offer hybrid train-

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ing combining online teaching and in person gatherings in their own contexts. In 2023-24 there were 31 participants on online courses.

The Moodle learning platform of the School of Discipleship provides a comprehensive learning experience, is easier to administer, and gives us a great deal of scope for development.
Brian Yeich continues as the Dean of the School of Discipleship overseeing the online courses, developing new resources and leading in person training in local churches. He is fundraising support as an Inspire Missioner in the USA.
Increasingly participants and other people see the value in the School and become regular donors. Going forward hybrid courses will generate income through giving from local contexts.
The regular rhythm gathering people together from across the Inspire Movement continues with Zoom meeting four times. The Prayer Coordinator, Robin Toner, leads the meetings as we share news and prayers. They are organised to coincide with significant times of the year: new school year, New Year, Lent, Easter, and Pentecost. These Gatherings help to cultivate the sense of belonging to theMovement and encourage people to give in response to that. There are between 6 and 20 people at each gathering including Missioners and members of the public.
The Inspire Scholars group meets monthly to encourage one another in furthering their learning. Phil Meadows leads the group with teaching and conversation based around relevant book studies.
Our partnership with One Mission Society (OMS) continues to develop. A number of OMS missionaries have adopted Inspire Fellowship Bands as their primary tool for discipleship and several missionaries are using our model for house fellowship for church planting. In Spring 2025 we delivered Introduction to House Fellowship as practical training for OMS missionaries through the School of Discipleship.
Several Missioners have accepted invitations from various organisations to promote Inspire through academic and other institutions. There continues to be regular opportunities to pursue connections online as well as in person.
We utilise email and other software services to facilitate secure communications and prayer links. We have chosen not to participate on social media platforms but find that helps to enhance the relationships that we have with people who connect with the Movement.
The editorial team give oversight and input to our regular communications. Our read rate of newsletters remains between 55-60%,
The monthly ‘e-News’ shares news and testimony evidencing the positive contribution the Inspire Movement makes in the lives of beneficiaries. There are more than 450 subscribers.
The monthly ‘Prayer Bowl’ has around 140 subscribers. It focuses on helping people to use spiritual disciplines and provides prayer pointers about the specific activities of the Movement and the needs of its participants.

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The weekly ‘Beacon of Hope’ has more than 300 subscribers and is a key communication tool with the wider Inspire community and members of the public. It provides short reflections and prayer for encouragement. Many people have engaged with the Inspire Movement through the ‘Beacon of Hope’ that might not otherwise have done so.
The monthly ‘Missioner Matters’ is a newsletter specifically for Missioners to provide training, encouragement and opportunities to engage.
The Inspire Movement website provides essential support and services for the School Discipleship as well as information and resources more widely. The Blog presents many reflections and contributions from Missioners and other people engaging in the Inspire Movement.
The resources published in 2023-24 have been successful and complement the existing resources. We are continuing with the development of a comprehensive range of resources to equip the Movement.
The Inspire Bookstore ships publications from the UK and USA around the world. Most customers are already connected with Inspire but we see an increasing number of customers who find our resources helpful in their wider contexts. Several academic courses are listing our resources on their reading lists. We have increased the number of publications that are also available through Amazon Kindle. The bookstore generates income to support the work of the charity.
Missioners continue to mentor and multiply fellowship bands and house fellowships in a variety of contexts with people at all stages of discipleship (Enquirers to church members). We are continuing the development of our model of house church that fits into the core practices of Inspire. Missioners are helping a number of churches and organisations adapt and adopt our model of practices for church planting.
The Church Planters Cohort was renamed as the Disciple-Making Cohort in 2024 to better describe its broader focus of planting disciple-making fellowship in a variety of contexts. The cohort has continued to meet monthly for mutual support and wisdom sharing. They share from their own experiences and also focus on specific topics. It draws in people in from a variety of contexts in the UK, USA and Europe.

Financial Review

The Inspire Movement operates as an independent charity and is dependent on donations as its primary source of income.

Total unrestricted donations received in the year (including gift aid) were £1,766 (2022/23, £3725). The general fund surplus of £498.43 and transfers released from the restricted funds, gave a total general fund of £7,272 at 31 August 2024 (£6289 at 31 August 2023) which is retained and will be used to meet costs and fund future activities. Giving has remained steady but rising living costs and the slow growth of the Movement in the UK has hindered new donations.

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Restricted funds are £0 as at 31 August 2024 (£505 at 31 August 2023). As all previously allocated funds were released to the general fund as: (a) some had been delegated not restricted and they no longer needed to be delegated; (b) one restricted grant was not required to be paid back even though spending it that area was not completed. The Trustees approved the transfer of the remainder of the grant into the general funds.

The Inspire Movement does not currently have a reserve policy but the Trustees continue to monitor receipts and payments to ensure funds are available as needed. The Trustees consider that the CIO has sufficient resources and there are no material uncertainties about its ability to continue.

The Inspire School of Discipleship has provided online training opportunities. Several participants have become regular donors through the School and most participants make a generous gift.

We continue to explore fund-raising models to help cover the cost of essential support and also assist any Missioners who would like to commit to a part-time or fulltime role with Inspire.

As more Missioners are looking at part or full-time opportunities with the Inspire Movement we have established a model of support whereby we assist Missioners to start and maintain fundraising their own support under the umbrella of Inspire whilst utilising the services of a fundraising platform organisation for the administration of their own funds. Inspire may also continue to provide financial support to Missioners as Movement funds allow. In 2023-24 Tabitha Heathcote and Samantha Meadows began fundraising support in the UK.

Activities in the UK have been slow to pick up. This may in part be because of the spiritual apathy in the UK and also because there are not many dedicated Missioners in the UK at this time. However our new and expanding resources, and the School of Discipleship are drawing people to engage with the Movement. As people become more involved they are often willing to give financially to Inspire and we encourage people to give on a regular basis. We continue to work in partnership with churches and other organisations to establish financial support for delivering teaching and training.

The activity of volunteer Inspire Missioners is essential to assisting with ongoing resource and Missioner development through local connections within churches and partner organisations. The number of UK volunteers has remained low in 2023-24 but we hope to see this rise again.

The Inspire Bookstore continues to stock publications from Inspire Movement Publishing and a few related items. Sales of publications through the Inspire website have been increasing. Inspire Movement USA donates the books to Inspire Movement (UK) and sales generate income for the charity. We have increased the number of publications available on Kindle which generates small but steady income in the UK. Prices for all publications are set at a rate to make them accessible whilst cover-

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ing all costs and generating a small income to contribute to the expenses of the wider Movement.

Future Plans

Our focus remains on equipping and resourcing Missioners to give them greater confidence in delivering training, supporting band formation, facilitating house fellowships and developing learning communities.

Missioners are particularly grateful for the community that provides mutual support and encouragement. Several Missioners will be taking up the hybrid model of training to utilise the online School of Discipleship as well as in person meetings in their local contexts.

There are a number of Missioners exploring more dedicated ministry with Inspire in different places. Our Missioner fundraising model to raise financial support in order to facilitate part or full-time engagement is proving to be helpful both in planning and in committing to fundraising.

We will be developing the Wellbeing Team to offer further support and encouragement for Missioners. The Editorial Team will be expanding to enhance our regular communications and extend the publishing of resources.

There remain multiple opportunities for several Missioners for expanding the work of Inspire. We are continuing to extend the training for house fellowship facilitators and the disciple-making cohort will be expanding to include people from multiple countries and contexts. We continue to explore partnerships with a number of missionary and other organisations who have an interest in incorporating Inspire teaching and practice in their work.

In 2024-25 we have committed to paying Tabitha Heathcote (Missioner in the UK) for some of her work to expedite development of training and resources for lnspire for children and families. This is a growing edge for the Inspire Movement, particularly as House Fellowships are multiplying and many churches are seeking new resources for children’s ministry. Tabitha will be establishing a team of people to advance this area of development. We expect to be publishing more resources in the coming year. As well as equipping people we see this area as an important sector for income generation for the Movement.

With divisions in many large denominations we are following up with many enquiries as we seek to help churches re-think the way they do Christian discipleship. We work in relationship with church leaders to offer wisdom and support. The Disciple-Making Cohort and School of Discipleship will continue to be a significant part of this.

The Disciple-Making cohort has expanded its remit to include people who are establishing a wider variety of missional communities and disciple-making groups. This will encourage more people in the UK and Ireland to engage. The regular rhythm for meeting will continue with peer mentoring and support.

The Inspire Scholars are going to be helping with reviewing potential material for publication through Inspire Publishing to resource the Movement.

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The Inspire Bookstore, through Inspire Movement Publishing, plans to publish a number of new publications in the coming year. This year we will also be establishing a store on Amazon. Prices for all publications are set at a rate to make them accessible whilst covering all costs and generating a small income to contribute to the expenses of the wider Movement. We continue to provide some resources at no cost, and to make provision for people to access resources where there is a case of financial hardship.

The Inspire School of Discipleship continues to grow and develop. The School Strategy Team gives oversight and guides the developments. We have plans to develop more hybrid learning opportunities that will ultise the expertise of Missioners in local contexts. We have plans to extend the curriculum, develop more small focused learning communities, update resources and provide training for partner organisations.

Structure, Governance and Management of Inspire Movement CIO (UK)

The Inspire Movement is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation governed by Articles of Association dated 7 January 2014.

The number of Trustees must be a minimum of three who are appointed in accordance with the Articles of Association which states that “Trustees are appointed for a term of three years by resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the charity trustees”. The Trustee body embraces a wide variety of skills and new Trustees are considered in the light of their ability to contribute to the work of the Inspire Movement. All Trustees subscribe and adhere to, in belief and lifestyle, the Inspire Movement statement of beliefs.

The Trustees are responsible for the financial management and legal governance of the administration of the Inspire Movement CIO.

Following the review of existing organisational structures in 2022 and the gradual implementation of the new structure through 2023, there was a review at the Annual Summit in June 2024. The Summit agreed to adopt a simplified version of the organisational structure to optimise good governance and facilitate organic growth.

The aim of the structure, governance and management of the Inspire Movement is to develop a Community of Missioners who are responsible for advancing the Inspire ecology in their own local context, and gathering organically in teams where appropriate.

The Annual Summit is responsible for the overall governance, vision keeping and strategy of the Inspire Movement. The recognition of Missioners is the responsibility of the Annual Summit. The Annual Summit meeting also includes a open session for anyone associated with the Inspire Movement to attend. The Trustees and all Missioners are voting members of the Annual Summit.

The Wellbeing Team is responsible for drafting and enacting policies related to the support, well-being and discipline of Missioners. The Trustees are represented on the Wellbeing Team.

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The Support Team is responsible for drafting and enacting policies related to the training, resourcing and networking of Missioners. The Trustees are represented on the Support Team.

Approved by order of the Trustees on 27/06/2025 and signed on its behalf by:

SIGNATURE

Revd Caroline Brown

Chair of Trustees

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RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2024

Unrestricted	Unrestricted	Restricted	Endowment	Total	Prior Year
Receipts
Donations & Legacies	1,766.12	0.00	0.00	1,766.12	3,725.01
Charitable Activities	45.30	0.00	0.00	45.30	0.00
Investments	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
TradingActivities	410.05	0.00	0.00	410.05	123.43
Other activities for raisingfunds	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	40.44
Other	90.00	0.00	0.00	90.00	0.00

Total Receipts	2,311.47	0.00	0.00	2,311.47	3,888.88

Payments
Charitable Activities	1,223.34	0.00	0.00	1,223.34	3,513.72
RaisingFunds	69.70	0.00	0.00	69.70	17.66
Cost of Tradingactivties	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	72.32
Other Activities	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
Governance	520.00	0.00	0.00	520.00	289.00

Total Payments	1,813.04	0.00	0.00	1,813.04	3,892.70

Net movement in year	498.43	0.00	0.00	498.43	-3.82

Funds carried forward	6,268.98	504.90	0.00	6,773.88	6,777.70
Transfers between funds	504.90	-504.90	0.00	0.00	0.00

Total funds at the end of theyear	7,272.31	0.00	0.00	7,272.31	6,773.88

Represented by:
General (Unrestricted)	7,272.31			7,272.31	6,268.98
Bristol - specifc Training		0.00		0.00	427.00
Missioner Fund -general		0.00		0.00	77.90
Missioner Fund - Wrights		0.00		0.00	0.00

Total funds at the end of theyear	7,272.31	0.00	0.00	7,272.31	6,773.88

Signed by:	Chair of Trustees
Trustee name(s)	Caroline Brown
Signature	Revd Caroline Brown			DATE: 27-06-2025

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