Activities
The Trustees, the elders of the Church of God in Swindon, with the church members, aim to achieve the objects through a variety of activities requiring personal, social and spiritual skills. Our aim is to reach out, engage with and support those who live in the community. We do this by offering to the community, services that manifest our Christian faith, together with a variety of innovative activities and events. As we share with the local community, we also provide financial support to those in need by working together with local charities.
We approached April 2024, determined to maintain our established standards of hygiene & personal contact, based on good practise and commonsense. These would be evident in all of our activities. Effective use of the best aspects of technology would be evident as we continue to offer a range of online events and activities. The combination of meeting inperson and online would address our various needs and enable us to maintain a fresh and broad programme. As previously acknowledged, broadening our activities must go hand in glove with our continuing responsibility to provide safe environments for everyone. We would not be compromised by our range of events that recognise the changing needs of the community, both our growing younger population and those who are challenged by the issues of older age and personal need.
We are very pleased to look forward to a wide range of events, including those that draw large and smaller numbers to our church building and those that benefit families and individuals in the local towns and villages. These would include Light Lunches, a range of events, and local involvement, around Christmas time, weekly work with children and young adults and our summer Camps . Sufficient space in the programme will ensure we can maintain our engagement with those who live locally and have particular need . We would do this in partnership with local charities who have like ambitions. The personal support for individuals and families, that has proved valuable and rewarding, would continue to be offered. We will develop our involvement with local support groups, such as the Rise Trust , as well as developing our involvement with Operation Christmas Child .
During our Sunday Morning Services ( SMS ) programme we would continue to provide opportunities for families to celebrate together with the local praise band and, group activities for both children and adults. The first Sunday of each month would be an AllAge family service followed by a lunch together. The study of the book of Acts for adults, which began last year, would continue from last year with 2 or 3 chapters each month, followed by discussion on the last Sunday. We recognise that a structured programme is needed to provide for development for everyone. Live streaming the weekly activities - the Remembrance of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Wednesday Prayer & Teaching time - remains important for those who cannot be with us in person.
Honeycomb will continue each Sunday evening, providing a benefit for people who cannot travel or who are members of small churches. The short talk, broad prayer focus and social time should continue to maintain and develop friendships between the members of 3 churches. Our monthly Bible Studies and our Thursday morning prayer time will also remained on-line.
The wellbeing of many, despite COVID being regarded in the same way as influenza, will need continued care and home visits to those unable to get out easily will still be important.
The church’s Phase 2 Working Group will continue their work on behalf of the church members. Funds for the new build have taken longer to secure from central church funds in order to grow, enhance and improve the provision for the variety of church activities.
Achievements
In a year of opportunity to re-establish more of our valued practises, we were also able to breathe life into new enterprises and develop our personal relationships through good practice and healthy new options.
Having learned the need for care we have held true to our core objectives and deepened our relationships with recent new friends.
Our practices remained under review and guided by our safety officers we have remained consistent in our ways of working. We have not relaxed the careful arrangements for the Remembrance, our weekly communion ( Bread & Wine ) service – sprayed surfaces, use of hand cleanser, personal selection of bread, use of individual disposable cups, removal of items after the service – and have rejoiced in the singing of hymns.
SMS (Sunday Morning Service) is well established once more with adult and children’s groups, together with the Praise Band. The new friends – adults and children – have, in the main, been regular attenders through the year. From January we began a year long study of the book of Acts. The first Sunday of each month began with an AllAge Light Lunch service. The ‘middle’ Sundays focussed on a chapter and, on the last Sunday, we discussed the chapters in groups. This has provided variety and so far has been a good way for all of us to share and improve our understanding.
We continuing our involvement with groups such as the Rise Trust, Julia’s House, Operation Christmas Child and Boxes of Hope, and maintain our involvement in local events in Royal Wootton Bassett.
We are very pleased that the South East KIDS’CAMP chose to return to Flaxlands for their week with younger ones, together with ELEVATE, for teens and twenties. It is encouraging that a good number of our local young people, and camp workers from the church, attended and helped run these successful annual events.
The Christmas Charity Craft Fayre was again well attended and enabled us to support a local charity. We continue to meet for our weekly Wednesday Prayer & Teaching time in our homes and in the Piggery. We live stream this and the Sunday Remembrance , our communion service. This enables more people to be part of the activity. Some are caring for children; others are housebound adults or are unable to make the journey. We recognise that some activities require us to meet online. Our Sunday evening Honeycomb draws people, from three churches, who live some way from each other, the Thursday morning prayer times work well, and the monthly Bible Studies is convenient for most of those who attend.
We continue to have the opportunity to affect the lives of some - in the church and in contact with us - who need regular support; financially, emotionally as well as spiritually. Nobody has all the personal or professional skills required but working sensitively together we are gaining strength and are providing present and longer term care and support. The Phase 2 Working Group continued their work, as we move closer to our goal of building a new church hall.
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CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Section A Independent Examiner's Report Report to the trusteesl membersof "Il,0 C L, On accounts for the year ended Charity no (if any) I I Set out on pages I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity ("the Trust") for the year ended Responsibilitles and As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responsible for the preparation of basis of report the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ("the Act") I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have ome to my attention (other than that disclosed below ") in connection with the examination which aives me cause to believe that in. anv material respect: accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act or the accounts do not accord with the accounting records Iiluependent I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Please delete the words in the brackets if they do not apply. Signed: Date: Relevant professional qualification(s) or body (if any): 16 14c. IER October 2018