The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastital Parish of uel hurch, Hastings Emmanuel Church, Priory Road, Hastings TN34 3JJ Registered Charity no. 1159229 For the year ended 31 December 2024 CONTENTS Page Trustees annual report Statement of financial receipts and payments Statement of assets and liabilities Notes to the accounts 10-13 Report of the independent examiner 14 Website: w.emamauelhastings.orE.uk The Revd M. Lane, The Vicarage, Vicarage Road, Hastings, TN34 3NA Ashdown Hurrey Accountants and Business Advisors, 20 Havelock Road, Hastings, TN34 IBP CAF Bank Ltd, 25 Kings Hi51 Avenue, Kings Hill, West Malling, Kent, ME194JQ Incumbent: Independent examlner: Bankers: ua r"I "f EMMANUEL CHURCH HASTINGS Our mission and vision The PCC has the responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent, the Revd Martin Lane, in promoting the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. At Emmanuel, we have stated our mission as follows.. Our mission is to help people of our town and local commLtnity become fully committed followers of Jesus. We have summarised our vision for Emmanuel in the following statement.. Imagine a church that's flooding its loca I community with the light of the gospel and making a visible difference to the lives of all kinds of people.. that's what we long to see at Emmanuel Church, on the West Hill of Hasting5, to the glory of God. As we look to the future, we envision a growing and dynamic, gospel-hearted church, full of men, women, and children who find their identity in Christ and rejoice in living for him. It's a church with multiple, vibrant gospel ministries for all ages with trained and trustworthy leaders; where faithful bible teaching isvalued and expected, where thegospel is proclaimed with urgency and purpose. It's a church of disciple-making disciples,. where members are experiencing the life-changing power of the gospel and helping others to experience it too. It's an others-focused church where we cherish one another in Christ,. a fam ily of believers who think of one another before themselves and gladly accept sacrifice for each other's sake,. where we love one another in practical ways, and everyone gives and receives. It's a church in which relationships are loyal, supportive, and accountable,. where names are remembered and absence is noticed,. where we join together to laugh and cry, challenge and encourage, pray and praise. It's an outward-looking church that works for the good of our local community and seeks the lost with the gospel of grace in creative and relevant ways; a place where the needy find help, the broken find heaSing, the lonely find friendship, and all hear the offer of new life in Christ. It's a church that's committed to supporting other gospel ministries, in the UK and overseas, by giving its money and sending its people to serve in various ways. This is our dream. We believe, under God, it will soon be reality, and we invite you to be part of it. What we planned to do to achieve our mission Over the past year, we have sought to: enable as many people as possible to pa rticipate in the life of our church,. reach out to non-believers; teach, baptise and nurture new and existing believers; provide care and support for those in need,. give financial support to other Christian organisations; maintain the fabric of the church building. What we achieved Enabling participation in the life of our church We welcome visitors from both inside and outside the parish. Visitors attend by personal choice, and we are delighted to welcome people of all backgrounds to participate in the life of the church. Voluntary attendance of our church services is a major demonstration of the public benefit of our activities. We love to welcome families to the church and run a Sunday Club and supervised Crèche every Sunday morning during the service. The music group continues to lead our congregational singing and introduce new songs. 2024 marked the 150th anniversary of the consecration of the Emmanuel church building. We marked the anniversary with a special celebratory service and meal, which was open to all. We held a Church Lunch and Harvest Lunch after the Sunday service during the year, as well as a Summer Picnic, to which all were welcome. We welcome newcomers to the church at our Welcome Tea, which is an opportunity to ask questions and find out more about church life. As at the 31 December 2024 there were 73 people on the church electoral roll, 52 of whom were not resident within the parish, two names were added during 2024 and one was removed through death. The average total weekly attendance at services in the building during October was 86, of which, on average, 68 were adults and 18 were children. We provide regular training for all who are involved in our ministries, including training for preachers, home group leaders, youth and children's ministry leaders and helpers, and the music m inistry team. We continue to take safeguarding very seriously and follow the guidance set out in various documents including.. Care and Protectlon of Children12002, 2009}, Protecting God's Children12010) and Safer Recruitment {20131, and the Parish Safeguarding Handbook120181. We continue to carry out Disc105ure and Barring Service IDBSI checks for all new volunteers who are then invited to join the DBS Update Service, thus obviating the need for three-yearly renewals. We have completed the diocesan safeguarding programme, Simple Quality Protects Level One, an audit tool aimed at helping all parishes to achieve the highest possible Safeguarding standards. Safeguarding is a sta nding item at PCC meetings and the channel through which the PCC is kept up to date on current Issues. All Church members involved with Children's Work have completed a DBS dlsclosure and are part of the DBS Update Service. We are grateful to Rowena Pelling for serving as the Parish Safeguarding Off icer. The PCC has adopted the Principles for Commending Ministry set out by the Bishop of Ebbsfleet to commend complementarian evangelical ministry and to enable healthy m inistry and leadersh ip. We did not hold any weddings at Emmanuel during 2024. Two funeral services were held in the church building and we hosted two memorial services. Reaching out to non-believers Our Sunday seNices are planned with non-christian visitors in m ind with the intention of making participation as easy as possible. All visitors are welcomed at the door by our team of stewards. Seasonal services such as Carols by Candlelight and our Christingle Service are particularly well attended. We hold All-Together services on Christmas Day and Easter Sunday, where all ages come together to celebrate the good news of Jesus, birth, death, and resurrection. We also hold Guest Services th roughout the year which have a particular evangelistic focus. In 2024, we hosted an evangelistic event for the whole church with a meal and live music, wh ich was open to al I: A Big Night In. It included a short presentation of the gospel by a guest speaker and was well attended. We also held a Flower Festivol to mark the 150 annlver5ary of the church, wlth flower displays on the theme of 'Gospel Misslon,, which was open to the local community. Our toddler play group, Buttons, meets on Friday mornings and continues to be very well popular with families from the local community. Our intention is that it is a distinctively Christian toddler group in which the children lèarn about Jesus through hearing stories from the Bible. reinforced through craft activities and si nging Christian songs, along with other popular pre-school Songs. We provide craft activities and toys to play with. and a safe and fun environment for all who come along. Each year we hold a Buttons Christmas Special and Buttons Easterspecial with a particular focus on evangelism. The group uses resources produced by Faith in Kids. Once again, we were able to run the Christianity Explored course "ThES COIITS& kas op.tsned my eyos during the year, for those wishing to find out more about the l TrvoLild l 00% Icii(P tkis coiip'se cigriin. Christian faith. This is an informal and enjoyable courseth3tenables Christianity Explored people to answer three important questions from Mark's Gospel: Who is Jesus? Why did he come? What does it mean to follow him? It explores clearly and faithfully the good news of Jesus that is at the heart of our church life. Teachingj baptising and nurturing new and existing believers Our main teaching happens during our Sunday services when we come together around God's word, the Bible. This year we have studied Genesis 1-3, the second half of I Samuel, Luke 8-9, Romans 12, 2 Corinthians 4-5 and 2 Thessalonians. During the week, members of the church meet in Home Groups. Every member of the church is encouraged to join a home group. These groups have continued to meet -groups throughout the year, during daytimes and evenings, providing further opportunities for small groupsto studythe Bible and pray together. We meet in small groups to support and encourage each other as we seek to grow in Christian maturity. The groups contain a mixture of new and existing bel levers. We provide one-to-one Bible studies for those who are hungry to study the Bible, either as interested seekers or to grow as disciples of Jesus, Once a month, through our Church Prayermeetings, we set aside a Tuesday evening to come togetheras a church familyto prayforthe mission of the church,for individuals in thechurch who are particularly in need of prayer, and for missionary organisations that we support. The Women@Emmanuel ministry has organlsed a Women's Book Group and an evangelistic Christmos Craft Evening with a short talk about Jesus. A group of women from the church attended the Southern Women's Convention in Crowborough. The Men@Emmonuel ministry draws men together to encourage one another as we seek to l ive for Christ at home, with friends, and in the workplace. This often involves food, whether a cooked meal, a takeaway or a fried breakfast. This year we took a group of men to the Kentmen's Convention in Sevenoaks. An encouraging number of church families attended the SGPAnnuol Conference and Bible by the Beach, where there was Bible teaching forall age5 in a fun environment. A supervised Creche provides age-appropriate Bible teaching and activities for pre-schoolers during our Sunday services. sunday Club has continued strongly; we use 114ustord Seeds material to explore the Bible together as well as playing games, singing and doing crafts, and had a good num ber of regular attendees. This year the ch ildren have followed a series called 'Jesus beyond the mangerf and studies in the books of Genesis, Joshua, Judges, 1&2 Samuel, Mark, Luke, John, and Acts, as well as a Christmas series in Isaiah. A Youth Bible Study group has continued successfully for those in Year 7 and upwards. The young people have studied the book of l Thessalonians, a series on spiritual ha bits, an overview of Old Testament History, a series on The Kingdom of David followed by an overview of Esther, Ezra, and Nehemiah, and a series on Ilving as a Christian. We were able to hold an Easter Partyfor primary school age children, a Summer Holiday Club, and a Light Party as a Christian alternative to Halloween - all of which were well attended by church children and their friends. chiii"chprayer WOMEN @EMMANUEL MEN EMMANUEL Some of our young people attended Woolhampton 3 and Orwell 4 CYFA Ventures in the summer of 2024, providing Bible teaching, friendships and fun activities for them and their friends. We held two adult baptisms and one infant baptism during the course of the year. Providing care and supportfor those in need Pastoral care and support for members of the church is provided mainly through our home groups. Our vicar, and members of the congregation, also regularly visit the sick among our congregation, either at home or in hospital, to talk, read the Bible and pray. He also provide5 pastoral support forthose who have been bereaved both in the church and in the parish. Donations of food and household items to support the work of Family Support Work, a Sussex based charity providing practical support to families i n crisis in our town, are now collected from the church building once a month. Giving financial support to other Christian organisations In 2024 we supported three Christian organisations through f inancial giving and regular prayer. They are Bornabas Fund, Cros51inks and Speak Life. Barnabt75 Fund acts on behalf of the persecuted Church, to be their voice making their needs known to Christians around the world and the injustice of their persecution known to governments and international bodies. They send financial support to projects which help Christians where they suffer discrimination, oppression and persecution as consequence of their faith. The projects aim to strengthen Christian individuals, churches and their communities by providing material and spiritual support in response to needs identified by local Christian leaders. The majority of aid goes to Christians living In Muslim environments. Crosslink5 is an international mission society with its roots in the Bible and works principally within the worldwide Anglican Communlon. Thelr prime focus is the proclamatlon and teaching of God's word. They are enthusiasts for creative worldwide mission. Their slogan Is 'God's word to God's world,. We have a particular link with a missionary family in the Czech Republic and a church in south Africa. Speak Life is a UK-wide evangelistic ministry which exists to preach the gospel, train Christians in evangelism and resource the church for its mission to the world. Maintaining the fabric of the church bullding During 2024, necessary maintenance has been carried out and the buildings kept In good repair, We are verygrateful to the volunteers who give time to clean the church buildi ng and to look after the church halls and gardens. Financial Review Total receipts for 2024 were £164.9k of which £124.3k were unrestricted and of that £119.7k were voluntary donations (including a £20k one-off gift). Restricted donations of £39.7k were also received. There was no income from St Clements Hall as the tenants went out of business in 2023. A new tenant has been found and a new lease is in the process of being drawn up. Our annual 'Glvlng Revie￿ focused on fundraising for donations towards a Youth & Famllles Worker. An amazlng £33.9k, plus gift aid was raised for this project. £109k has been spent from restricted, designated & unrestricted funds to provide the Christian ministry of Emmanuel Church. This includes ou r parish contribution to the Chichester diocese of £52k, which pays towards the stipend and housing for the clergy, along with a contribution towards central costs. Other large expenses include £19.8k for salaries for both our part-time Families Worker and our Administrator, which has been met from restricted funds where possible and the balance from unrestricted funds, as budgeted. £5.3k was given in charitable donations. £8.4k has been spent on caretaking costs of Clements hall while it has been empty, i.e. legal fees and council tax. No major building works were carried out this year.. General funds have increased overthe year by £21.Ok and Restricted funds have increased by £33.9k, due entirelyto the response from the congregation to our appe31 to raise funds for a Youth and Families Worker, for 3 years. eser4Jes Policy It is PCC policy to maintain an unrestricted and undesignated reserve balance of at least 3 months unrestricted expenses, this equates to £27.3k. Total reserves stand at £133.Ik at 31st December 2024, £55.Ik in general unrestricted reserves, £40k in designated funds and a further £38k i n restricted funds. Struclure) governance and rnanagement of 'ihe charity The Parochial Church Council IPCCI is registered with the Charity Commission as required by the Charities Act 2011. Its governing document is the Parochial Church Councils IPowersl Measure 1956. During the year the following served as members of the Parochial Church Council.. The Revd Martin Lane Chairman Mr Geoff Martin Churchwarden, Vice Chairman Mr Michael Davis Churchwarden, Deanery Synod Representative Mrs Bernadette Huggins Secretary Mrs Carol Eldridge Treasurer, Deanery Synod Representative Miss Hilary Drury Deanery Synod Representative Mrs Rowena Pelling Parish Safeguarding Off icer Mr Tony Simon5 Mrs Lucy Sparks Mr Jamie Coussens Miss Holly Eldridge Membership of the PCC is determined under the Church Representation Rules and conslsts of certain ex-officio members, the churchwardens and members of the Deaneryi Dlocesan or General Synods and members of the church who are elected at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting IAPCMI. Members are warmly encouraged to stand for election to the PCC and we try to ensure a balance of ski115 and experience where possible. Thls Trustees, Annual Report was approved by the PCC and signed on thelr behalf by The Revd. Martin Lane, PCC Chairman Date... Emmanuel Church, Hastings Registered Charity number 1159229 Summary of Financial Receipts and Payments Unrestrirted General.: Designated Fund:. Funds Total All Funds 2024 Total All Funds 2023 Notes Restricted Fund Endowed Fund Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies Charitable activities 119,745 39,650 159,395 IIB 132,475 Other trading activities Investments 3,563 3,563 13,940 921 1,936 1,564 Other receipts Total received 124,328 40,571 164,899 147,984 Expendlture on: Cost of ralslng funds Charitable costs 93,978 1 6,652 100,630 157,444 Trading costs Other payments Total paid 8,380 102,358 6,652 109,010 157.444 Re¢oncillotlon offund5.' Net Income or {net expendlturel Transfers between funds 33,919 55,889 (9,460) 140,0001 118,0301 40,000 Net movement In funds 40,000 33,919 55,889 (9,46Q) 69,193 Bank accounts at l January 2024 Bank accounts at 31 December 2024 72,753 4,450 77,203 £54,723 £40,000 £38,369 £133,092 £59, 733 A&L 181031202510'.38 Emmanuel Church, Hastings Regrstered Chartty number 1159229 Statement of Assets and Liabilities Unrestrlcted General.: Designated Funds Totol All Funds TotGI All Funds 2023 Ivotss Restrirted Fund Endowed Fund Assets: Bank current account 54,723 40.000 38,369 133,092 77,203 Diocesan Assigned Fees received CBF Deposit Fund Bank and deposlt accounts £54,723 £40,000 £38,369 £133,092 £77,203 R&P St Clements Rent & Insurance not recelved 8,405 13 Gift Ald recoverable to Dec 24 4,255 7,050 11,305 4,626 14 Debtors £4.255 ', £7,050 £11,305 £13,031 CBF & COIF Investments 14,377 14,377 13,981 Sophla Mendham Endowment Investment assets at Market value 21,078 21,078 20,460 £14,377 £21,078 £35,455 £34,441 Church Halls. valuatlon 2010 585,000 i 585,000 585,000 Investment assets at cost £585,000 :. £585,000 £585,tWO Total asset5 £643,978 £40.000 £59,796 £21,078 £764,851 £709,675 Llabllltles: UnpaSd Diocesan fee5 for weddin8s/funerals Total liabilitles This Financial Report for the year ended 31st December 2024, including the notes following, was Approved by the PCC and signed on its behalf by The Revd. Martin Lane. PCC Chairman- 181031202510.38 Emmanuel Church, Hastings Registered Charliy number 1159229 Notes to the Annual Flnanclal Report l The financial statements of the PCC have been prepared in accordance with the Charities Act 2011 and the Church Accounting Regulations 2006. using the Receipts and Payments basis. 2 The following assets are recognised but not valued in the Statement of Assets and Liabilitie5'. Movable church furnishings held by the churchwardens on special trust for the PCC. which require a faculty for disposal. 3 Analysis of total received., Unrestrlrted General.: Designated Funds Total All Funds 2024 TotL71 All FunLIs 2023 Alote5 Restrlrted Fund Endowed Fund planned giving lexcl. tax refund5J PIGnned giving (no tux refunds) L005e c05h CDllections 60,407 1 7,940 5,272 4,800 65,207 7,940 5,272 64,214 7.888 2,768 Speciol oppeuls (Gift Dtiyj GiftAid recovered Sundry Donutlons & Appeals Legocles Gmnts 17,208 8,918 I,ioo 33,750 18.308 42.668 19,228 18.377 20,000 £119,745 20,000 £159,395 20,000 £132.475 Donatlons and legacies £39.650 Feesfor weddings &funerals Charitable activities 104 104 15 104 104 15 Mendham Hctll Lettings St Clements Holl Lettiftg Church centre hiringfees Fetes & otherfund-ralslng events Bookstt711 soles 2,620 2,620 1, 790 12,155 623 623 216 216 io Other tradln8 actlvltles £3,563 £3,563 £13,940 Interestfrom Btink Dep051tS C8F & COIF Inve5tmentfund dividend 1,015 1,015 921 755 921 809 Investments £1,015 i £921 £1,936 £1,564 Other receipts- Wuyleave - Insuronce Cl¢iim Total recelved on all funds £124,3281 £40,571 £164,899 £147,984 4 Planned 8lvln8 Increased followlng a Glvlng Revlew at the end of 2023. S G5ft Ald Recovered includes Nov & Dec 2023, but excludes Oct, Nov & Dec 2024 and Is In Ilne wlth expectations. 6 One-off donations totally £33.7k have been received from members of the congregatlon followlng a Giving Reviews, with focus on appealing for funds towards the cost of A full time Youth Ministry Worker on a 3 year contract. The PCC set a target of £90k and voted to designate £40k of that from unrestri¢ted reserves. 7 The previou5 tenant of Clements hall has now surrrecndered the lease after defaulting on payment and closing his nurseryp we are in the protess of securlrtg a new lease with a new tenant. Therefore, no income was realised this year. 10 181031202510.38 Emmanuel Church, Hastings Registered Ch8rfty number 1159229 Notes to the Annual Financial Report 8 Analysis of total paid: Unrestrlrted General.: Designated Total All Funds 2024 Total All Funds 2023 Note5 Restricted Fund Endowed Summerfete expenses Concert poste￿ & musicians expenses Other oppeols expenses Cost of ralslng funds Churitable gnints and donutions Parlsh 5hJre to Chichester Diocese 5,301 5.301 4.950 52,000 52,000 50,000 SL71aries and honorarla Incl Nl 13,207 6,602 19,809 33,557 io Clergy ond otherpeoples expenses Misslon & evungellsm costs Sundoy school/Children s work Insurtince 3,593 3,593 4,591 2,113 2,113 2,080 414 50 464 474 5,482 5,482 4,926 Woter, Gas, Electriclty, ond 011 Ofllce running costs Other regulor church running costs Accounting and Exumlnerslees Church molntenonce & redecorotlon 4,816 4,816 3,183 2,244 2,244 2,657 3,358 3,358 4.295 1,041 1,041 816 Hall molntenonce & redecorotlon 409 409 14, 775 li New bulldlnl work 31,140 12 Charltable costs £93,978 £6,652 £100,630 £157,444 Summerfete expenses Concertposters & muslclans expenses Church hull carett7king & ¢leanlng MagLFzine printlng Bookst