## **All Saints’ Martock** # **ANNUAL REPORT 2022: with Financial Review & Statements** _Placing Christ at the Centre of All We Do_ **Registered Charity No: 1160333** INTRODUCTION All Saints’ Parochial Church Council (PCC) has the responsibility of cooperating with the incumbent in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish, the whole mission of the Church; pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. Whilst the Parish is in Vacancy, this work continues. The PCC is also specifically responsible for the maintenance of the church building of All Saints’, Martock. When planning our activities for the year, we have considered the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and the supplementary guidance on charities for the advancement of religion, in particular:- - Worship and prayer - Provision of pastoral care for people living in the parish - Ensuring that the church building is both an accessible and welcoming environment. ## _**Placing Christ at the Centre of All We Do** – a celebration of all our Church Activities over the past year_ With our sister parishes of the benefice, we share FIVE Mission Objectives. - _1) We aspire to be a growing church, increasing in faith and number 2) We are collectively a ‘both… and’ church, offering the comfort of traditional worship and seeking God’s will for ‘fresh expressions’ in the community_ - _3) We show the love of Christ as individuals by word and action_ - _4) We offer our church building as a place of hospitality and welcome_ - _5) We strive to meet our financial obligations towards the mission of the church locally, across the diocese and worldwide_ 2 **All Saints’ Singers / MUSIC** There is nothing to report. St eve Salisbury, Director of Music ## **Bell Ringers** All Saints' has 8 bells which were repaired, re-tuned and refurbished in 2009. Over the past few years, we have struggled to have 8 people to ring them and have been seeking new recruits to learn this ancient and worthwhile pastime. Previously, the bellringers met every Tuesday evening for practice and rang for Services every Sunday morning and for weddings throughout the year. It is hoped that a new Tower Captain and team of bell ringers can be established in 2023. ## **Children & Young Families** We were delighted that Hannah Page started her role as our Toddler Group Leader in January and it was lovely to welcome back parents/carers and their children as well as welcoming new families. Hannah went on Maternity Leave at the end of October and the _Tiddlers_ volunteers have valiantly continued to provide weekly sessions every Thursday morning during term time from 10am – 11.30am, for which we are very grateful. We have up to about 14 families attending every week who enjoy coming along for play, coffee, chat and mutual support, but we are always happy to welcome more! Information can be found on our _Tiddlers Martock_ Facebook or by emailing tiddlers.martock@gmail.com Sally Howells ## **Church Flowers** In 2022 All Saints’ has been decorated beautifully with flowers for our weekly services by a rota of church folk and volunteer flower-arranging professionals. These arrangements were supplemented by a friendly team who joined in to add more arrangements for the festivals of Easter, Harvest and Christmas, enjoying the company and satisfaction of creating arrangements which everyone visiting All Saints’ appreciated. We are so grateful to, and wish to thank, all our arrangers and also the helpers who donate foliage and flowers for festivals from their gardens. Thank you! If you have no previous flower-arranging experience, but would like to join in, a good way to start is to join the team which will arrange flowers in vases and pedestals at festival times. The next festival will be Harvest 3 time in September/October and the flower-arranging afternoon will be advertised in the weekly sheet. We promise you a warm welcome! Diana Healey, Jane Cockerham & Ann Hall ## **Discipleship** In the last year we have offered two courses for the whole benefice which have taken place in small groups in people’s homes; “Saints Alive!” and the “SHAPE” course. Both courses were suitable for people at any stage in their Christian journey from those just exploring Christianity to those who have been Christians for decades. These have been lead by Rev Alison and Andy Handcock, Sally Howells, Bridget Jones, Rev Richard and Jane Caddell, and Rev Paul and Tracy Fillery. Over 30 people took part in each of the courses with most people coming from All Saints Church, though it was good to see more people from St Martins and Holy Trinity in the second course. In both courses the sessions consisted of teaching, reflection, and discussion often with laughter mixed in. There was also material to reflect on in between sessions. “Saints Alive!” is a nurture course designed to: help people come to faith and become active Christians in the church and the world help people explore what it means to live the Christian life in the power of the Holy Spirit offer participants the opportunity to respond to Christ and experience God’s power at work in their own lives _The course consisted of nine sessions:_ _Session 1 looked at the being of God our Father and our need for a relationship with him_ _Sessions 2 & 3 looked at the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ Sessions 4 & 5 looked at the person and work of the Holy Spirit_ _Session 6 gave participants an opportunity to respond to what they had learned and_ _experienced of God so far. This took place with all groups together in church and incorporated time for teaching, worship and the ministry of prayer for anyone who wished it_ _Sessions 7 to 9 looked at the life of the Christian disciple and commitment to the local church._ 4 The SHAPE course ran for five sessions and was made up from material from a course run by the Bristol Diocese with additional material from a course by the Carlisle Diocese. While overall this course was also well received, its composite nature made the material more difficult to follow. “SHAPE” stands for: Spiritual Gifts – those unique gifts which God gives us to help build up the body of Christ and minister to the world Heart’s desire – this is what motivates and excites us Abilities – our strengths, knowledge, and skills Personality – our character, style, preferences and personal qualities Experiences – our life experiences, both good and bad, which have moulded us into who we are _Week 1 looked at what it means to be a disciple and the spiritual disciplines which help a disciple live a balanced life Week 2 helped us examine our SHAPE and reflect on how that influences the how and where we might serve._ _Weeks 3 & 4 took a deeper look at the gifts of the Holy Spirit and included a personal questionnaire to help us identify which spiritual gifts we might have_ _Week 5 sought to bring all this together and help us to see where we might serve and how the church might identify and encourage the use of the spiritual gifts in its ministry._ Rev Richard Caddell ## **Fairtrade** All Saints is registered with the Fairtrade Foundation as a Fairtrade church. This means that we have promised: 1) to use Fairtrade tea and coffee after services and for all meetings for which we have responsibility; 2) to move forward on using other Fairtrade products (such as sugar, biscuits and fruit); 3) to promote Fairtrade during Fairtrade Fortnight and during the year through events, worship and other activities whenever possible. Our thanks go to Carol for ensuring that our refreshment supplies include fairtrade tea, coffee and sugar! Fairtrade Fortnight in February was promoted in church but we have not been able to put on any events. If you would be interested in helping to form a team to promote Fairtrade, perhaps once or twice a year, please speak to Jane. Please continue to buy Fairtrade items, wherever they are available, rather than a cheaper alternative. By doing so, you will be giving a hand- 5 up to the poorest, weakest producers and making a real difference to their lives. Jane Cockerham ## **The Lord’s Larder** Support for the Lord’s Larder at The Gateway continues, with regular deliveries of donations taken down to them. Special collections of items have been made at Easter and Christmas time, all much appreciated by the Charity, as in these challenging times, need gets greater than ever, both in Martock and local areas. We have received personal thanks only recently from the Chairman of the Charity. As well as food donations, £1000 has been donated to the Lord’s Larder during the year, this being the rental received from Clark’s Field and with agreement by the PCC. Grace Dunton and Andrew & Ellen Howard ## **Martock Educational Foundation** (Trustees Rev Paul Fillery, Marian Singleton, Sally Howells, Kathy Maple) This is a charity set up in 1888 to initially _‘provide houses for the teachers of Martock School or in or towards the maintenance of the school as long as it is maintained by voluntary subscriptions and is used for CofE religious education and for Sunday School prizes, or, if there is no Sunday School, to be applied for instruction and encouragement in religious knowledge’._ Updates for 2022 - - Rev. Paul Fillery was appointed as the 4[th] trustee. - The financial situation was finally resolved. - With the help of Arcadia, solicitors, who have expertise in trusts, we finally have an HMRC exemption number. - The Charity Commission are not involved as our income is less than £5000 per annum. - We are now able to access dividends from investments that were frozen. - Church house investments have reported on the turbulent year in the markets. - Thanks have been sent to the solicitors, for their invaluable help. - Accounts are sent to the accountants annually. - 2022 expenditure: a new school fence, 2 new interactive whiteboard, legal fees and Baptismal bibles. 6 - Our only trustee on the School governing body is Sally Howells. We still have space for another trustee, ideally a school governor. - Discussions are in progress as to how we can support All Saints with educational resources. - The Martock School Honours boards are still in my shed! Marian Singleton, Chair ## **Martock Primary School church team** We were delighted to be able to return to presenting our assemblies in person in 2022. Our team planned and presented 8 assemblies this year. Once a term our ecumenical worship planning meetings take place over zoom. We work closely with our colleagues from Martock Christian Fellowship and the United Reform Church and school. We now use a resource called ‘Roots and Shoots’ and our themes tie in closely with the school values. This year our themes have included creativity/imagination, fairness/justice, cooperation, facing new challenges/courage, all using stories from the Bible to illustrate. Each assembly takes about 15 minutes to deliver. We were delighted that the end of term services were able to be in church again. We continue to be amazed at the way in which the services are planned and delivered by the staff and children. We will continue working as a team to resource assemblies, services in church and school visits to maintain our link with Martock Primary School. Bridget Jones ## **Martock School Governors** This has been another very successful year for Martock School. The preschool is going from strength to strength and often oversubscribed. We have also replaced the fence around the school to improve safeguarding. Children in the school have been well supported by the local community for various events. These have included Paull’s, the Charity Shop and individuals to provide play resources. The local parish council has yet again supported our September run. We have also had a number of volunteers in school to help with reading and run assemblies. We welcomed two new teachers in September who have become a great addition to the team. We would like to praise the outstanding efforts of all staff at the school for their work with the children in both academic and social aspects of the school. We have managed to recruit a number of new Foundation Governors in the last year but there are still a few vacancies. Please consider this 7 rewarding role, especially if you care about children and education, are interested in promoting the Christian character and ethos of the school and like a challenge! Andrew Jackson (Chair of Governors) ## **Mothers’ Union (Martock & Ash)** We started the year with communion, which was taken by Mrs Bridget Jones and was followed by the AGM. February was the Wave of Prayer. Each month we had speakers and we went to Kingsbury for afternoon tea and afterwards they came to us. Sadly we lost Mrs May Moore. We have Mrs Vera Botting comin to us and 3 from Somerton, when they can. In December we had the Handbell Ringers and a Christmas Tea. April-September we meet in All Saints’ Church. October-March we meet in the MCF. 1[st] Tuesday in the month at 2pm. All most welcome. Martin Bailey, Branch Secretary ## **Reports by Churchwardens and Parochial Church Council** ## **PCC Members and Trustees** Who have served from January to December 2022 are: Incumbent Revd Paul Fillery (Chair) licenced 27 April 2021 Readers Bridget Jones Warden 1 Grace Dunton elected September 2019 Warden 2 _vacant_ Deputy Wardens _vacant_ Vice Chair Ivan Childs elected April 2021 Deanery Synod Rep Grace Dunton Deanery Synod Rep Sally Howells Deanery Synod Rep _vacant_ Diocesan Synod Rep Michael Cockerham 8 Treasurer Ellen Howard from July 2019 Secretary Sally Howells from August 2019 Elected Members Carol Ansell elected October 2020 Timothy Booth elected May 2022 Martin Bradbrooke elected October 2020 Michael Cockerham elected April 2019 Wendy Edwards elected April 2021 Andrew Howard elected October 2020 Sally Howells elected April 2018 Geoff Lucas elected April 2021 Steve Salisbury elected May 2022 ## Parish Safeguarding Carol Ansell ## **Administrative Information** The church is the second largest parish church in Somerset dating from 13[th] century, although there has been a church on the site since AngloSaxon times. It was enlarged and re-roofed in 15[th] and 16[th] centuries. Of special note is the superb angel roof completed in 1513, the 17[th] century clerestory paintings of the 12 apostles and a magnificent organ. The church is situated on Church Street, Martock, Somerset, TA12 6JL, and is part of the Diocese of Bath & Wells within the Church of England. The Benefice Office is housed in the vicarage and the correspondence address is Benefice Office, The Vicarage, 10 Water Street, Martock, Somerset, TA12 6JN. email: benefce.martock@gmail.com webpage: www.achurchnearyou.com/church/11008 ## **Benefice Relationships** Our Benefice, in the Diocese of Bath and Wells (Wells Archdeaconry) was formed in April 2014 when Kingsbury Episcopi joined the existing benefice of Martock with Ash. Martock, seven miles west of Yeovil, lies on the edge of the Somerset Levels; Ash is a mile distant from Martock and Kingsbury Episcopi three miles away. 9 There are three churches to serve the three parishes. A strong sense of identity and community exists in each, but ‘Benefice belonging’ has been well established. The Benefice Ministry Team is led by the Vicar of the Benefice. In 2022, this also consisted of one retired clergy with Permission to Officiate (PTO), one Lay Readers (PTO) and five Lay Worship Leaders, all of whom function across the Benefice. ## **Churchwarden** During 2022 all the usual servicing/maintenance was carried out on the gas boiler, alarm system, electricity (PAT) and clock. Early in the year water was pouring into the vestry when it rained. It was necessary to have leading work done on the roof. We are very grateful to The Guardians who paid the bill. There were problems with the new clock which was not keeping good time. We had a regulator fitted in November. I was told that the clock would always keep good time from now on and would automatically change time in Spring and Autumn. There was a certain amount of the donated money left which paid for a large part of the work. Grace Dunton ## **Deanery Synod** We are part of the Ivelchester Deanery, led by our Area Dean, Revd Bruce Faulkner, which serves to support Mission and Ministry across its parishes. Three meetings took place this year with an emphasis on meeting the challenges of both mission and ministry for the coming decade. The present financial situation means that there is a need to reduce Diocesan clergy numbers in Bath and Wells from 178 to 150 by 2026. This will have a huge impact on how ordained stipendiary leadership is organised and deployed _but_ it is important to be looking ahead positively. The Deanery Mission Planning Group (DMPG) have spent a lot of time looking to have each benefice as close to one whole stipend as possible and proposals have looked at the strengths of all the options to create a vison of what our churches and communities will look like in the future. The Clergy have been consulted about any changes and Deanery Synod will be presented with possible recommendations before the proposals go any further. We will know the outcomes of these proposals in 2023. Churches continue to work towards a net carbon zero policy by 2030. 10 Safeguarding – since Jan 2022 it has become mandatory for all members of PCC to complete the first two levels of safeguarding. However, until it is in the Church Representative Rules PCCs should vote to make it mandatory to have these levels if they feel it is necessary. Our Deanery representatives are Grace Dunton and Sally Howells. Michael Cockerham was elected to the Diocesan Synod in July 2021. Sally Howells ## **Electoral Roll** Over the course of the last year we have lost several valued and loved friends among our congregation and the number on the Electoral Roll currently stands at 114. Annie Swain ## **Planned Giving** Planned giving is well supported at All Saints’ church, with most people finding Bankers standing orders the most convenient method to use. Gift Aid claims, including under the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme, have been submitted quarterly to HMRC during 2022 by the Gift Aid Secretary. If you are a Gift Aid Donor to All Saints’ but no longer pay tax, please contact Jane Cockerham on 824233 to discuss. If you are a new donor to All Saints’, we invite you to join our Planned Giving scheme by completing a Planned Giving form from the back of church and if you are eligible, please consider signing the Gift Aid section, which will allow All Saints’ to reclaim the tax you have paid on your donations, thereby increasing your gift by 25%, or put your donation in a yellow envelope with your details. If you have any questions, please feel free to speak to Jane. Jane Cockerham ## **Safeguarding** **TRAINING -** I attended a Parish Safeguarding Officer induction course in January. I also attend the PSO forums which run via zoom each quarter. It is a good time to network with other PSO’s across the diocese. The Church of England would like as many people within their church community to complete the basic safeguarding course, this can be done online but there are people who find this tricky so I have put together a booklet and can deliver this course face to face in small groups. I delivered one in September and another in November. 11 **TIDDLERS -** Hannah and all the volunteers for Tiddlers have been safely recruited and if necessary had the correct DBS check. ## **POLICIES AND PROCEDURES** submitted to the PCC in March - All Saints safeguarding policy - Procedures to be followed for reporting abuse - Domestic Abuse Statement - Procedure to follow if an ex-offender seeks employment or wishes to volunteer within our church community These were agreed upon by all members of the PCC. The safeguarding policy and domestic abuse statement can be found on the safeguarding notice board at the back of the church. I also produced a policy on the taking of photographs within a church setting to particularly enable photographs to be taken at Tiddlers (with parents’ permission). **PARISH DASHBOARD** This is a tool that can be used to make sure that all the necessary safeguarding work is up to date. It is done on a traffic light system, with red for urgent and green for completed. I am happy to say that we have moved up to level 3 and we have no red lights, only 2 amber, all the rest are green. It also generates an action plan which I can submit to the PCC so they can see all that is up to date. **SAFEGUARDING SUNDAY** A special service around safeguarding was held at All Saints at the beginning of November. For me it was an opportunity to inform the church members the importance of safeguarding and what a parish safeguarding officer does. I know many find it a difficult subject but I hope that the service was conducted in a sensitive way and answered questions that people may have had. Carol Ansell ## **Structure, Governance and Management** The Parochial Church Council’s members/trustees are elected for 3 years at the APCM following the Church Representation Rules. All church members are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll which is renewed annually. The PCC activities and responsibilities are supported by the Benefice Ministry Team and other members of the church. The PCC members are responsible for making decisions on all matters of general 12 concern and importance to the parish including how the funds of the PCC are to be spent. The full PCC met 6 times during 2022. The PCC is Registered Charity number 1160333. ## **FINANCIAL REVIEW** The Accounts are prepared on an Accruals basis. The total receipts on the unrestricted funds were £74,831, with £2,653 for restricted funds during 2022. The total amounted to £77,484, which was made up of a increase of £8,088 in general funds and an decrease of £11,988 in restricted funds during 2022. 13 Total Expenditure amounted to £64,781, a decrease of £15,806 on 2021. Our total reserves for yearend were £63,367, an increase of £12,704 on 2021. Planned giving decreased by £3,708 on 2021. The contribution towards the Diocesan Common Fund was £33,858, a decrease of £5,947on 2021. Our Parish Share was paid on time and in full again this year. If anyone, who puts cash in the collection plate, or uses the envelope system, would like to change to paying by Standing Order, please do get in touch with Jane Cockerham. It doesn’t mean that you pay any extra by doing it this way, or that the Church can alter the amount at will. It is entirely under your control. It just makes it easier and quicker for all of us. **Free Reserves** The free reserves of the PCC are those funds that are freely available to be spent in pursuing the charitable objectives. The Free Reserves of the PCC, at the financial year end were: - **----- Start of picture text -----**
2022 2021
Total Reserves at 31 December £63,367 £50,663
Less. Restricted Funds (£9,882) (£11,285)
Free Reserves £53,485 £39,378
**----- End of picture text -----**
Balances of Accounts in the bank, and in hand, as at 31 December 2022 were: **----- Start of picture text -----**
Lloyds Bank £52,974 Actual £53,012
CCF Deposit Account £10,000 £10,000
TOTAL £62,974 Actual £63,012
**----- End of picture text -----**
## **Reserve Policy** Under Charity Commission rules, we are required to have a policy regarding the amount of funds we hold in our accounts at any one time. It is suggested that this should be sufficient to cover 3-6 months of operation. At a full meeting of All Saints’ Martock PCC, on 7[th] November 2016, it was resolved to set the PCC’s Financial Reserve at £10,000. **REGULAR GIVING** The Gift Aid has been claimed quarterly this year. We have received a total of £9,387 this year, compared with £8,849 in 2021, 14 If you give on a regular basis, and pay enough tax to cover the gift and have not already signed a Gift Aid Form please do so, or put the money in a Yellow Gift Aid envelope, and complete the outside. More and more people are unable to Gift Aid their donations, as they do not pay enough tax to cover them. If you no longer pay tax and have signed a Gift Aid Form please let Jane Cockerham know. ## **FUND RAISING** Thanks to Sally Howells and her team fundraising has continued. The total raised for the year amounted to a splendid £6,345 (2021 £4,467). Well done Sally and everybody that supported her. ## **CHARITY GIVING** This year we were able to raise money for our Church charities via Lent lunches the Treasure’s Lunch as well as from the Harvest collection and Christmas services. During the course of the year we sent £233 to the Disasters Emergency Committee for Ukraine appeal, £1,042.72 to Able to Achieve, £542.73 to Crisis, £542.73 to Medecins Sans Frontieres and £518.38 to the Tear Fund. We have also continued to support the Lord’s Larder both financially and regular deliveries of food donated by the parish. ## **Conclusion** Last year our reserves in restricted funds increased and our general fund ran at a deficit of £1642. Now out of the pandemic the church fully reopened for services and the welcome return of Tiddlers this year. This year our Parish share has decreased by £5,947 and this combined with other factors including no major repairs has led to a surplus of £12,055 in the general fund. However, it should be noted that we are on a fixed term contract for both gas and electricity which ends April 2024 for both. Ellen Howard Hon Treasurer **All Saints’ Church MARTOCK Statement of Financial Activities for Year Ending 31 December 2022** 15 ll5Jrt kr￿i￿eAs*ts In￿&r￿t5 ). irh*t(yK' AYY)I IrlYfAIi mfl Jp *prnnp •r+J .% J,r£.1£s>￿I. Irmrre from I n￿￿nEnts -qs 11*17 J&751.a¥3 4Q744 Ark Uaikes FIWIWFVJ.rrH 11 247 ". fi&i )i 14W K55741 811E (e I u￿cK¥ io iT￿￿j[n e (t UE dFLllr. 0 4,(57 In P.CCaM n ￿.[y￿0V_￿ny￿S￿,,￿pi￿nL,,.' Fun&l(ksa]&éE fundlfj￿l rv l &irfs(1x￿M￿tKxk kErdettors Ckher del*0 Prep3yTTerts 17 fwd C£rEra FurKI .377 74.831 -fQT24 Tota Un￿ritte￿I fu￿5 ,377 74,831 .EQ,T24 i Idren'swork Tower Fund Hower Fund fjtdEn FÈfurti4vTErt CTrQ) tXin&iors aar￿￿FIdd r 4.51 L2T2 J .L814 224 L9F3 Oock rqkir New 1475 Il￿ 3ffJ3 -5,LFJ7 EA3 7a£E4 .6S furKJ a￿gk￿￿ furKJ Cff £Z).Thf()r 1rry￿rrEntstO AJI &irtg (Jbildren'swork. Pat of cotu*ion's gm ro is ￿]fi￿lYf0rtFE Children'sWorkexFHKliture. &wdl ￿TI￿lersCOff￿ MorEy &GftAd Tower Fun& FurKÈwere Lrk£epof Is d(xk t￿￿ t￿11 tower. Hower FurKI. furKls gfted for LEe flov￿ l0rignaiy￿AnnUltyW￿lth w￿C￿Ed in in ￿14) Et)ri*ior6 gw to refU￿.th ttE LEaJ f(￿ Lu￿, Te(5 coff￿ & Furer-J Funds rere1￿1 frornt￿ CTrcpforTrE Wc￿kV￿th Ti(kJlerg aock repEA r5 LTh*rt*en to fiXti•A￿vAT*il I to LE r8JanBJ ## **Priest’s report for APCM 2023** ## Introduction We have many things to thank God for as I reflect back on this past year. In a world that is experiencing considerable turmoil, we can be grateful for the many blessings we have experienced as a church family. We have seen some gentle growth in church numbers and the moving forward of several projects which I will mention in this report. Inevitably it is a risky business naming individuals in order to thank them, as one never knows where or when to stop - but that is a risk I must take - so apologies in advance to anyone who misses a mention - know it was not intentional! At the outset I must thank our wonderful Churchwarden Grace Dunton who has served us again for another year, despite many pressures upon her time and energies. We are so grateful to you Grace and we desperately need a willing volunteer to step into this vital role. My thanks too to our multi-talented Administrator Lydia Kemp who has grasped the complexities of her role with lightening-speed and does so much more than you could ever imagine with such good humour and kindness. Thank you Lydia! My thanks also, as ever, to all the members of the PCC who have worked so hard throughout the year engaging with numerous challenges and making vital decisions. Special thanks to Sally Howells our indefatigable PCC Secretary for her constant hard work. Mention must be made too of Carole Ansell our dedicated Safeguarding Officer who has brought such enthusiasm and efficiency to her role. Her efforts are so much appreciated and her ability to teach the basic level awareness material ‘in-person' has been so much appreciated across the Benefice. We were sad to see our excellent Treasurer Ellen Howard resign from her role and I would like to express, once again, our gratitude for all of Ellen’s skill and efforts over her time as Treasurer. We are delighted to welcome Jeremy Hudson to the PCC and to the role of Treasurer and my thanks to him for being so willing to take up this post and for all his wonderful work thus far. ## Worship and Discipleship This year has seen the addition of The Well - a new worship venture on two Sunday evenings in the month. I am very grateful to the team who lead and prepare it namely - Lydia Kemp and Andy Handcock assisted by 19 Rev Alison and Steve Kemp. These times of contemporary worship and prayer have been much appreciated by many in the church family and by the visitors who have joined us on these occasions. The goal in providing such an offering is to offer as wide a range of worship opportunities as possible at All Saints’. We now have our regular BCP Holy Communion; our 9.30 Common Worship Holy Communion and Morning Prayer; our reflective service Still Waters and now The Well a contemporary worship time; something we hope for everyone to be able to find a context in which to worship and encounter God. My thanks too to all involved in leading our worship on Sundays at All Saints’: Rev Richard, Rev Alison, Bridget, Sally, Grace, Dickon and to all our readers, intercessors, sides-people and welcomers - not forgetting all who make tea and coffee after our services - thank you all. We have renewed and revamped our hymn books at All Saints’ and my thanks to all who donated so generously to that cause. The labels for dedicated hymn books are being done by dear Annie (many thanks to her!) and will be placed at the back for you to see when completed. My thanks to Steve Salisbury for his input and guidance throughout the year in all matters concerning our worship and ongoing ministry of music. At the end of last year we put on the Saints Alive! course which was attended by 37 people meeting in homes across the Parish. My thanks to all the leaders of the groups Rev Richard, Rev Alison, Bridget and Sally and to all those who hosted groups in their homes over a 9-week period. It was a great success and many encountered God in a fresh and immediate way. We have followed that on with the recent SHAPE course looking at our gifts and how we might use them for God’s glory. A special thank you to Rev Richard Caddell and Jane for heading-up the organising of our courses and home-groups. ## Finances Our finances are in reasonable shape but we are slightly cushioned by the fact that we are on a ‘fixed rate’ gas contract at present which will come to an end in June. Had we been paying current market prices for our gas use this winter we would be in serious difficulties. My thanks to all who give regularly, generously and sacrificially we are so very grateful. I will address our financial needs at a special Stewardship Sunday later in the year but would urge any who haven’t signed up to regular Gift-Aided giving to speak to Jane Cockerham or Jeremy Hudson about doing so. My special thanks to Jane for all her hard work on our Gift-Aid donations and for her other significant efforts in many areas of our church life! 20 ## All Saints’ Church building This year has seen the moving forward of the new provision of a radiant heater for the Lady Chapel replacing the ancient and inefficient ones currently in use. It has been something of a marathon getting this through the DAC even with the backing of Archdeacon Anne! However, we are now there and it is currently being made and will be fitted in the next month or two. The ‘halo’ heater is the latest innovation by Herschell and we will be the first church in the Diocese to fit one. My thanks to the Guardians for their generous support of this project and for their ongoing efforts in fund-raising for the conservation and improvement to the fabric of our wonderful church building. We are so grateful to all who put on the concerts and expend time and energy in planning and executing an ongoing programme of fund-raising events. I must also mention the ongoing efforts of Sally Howells who continues, along with Bridget and others, to run our church stall at the Farmer’s Market - this has provided many hundreds of pounds over the years that it has been in operation and we so grateful to Sally and her team for keeping this going. We now turn our attention to re-fitting the kitchen and creating a central island from which to serve refreshments and our Easter Egg fund-raiser is a start towards our target sum of £6,500.00. This project does not have the backing of the Guardians as it stands outside of their prescribed remit and so we will need to raise all the money ourselves in the days to come. We still need to pursue the wider issue of how we heat our church building in the future. The halo heater will provide some very useful ‘lived experience’ for us and we continue to reflect upon that option for the whole church. Gas prices are increasingly prohibitive and environmentally our use of gas cannot be reconciled with the Church of England’s zerocarbon objectives. Many of you will have noticed how tidy and well-ordered our large book library has become! My thanks to Chrissy, Carole and Dickon for their considerable efforts in sorting through and organising a vast number of books and bringing some much-needed order. I must add that this project had the full support and blessing of Anne Chater who looked after the library with Jimmy for many years. ## Tiddlers 21 I am delighted that Tiddlers has continued despite the absence of Hannah our toddler-group leader who is on maternity leave. My thanks to Sally, Pauline and Carole and the rest of the team who have kept this vital link with local families going. We have a dedicated group of ‘regulars’ who really enjoy the company and care that Tiddlers provides. A special thank you to the gentlemen who come faithfully each week early in the day to set-up for the morning session. ## Martock Primary School I am so glad that we have a meaningful and ongoing relationship with our local church school. I meet regularly with Sarah Lafferty-Jenkins the Head Teacher and the school have attended church for services on various occasions in the year as well as having a specific session of being shown around the church by me and Sally. We did a mock baptism and talked up at the altar about Holy Communion. In addition Sally, Bridget and myself take school assemblies throughout the year. My thanks to them both for keeping these vital interactions with our school alive and well! ## - Bell ringers Since arriving here I have been saddened by the fact that we have had no bells ringing here at All Saints’. In my conversations with Fiona Cozens I suggested we put on a Bell-Ringing Open Day for people to come and see the bells in action and maybe drum-up some interest. We put on the day on Jan14th and about 25 people plus one or two children turned up and filled the bell ringing chamber! It was a fantastic time. Out of that we now have a team of dedicated trainee bell-ringers which is absolutely wonderful. My thanks to David Hammond for coming over to train them and to the other bell-towers in the Benefice who are also supporting our training programme. We hope to be able to ‘Ring for the King’ in May! Well done to Fiona and all the new team for working so hard and moving forward together so well. ## Final thanks There are so many tasks that make life so much better for so many and yet can be overlooked when it comes to saying a simple ‘thank you’. Our church is opened and closed every day by someone and that simple yet vital task is organised each week by Richard Brisset who also programmes the boiler so that heat appears at the right time for all of us! My thanks to Richard and all the team that open and close the church daily. My thanks too to Carole Ansell and her team of ladies and gentlemen who clean our church every couple of weeks, and to Clive Pembury our resident handy-man who has been doing numerous unseen tasks to the church fabric. And as Easter begins to fade into the recent past my final thanks go to all the flower arrangers headed-up by Jane 22 Cockerham and Diana Healey the church has looked beautiful throughout the year and especially at those special seasons in the church calendar. So ends another long report (!) and my final thanks to all of you for your kindness and support to me and Tracey as we seek to serve God and all of you and the wider Parish - we couldn’t do it without you all. Blessings Rev. Paul ## **MINUTES for the ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING At All Saints' Church, Martock on Sunday 8[th] May 2022, 11am** 33 People were present **Vestry Meeting -** Election of Churchwarden - Grace Dunton had agreed to continue as Churchwarden. Proposed by Sally Howells, seconded by Rev. Paul Fillery. Agreed unanimously. Paul thanked Grace for all she does, it is much appreciated. **----- Start of picture text -----**
1 Welcome and Opening Prayers by Rev. Paul Fillery
(Chair)
2 Apologies for Absence – Carol Ansell, Tim and Linda
Booth, Anne & Jimmy Chater, Ellen & Andrew Howard,
Jenny Mitchell
3 AOB – none declared
4 Minutes of the last APCM held on 12 [th] April 2021 were
proposed as an accurate record. Proposed by Ivan,
seconded by Martin Bailey. All agreed.
5 Matters Arising - none
6 Revised Church Electoral Roll – Ann Swain reported that
we have done rather well this year with 15 new members
being enrolled during the year. The number on the
Electoral Roll now stands at 123. Paul thanked Anne for all
her hard work, it is appreciated.
7 Financial statements of PCC for year ending 31.12.2021.
The reports had previously been audited by Mark Taylor,
approved by the PCC and presented to the public before
the meeting. There was no further comment or debate.
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Thanks to Ellen were noted, for her efficient and constant
monitoring of our funds. Our free reserves stand at 9, …
but we should remember that the church building was not
used so much during 2021, so costs have been lower. BUT
costs will increase again now, and as we are dipping into
our reserves, we need to be mindful of our finances as this
cannot be sustained indefinitely. As such, more fundraising
or a review of more giving will be necessary. Paul will do a
stewardship Sunday as we move forward together. Thanks
were expressed to all who give financially and in term of
their gifts.
8 Independent Examiner – Paul Taylor has agreed to
continue to audit our accounts as our Independent
Examiner next year.
Proposed by Sally Howells, seconded by Grace Dunton. All
agreed. Thanks were expressed to Paul.
9 Churchwarden’s Report on the fabric, goods and
ornaments of the church. Grace commented that the
Quinquennial Report had only revealed minor problems
with some small essential repairs necessary.
Grace also took the opportunity to thank Jim Allwood for all
the jobs he has done in helping to maintain the church.
She also reflected on the fact that we had welcomed Paul
and Tracy to the Benefice in April, which regretfully was not
mentioned in the annual report. Paul has brought us
together as a team, been out in the community and
delivered amusing sermons. Thank you Paul!
10 Deanery Synod Report - Zoom meetings took place for
most of the year due to the pandemic but the first face-to-
face meeting was able to take place in Somerton Church in
October 2021. It has been acknowledged that times are
changing around us and there has been particular
emphasis on our responsibility to achieve ‘net-zero’ carbon
by 2030, safeguarding and the ‘Living in Love and Faith’
project has been launched, which we are encouraged to
engage with. Paul commented that change is afoot in the
Deanery and cut backs are inevitable.
11 Presentation of nominations for election to 4
vacancies on the PCC. Tim Booth (nominated by Ann Hall,
seconded by Ann Swain) and Steve Salisbury (nominated
by Sally Howells, seconded by Ivan Childs) were duly
elected to PCC for the next 3 years.
(10 PCC members now in total, 2 vacancies remain).
12 Section M15 (1h) of the Church Representation
Rules 2020 agreement to welcome any licensed Reader
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resident in the parish. The meeting agreed unanimously
that Bridget Jones should be welcomed as a member of the
PCC and Bridget stated that she would like to take up the
position on PCC. Paul offered his personal thanks to
Bridget.
13 Other items relating to the Annual Report 2021 –
there was nothing to add but Jen Symonds asked about the
loss of the bellringers. Theresa put out a plea for more
bellringers (at least 6 are needed), 3 are available but a
captain is needed since David Ledger left in the summer.
13 AOB - none
14 Vicar’s report – this had been forwarded previously. Paul
thanked everyone for their welcome. He commented that it
has been delightful that Tiddlers has started up again. It is
a great success. Martock School teachers are keen that the
school develops its church distinctiveness and are keen to
visit church. It has been nice to work with the other
Martock Churches.
Everyone on the PCC was thanked for their hard work,
especially Treasurer, Ellen, Secretary, Sally, Safeguarding
Officer, Carol and support from Ivan. Thanks were also
offered to Richard and the Benefice Ministry Team who help
to make the services run smoothly. Paul encouraged
people to speak to him if they felt they would like to take
part in other aspects of church life and not to be afraid to
use their gifts, ‘I think God has great things to offer in the
future and the need is great’.
15 Closing Prayers – the meeting ended with The Grace at
11.30am.
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## **Vestry Meeting** Opening prayer, election of church warden ## **AGENDA for the ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING ALL SAINTS' CHURCH, MARTOCK Sunday 16[th] April, 2023** **----- Start of picture text -----**
1 Welcome and Opening Prayers
2 Apologies for Absence
3 AOB
4 Minutes of the last APCM held on 8 [th] April 2022 (see
below)
5 Matters Arising
6 Revised Church Electoral Roll
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7 Financial statements of PCC for year ending 31.12.2022
8 Independent Examiner
9 Churchwarden’s Report on the fabric, goods and
ornaments of the church
10 Deanery Synod Report -
11 Presentation of nominations for election to 4 vacancies on
the PCC
(12 in total)
12 Section M15 (1h) of the Church Representation Rules 2020
agreement to welcome any Reader in the parish
13 Other items relating to the Annual Report 2022
13 AOB
14 Vicar’s report
15 Closing Prayers
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