2022-12-31-accounts

2022 ANNUAL REPORT

with financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2022

Registered charity number: 1162173

New Life Church Middlesbrough, The Neptune Centre, Ormesby Road, Middlesbrough, TS3 7RP www.newlifeboro.com [e-mail]

CONTENTS

Legal and Administratve Details	3
Trustees’ Report	4
Independent Examiner’s Report	12
Receipts and Payment Account	13
Statement of Assets and Liabilites	14
Notes to the Accounts	15

2

Legal and

Administrative Details

ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDANCE The Neptune Centre Ormesby Road Middlesbrough TS3 7RP GOVERNING DOCUMENT CIO—Foundation Registered 2015 CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1162173 TRUSTEES RESPONSIBLE Jude Bronn (since July 2022) FOR MANAGING THE CHARITY Matt Oliver Graham Thomson Steve Walker Ian Williamson Nathan Young BANKERS Lloyds Bank plc INDEPENDENT EXAMINER Leanne Ladds

3

OBJECTS OF THE CHARITY

The charity, which is a church, is governed by a constitution and is constituted as a charitable incorporated organization. The charity’s principal object, as set out in its governing document, is the advancement of the Christian faith primarily, but not exclusively, within Middlesbrough and the surrounding neighbourhood. Working in partnership with other Christian churches and organisations, New Life Church Middlesbrough provides spiritual and practical support to individuals, families and the community as a whole, through preaching and teaching, discipleship, youth work, mentoring, family support and community chaplaincy. In planning the activities the Trustees have applied the guidance on public benefit issued by the Charity Commission.

The Trustees have pleasure in submitting the Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2022.

SUNDAY SERVICES

We continued to gather on Sunday mornings at Berwick Hills Baptist Church, with their members joining us for communal worship. The service continues to consist of sung worship (accompanied either by piano or a small band of guitar, keyboard and cajon), bible readings, prayer and expository preaching. The bulk of the preaching continues to be done by the elders with the occasional guest preacher. This year we finished working through the Gospel of Mark, then through Galatians, Leviticus and Philippians.

Our Sunday morning attendance grew significantly throughout the year, mostly due to new Nigerian and Ghanaian students at Teesside University joining us with their families. By the end of the year, weekly attendance would often be 50-60.

With the increase in numbers, we decided to begin a Sunday School during the service called ‘5 Below’. All children remain in the service for the first part of the service. We then do a children’s action song, after which children up to the age of 5 will go out to their group. They read a Bible story, pray, and make a craft together, as well as spending

time playing with one another. Children over 5 stay in the service and are provided with activity sheets to complete while the sermon is being preached.

We also started a church lunch on the first Sunday of every month. Everyone is welcome to stay for this and it has proved beneficial for people getting to know one another, and growing in our fellowship.

4

BIBLE STUDIES

Our midweek Bible studies have continued to meet each week for a time of bible study and prayer. We have one group that meets on a Wednesday evening and one on a Thursday lunchtime—both groups will work through the same passage, led by the pastor. Both groups have continued to be well-attended.

BUILDINGS

Church building—The members of Berwick Hills Baptist Church continue to graciously let us use their building, not just on Sundays but for activities during the week as well.

Office—We continue to hire a room in the Neptune Centre which we use as an office (along with Medhurst Ministries).

House—This year, we were able to buy a ministry house. This now houses two of our gospel workers, as well as providing a space for bible studies, prayer meetings, social gatherings, and offering an extra bedroom for vulnerable people. (For more information, please see page 8)

MEDHURST MINISTRIES

Medhurst Ministries is now registered as an independent charity. However, we are happy to still be working alongside them, both supporting their ministry in deprived communities in England and Wales, and benefitting from their services. It was a particular pleasure for us to be able to host the first Medhurst Ministries weekender in June.

The Medhurst Ministries weekender in June—it was wonderful to have so many people from all over the UK (and the USA!) join us in Middlesbrough to see our context and support one another.

5

Membership

Our church membership grew from 10 to 16 —one joining us via baptism. Two members became non-resident members as they went to bible college in September.

Staffing

This year Rachel Williamson stepped down from her role to work for Medhurst Ministries, through which she will still be able to support the work of New Life Church and remains a member of the church.

Abi Boyd joined the team in September as a trainee women’s and children’s worker on a one-year contract while she completes her studies with Crosslands.

Welcoming three of our new members into the church during a Sunday service.

Women’s Ministry

Some of the women in the church started meeting once a month to study a book. This grew in popularity to the point where we had two book clubs. The materials they looked at were ‘A Place to Belong’ and ‘Deeper’.

In October, we started a monthly women’s fellowship called ‘Coffee, Cake and Christ’. During this time they socialise together, read the Bible, and encourage one another. There are regularly between 15 and 20 women at this group.

We also did a one-off craft event at Easter time for both the ladies from the church and those in the community, where we made floating cup-and-saucer flower decorations.

6

Children’s ministry

Thursday Kids Club—We have continued to run our Thursday Kids Club, which has gone from being every other week to now every week. The children, all primary-school aged, are a mix of children from the church and the community. They really enjoy this group which consists of games, activities, crafts, snack and a short Bible message. We currently have 13-17 children attending this group.

Girls’ Bible Study—Since September we have been able to begin a Bible study from the ministry house for secondary school girls. Each week, the group shares a meal, plays games, deepen their friendships and study God’s word.

Bible and Baking—We have also been able to start a second group for girls called Bible and Baking. This is for girls in years 5 and 6. Again run from the ministry house, the group spend time baking, chatting, sharing a meal and opening God’s word.

7

Back in 2016, Middlesbrough was ranked as the worst place in England and Wales to grow up as a girl. We decided to start a new initiative, providing short-to-medium term accommodation for vulnerable girls and young women. This year we bought a 3-bedroom property in our local community. This now houses two of our women’s workers and the third bedroom is available to house vulnerable children or young women.

As well as providing accommodation for staff and those in need, the home will also be beneficial for ministry—as a place to hold bible studies, prayer meetings and to provide hospitality.

Although there is still some work to be carried out on the property, we’re glad that we’ve already been able to get our gospel workers moved in and that the house is already being used as intended.

OPEN HOUSE

Providing a safe space for women and children

The funding for this project came through a variety of sources. The church was able to put a significant amount of money towards this project, but we also raised external support — most notably receiving a significant amount from FIEC’s ‘Pray for 100’ project. We will continue to fundraise throughout 2023, as we seek to carry out further renovations on the property. We’ve also taken out a manageable mortgage from Kingdom Bank. We are confident that, as well as being a wonderful centre for gospel ministry, this property will be a sound long-term financial investment for the church.

8

Community outreach

We continued running a toddler group on Monday mornings at Ormesby Library, as well as an afterschool group on Fridays. These groups were wellattended. In August this outreach had to be put on pause as the library closed for renovations.

Our ministry in Penrith House has continued, as we run a weekly craft group for the children who live there. In September we started a fortnightly group where we would provide a breakfast bun for the adult residents. We also organised activities during the school holidays, including a Christmas party for the families. We were able to work in conjunction with a local charity, Feast of Fun, to provide free meals for the children for these holiday sessions.

We continue to work alongside Safe Families to help local families in crisis. Chell was able to provide support to three local families this year through this link.

The toddler group at Berwick Hills Baptist Church continued to run on Friday mornings. The numbers dropped towards the end of the year as many children have started attending nursery from the age of 2. We took the decision to stop the group for the time-being, though we would like to restart it at some point in the future if there is sufficient interest.

We ran an Easter family funday, with 25 families in attendance. The children enjoyed a bouncy castle, making crafts, and an Easter Egg hunt. Each child got to take home a book about the real meaning behind Easter.

9

The area around the Baptist Church is a place where children and young people often congregate. Often they just meet to play football on the grass but some children were climbing onto the roof and causing damage. We decided to try and engage with some of the local children by playing football with them on the grass outside the church once a week. We went along for an hour, played some games with whoever turned up, offered them a drink of squash, and had a chat. Through doing this, we were able to get to know quite a few of the local children and some of their families as well. We stopped when the weather got cold, but will look to restart this outreach (or at least something similar) next summer.

The men’s football ministry at Middlesbrough Sports Village continues to be popular, with plenty of people wanting to play each week. There are strong connections between the men who play, and often opportunities to share the gospel.

In December, we ran two wreath-making sessions at the church. Both were well attended by men and women from the church and the community. This time we offered pie and peas, and the event was greatly enjoyed by everyone.

We also ran our carol service, which was well-attended with friends, family members and people we’ve been meeting with through the various groups we run. This year’s carol service had more input than previously, with various people doing readings, and more variety in the carols—we had the children sing a carol, there was a harp solo, and even a traditional Nigerian carol!

10

Financial review

Our income for 2022 was very comparable to 2021 (£153,000 compared to £152,000). However, our expenditure was significantly higher than any previous year—£181,000. This is mainly due to the cost of purchasing a house, which had a number of significant one-off payments (deposit, legal fees etc) which we don’t anticipate to be spending in future years. This means that we have had an overall deficit in 2022 of £28,000, reducing the cash held by the charity to £142,000, of which only £35,000 is unrestricted and can be used for any charitable purpose.

Reserves policy

The trustees have determined that the charity should aim to hold unrestricted cash of no less than £30,000 (which equates to about 3-6 months of budgeted expenditure) so that the charity could continue to operate should income (including grant funding) and/or expenditure vary adversely. At the year end, the charity held unrestricted cash of £34,852.

Governance

Responsibility for setting policy and for making operating decisions rest with the trustees who meet regularly to monitor the activities of the charity. New trustees are recruited and appointed by the existing trustees, where there are fewer than three elders in accordance with the constitution of the church.

Responsibility of trustees

Charity law requires us as Trustees to prepare financial statements for each accounting year which record the receipts and payments of the charity for the year.

We are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable us to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011.

We also have a responsibility to safeguard the assets of the charity and to take reasonable steps to prevent fraud or any other irregularities.

This report was approved by the trustees and signed on their behalf by:

Nathan Young

Date: 21/06/2023

11

QL LADDS Iladdsbookkeeping.co.uk [e-mail] Telephone- 07528375TT3 BOOKKEEPING & ACCOUNTANCY Independent examinerfs report to the trustees of New Life Church Middlesbrough I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of New Lift Church Middlesbrough for the year ended 31 December 2022 which are attached to this report. Responslbllltles and bas15 of Teport As the charity trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordan￿ with the requ1￿MentS of the Charitles Act 20111'the Act'l. I report in respect of my examlnation of the Trust's actounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under sertion 14515llbl of the Act. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those retords. It also includes consideratlon of any unusual items or disclosures in the ac¢ounts and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any sud) matters. The procedures underraken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in a full audit. and consequently I do not express an audit opinbon on the accounts. Independent examlnerfs statement I have completed my examination. I confimi that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that Sn any material respect.. l. Accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by sertion 130 of the Act; or 2. The accounts do not accord with the records I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connertion with the examlnation to which attention should be drawn in thSs ￿POrt in order to enable a proper understanding of the account5 to be reached. Leanne Ladds MAAT A4TQB L Ladds Bookkeeplng & Atcountancv 20 June 2023 Guisborough Office 196 Woodhouse Road Guisborough, TS4 6LP Offiee5 a150 Ln Middlesbrough

New Life Church Middlesbrough Receipts and Payments Account for the year end 31 December 2022

Notes Income Receipts Donations and grants Government grants Interest Total Receipts Payments Payments in relation to charitable activities undertaken directly 2 Grants paid in relation to charitable activities undertaken by others 3 Total Payments Net of receipts/(payments) before transfers Transfers between funds Net Movement in Funds Cash funds as at last year end Cash funds at the year end A	General Designated Funds Funds £ £ 57,834 35,192 - - - - 57,834 35,192 72,194 52,934 7,032 - 79,226 52,934 21,392 - 17,742 - 11,527 - 5,840 32,918 - 11,902 - 67,770 11,902 34,852 - Unrestricted Funds	Restricted Funds £ 59,767 - - 59,767 48,536 - 48,536 11,230 5,687 16,917 89,956 106,873	Total Total 2022 2021 £ £ 152,793 146,085 - 5,555 - 141 152,793 151,781 173,665 128,270 7,032 3,486 180,696 131,756 27,903 - 20,025 - - 27,903 - 20,025 169,628 149,603 141,725 169,628

New Life Church Middlesbrough Statement of Assets and Liabilities for the year end 31 December 2022

Cash Funds Cash at bank with immediate access Notice Deposits - Building Fund Other monetary assets Liabilities Falling due within one year: Deferred grant 2022-2023 Nest Pension Falling due after one year: Deferred grant 2023-24 Total Assets retained for charity's own use Office contents Church House - Deposit	G	eneral Designated Funds Funds £ £ 34,852 - 34,852 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Unrestricted Funds	Restricted Funds £ 36,136 70,737 106,873 - - - - 5,000 5,000 5,000	Total Total 2022 2021 £ £ 70,988 98,891 70,737 70,737 141,725 169,628 - - 5,000 5,000 - 1,194 5,000 6,194 5,000 10,000 5,000 10,000 10,000 16,194 Value Value 2022 2021 £ £ 7,975 5,727 29,811 - 7,975 5,727

A Cash Funds Cash at bank with immediate access Notice Deposits - Building Fund

The trustees have used insurance values as the trustees are unable to reliably estimate current values; insurance values may differ materially from current values

Guarantees and secured debts

The charity has not given any guarentees and has not provided its assets as security for any liabilities.

New Life Church Middlesbrough Notes to the Accounts for the year end 31 December 2022

1 Accounting Policies

The accounts have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis and comprise a statement that shows the charity's receipts and payments, a statement that summarises the charity's assets and liabilities and related notes. The accountancy profession have determined that only accounts prepared in accordance with applicable accounting standards present a 'true and fair' view and, as these receipts and payments accounts have not (and cannot) be prepared in accordance with accounting standards, these accounts do not present (and are not intended to present) a 'true and fair' view of the charity's financial activities and state of affairs.

General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Designated funds comprise unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the trustees for particular purposes. Restricted funds are donations which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by doners; they include donations received from appeals for specific activities or projects.

2 Payments in relation to charitable activities undertaken directly

Employment costs Church running costs and ministries Conferences, events and staff training Administration and support Medhurst Ministries Church House Grants and gifts paid to others Money Given Acts29 FIEC Orchard Group Individuals Gifts < £1,000	General Designated Funds Funds £ £ - 52,934 16,073 - 6,067 - 4,755 - 914 - 44,385 - 72,194 52,934 5,210 - 1,000 - 468 - - - - - 354 - 7,032 - Unrestricted Funds	Restricted Funds £ 31,532 2,696 - - 14,309 - 48,536 - - - - - - -	Total 2022 £ 84,466 18,769 6,067 4,755 15,223 44,385 173,665 5,210 1,000 468 - - 354 7,032	Total 2021 £ 99,107 10,966 5,856 1,565 10,776 - 128,270 - - - 1,075 770 1,641 3,486

3 Grants and gifts paid to others