2025-08-31-accounts - Kingston Methodist Church

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11-12 Fairfield South Kingston upon Thames Surrey KT1 2UJ 020 8546 3213

Registered Charity No 1163078

www.kingstonmethodist.church

TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT for the year ended 31 August 2025

Jesus Christ lived out God's unconditional love. Kingston Methodist Church is a community of people worshipping, learning and growing together in response.

This revised mission statement reflects the calling of the Methodist Church of Great Britain: to respond to the gospel of God's love in Christ and to live out its discipleship in worship and mission through worship , learning and caring , service and evangelism . Kingston Methodist Church’s Annual Report is therefore based on these four key areas, giving an overview of the various ways it has lived out this calling in the year beginning September 2024.

Structure, administration and management of Kingston Methodist Church

Kingston Methodist Church (KMC) is one of four Methodist churches within the Kingston Circuit, which in turn is part of the London District – we’re all connected! KMC’s trustees are its Church Council , which it elects from its church membership at its Annual Church Meeting in September.

2024-2025 appointed Trustees/Church Council members:

Rev Dr Karl Rutlidge (Chair)
Charles Abedi Boafo
Alan Clatworthy
Steve Dawson
Maggie East
Mike Park
Alexander Ritchie
• Sang Hun Shim
Nigel Spalding
Mike Stockbridge
•
Ruby Esson Liz Taylor
• • Val Hayden Matthew Taylor
• Ahmad Mortazavi

Members are elected/appointed to the Church Council to ensure, wherever possible, that all areas of the church’s life are represented. The Church Council generally meets quarterly and is legally responsible for the management of Kingston Methodist Church, its work and resources.

In addition, KMC’s leadership team , appointed by Church Council, meets regularly to consider mission, ministry, governance, policies, procedures and property issues, including discussions on the future use of our building. The leadership team reports its recommendations to the Church Council. Additional committees meet to consider the pastoral care of KMC’s congregation and also its worship life.

We confirm that our trustees have had regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit when considering KMC’s activities for the year, as well as its supplementary guidance on the advancement of religion.

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Methodist Conference
London District - part of a larger connected
community, the Connexion
Kingston Circuit
Kingston MC New Malden MC Surbiton Hill MC Chessington MC
Church Council
Leadership Pastoral Worship
Team Consultation
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Activities, achievements and performance

The new Methodist Church year has always been marked at KMC by a picnic, whenever possible in the beautiful Bushy Park, and this year was no exception. Other opportunities for bringing our church family together included ‘international’ bringand-share fund-raising lunches, e.g. for harvest, for JMA and Christian Aid, as well as the occasional breakfast before a service. We also shared some interesting postservice talks on the work of Playbox (KMC’s preschool), on energy saving and on cybercrime awareness for faith groups.

KMC is blessed with a lovely space in which to gather, and has, this year, established the Worship Area Advisory Group to explore how we can better use it to connect with our local community, including progress towards reducing our carbon footprint.

Throughout the year KMC continued to review and update its policies to ensure it meets the requirements of Safeguarding, General Data Protection (GDP), Health and Safety etc. There have been online bite-size GDP training sessions from The Methodist Church, mandatory Safeguarding training for those working with children and vulnerable adults and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion/Unconscious Bias training for the Church Council and Leadership Team.

WORSHIP

“The Church exists to increase awareness of God’s presence and to celebrate God’s love .”

At the heart of KMC’s life is worship, and we offer a range of services including informal morning worship, café-style services, and local arrangements where congregation members take the lead. We also continue to offer a reflective, informal and intimate environment for our monthly evening service, as well as joining the wider church family in occasional evening services with our other three circuit churches. The church hosts special and celebratory services, such as Mothering Sunday, Harvest Festival, and Christmas services. During Easter Holy Week KMC joins its neighbouring churches for a Palm Sunday joint procession and service, Maundy Thursday supper and Good Friday Walk of Witness. A highlight this year was Easter Sunday, when KMC welcomed 15 new people into membership of its church.

For people in our congregation who are unable to worship with us physically and for many in the wider community, our Minister is able to offer spiritual sustenance through an online worship series, “Windows on Worship”.

KMC’s dedicated Sunday School staff ensure the inclusion of our children and young people in the worship life of the church, while our committed Music Group plays a vital role in leading and enhancing the quality of our worship.

Helping to plan and prepare for our services is the work of the Worship Consultation Group, which meets quarterly to plan any special services and related matters, such as church lunches or celebrations. This meeting, which is open to anyone attending KMC, also considers the many different aspects of worship.

KMC continues to enjoy a warm relationship with Hanbeet Korean Church who fill the building with worship and song on Sunday afternoons. The leadership teams of our two churches meet socially every few months over a shared meal.

LEARNING AND CARING

“The Church exists to help people to grow and learn as Christians, through mutual support and care.”

Our Bible month morning services in June featured an in-depth study of St John’s Gospel and in café church and other services the congregation learnt about ‘A Methodist Way of Life’: twelve practices which help to encounter God.

In addition to weekly worship Kingston Methodist Church has in this year also nurtured the spiritual life of its congregation by offering a well-attended ecumenical five-week Lent Course organised by the Circuit using material from 'On the Third Day'.

An important event we support is the annual gathering for children and young people in the Methodist Church, 3Generate, which was held this year at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham and where everyone camped indoors together. We are

proud that the group coming from KMC was one of the largest, with a lively and diverse mixture of volunteers and attendees.

Caring for one another and opportunities for fellowship are at the heart of KMC’s shared life. Integral to this is the work of the Pastoral Committee, which supports church members and the wider community, and the Prayer Chain offers support to those who are unwell or going through difficult times. Our regular newsletter keeps people in touch with what the church is doing.

The fortnightly Reflection Group provides opportunities for fellowship, support and learning, with guest speakers and activities. An ongoing feature of KMC’s life is the Thursday afternoon Chat Room, which offers an informal get-together time for KMC friends.

SERVICE AND EVANGELISM

“The Church exists to be a good neighbour to people in need and to challenge injustice. The Church exists to make more followers of Jesus Christ.”

Kingston Methodist Church tries to keep abreast of what is happening in its local community and to put faith into action by helping people in need. Over the past year, KMC has maintained its long tradition of financial support to specific charities:

Action for Children - £810 from both a Christmas appeal and a service on AFC Sunday.
Whitechapel Mission - £370 The cash donations for Whitechapel are secondary to donations of food items, clothes and toiletries.
Christian Aid - £885 The figure for Christian Aid was enhanced by having the ecumenical Christian Aid service at our church this year and also includes some money raised by our two house-to-house collectors, as well as proceeds from our CA lunch.
Other global Methodist causes supported by our congregation during the year are All We Can , which is the Methodist Relief and Development Fund – an international development and emergency relief organisation - for which KMC raised £250. The second is the Methodist World Mission Fund through Junior Mission for All (JMA) where some of our children and young people held a lunch and collected monthly donations amounting to £306.32 to support JMA projects, helping children in the UK, Ireland and around the world.

Most of the funds raised also attract gift aid.

KMC’s two main fundraising events, the Christmas Fayre and our Plant and Produce sale, involve the local community and the proceeds go to charities nominated by members of our congregation and agreed by Church Council. This last year we decided to concentrate all our efforts on one local charity we continually support but which is always grateful for much-needed funds – Kingston Churches Action on Homelessness (KCAH). They are currently trying to support and house 10+ new people each week. To help with this KMC raised an amazing £4,112.23 which we know will make a difference. In addition, KMC makes an annual donation of £250 to KCAH.

KMC’s Church Council also agreed the Church’s donation of £250 each to KMCbased youth organisations The Girls’/Boys’ Brigades. Our Boys’ and Girls’ Brigades are blessed with a team of dedicated leaders who give up much of their own time for the Brigades in planning, training and preparation for the many activities and awards they undertake. The Brigades’ programme of activities culminates in a joint summer camp with other companies from Kent and Devon, this year again on the Isle of Wight.
In addition, KMC continued its policy of annual donations of £250 to another local charities: Refugee Action Kingston , and this year also added Oxygen who are facing significant financial pressure yet are still making an impact on the 100+ referrals each year for young people in crisis.
KMC maintains an internal benevolent fund , created by donations from our congregation at each communion service. This fund aims to support those from our local and church communities who seek emergency financial assistance as well as helping people cope with sudden and unexpected costs.
KMC has continued to support Cambridge Road Estate Community Group Foodbank (CREst), our most local foodbank, with food donations throughout the year. CREst is currently helping over 150 people a week, from 102 different countries.
KMC’s building is used by a wide range of community groups during the week, ranging from Al-Anon and Gamblers Anonymous to Danceforce and Good Life Gymnastics. Our user groups are much valued, and we are happy to be able to share the gift of our extensive premises with others. The Playbox Preschool , which is owned and managed by KMC, continues to provide a valuable service for local families, with a strong record of staff retention and support for children with additional needs. One of the highlights of the year is always welcoming animals from a local urban farm.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

The church accounts for the year were prepared on a Receipts and Payments basis and are presented in the format required by The Methodist Church. The accounts were independently examined by a Fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants (FCCA).

The church accounts for the year 1 September 2024 to 31 August 2025 show:

Receipts £87,220
Payments £84,182

At year end, the excess of receipts over payments of £3,038 was transferred to the Church Reserve – see details below.

The receipts of £87,220 came from:

General offerings from the church congregation plus Gift Aid from HMRC - £33,514
Money given to the Benevolent Fund plus Gift Aid from HMRC - £243
Interest from monies held with the Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes, Central Finance Board and Methodist Chapel Aid - £11,834

Room Hire, including the Licence with Hanbeet Church and a donation from y Playbox Pre-school for use of the premises - £36,259
Other receipts - £5,370 including money raised at the Christmas Fayre and Plant
& Produce Sale (see below)

The payments of £84,182 were for:

The Methodist Church for the ‘Circuit Assessment’ - £30,930
Repairs and maintenance - £30,225
Insurance and utilities - £9,854
Donations to charities - £5,362
Benevolent Fund payments - £885
Other payments - £6,927

The following groups are part of Kingston Methodist Church and had their accounts independently examined by their own examiners, as appointed by the Church trustees:

	Receipts £	Payments £
Fairfield Playbox Pre-School and Stay & Play	88,371	97,961
14th Kingston & Merton Boys' Brigade Company	1,344	1,293
1st Kingston Girls' Brigade Company	8,252	7,602

RESERVES POLICY

In October 2025, Church Council agreed that the following financial reserves should be maintained:

A General Reserve Fund , containing an amount equivalent to half a year' s ongoing running costs, ie excluding major property works.
A Property Reserve Fund , containing a minimum of £50k, for work on the development and/or maintenance of the building.
A Playbox Reserve Fund , containing an amount equal to the cost of staff wages and other essential costs for one term (eg for use in the event of Ofsted requiring Playbox to close whilst an investigation was carried out or to cover wages due during notice periods if redundancies must be made) plus the statutory redundancy payments due in the event of the Playbox Management Committee deciding to make all (in the event of permanent closure) or some staff redundant. This fund would only be called upon once all funds in the Playbox accounts have been exhausted.

Signed Date 09/06/26

Rev Dr Karl Rutlidge, on behalf of Kingston Methodist Church Trustees (Church Council)

CHURCH RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS THE METHODIST CHURCH STANDARD FORM OF ACCOUNTS Kln ton Methodlst Church FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 August 2025 Kln 8ton u nTham Clr¢ult Clrcult no. R•glt•r•d Charlty . Ch•rlty R•gl8tratlon numb•r JLnot a reg18t8red charity HI• MaJMty8 R•v•nu• and Jstoms Glft Ald numb•r (The HMRC number 18 equNalent to a regi8ternd charity number in t•rnl8 of idence of Charitabbe statu8 and may be used to give to donor8 or grant funder8 wishing to 80e evid8n¢e of the organisation's charitable 8tatU8. Methodist charities in England arml Wales that are not registered charities are excepted from regi8trats.on under Statutory Instrument 2014 No.242) 1163078 Minister. Rev Dr Karf Ruilo Churth Steward8: Maggi• Eaat Ruby E880n Val Hayden Nigel Spalding LR Taylor Malcolm I1n Treasurer. Nlgel SpaldiThJ lQng8ton Methodist ChurCh4&*P&%Wn2O22O26.xls 1ofS

ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025 Kingston Methodist Church SECTION A Totsls last y•ar Funds ar a1 RECEIPTS Note Offeri s and Tax recer8d Bank and CFB interest and Invesknent income 33.514 243 35.119 a3 11.834 36,259 5,370 86,977 11,834 36.259 5,370 87,220 13.292 Lettin 35,281 7,893 91,585 a5 Other receipts TOTAL RECEIPTS (a7) SECTION B b1 PAYMENTS b2 Circuit Assessment or Share 30,930 5.362 30.930 5.362 30.225 30,000 6,405 31.723 b3 Donations ITS and Maintenance ,'ties {Insurances, water charges, healing & li Benevolent Fund 30.225 b5 9064 885 8,451 b7 Other payments TOTAL PAYMENTS 6,927 6,927 84,182 5,392 81,971 b8 (b9) SECTION C NET RECEIPTSIPAYMEpirs FOR THe YEAR c1 a&b8 3,680 3,038 9.614 Total fvnds brought ftyward from last year 283,729 1.620 276 010 Sub total c1+c2 287.409 978 285,624 Transfers and ad"ustrnents c7 275 c5 ,TAL FUNDS AT END OF YEAR {c3+c4 978 288,451 (¢8 285,349 SECTION D FOR INFORIIATION ONLY: PAONEY RECEIVED AND PASSED ON TO EXTER ORGANISATIONS these amounts ar• not to bo Indud•d In total rn¢•lp d1 Bslance brou ht fomard from 250 d2 Offerin sIGrf18. receNed for extemal o anisatrons 619 511 d3 OfferingslGifts . passed to extemal wJanFsabons 261 BALANCE STILL TO BE PAID {d1+d2-d3) 250 2015

ton Methc#Jk81 8ECTKIN IKfERNAL oRGSATK)8 oIrtB B Od7 ¢7 H102 7> èy ¢WRC 31 Contynu• ¢n • ••p•r•l• • nw•••ary4Tr9 I •ECnOM F CLOIING BALANCE$ •hinhw B•nk 8•nk C•rrtr•l Fln•rK• e¢Jrd 243.218 M8thtrJtChaWAkJ 13.547 13,038 TOTAL. ¢hur¢h 01th TLNfunds Ini0m c*•h tWtrryn abM)1•121 77 •12 318 14 SECMON a 3t Awwt2028 Lar1 f4 IrK4ud8 aith•CW4 Btwd 3ots

Name of Church........ ... 3 Ttrts.-....tW-&_a" rP No........... Declarations and Scrutiny I confirm that these Reipt and Payment tosed accounts for the year to 31 August 2025 have beèn prepared from the records of the Church and th they include all furKts under the (¥Mtrol of the Church trustees. Signature of treasurer ......... Name and address of trtssuw ..... PoCode.. !& c 2 r P-gsentatlon to th• Church trte0$ I confiTh that the annual tewrt and accounts for the to the m86tlng of the chUh trustees held on ............. ... Slqnature of thé Chair of the rneetFng EV.Dn.KIDL ri.y1.LTQ.GC........ Dat8.0.1&. ... . . ... .. Nameofthe Chairof tsm8etirKJ ..................... . . .. Independent Examlnef8 Report to the Trustees of tho - N4e-&a' dchurch 116207& I<15 R•sponglblllUos and basls of rep I report to the tntstees on my examinat¥)n of the (Yjnts of the ........ . for the year ended 31 August 2025 set out on pages l.. to .-. As the Churth's trustees, you a responsible for the prewakn of the accounts in accordance ith the r8quirÉm8nts of the Chanti8s Act 2011 {'the Act,). I report In respect of my 8mInation of the Churr*'s axounts carried out under section 145 of the Act and. in carrying out my examination, I have folloj all the applicable Dire4#K$ given by the Charity Commission under sect 14S(5Xb} of the Ad. ' delete or circle as approw 4ofS

Name ofchurch..................... No............. Independent Examlnerfs Slatement I have completed my examinalion. I confim that no malerial matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination (other than that disclosed belovf) which give me cause to believe that in. any material respect: the accounting records re not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Ac(. or the accounts do not accord with the accounting records. I have no concems and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention shoukl be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understsnding of the -counts to be reached. I havelhave not" obtained independent verification of all investrnents with the Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes or held in other trusts, bank balances and funds at the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church which are indNidually in excess of £10,000 (ten thousand pounds) at the balance sheet date. Signature of independent examiner fy! Name of independent examiner Relevant professional qualification of independent examiner .f ccrj / ame of finn (where appropriate) . ..A.. Ac---- . WI", L . Post Code KT) > I Date ° delete or circle as appropriate fjngston Methodist chur(we(apl>and-paYm*224-202s.XIs 5of5

INCOME 1 Sept 2024 - 31 August 2025 Income to 31 August 2025 Total for SFA Statement of Accounts enn 33.514.11 Cash ¥ven on Pew Envelopes Cheques & Credlts pald Into the Bank Gift Aid Ipaid into CFB accounti 4.733.79 s.() 21,993.50 6,1%.82 nterest ntra inance 330.56 11.107.57 388.18 7.57 11.833.88 Trustees for 1$t Church Purp05e5 Jvethodlst Chapel Aid account Gift Aid (paid into CFB account) om ons 24.731.(Q 11.528.lJ) 36,259.1XJ Hanbeet Llcence pts 5,370.23 arpa Christmas Fair Plant and produ Sale 3Generate Parents Ifor Oct 21T24) 3Generate London "StriCt grant 2024 3Generate 2025 Parents an 175. 1.422.45 2,689.78 19). 320.(X) TOTAL 86.977.22 86.977.22

EXPENDITURE 1 Sept 2024 to 31 August 2025 Trtal for SFA to 31 Aust 2025 Clrcult Assessment (from CFB tawse5 Training / BO for Cow5es CCU Llttnce Independent Examlnatl(xb of 2023124 Audlt of 2022123 aCts Ilnclu(W IE) 2022123 siaternent of xcomtsl E(wlpment Soft¥Ya TMCP admln charges Ifrthm TMCP cwitl Bank charges IHSBCI 3GenÈrate 202415ee also Irthne" flgwes straJte f5*&y$l 6,926.87 363.10 110.60 178.35 132.( 277.35 74).37 720. 1.(k71.rx) 427.64 W.23 756.82 -19.7f 1.6rL.1 TOTAL 83.297.16 83.Z97.16

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INTERNAL ORGANISATIONS, REPORT FORM SEcfioN H hl £259 88,11205 88371.05 SEcfioN I PAYMEFITS 2500 95.260.83 97760J3 TOTALPAYNIEFTl3 ItoPymrnts (d p•ge31• thtkn•L •¢¢w) SECTION J (L7.fj) 26346.61 Ol+i24lj3) 16956.83 SEcfioN K kl Iso.00 16.806.83 (k14t2+k3) 169S6.&3 SECTION M Balaace b ALANCE STILL TO BE ?AtD 1d2

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INTERNAL ORGANISATIONS, REPORT FORM SEcfioN H RECEiFrs £612 7.639.69 8251.74 SECllON I 7.60182 7601.82 SECTION J ET RECEipfs (PAYMEKfS) (h3-t31 649.92 3 ts the 4822 73 5472.65 SECTION K kI CathirLb8r 5.472 65 k4 TOTAL FUNDSHELD (should4TE¢wIth MlltJ4 kn) (k1+k2) 547165 SECTtor4 M Balan m4 ANCE STILL TO BE PAID {]trl4m2-J Jof2

THE METHODIST CHURCH R&4MSAT]O REPORT F CLAL Y ENDED UGUS Each year every organtsation Vhth a CTr. C¥rait Di51rYA£ieoired byst$ 2S wll prqjer aTrJ the thrtse act as tre8sueTs. AVrt4YDEN lilli1lj 1Lrf2

INFERNAL ORGANISATI NS, REPORT FORM SECt7ON H fjiJts& dots3ts0 255.4 1,089.(YO h3 T(YfAL RECElVt3{to rglp%r3 in the x(cty) SECTION I PAYMKKrs 1267.30 1292.8 TOTALPAYfvIErifs Ito Pwts p•g•3I& th¢ SEcfIoN J KET 14ECEIPTS {PAYMEpris} (h3_J31 51.6 0PErfflG K4LthCE (toopepi 1995.79 CLOSING BAIANCE Itoclw pyj fj"l+J2+1fj3) 2047.3 SEcfioN K HOW THE FUTriDS ARE HELD 2,047 39 k3 k4 TOTALFt]NDSHEIII{thouhl •8rrtwtrb ltheJ4 kn1 (ki+k2+k31 2047J9 stcrioN M FOR IF4FOIRMA TION ONLY.. MOFIEYRECKIVED AF4D PA&8ED T0 IXFEII ZXTZRNAL ORGANI10$ Ii*b BALANCE STILL TO BE PAID <ml+JnZ4M3) 1of2

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