Hemel Hempstead Methodist Church (HHMC) Registered Charity Number 1164741 Trustees Annual Report for the year 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2022
Hemel Hempstead Methodist Church (HHMC) exists to worship God, as we grow in faith, fellowship and love for one another, to seek to serve God and the community, and through our lives and witness, help people to come to a deeper knowledge of Jesus Christ.
HHMC is a member of the West Hertfordshire and Borders Methodist Circuit and therefore part of the Methodist Church of Great Britain. The Trustees are Managing Trustees of the church building at 270 Northridge Way, Hemel Hempstead HP1 2AU which was completed and opened in 2015. All Trustees are members of HHMC and are either elected by the Annual General Meeting or appointed to a specific role by the Church Council. The Trustees are listed elsewhere on the Charity Commission website.
General Church meetings to carry out the functions of the normal Annual General Meeting were held on 1[st] November 2021 (the first AGM after lockdown) and 22[nd] May 2022.
Accounts for the year 2021-22 are attached. There was a surplus at the end of the year, due mainly to the receipt of a large legacy, although the income has also increased compared to 2020-21. Sources of the increased income included resumption of regular lettings and donations from the Community Lunches.
HHMC had 80 members at the end of the year (31[st] August 2022), plus a considerably larger ‘pastoral list’ of people associated with the church but not formally members. The number of members has fallen compared to the previous year due mainly to the death of older members, but HHMC has welcomed new members during the year.
A service of worship is held in the church building every Sunday morning and is attended by a congregation of up to about 50 people. This Sunday morning service is live streamed online on Facebook and a recording is uploaded to YouTube after the service each week.
Messy Church is held in the afternoon once a month and is aimed particularly at families with children. This is now the main focus of the church’s work with children. There is no Junior Church taking place during the morning service at present.
Some special services are held in the afternoons and most of these are not livestreamed online. They include a Songs of Praise service approximately once a quarter, the Christmas Carol Service, and the annual Memorial Service for those who have lost loved ones.
Weekly mailings by email or post of the church notice sheet to everyone on the mailing list have continued after the end of lockdown and a newsletter is sent with the mailing every 6 weeks. A written worship resource is also sent every week to those who have requested it.
The church building and the minister became registered for same sex marriages from June 2022, following general approval from the Methodist Conference (the governing body of the Methodist Church), and local approval from our Church Council.
A new venture which began in May 2022 was the Community Lunch which provides a good home cooked meal and company in a warm building. There is no fixed cost, attendees are told they can pay what they can or nothing at all. The Community Lunch was started in response to concern about the effect of the rising cost of living on people in the community. It is now found to be meeting other, different needs. It has grown steadily and the donations from attendees have provided additional income for the church.
Another ‘warm space’ venture, the Community Coffee was started in November 2022, just after the end of this financial year and will be described next year.
Many of the church’s regular weekday activities have now resumed meeting face to face, some of them in altered form. These include:
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Dinner Church which meets on Sunday evenings once a month and undertakes a range of activities all of them including food. This group is developing into a fellowship group and attracts younger adults.
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Oyster Club – a Christian social club for adults held on Thursday mornings, providing talks, services of worship and other activities.
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Wednesday Fellowship and Reflection meeting twice a month in a member’s home
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A Wednesday house group meeting once a month
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A Wednesday Bible Study group meeting jointly on Zoom with another local Methodist Church
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Thursday Fellowship meeting weekly at the church
Saturday coffee morning gatherings continued on Zoom. Face to Face coffee mornings in the church hall restarted in September 2022.
HHMC also sponsors a Guide Company, Brownie Pack and Rainbows, who have resumed their meetings in the building during school term time.
Some of the previous regular groups have not resumed after lockdown due to reduced numbers. These include the Thursday afternoon Bible Study the Knit and Natter group and the Friday Friendship fellowship group.
When not required for HHMC activities, the building was made available for local community groups and others to use in return for a fee designed to cover a due proportion of related costs. This resumed from September 2021 onwards.
The following activities in the community have also resumed
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Open the Book - A team from HHMC provided a Christian assembly at a local primary school approximately once per month in term time using the Open the Book materials supplied by the Bible Society.
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One member from HHMC still serves as a Street Pastor and is supported by prayer partners from HHMC
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Liberty Tea Rooms and Community Hub - members from HHMC volunteer for this charity. The tea rooms provide a meeting place and base for the community hub which provides free services for anyone in the local community needing help in a time of need.
CHURCH RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS THE METHODIST CHURCH STANDARD FORM OF ACCOUNTS Hemel Hem stead Methodlst Church FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 August 2022 West Herts & Borders Clrcult Circuit no 34114 Registered Charlty - Charlty Reglstrallon number If not a registered charity Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs Gift Aid number (The HMRC number is equivalent to a registered charity number in temis of evidence of charitable status and may be used to givo to donors or grant funders wshing to tsee evidence of the organisation'3 charitable status. Methodist charities in England and Wales that are not registered charities are expted from registration under Statulory Instrument 2014 No.242) 1164741 XR93992 Minister- Andrew Brazier Church Stewards: Sue Whyte Sheila Daly Margaret Thorn Shalini Parke Jill Walker Graham Burton Trèasurer- Jackie de Bour¢ier Church R and P 2015.xL 1 of5
ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2022 Hemel Hempstead Methodist church Unrestrfctod Rostrlcted T¢)tal¥ thls Fund8 Fund$ year TO16 last SECTION A a1 RECEIPTS Note a2 Offerin s and Tax recovered Bank and CFB interest and Investment income 53,557 53.557 53,763 a3 233 233 79 Lettin 1,929 24,679 80,399 1,929 24,679 80,399 245 a5 Other ceIptS TOTAL RECEIPTS 4,239 58,326 la7 SECTION B b1 PAYMENTS b2 Circuit A$$egsment or Share 43,668 43,668 43,044 b3 Donations 3,447 3,445 3A47 3A45 6,457 3,052 airs and Maintenance Ulililies Ilnsurances. water cha es, heatrn & li hlin b5 8,478 8N78 8,979 b7 Other payments TOTAL PAYMENTS 9,068 68,107 9,068 68,107 8.826 70,358 b8 (b9) SECTION C NET RECEIPTSIPAYMENTS FOR THE YEAR c1 a6-b8 12,292 12,292 12,032 Total fbnds brought forward Irom last year 86,607 86,607 98,639 c3 Sub total ¢fj+c2 98,899 9e,899 86,007 Transferg and ad'ustmants ¢7 c5 TOTAL FUNDS AT END OF YEAR 1¢3+¢41 98.899 98.899 (¢8) 88,607 {c6 SECTION D FOR INFORMATION ONLY: MONEY RECEIVED ANO PASSED ON TO EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS these amounts arn not to be included In total rocol yments fi d1 Balano brou ht forward from last ear 85 d2 Offerin sIGifts- received for extemal o anisations 705 d3 OfferingsJGfftg - passed to exl8mal organisations 2,978 626 d4 BALANCE STILL TO BE PAID Id1 +d24J3} 282 85 Chut¢h Raryd P 2015 xlq 2of5
Hemel H2mytsad IlotgI Church ReHACC MTER ORGAN REPORT4 SECTKIN E to com Ourn.ary01 t ¥hurcn accounts forlhe year ended J1 ll12022 and Irilernal Ooani88tions rerKthg to the Church CoumVCMrch Meeting. Notg thai the fund50f an Intemal Oryjathsatyw woJlO nom81fy be Reslrtded fund$ ituld tcrtY shNn ihaithey could bè used forany M8thodWwrpJsè. This Imustbe ¢ompW tO8rdve atthe gross iro)m8and wtrvJituretCl4ls ofthe Church. Wgr£6sitKomeexceeds ltrfftA¢uuals thresh(, Ih2Acovls method ofaccountng ANDA DIFFEREMf FORM mustbè to r¢tth thex¢ounts188& MeiMdi&lwthÈtsl. refert01 gUenCe )te5 reggrdiry tran8fers tae Di¥tri (x)nnecled Thsiitt Organlsatson& INTERNAL ORGANISATIONS P4el Rec8 0rIng balances Rp1S Pa Warre8 Th8 terclub 2,387 2,105 4t53 745 ¢2 Frfdo P•llDw•hl 1ST 187 3(15 ¢3 ¢5 e7 nlsatkfis Iuil4J 2,2¥2 95 7eii 863 t12 Church a¢counts (totsl rought roThvaro trom pag• 2-totab GvlumTrl 80,399 6&107 12.292 86.607 96,899 BY CHURCH 82,786 70,399 12,3ts7 87.375 99.762 Conbwfyona sep8th$ necessari and Mng the tolal8forw8rd TOTALRECEIPTS TOTAL PAYMENT8 SECTKIN F AND UABIL OPENING 8ALANce$ CL031NG BIILAN¢ES CHLIICN. CASH FLINDS HELD ¥t31 ujt 2022 Cash in 18 8ank CuThenlA¢ctyJnt 25.475 ènk Oe 5rf Accounf f4 Ctra Financg Board 80.729 62.955 TSle 1Method1¥1 Church Pu Otw lund& SUM TOTAL- Creh accounts "iotai runds held ty Intemai Oroanisatbjns (th9dry bolance lotatfttthaLvvel le121 86,607 Ice) 98,B99 (¢81 Y68 le12) TOTAL CASH FiP4DS HELD BY CHURCH 87.37S 99,762 SECMON G Al 1 Sewwnbw2021 OTHeRAa¥ET8 and LwBiunf3 31 NJJgu$t2022 Inve$blS incjude Endowments Lano & BUdI see nots5 re Inwrarre value 2.810 603 OtherA88É1S 1(752 rend OUW LbIllS f4 onty FLmd4 held 41 the e•nlr•l Financo gord f5 onty Fwds he ai IrJsteesfor Mthodi¥ECtturch Purpos99 91 IrdudB wyolherinvestrnents InDtth&c89h elernenlof TMCP Irusts oun*thiSI1 [luded In Ilrtsf5 IJChwthKwP.lk
Name of Church . . Hemel Hempstead Methodist.. No...34114........ Declarations and Scrutiny l ¢onfimi that th88e Receipt and Payment based aGruntS for the year to 31 August 2022 have been prepared from the re¢ords of the Church and that they includEi all funds under the control of the Church trustees. Signature of treasurer . Name and address of treasurer . .Jackie de Bourcier........................... 88 Dunlin Road Hemel Hempstead.. Post Code...HP2 6LX...... ........ Presentatlon to the Church trustee8 I confirm that the annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 August 2022 wre/&&&' presented lo the meeting of the Church trustees held on . Q {.' l.'L' Signature of the Chair of the meeting Name of the Chair of the meeting .&.o¢yJ... J . Date . Su./.¢. 18. 4).{. S Independent Examiner's Report to the Triistees of tho Hemel Hempstead Methodist Church Charfty Number.........1164741..... Responslbllllles and basls of report I report to the trust8ès on my examination of the accounts of the Hemel Hempstead Methodist Church for the year ended 31 August 2022 set out on pages 1 to 3, As the Church's trustees, you ar8 responsible for the preparation of the ae¢ounts in accordance wtth the IEquirements of the Charities AGt 2011 ('the Act.). I report in respect of my examination of the Church's accounts Carrted oiit under section 145 of the Act and, in Carrying out my examination, I have followed all the aPF1Cab1e Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145{5){b) of the Act. 2015 churth R P.ts 4of5
Name of Church ... .Hemel Hempstead Melhodist.............. No...34114...... Independent Examlner's Statement I have Completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in conni3ction with the examination which give me cause to b81ieve that in. any material respect.. th8 accounting records were not kept in accordance with sèction 130 of the Act.. or the accounts do not accord with the a¢unting records. I have no concérns and have com8 across no other matters in connectioi) with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper under,5tanding of the ac¢oLints to be reached. I have obtained independent verification of all investment$ with the TrUSte$ for Melhodisl Church Purpose5 or held in other trusts. bank balances and funds al1118 Central Finance Board ofthe Methodist Church which are individually in excess of £10,000 (ten thousand pound5) at the balance sheet date. Signature of independent examiner Name of ind8pendent examiner .ColinJ Stacey.................. Relevant professional qualification of independent examiner .BFP FCA........................ Name of firm (where appropriate) . .Staceys Chartered Accountants Limited Address .Riv8rs Lodge, West Common, Harpenden,............................................. Post Code ..AL5 2JD Date .9 March 2023 2015 chuth R P.xl8 8c*5