## **Discover DeCrypt, Gloucester Annual Report for 2025**
Discover DeCrypt is a charity based in the centre of Gloucester in the Church of St Mary de Crypt and the adjacent Tudor schoolroom, both of which benefited from a major restoration project completed in 2019. We aim to share our faith in Jesus Christ, to promote the story of our history and heritage and to enhance the life of our city.
Following our vision of sharing our ‘faith’, ‘story’ and ‘life’, Discover DeCrypt has continued throughout 2025 to welcome people from far and wide in the spirit of Christian hospitality. In addition to groups which use our buildings on a regular basis, we received 22,500 visitors this year alone.
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St Mary de Crypt
by night
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2025 has seen Discover DeCrypt continue to develop as a thriving community hub which makes a significant contribution to the life of the city. Our Christian ethos remains at the forefront, but we have a vision which is inclusive and a wide range of different groups make use of our facilities.
The main challenge facing Discover DeCrypt during 2025 has been the management of the small balance in our operational accounts, with maintenance on the historic building and repairs to the heating system bringing significant demands. The Round One Development Grant we were awarded from the National Lottery Heritage Fund in 2024 has been used to implement the development phase of a major new conservation project in the chancel and sanctuary. We have had the services of a professional fundraiser and activity planner and we have commissioned specialist reports on the stained glass, stonework and polychromy. £140,000 has been raised or pledged for the project so far. If we succeed in attracting the Round Two NLHF Delivery Grant to implement the project fully from 2026, this will achieve a complete conservation of what is currently a very vulnerable part of the church, including the stabilisation and interpretation of our wall painting of the Adoration of the Magi.
DISCOVER DECRYPT ANNUAL REPORT 2025
This report highlights some of the major events we have held in 2025 and the groups we have supported in order to fulfil the three-fold objectives that lie at the heart of our vision.
## **Objective 1 – FAITH:**
## **To share an inclusive sacred space**
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Prayers
for Pride
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- As a consecrated Christian church, we continue to offer space within our busy city for people to pray, reflect or simply take in the tranquillity of our building.
- Our regular events include Friday morning Coffee, Cake and Conversation, at which anyone facing challenges in life may seek a sympathetic ear, our weekly lunchtime service of ‘Prayers for the City’ and parish Zoom services of Morning Prayer and Compline.
- The annual Gloucester Day service, which takes place in September, is held in the church followed by a parade through the four main gated streets led by the Town Crier. It has become a wonderful celebration of life in our diverse city and the ability of the church to provide bridges within the community.
- This summer, we welcomed folk musicians, artists and poets from across the county for the Gloucester Folk Trail. In addition to the many performances that took place, our innovative Folk Church service was greatly appreciated.
- We continue to enjoy working with the LGBTQI+ community to share God’s love broadly. This year, we have hosted the Pride of Gloucestershire AGM and begun a new monthly service of allinclusive worship, including a carol service. The annual service to mark the Transgender Day of Remembrance was very well attended.
## **Objective 2 – STORY:**
## **To preserve and enhance our heritage, making heritage and history accessible**
- Our team of volunteer guides is on hand throughout the year to escort individual visitors and pre-booked groups around all areas of the church and schoolroom, bringing to life many of the historical characters who have given interest to this place. The church was particularly showcased with tours, including tower tours, during the Gloucester Heritage Open Days.
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Janina Ramirez admiring
our Tudor wall painting
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- The highly regarded Gloucester History Festival included in its programme a sell-out talk by Professor Janina Ramirez on the wall paintings we are planning to have conserved in the sanctuary. Referring to the church as an ‘international masterpiece’, she drew parallels between our ‘Adoration of the Magi’ and similar paintings in Italy and the Netherlands. Many visitors came to the church to view the paintings in person as a result of this talk.
DISCOVER DECRYPT ANNUAL REPORT 2025
- We continue to host new exhibitions which tell important life stories associated with St Mary de Crypt. This year, students from the University of Gloucestershire have compiled a new display on John Biddle, the so-called ‘Father of English Unitarianism’, who was headmaster at the Crypt during the tumultuous years of the English Civil war. Present-day pupils at the Crypt School have also created an exhibition telling the story of the poem ‘Invictus’ and the way in which its message about resilience has impacted on world history. The author of the poem written 150 years ago, William Henley, was educated in our old schoolroom.
- We also welcomed a local music group, ‘Waytes and Measures’, who gave a lively concert featuring pieces played on instruments from medieval and Tudor times. The instruments depicted being played by angels on the 16[th] century roof bosses of our chancel were explained and provided the concert with a unique historical focus.
## **Objective 3 – LIFE:**
## **To provide an inspiring community space that is affordable, accessible and welcoming**
- The groups which lease our premises on a regular basis reflect a range of different community interests and continue to give us appreciative feedback. Among these are a tai chi health and fitness class, a ‘stay and play’ toddler group, a meditation class specialising in mindfulness, English classes for refugees, Alcoholics Anonymous and the Cuddesdon, Gloucester and Hereford training course for ordinands.
- Various community organisations have enjoyed using our space for exhibitions. In May we hosted a particularly well attended exhibition of paintings and photography from several Ukrainian artists, many of whom are refugees from the conflict in their homeland. In August Gloucester Camera Club put on their annual exhibition showcasing almost a hundred colour prints, mono prints and digital images, each one featuring a unique style and technique.
- We have continued to hold a regular programme of concerts. The Saturday morning Creative Field Coffee Concerts have remained popular and have drawn on a wide range of inspiring music of different genres. Special concerts have included one inspired by traditional folk tunes and dances from around the world as part of Highnam Carducci Festival. We have also welcomed the Gloucestershire Police Male Voice Choir and the City of Gloucester Community Choir.
DISCOVER DECRYPT ANNUAL REPORT 2025
- Our historic church also lends itself naturally as a set for drama. Two of the most successful drama productions played out to packed audiences over several nights were Grove Productions’ adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic ‘Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ and the Rain and Shine Theatre Company’s performance of ‘Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime’ by Oscar Wilde.
- Among other community events, during which the church bustled with activity, have been our two Steampunks Weekends, including the Yuletide Revels in December. The Vintage and Craft Market, part of the Gloucester Retro Festival, saw the church packed with stalls offering antique, handmade or collectable items. We have even had our first rare plants and orchid sale!
## **Thank You**
We would like to thank all those who have enabled Discover DeCrypt to flourish this year. A particular debt of thanks is owed to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for its support of the Round One Development Phase of the sanctuary conservation project. We are also grateful to: our volunteers, who welcome visitors week after week; our faith community, on whose continued prayer we rely; our regular hirers, who are always so appreciative of our facilities; and all our visitors and supporters, whose continued engagement and interest has made all we seek to do worthwhile.
## **Charity Details**
Registered Charity Number: 1167097
Address: St Mary de Crypt Church and School, Southgate Street, Gloucester, GL1 1TP
The board of trustees has had the following members in 2025: Rev Canon Nicola Arthy (Ex-Officio Chair); Mr Peter Gould; Mr David Evans (Secretary); Ms Ursula Corcoran; and Mr Richard Ryan. Mr Mat McCall became a trustee in June 2025 and Rev Dr Canon Sandra Millar ceased to be a trustee in September 2025 after completing nine years of service.
Trustees are either nominated by the PCC or appointed by the Chair following consultation with existing trustees. The full Board of Trustees has at least four meetings a year, whilst a smaller group referred to as the Operations Board meets more frequently.
The charity employs an operations manager, a communications and events manager, a tea room manager and a cleaner. We benefit also from the expertise and work of the parish treasurer, additional duty managers and our team of dedicated volunteers.
_David Evans on behalf of Discover DeCrypt_
DISCOVER DECRYPT ANNUAL REPORT 2025
|**SECTION A Receipts andpayments**|**SECTION A Receipts andpayments**|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**|**Restricted**|**Endowment**|**Total funds**|**2025**|
|**A1 Receipts**||||||
|**Operations**||||||
|Services|0|||0||
|Grants|750|||750||
|DCMS/LPOW|926|||926||
|HMRC Gift Aid|4300|||4300||
|Giving|1140|||1140||
|Marylone|4289|||4289||
|StMDC|12029|||12029||
|School|2238|||2238||
|Other|7038|||7038||
|SanctuaryCost Recovery|11850|||11850||
|Public Donations|4368|||4368||
|Tearoom|15561|||15561||
|Shop|6868|||6868||
|Lettings|18198|||18198||
|Events|4531|||4531||
|Ins. Claims|5417|||5417||
|Tours|128|||128||
|**Sanctuary Development Project**||||||
|NHLF Development Funding||74273||74273||
|Project Grant Funding||37900||37900||
|Public donations||335||335||
|**_Sub total_** _(Gross incomefor AR)_|99629|112508|0|212136|0|
|**A2 Investment sales**||||||
||0|0|0|0|0|
||0|0|0|0|0|
|**_Sub total_**||||||
|||||||
|**_Total Receipts_**|99629|112508|0|212136|0|
|||||||
|**A3 Payments**||||||
|Maintenance Services|9590|||9590||
|Maintenance Fabric|0|||0||
|MaintencanceQuin.|0|||0||
|Gas|14135|||14135||
|E/L|8576|||8576||
|Insurance|7973|||7973||
|Water|706|||706||
|Website|854|||854||
|Tel/BB|1746|||1746||
|Fees|406|||406||
|Stat/Print|0|||0||
|Event Costs|600|||600||
|Goods- Shop|3028|||3028||
|Equipment|1561|||1561||
|Tearoom Supplies|4962|||4962||
|Marketing/Publicity|0|||0||
|Other|2923|||2923||
|PAY|48026|0|0|48026||
|DutyManaging|6871|||6871||
|**Sanctuary Development Project**||||||
|Contractors and Consultants||66538||66538||
|Cost recoveryto Operations||11850||11850||
|**_Sub total_**|111956|78388|0|190344|0|
|**A4 Asset & Investmentpurchases**||||||
||0|0|0|0|0|
||0|0|0|0|0|
|**_Sub total_**|0|0|0|0|0|
|||||||
|**_Totalpayments_**|111956|78388|0|190344|0|
|||||||
|**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**|-12327|34120|0|21792||
|**A5 Transfer between funds**|-69|0|0|-69||
|**A6 Cash funds lastyear end**|8900|127|0|9027||
|**_Cashfunds thisyear end_**|-3496|34246|0|30750|0|
|||||||
|**Bank accounts Y/C balances:**||||||
|_Cooperative_|619|0|0|619||
|_NatWest_|8281|127|0|8408||
|_Lloyds_|0|0|0|0||
|_Total_|8900|127|0|9027||
|**Bank accounts Y/E balances:**||||||
|_Cooperative_|160|0|0|160||
|_NatWest_|-3656|34246|0|30590||
|_Lloyds_|0|0|0|0||
|_Total_|-3496|34246|0|30750||
CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGLAND AND WALES
Independent examiner's
report on the accounts
•••
Section A.,.
Independent Examiner's Report
Report to the trusteesl
members of
06CLsf I
On accounts for the year
ended
Charity no
(if any)
lILI1}
Set out on pages
.Je i'15 i!I":
I report to the trUStS on my examination of the accounts of the above
charity (kne Trusf) for the year ended
Responsibilities and As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responsible for the preparation
basis of report of the accounts in accofflance with the requirements of the Charities Act
2011 ('Yhe Act").
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts carried out
under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carying out my examination, I
have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission
under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have
come to my attention (;
") in connection with
the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material
respect"
accounting records were not kept in accordan with section 130 of
the Act 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 should be drawn in order to enable a
proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Please delete the wonys in the brackets if they do not apply.
Independent
examinerfs statement
Signed:
Date:
Name:
Q-H O*u
Relevant professional
qualification(s) or body
(if any):
rccA
Address:
L s44 a E
kirmf &Tg)
IER
October 2018