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2021-12-31-accounts

The Parochial Church Council of the Ecclesiastical Parish of Holy Trinity Washington Registered Charity Number: 1168608

ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST ] DECEMBER 2021

Administrative Address: Holy Trinity Church The Avenue Washington NE38 7LE.

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Objectives and activities

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) is the group of people who, with the Priest-inCharge, run Holy Trinity Church. We describe who we are, how we are elected and how we organize ourselves in this report. Our objectives derive from the Parochial C u c C u c (P we ) Me u e 1956. e e ‘ c pe e w e m e [Priest-in-Charge] in promoting in the parish the whole mission of the Church, p , ev e c, c d ecume c ’. e ve e ‘p we j w e minister to determine the objects to which all moneys to be given or collected in c u c be c ed’. e Churchwardens, all members of the PCC are responsible for the maintenance of the church building.

The 2004 report Mission-shaped Church e u e me f e ‘w e m f e c u c ’ cu e e p e ed b e C u c f E d. p e centre. It aims to transform people through faith in Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. It is welcoming, relates to local culture, and is open to change when new members join.

More recently, the published Vision and Strategy for the Church of England in the 2020s identifies three priorities for the church to realize its vision for mission this decade:

Holy Trinity Church is situated in Washington Village within the town of Washington. It is part of the Diocese of Durham within the Church of England.

  • the mixed ecology describes the flourishing of church and ministry in Church of England parishes, and in other communities of faith through things like church planting, fresh expressions of church, and chaplaincy and online.

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Holy Trinity Parish

Our objectives and activities may be defined under the following categories:

1. Worship

Our worship services on Sundays and weekdays include quiet Said Communions, Sung Communions with the Holy Trinity Church Choir, and Morning Prayer. Our monthly services include an evening midweek service in the Celtic Iona tradition, and a Sunday afternoon informal all-age service, Connect 3. In addition, we offer fortnightly baptism services and frequently host marriage services and funeral services. The Holy Trinity Church Choir and organ lead our sung worship in the principal Sunday service and on certain Holy Days in the church year. The choir has nurtured young talent and is a lively and dedicated dimension of our church life made up of a group of people spanning many decades in age, and our church includes a wide variety of musical talents.

2. Prayer and Bible study

All our church members are encouraged to pray and study the Bible regularly as part of their personal devotion. Committed volunteers distribute our weekly sheet with Bible readings and Collect prayers to those church members no longer able to get to church so easily. Morning Prayer is said in church on some weekdays. On Wednesday mornings, a period of silent meditation and discussion follows the Bible readings for the week.

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3. Pastoral care and Safeguarding

Care and love for one another and our neighbours is a fundamental way we live out our Christian faith. The Ministry Group of clergy, Licensed Lay Ministers (Readers) and Licensed Pastoral Assistants (formerly APAs) forms a structure of pastoral care for those in specific need. This group is supplemented by a small team that distributes Communion at home.

Individual friendships, including through our small groups and initiatives such as the M e ’ U , C f G up, F we G up, me ’ Fe w p and Choir, are all ways we offer pastoral support within our church community. Our monthly Bereavement Cafe offers a valued space for pastoral care to those in our wider community experiencing the effects of bereavement, whether recently or over the long-term. Our Parish Safeguarding Officer, Val Wilson, works closely with the Priest-in-Charge, members of Ministry Group, the PCC and others to ensure good practice across our whole church life in the safeguarding of children, young people and adults.

4. Young people and children

We have long-standing partnerships with several local schools, welcoming classes and year-groups to the church building for lessons and special services; and clergy and lay church members on occasion visit schools to contribute to teaching, learning and collective worship in assemblies. Our Connect 3 service is designed to engage the interests of primary age children and their parents, and seeks to builds on relationships within the extended families of existing church members and those families approaching the church for baptisms. Our youth group, though recently unable to meet as frequently as former times, offers a space for friendship, encouragement and exploration of faith.

5. Community and social concern

As a church body, we seek to share the love of God in practical ways with the local community of our parish and enhance the lives of those who live here. This includes inviting and welcoming members of the community into our church building for our social initiatives, especially those designed to overcome social isolation. We further support and raise funds for local charities alleviating poverty and distress, including the Washington Foodbank, homeless charities in Sunderland, Washington Mind – the me e c , d S Be ed c ’ p ce, Su de d. We also participate in a range of community activities, including caring for the biodiversity and beauty of our churchyard as a valued public space within central Washington.

6. Stewarding our building and churchyard for future generations

We want our church to be a continuing centre of Christian worship for generations to come, as it has been for many centuries. We further want to care for the natural environment around our church, including the green space of the churchyard. We seek to ensure our church building is well-maintained and fit for its purposes as a worship and community space. A dedicated team of volunteers continues to

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improve our beautiful churchyard so that it is a pleasure for visitors and a good home for a range of plant and animal species.

Achievements and Performance in 2021

The Priest-in-Charge and Holy Trinity Church PCC are immensely grateful to the employees and many willing volunteers who have enabled so many aspects of the c u c ’ fe d c v e be e umed du 2021 – after the restrictions and difficulties of the COVID-19 pandemic and vacancy in 2020.

We want to express particular thanks to staff and clergy who have done so much up front and behind the scenes. They are:

There were 214 names on the Electoral Roll at the date of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting on 25 April 2021. Average attendance at our Services in October 2021 were as follows:

8am Sunday Communion (monthly at the time) – 10 adults and 3 children under 16.

10am Sunday Communion - 70 adults and 4 children under 16.

10am Tuesday Communion Service – 35 adults and 0 children under 16.

3pm Connect 3 service (monthly) – 33 adults and 19 children under 16.

1. Worship

2021 began in a national lockdown, with the church building still closed for public worship, and with weekly worship continuing on Zoom video conferencing and with a bank of choir recordings. The monthly Iona Service also continued through Zoom. Weekly arrangements allowed the church to be open for periods for private prayer in a COVID-secure manner. A committed group of volunteers continued to deliver the weekly sheet with readings and notices to members of the congregation less able to access material online. Curate Brenda Forrester led worship provision,

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partnering with the two Church Wardens in leadership of the parish through the remaining months of the vacancy.

On 17 March 2021, the new Priest-in-Charge, Revd Philip Lockley was licensed in a hybrid service both in church (with a reduced, socially-distanced congregation) and m e p c p e. P p’ f Su d e v ce we e e e e. The PCC then made the decision to resume in-person worship for Holy Week, meaning the first in-person worship of the year was a Tuesday morning service of Holy Communion on 30 March 2021, followed by a Maundy Thursday evening communion, Good Friday Hour at the Cross, and a joyous Easter Sunday 10am service. For some months, the only Communion Services in church remained the Sunday and Tuesday 10am services. The 8am Communion Service was reintroduced on a monthly basis from Sunday 19 September.

Since April, the PCC has collectively taken a cautious and gradual approach to e um e c u c ’ w pp fe, seeking to discuss fully and find consensus for each change in approach in response to Government policy and wider changes in COVID circumstances. Over the remainder of the year, decisions were taken over such subjects as registering for services, permitted maximum numbers in church, distancing between chair rows, choir and congregation singing, and methods for receiving Communion. At the end of 2021, those attending church were still requested to wear masks, remain socially-distanced, including during the Peace, and receive communion in one kind (the bread). Refreshments were re-introduced after the Tuesday morning Communion, but remained absent from the Sunday morning services.

The first wedding of the year was held on Saturday 5 June. Baptisms were resumed on Sunday 4 July. Funerals had continued to take place in church throughout the year, with numbers permitted inside the church at funeral services gradually increased as COVID restrictions were adjusted during the year.

After an initial attempt to resume the Connect all-age service in July was postponed due to high local infection rates in primary schools, the first Connect 3 was held on Sunday 3 October at the new time of 3pm.

The monthly lay-led Iona Service also resumed as an in-person service in October, having run continually online for much of the Pandemic period.

During 2021, there were:

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Other special Services in 2021 included:

On Sunday 19 December, the Holy Trinity congregation said goodbye to Curate, Brenda Forrester – thanking her for her more than 3 years of ministry in the parish, and especially her extensive efforts during the vacancy. Revd Brenda is due to take up her first incumbency as Vicar of Ingleby Barwick, in the Diocese of York, in April 2022.

2. Prayer and Bible study

L ke w p e v ce , e c u c ’ e u p e f p e d B b e ud been significantly disrupted by COVID circumstances. Common Worship Morning Prayer was resumed in person at 9am on Tuesday mornings during April. Morning Prayer was resumed on Wednesdays with increasingly regularity since September. Plans to resume Bible study and more frequent prayer meetings have been taken forward in early 2022.

3. Pastoral care and Safeguarding

During the period the church was closed, pastoral care was maintained by a widened circle of volunteers by phone and through doorstep visits. This continued for much of 2021, as social distancing guidance remained in place. Longer home visits gradually became possible, beginning with outside visits in gardens, though these still required continued caution. Towards the end of the year, home communions were resumed. Visits to care homes by members of Ministry Group were only resumed if local guidance could be followed and adhered to. Overall, the effect of the pandem c bee eve e m pe p e’ d b connect with others – especially those with mobility difficulties or with health conditions making them especially vulnerable to the virus.

e Be e veme e m’ m C ffee m we e esumed in October and are deeply appreciated by those who attend.

During 2021, the Parish Safeguarding Officer carried out an audit of our current Safeguarding arrangements and procedures, and changes and updates have been made where needed. Training requirements have been kept up to date and our new

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Church Administrator, Eunice Pestel, trained to support the process for DBS checks and training timetables.

Despite very difficult circumstances, a committed team of volunteers has sought to maintain the care Holy Trinity has historically shown its members and wider community in need. The Priest-in-Charge and PCC express here their gratitude to this team and all their efforts this year.

4. Young people and children

School staff and children have been subject to especially onerous guidelines and restrictions during the pandemic period, making outside visits and visitors in schools much harder to arrange. During the course of the year, however, some schools engagement was possible, including:

Our Connect 3 service resumed in the new monthly time slot of 3pm on Sundays, in October, November and December. The existing team of volunteers from Saturday Connect was supplemented by two ordinands from Cranmer Hall.

Holy Trinity Youth Group were able to meet again in person from June and met on different frequencies on Sunday evenings during the remainder of the year, culminating in a pre-Christmas bowling trip. Members of the Youth Group have continued to research the environmental impact of our church life to identify steps we should take to achieve an eco-church award. The availability of volunteer leaders remains a challenge for maintaining and growing Youth Group in 2022.

5. Community and social concern

The Publicity Group has been recognizing for some time the need to improve our communications with our surrounding community – through a variety of media. Significant progress has been made this year, with a refurbished Avenue Noticeboard, and a brand new noticeboard installed at the Glebe Crescent entrance to the Churchyard. The PCC is especially grateful to the generous support of:

Our website www.holytrinitywashington.org.uk has also received a refreshed look and new content, with especial thanks to Stephen Rutter for his efforts keeping this up to date, and his devising new ways the website can be used by those enquiring about baptisms and weddings.

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Many elements of our social and community engagement in person have made slow progress in resuming after COVID restrictions have lifted. The resuming of our monthly Bereavement Café and Craft Group have each been important steps towards our being once again able to invite and welcome members of the community into our church building for our social initiatives, especially those designed to overcome social isolation. The Mothers’ Union also reconvened inperson meetings in the Autumn, and began to work towards resuming its valuable community work.

Fundraising initiatives for local charities, some linked to donations made at special services, were further possible by the Autumn and Christmas period. A collection for the Washington Foodbank was made at our Harvest festival, and over the Christmas period we raised funds for Wateraid, Sunderland homeless charities, the C d e ’ S c e , Washington Mind – the mental health charity, and St Benedic ’ Hospice, Sunderland.

The considerable efforts made to tidy and encourage wildlife in our churchyard in the last two years have been recognized and appreciated within Washington V e’ ucce e B B m c mpe e . on won the Northumbria region award for best village in 2021, going forward for the UK finals in 2022.

6. Stewarding our building and churchyard for future generations

The church building is generally in good repair and in good condition. Planned repairs to roofing tiles and the ridge over the choir vestry were successfully carried out in June. Several other small maintenance tasks were carried out in the course of the year, and the PCC are grateful for the volunteer time and effort that ensured they happened. Our delayed-by-COVID Qu que A c ec ’ pec w carried out in September, and the report eventually received in 2022.

Our Flower Group has continued to excel this year, despite restrictions, providing excellent flower arrangements throughout the year and particularly ensuring that the church looks wonderfully inviting at the major festivals of the Christian year.

The Churchyard Working Group has continued the phenomenal progress made in clearing and improving the churchyard in 2020, which had previously been rather overgrown and dilapidated. Several volunteers come from beyond the membership of the church, proving an excellent way of involving and engaging with the wider community, caring for our heritage and green space together. The PCC further thanks the outside support of Sunderland City Council and the National Trust in advice, grants and time to share good practice in care of our churchyard.

Signed by the Priest-in-Charge on behalf of the PCC

Philip Lockley 9 April 2022

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Parochial Church Council Membership (Trustees)

PCC members (trustees) who have served during 2021 until the date this report was approved are:

Priest-in-Charge: In Vacancy (April 2020-March 2021) Revd Dr Philip Lockley (from March 2021) Curates: Revd Brenda Forrester (to December 2021) Licenced Lay Ministers (Lay Mrs Olive Sangha (Secretary) Readers): Mrs Ann Forth Mrs Dinah Gollan Church Wardens: Mr Andrew Cresswell Mr David Wood (until April 2021) Mrs Janet Miller (From April 2021)

Representatives on the Deanery Synod: Mr Andrew Cresswell (2020 - 2023) (Lay Chair) Mrs Barbara Fiddy (2020 - 2023) Mr Ashley Powell (2020 - 2023) Mrs Ann Harrison (2020 - 2023)

Elected members: Mrs Dorothy Butler (2019 – 2022) Mrs Hazel Felton (2019 - 2021) Mrs Helen Graham (2020 – 2023) Mr Geoff Judson (2018 - 2021) (re-elected 2021-24) Mrs Jane McIntyre (2020 - 2022) Mrs Beryl Nesbitt (2020 - 2023) Mr David Petherick (2020 - 2023) Ms Judith Petherick (2020 – 2022) Mr George Roberts (2020 - 2022) Mrs Janice Rutter (2020 – 2023) Mr Stephen Rutter (2020 - 2022) Mr Jonathan Tyreman (2019 - 2022) Mr David Wood (elected 2021-23) Mrs Phyllis Wood (2019 - 2021) (re-elected 2021-23)

Structure, governance and management

The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. All Church attendees are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and stand for election to the PCC.

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Trustee meetings

The full PCC met 8 times during the year with a high level of attendance. The first inperson PCC meeting was held in May, though members were able to continue to join meetings via Zoom if they chose for the remainder of the year. We are especially grateful to the volunteer effort and technical knowledge which allowed this accessibility.

Financial Report

The financial year ending December 2021 has continued to present challenges to our church finances, despite pandemic restrictions allowing our building to be more open than in 2020. We did however end the year with total funds of £87,742.32, an almost identical sum to that in 2020.

Our total income did not significantly increase over the course of the year. We have been able to maintain our bank balance largely because we committed to a lower Parish Share to the diocese in 2021, almost half of our pre-pandemic commitment. This made a huge difference to our funds on a month by month basis and we were actually able to give more than originally agreed once our Gift Aid claim came in. We ended up paying the diocese around two thirds of our pre-pandemic pledge. It should be noted that the majority of parishes in the diocese behaved in a similar way – we were not an outlier in this.

Our total planned giving income continues to decline as our total worshipping community is not increasing, and as those who do give regularly find their own financial circumstances changing. Our Gift Aid claim was also lower than in previous years, again due to less eligible funds to claim against. As predicted, income from collections at regular and occasional services has slightly increased, as has fee income from weddings and funerals. This is in line with our building being open and previously postponed life events now taking place.

We have managed to keep our expenditure at around the same level as in 2020 despite being a fully operational building for a greater proportion of the year. Although the figures show a circa £16,000 difference, this is accounted for by the reduced Parish Share amount and the cost of a significant roof repair.

Thanks to your generosity, we were able to send donations to our regular charity p e ve e Adve d C m pe d, c ud e C d e ’ S c e through our usual Christingle service collections. We have also received several oneoff donations towards our own activities, and contributions to leaving gifts. Thanks to you all.

We are extremely grateful to those of you who have continued to support the life and work of the parish through your regular giving in all its forms.

The PCC have been extremely vigilant in monitoring our finances and in forecasting future income and expenditure as far as it has been possible to do so in ever changing

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circumstances. Despite all the challenges, we have not slipped below our stated reserves amount.

Going forward, our financial position remains challenging. The PCC have committed to our full Parish Share amount for 2022, though it should be noted that the diocese for their part have reduced their expectation from us this year. This reflects an acknowledgement of our place in the wider church and our responsibilities to it. This commitment does however add around £1200 per month to our outgoings. Our regular planned giving is down by over £5000 per annum on pre-pandemic levels. Our usually very active social and fundraising life is yet to emerge out of pandemic restrictions and anxieties. We have not yet been affected by rising energy costs but our fixed term tariff ends later this year and it would seem reasonable to expect an increase in price. The Quinquennial Report carried out last autumn on the fabric of our building has identified several issues which will require expenditure over the short, medium and long term.

There is much work to be done and there are plans afoot to address some of our financial issues in the wider context of our church life and our place in the community. If you have ideas to share, expertise to offer or just questions to ask, please do not hesitate to approach myself, Philip or any of the PCC.

With thanks to you all, to Josh for his oversight of the accounts and to our external examiner.

Judith Petherick

PCC Treasurer

9th April 2022

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Washington Parochial Church Council

Financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2021 Receipts and payments account

2021 2020
**Unrestricted ** Designated Restricted Total Total
Incoming resources £ £ £ £ £
Voluntary Income
Planned giving 41,810.29 - - 41,810.29 42,526.66
Collections and other giving 3,997.31 - - 3,997.31 3,240.32
Income tax recovered 10,029.77 - - 10,029.77 16,191.68
Donations and fundraising activities 10,133.53 1,964.69 - 12,098.22 8,621.53
Grants received 2,250.00 - - 2,250.00 -
68,220.90 1,964.69 - 70,185.59 70,580.19
Income From Investments
Bank interest 45.87 - - 45.87 166.27
Rental income 6,750.00 - - 6,750.00 6,750.00
Generated Income
fees 17,680.50 516.00 - 18,196.50 16,870.66
Total Incoming Resources 92,697.27 2,480.69 - 95,177.96 94,367.12
Outgoing resources
Activities Directly Relating to the Work of the Church
Diocesan parish share 45,656.00 - - 45,656.00 67,100.00
Wedding and funeral costs:
Clergy 8,732.93 - - 8,732.93 9,754.90
Organists 2,479.23 - - 2,479.23 1,975.21
Verger 312.00 - - 312.00 -
Flowers - 1,426.61 - 1,426.61 -
Clergy expenses: Working 1,531.20 - 1,531.20 3,058.74
Accommodation 797.84 - - 797.84 697.19
59,509.20 1,426.61 - 60,935.81 82,586.04
Church Running Expenses
Rent and rates - - - - 296.00
Light and heat 4,611.74 - - 4,611.74 3,219.47
Insurance 3,367.49 - - 3,367.49 3,387.77
Repairs and maintenance 10,191.34 - - 10,191.34 5,369.93
-
Worship and service costs 426.34 101.05 - 527.39 1,667.58
Secretary 3,820.90 - - 3,820.90 3,937.00
Choir and organists 2,773.04 - - 2,773.04 3,125.23
25,190.85 101.05 - 25,291.90 21,002.98
Church Management and Administration
Office and administration costs 3,014.61 - - 3,014.61 2,306.56
Education and courses - 53.40 - 53.40 60.00
Donations paid 5,811.95 - - 5,811.95 5,595.09
8,826.56 53.40 - 8,879.96 7,961.65
Total Expenditure 93,526.61 1,581.06 - 95,107.67 111,550.67
Net Income / Expenditure - 829.34
 899.63 - 70.29 - 17,183.55
Bank Accounts Brought Forward 82,007.01 5,685.10 - 87,692.11 104,875.66
Bank Accounts Carried Forward 81,177.67 6,584.73 - 87,762.40 87,692.11

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Washington Parochial Church Council

Financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2021

Statement of reserve movements for year ended 31 December 2021

Reserve movements

Reserve movements
Unrestricted Funds
Designated Funds
- Youth and Children's Fund1
- Building Work
- Flower fund2
Total Designated Funds
Restricted Funds
- Grant Received for Building Work
Total Restricted Funds
Total reserves		 Brought
Carried
Forward
Income
Expenditure
Transfers
Forward
82,007.01
92,697.27
93,526.61
-
81,177.67
1,796.51
-
154.45
-
1,642.06
3,888.59
-
-
-
3,888.59
-
2,480.69
1,426.61
-
1,054.08
5,685.10
2,480.69
1,581.06
-
6,584.73
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
87,692.11
95,177.96
95,107.67
-
87,762.40

Notes:

  1. Reference PCC 24/11, the Youth Study Fund has been designated as Youth and Children's Fund. The objectives of the fund are set out in the PCC minutes.

  2. On 26/2, the PCC agreed that all fees received with respect to flowers and all specific donations should be recorded in a designated fund. All expenditiure on flowers should be charged to this fund.

Washington Parochial Church Council

Financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2021 Statement of assets and liabilities as at 31 December 2021

Monetary assets
Virgin Money account
Santander current account
Cash in hand
Total cash and bank		 2021
£
34,690.48
52,871.69
200.23
87,762.40		 2020
£
34,447.61
53,244.50
87,692.11

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Annual Parochial Church Meeting

Sunday 1 May 2022

3.00pm.

Agenda

Meeting of Parishioners

Annual Parochial Church Meeting

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