Worksop Christian Centre Vicar's Walk, Worksop S80 2HJ Registered Charity Number 1169816
Worksop Christian Centre Trustees' Annual Report – for the period 1 October 2019 30 September 2020
Administrative Information
Worksop Christian Centre, which is also known as ‘WCC’ and ‘WCC Life’, is situated on Vicar's Walk, Worksop S80 2HJ. The registered Charity number is 1169816.
Trustees: Stephen Bannister, Chair Sue Shepherd Gillian Wilson
The Trustees met formally three times in the period 1[st] October 2019 to 30[th] September 2020. (13[th] January 2020, 2[nd] September 2020,14th September 2020)
During September, the transition to new trustees began.
Section B - Structure, governance, and management Description of the charity's trusts
Worksop Christian Centre is a Christian church which became a Charitable Incorporated Organisation on 23[rd] September 2016, and which is governed by its Constitution, whose only voting members are its Charity Trustees.
Each Charity Trustee must be appointed for a term of five years by a resolution passed at a properly convened meeting of the Charity Trustees.
In selecting individuals for appointment as Charity Trustees, the Charity Trustees must have regard to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the CIO.
All Charity Trustees must subscribe and adhere to, in belief and lifestyle, the Statement of Faith.
The pastor and four elders are responsible for (and are recognised by the Church Fellowship as being responsible for) the spiritual leadership of the Church Fellowship in accordance with its Statement of Faith (Schedule to Constitution).
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Worksop Christian Centre Vicar's Walk, Worksop S80 2HJ Registered Charity Number 1169816
The spiritual government and leadership of the Church Fellowship for the purposes of which the CIO has been established shall remain with the Spiritual Leadership and to the extent to which the Charity Trustees are not synonymous with the Spiritual Leadership their powers shall be confined to the proper management and administration of the CIO in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution and in furtherance of the Objects and in so doing they shall have full and proper regard to the Spiritual Leadership provided always that they shall not act outside their powers as conferred by this Constitution and by general law.
Additional governance issues (Optional)
The Charity Trustees will make available to each new Charity Trustee, on or before his or her first appointment: 1) a copy of this constitution and any amendments made to it; and 2) a copy of the CIO’s latest Trustees’ Annual Report and statement of accounts; and 3) any other relevant documents for training and induction purposes.
Worksop Christian Centre is a member of the Evangelical Alliance.
Regarding the consideration of risks, and management procedures to manage them, Worksop Christian Centre has in place a Safeguarding policy and holds a risk register, both of which are maintained and implemented by a safeguarding manager.
Section C - Objectives and activities
The Objects of the CIO are, for the public benefit, the advancement of the Christian faith in accordance with the Statement of Faith; and the provisions of facilities for recreation and other leisure-time occupation for the inhabitants of Worksop and the surrounding area in the interests of social welfare and with the object of improving the conditions of life for the said inhabitants.
As a church, we encourage and equip people to serve in the community in Jesus' name through worship and prayer; studying the Bible; developing knowledge and trust in Jesus; providing pastoral care for people living in Worksop and the surrounding area; outreach work and practical assistance for all who need it.
Summary of the main achievements of the charity during the year
From October 2019 to March 2020, it was business as usual at WCC as we continued to provide activities and events for our local community
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Worksop Christian Centre Vicar's Walk, Worksop S80 2HJ Registered Charity Number 1169816
and church attendees. We have a church website and a wellmaintained Facebook presence as we communicate the range of events which would connect with all ages and sectors of the community.
As a church, we continued to seek to serve our local community by offering Sunday services, from prayer at 9am through to the main family service at 10.30am. We open our premises up for activities, events and services which appeal to a variety of people and ages in our community.
The Breaking of Bread service, which is incorporated into the main family service each Sunday enabled families and friendship groups to celebrate together and give thanks. During the Sunday service, the children, aged 4-11, would leave for their own groups for bible study, crafts, singing and games.
A prayer group was held on Wednesday evening to pray for the knowledge of Jesus to extend in Worksop and the surrounding area; for healing of the issues affecting each town and city in the UK; for each other; for the church throughout the world; for world disasters and events. This group is open to all those who are interested in praying for their world, and for those who wish to meditate on God's power in action, and all are made welcome. Since March this meeting has moved to being a Zoom meeting because of the lockdown restrictions.
Life Groups met at times to suit their interest and situation. These are groups of people from WCC, other churches, friendship groups, neighbours, work colleagues and casual acquaintances - they are open to everyone with similar interests.
The ladies used to meet approximately monthly for a Ladies Fellowship. When lockdown came along, this program was stopped although some women have continued to meet over Zoom.
Likewise, our men’s group met regularly during the year until lockdown forced a change. As with the women, some online networks have been run with varying degrees of success to maintain contact, especially for people who may have struggled more under lockdown conditions.
Children are catered for in various ways with weekly meetings for the different age groups:
- Chatterbox, our toddler group, meets every Friday morning and offers a breakfast for those youngsters who have missed theirs. The pre-schoolers enjoy singing, games, and general play, with
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Worksop Christian Centre Vicar's Walk, Worksop S80 2HJ Registered Charity Number 1169816
drinks for parents and carers. These parents and children are encouraged to participate in other church activities such as the children's groups and the Nativity play at Christmas.
-
Blast Off (Years 7 to 11) meet every Thursday evening for fun, refreshments, and a Bible-based talk.
-
Youth, for older teenagers, enjoy time together on a Friday evening.
Without the tremendous and generous offering of time, skills, money, and commitment from teams of volunteers, none of these groups would be able to run. We are immensely grateful to everybody involved.
On 13[th] October 2019 we celebrated Harvest Festival by bringing in food and distributing it to our community and neighbours. The generosity of our fellowship meant this year we were able to make up many food parcels to distribute locally.
On 31 October 2019, the youth leaders and helpers held a Light Party as an alternative to children wandering the street knocking on doors for Hallowe'en. and Invitations were sent to our local schools and into the community and there were plenty of treats for everyone, all provided for free.
WCC was a drop off centre for shoeboxes for Samaritan's Purse and at the end of November 2019, 66 shoeboxes were picked up from WCC.
The Nativity play this year was directed by two of our youth ministry team and starred many of our local children as well as regular church children. Parents and wider family members were invited along to watch the play and join with us afterwards for some festive refreshments.
From the middle of March 2020, we have been unable to continue with our usual programme of Sunday services and mid-week events because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Therefore, we have invested in new camera technology and been learning some new skills as we have sought to provide an online alternative to the Sunday services and other weekly events. We have been able to broadcast a service on most Sundays, mainly via Facebook and YouTube or Zoom.
Christianity Explored
The Christianity Explored course has been run by Worksop Christian Centre for the benefit of everyone interested in exploring Christianity. Because of lockdown the course was run online using Zoom, so people
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Worksop Christian Centre Vicar's Walk, Worksop S80 2HJ Registered Charity Number 1169816
could join in from the comfort of their own home. There were eight sessions altogether. Each week there was a short talk followed by a discussion. The course was well attended throughout. A review meeting was held afterwards to evaluate and determine how best to run it in the future.
Volunteer Shopping
WCC seeks to support those who are vulnerable or self isolating and was able to practice this with Volunteer Shopping. Practical safeguarding processes were put in place to protect all involved, and payment was only taken after the shopping had been delivered and the receipt provided. In some cases, where we knew people were struggling financially, we were able to donate or subsidise the shopping. A team of shoppers bravely queued and shopped for other people to ensure that they had a supply of food and household goods. We received monetary donations from other members to help us fund this activity.
Helping People Stay Socially Connected
We have also wanted to help people stay in touch with friends and family during the difficult and isolating time of lockdown, so although socially distant, nobody gets left socially isolated or lonely. If a person wanted to have someone phone them or be part of a video call group from time to time, then WCC offered to help them stay in contact.
Additional details of objectives and activities
All activities are run by volunteers to whom we are grateful for their dedication and skills. We would also like to thank all those who carry out the administration, maintenance and operational tasks which are essential to the smooth running of the church.
Financial Review
Total income for the year amounted to £97,049 which was gratefully received as giving from generous members. The expenditure amounted to £78,917, which was lower than budgeted due to slightly lower running costs during lockdown when the members were not been meeting in the church building.
Maintenance costs remained an area for expenditure at £4,129. This included an upgrade to the heating system to control and maintain the temperature in different zones within the church building, thereby reducing costs. Health and safety expenditure included the
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Worksop Christian Centre Vicar's Walk, Worksop S80 2HJ Registered Charity Number 1169816
replacement of two fire doors, a fire risk assessment, and an asbestos survey.
As the building at Vicars Walk is an old primary school built in 1890, it needs regular planned maintenance. A major repair of the roof to replace gulley linings has already been undertaken although the expenditure has been recorded in next year's accounts 2020-2021. Next, the interior of the building will be re-plastered and re-painted to deal with damage left by leaks. Each year, the maintenance budget is set at a level to include planned maintenance, and to provide for repair costs, which arise in such an old building. During lockdown and while the building was not fully utilised, various members have been regularly checking on security and ensuring everything is in good order, in line with the insurers' requirements.
It is WCC policy to maintain a balance on funds which equates to 3 months' expenditure, that is £22,500, to cover emergency situations that may arise. The funds are retained for - emergency repairs caused by extreme weather conditions, such as flood damage (as seen in Worksop in November 2019), for H&S upgrades, and unplanned emergencies.
Further financial review details
WCC is dependent upon gifts of money from regular donations and weekly offerings. Planned giving is made through bank transfers and gift aid envelopes.
Gift aid was claimed from HMRC for April 2018-2019 and received in March 2020 to the sum of £9093.76.
In January 2020, the Councillor's Divisional Fund at Nottingham County Council kindly gave £200 for the specific purpose of a contribution towards the event held for flood victims. The event - a party - was held at the beginning of January and was attended by around 45 people who had been affected by the November 2019 floods in Worksop.
In June 2020, WCC received a bequest of £5,175.33, with grateful thanks, from a well-loved member of WCC, Derek Badger, who was a tireless worker in the Food Bank and in many other areas in Worksop.
Section F - Other optional information
Over the period 2019-2020, WCC supported a number of Christian charities at home and overseas to a total of £8,262 in regular gifts:
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Worksop Christian Centre
Vicar's Walk, Worksop S80 2HJ Registered Charity Number 1169816
Love Worksop, Christians Against Poverty, The Children's Society, St John's Drop In, Project Romanian Rescue , Barnabas Fund, Release International, Samaritan's Purse, Vis de Copil, Christian Concern, Leprosy Mission.
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CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examinerfs report on the accounts Section A Independent Examiner s Report Report to the trusteesl members of Worksop Christian Centre On accounts for the year ended 30 September 2020 Charity no (rf any) 1169816 Set out on pages I report to Ihe trustees <)n my examination of th8 accounts of the above charity (Ihe TNsn for the year ended Responsibilitles and As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responsible for the preparation basls of report of the accthints n accoftlance with the requirèments of the Charities Act 2011 fthe Acn. I report in respect of my examinatim of Ihe Trust's accwnts carri8d out under section 145 of Ihe 2011 Ad and in carrying out my examinatii)n, I have ft)Ilowed Ihe applicable Dir8Ctions givan by the Charity Cc>mmission under Secti( 145{5){b) of the ACL I have completed my examination. I confim) Ihat no material matters have Come to my attention (other than that disclosed below.) in connection with the examination gives me caus8 to b81ieve that in, any material respecl: aCC(nI1g records V•ere not kept in accordan V•ith s8ction 130 of the Act or the accA>unts do accord ryth the accoling records Indep8nd6nt 6xamlnerfs slatement I have no concems and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attents'M should be drawn in order to enable proper understanding of the aCcnts to be reach8d. ' Please delete words in the brnckets rfthey ¢) not apply. Slgned: Name: Relevant professional qualification(s) or body Irfany): Address: )5 IER October 2018
Section B Disclosure Only (X)Mpte rf the examiner needs to highlight matters of concem (see CC32, Independent examinatK)n of charity ac¢wnts'. directions and guidan for examiners). Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to dlsclose. IER October 2018