# **Annual Report for the Benefice of Saxmundham with Kelsale cum Carlton for calendar year 2024** ## **The Church Council of SKC Church, formerly known as the Parochial Church Council of St John the Baptist, Saxmundham and the Parochial Church Council of St Mary and St Peter’s, Kelsale with St Peter’s, Carlton.** The trustees present their reports and the audited financial statements of the charities for the year ended 31 December 2024. ## **Aim and Purposes** The Church Council (CC) has the responsibility of cooperating with the incumbent to promote, in the ecclesiastical parish, the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. The CC is also specific responsible for the maintenance of the Church building(s) of which there are three church buildings and one church hall. ## **Rector’s Comment** Lamentations 3:22-23 that says: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 2024 was another year of seeing God’s faithfulness as we grew and changed in the benefice. This report gives a glimpse into what happened as God worked in us but there is always more that can be said than we have space for. Our mission is to love God, love one another, and love our communities. We seek to do that by: Encountering the love of Jesus in our life and worship Growing as Spirit filled disciple-making disciples Seeing communities transformed through the love of God We did so much towards our vision as God led us in mission and worship in 2024. Some of the highlights include (in absolutely no order whatsoever!): Visits from Stewart McCulloch from CAP and the DOXA team, Mandy’s ordination to the diaconate, a hog roast, journeying with Nic on his sabbatical and pilgrimage, the 30th anniversary of women priests and our celebration with Olwen and Pam in Kelsale, my licensing as Rector, confirmations in Aldeburgh and baptisms and re-affirmations of baptism in the sea in Sizewell, achieving the Bronze Eco Church awards in all three churches, our Light Party, the Lectio Course for Lent, the growth of the Community Fridge, developments in our café At the Crossroads, sustained efforts to tackle poverty through the Suffolk Coastal Debt Centre, the good news proclaimed through Open the Book and school assemblies, continued dedication to safeguarding, and of course all the services and gatherings on Sundays and midweek. Phew! It continues to be an absolute joy and privilege to be a part of this benefice and its huge variety of life and service in the community. Everyone had a part to play and so I want to thank you for all that you did last year. 2 Most importantly, all we do is for the glory of God and to see God’s kingdom come in our benefice. To quote Thomas Ken’s hymn from 1674: Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heav'nly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen! _Rev. Dave Preece (Rector)_ ## **Future Plans** In 2025 we are travelling on twin tracks of mission and prayer. Our vision to see communities transformed through the love of God will only be met through us engaging with those around us who don’t yet know Jesus and showing and declaring to them who Jesus us. We are seeking to engage in 25 missional things in 2025 (or ’25 in 25’ for short) and as part of that are hosting a mission week in September enabled by Through Faith Mission. Mission doesn’t just happen on set weeks or by particular people though. We are all called to the people and places that God has placed us in. Mission cannot happen without an underpinning of prayer as we seek God’s will and lift all we do to God in prayer. Similarly as we draw closer to God in prayer it moves us back into mission. We will continue to offer a variety of ways to engage with prayer both together (corporately) and individually as we seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit. One other thing that we are hoping to take great steps forward with this year is the toilet in Kelsale. We have been engaging with our architect to draw up plans and with water and drainage suppliers to see what can be achieved for the church. I am indebted to those with knowledge and expertise in these areas and can drive this forward. A huge thank you to those who have been involved with the financial side of things! I am excited to look back when I write the report for next year’s meeting to see where God has led us in 2025. 3 ## **Worship in 2024** We continued to offer a variety of ways to worship and encounter Jesus in our life and worship, for example 9:30 informal services, and 11:00am Holy Communions, benefice services, Music with a Message, New Wine celebrations, worship nights, Celtic Communions and contemplative prayer gatherings. In our preaching and teaching we spent time in the Lectionary during seasonal times (post-Christmas, Lent, post-Easter, Advent) and took the opportunities out of those times to delve into other topics. We explored prayer in June and July and Connecting with God in August. We delved into Hot Topics in the Autumn including science, climate change, prejudice, and assisted dying to name just a few. Hebrews 4:12 remains true ‘For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.’ Thank you to everyone who has enabled worship to happen in our benefice from service leaders, preachers, musicians and singers, refreshment providers, Bible readers, prayer leaders, door openers, people welcomers, book givers, collection counters, children’s leaders, washer uppers, candle lighters, chair and table movers, laptop operators, streaming geniuses, wine and bread providers, and so so many more! _Rev. Dave Preece (Rector)_ ## **9:30 Informal** The 9.30 service continues to go well with new faces joining us regularly, whether that be folk on holiday or people coming to check us out. Some have stayed which is amazing and we have loved having them as part of our church family. We sadly said goodbye to Rob and Lesley Aldred which left a big hole in our worship team. We were able to celebrate them and send them off with our prayers, love and blessing. Over the past year we have continued to stream live to Facebook and have seen some regulars who watch. A big thanks to Izzy Boswell who does a great job in running the tech for all of this alongside the camera work. We are looking for other folk to be able to run this side of things so please speak to me or feel free to shadow Izzy on a Sunday! Please continue to pray for the core team who plan and prepare the content for the 9.30 services. Pray that we will know what it is that God wants us to bring to the congregation, how we reach out into our community successfully and purposefully and how we serve God the best we can in all that we do. We want to see more people coming to know Jesus Christ, more people stepping out in faith, more baptisms! and more of Gods holy spirit doing work in people’s lives. _Rev. Dave Preece (Rector)_ 4 ## **11:00 Communions** I have been asked to report on our more formal services – those involving Holy Communion. Our pattern of worship within SKC Church continued unchanged in 2024, with Communion services (using Common Worship) generally taking place at 11am, with the exception of fifth Sundays where those occur (and other special events), when the service has been at 10. As previously, on the first and third Sundays in each month, the service has been held at Kelsale, while St John’s has hosted on the second and fourth. We also continued the tradition of Summer services in Carlton on third Sunday afternoons between April and September, using the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. ## **Who’s up front?** Our full roster of Lay Elders (Marjorie, Stephen, Fran, Malcolm, Jill, Jacqui and Viv) had led most services during the year, ably supporting Dave and myself who have often preached and presided at Communion. Mandy has been more active in our Communion services during 2024 and we look forward to her being ordained Priest this coming June. That said, we have also welcomed Sheila, Olwen, Phil and Mandy to preach and (pace Mandy) to preside as well. The variety of individual styles in all aspects of the service has ensured that there is much of interest Sunday by Sunday. In addition, we also had guest speakers from charities which we support as a Church: Ray Balmer from the Doxa Project and Stewart McCulloch from Christians Against Poverty. ## **Who’s in the pews?** One of the delights of our 11 o’clock congregation is the fact that a large proportion of those who attend do so wherever the service is happening, week-by-week. This really creates a powerful worshipping community and makes for great fellowship at the end of each service. It is rare for worshippers to disperse sooner than 40 minutes after the Blessing, such is the mutual love and friendship of the group. Numbers have remained steady. My sense is that the small number of people ceasing to worship with us (through house moves, infirmity or being called to a heavenly worship venue) is equaled by the body of newcomers, who are warmly welcomed by sidespeople and congregation alike. ## **Teaching** During the year, we continued to use the Revised Common Lectionary throughout the Church’s seasons (Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter etc.) but we have also had a long sermon series on Prayer in its many forms and another on Connecting with God, reflecting on the stories of characters in the Bible. A 6-sermon series over the Summer on “Hot topics” (including Climate change, Assisted Dying, prejudice, politics etc.) was well received. In addition to services to reflect our mission partners’ work, we had special services on Christian Unity, pilgrimage, Safeguarding and Remembrance. All in all a packed and varied programme. ## _Rev. Nic Stuchfield (Assistant Priest)_ 5 ## **Children and Youth on Sundays** Sunday Kids continues to meet every 1[st] and 3[rd] Sunday with a ranging amount of children and an even wider range of ages!!!! Sadly we said goodbye to Jess in September as she went to Uni in Wales. This was a big loss as she was a key part in our children’s work and we thank her hugely for all she has done. Thankfully Paul Atherton was waiting in the wings and alongside myself we lead this group helped by Sue.C and Paula each week. Big thanks to them also! Subjects we have covered over the past year are : Christian Foundations- looking at Who is Jesus, The Bible, From Heaven to Earth. Encounters with Jesus – Road to Emmaus , Thomas, Samaritan Woman and the Sermon on the Mount and the Life of Jesus. We try to get the mix right in terms of teaching and fun stuff, however at the moment it is a struggle with the huge age range. We would love to make 2 separate groups to be able to cater better to the children so if you feel led to be able to lead a group then please speak to Dave or Lou. Sadly the youth group folded due to lack of helpers and also regular attendance which is a shame. Again, if you feel this is something you feel you may be able run with then speak to Dave. Please continue to pray for these guys as some have GCSE’s this May and look to start college or Sixth Form. ## _Lou Boswell_ ## **Midweek Communion** The midweek service continues to attract good numbers of people and provides a warm relaxed style of worship. This is followed by lively fellowship and refreshments and is where people catch up with each other and share the joys and sorrows of life. This year, several people have shared significant birthdays and enjoyed delicious birthday cakes with us. These occasions would not be as enjoyable without the willing participation of its members. It has proved to be a good environment for people to ‘have a go’ at reading where perhaps a Sunday Service might be too daunting. My thanks go to everyone who has contributed to this service being made possible – not least those who have the skill to put the sound system on! And of course those who have provided refreshments, read, prayed, welcomed, helped to set up the Holy Table and put it all away, but most of all thank you to everyone who has come to worship our Lord. Let us continue to ‘Worship the Lord in the beauty of Holiness.’ (Psalm 96:9) ## _Rev. Olwen Field_ 6 ## **Curate’s Update** Following my ordination in June 2024 I was officially licensed as curate for SKC. Curacy is a time of training and development for ministry, meaning I’m not just an extra pair of hands and there is increased workload for Dave as he acts as my training supervisor over the next few years. A key aspect of this for me is to experience the different services and activities we have in our benefice, alongside formation evenings with our Bishop and training modules. I have continued to lead and speak at the 9:30 services at St John’s and Kelsale, and you will have seen more of me at the 11:00 communion services. At these I am able to watch and learn how our clergy conduct holy communion, a great opportunity to see how things are done in advance of my protesting in 2025. Of course church is not just about our Sunday morning services. As curate I am part of our standing committee and church council, giving me an opportunity to get involved in the leadership of the church and providing an insight into the wider activities in the benefice. I was reflecting on what is different for me since ordination and one element has been being present in the community wearing a clerical collar. I’ve spent more time at both our community fridge and church café both of which are part of our outreach to our local community. You can usually find me at these on a Friday morning. The conversations with regulars and newcomers to these outreach areas have been fulfilling and at times challenging and this is definitely an area of ministry I will continue to develop. Highlights of the year include my first baptism, which was such a privilege, and supporting our community and school Christingle services. Looking forward, 2025 will be another year of challenge and change. _Rev. Mandy Tucker (Curate)_ 7 ## **Home Groups and Discipleship** My hope is that we all grow as Spirit filled disciple-making disciples. There are twin elements to this – that we are filled with the Spirit _and_ that we also make disciples as we grow and follow Jesus ourselves. Our home groups continued to meet in people’s homes throughout 2024, although a couple have ceased to meet. A new group started following our very successful Christianity Explored course and they meet At the Crossroads. In Lent we ran the Lectio Course which was super helpful in equipping people with another way of praying and spending time listening to God through Spirit and Word. As ever we continue to seek new ways of engaging with discipleship. Later in 2025 we will be engaging with the Alpha course and it may be an opportunity to start new home groups. If you feel called to lead or start a home group please do speak to Dave! ## _Rev. Dave Preece (Rector)_ 8 ## **Pastoral Care** Jesus said: A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. _By this all people will know that you are my disciples_ , if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35, ESVUK, emphasis mine). As a church, we are to love one another, with the result that all people will know that we are disciples of Jesus. Personally, I think that we do pretty well on that score but we could do better and our pastoral care is the gold standard of loving one another: if we do not ensure that we fully support those in any kind of need (physical illness, emotional or spiritual distress, including grieving for lost loved ones and financial hardship) then what does that say about our love for one another? That especially applies to those within the community of faith but also, within reasonable bounds, those in the wider community. So what do we do: - Home Communions – mainly clergy, especially Olwen, but some Lay Elders visiting those who are housebound; - Care Home services – Olwen conducts Communion services once a month in Swann House; - Hospital visiting – when a member of our congregation is in hospital as an in-patient, Nic will try and visit them and also engage the support of the Chaplaincy team; - Informal visiting and contact – regular contact by members of the pastoral team to those experiencing isolation; - Prayer – either through the original telephone-based prayer chain or the newer, increasingly popular, WhatsApp prayer group many pray into situations of specific need; - Home Groups – although not formally pastoral care, the mutual love that is generated by home groups provides real pastoral support and encouragement when one of their number is experiencing difficulties of any kind. All these aspects have continued throughout 2024. I am grateful to Chris W and Sue P who have coordinated our pastoral activities with a light touch over the year and to all those who have sought to show Christ’s love through pastoral care. _Rev. Nic Stuchfield (Assistant Priest)_ 9 ## **Life Events** As in 2023, funerals remain a large part of our pastoral ministry and life events. Again, we conducted over 20 funerals and burials of ashes across the benefice. In November we held our annual All Souls service where we remember those whom we love who we see no more and it was well received (despite a fuse tripping and plunging us all into darkness just before the service). Unusually there were no weddings in our benefice in 2024 but we did have two re-affirmations of wedding vows which were both joyous occasions. We had two lots of sea-baptisms this year and they were fantastic! We also had a handful of baptisms for children in the churches themselves. ## _Rev. Dave Preece (Rector)_ ## **Deanery Synod** The Deanery Synod met 3 times in the past year. On 19th June 2024, at the Riverside Centre, Stratford St Andrew, there was an opportunity for new members to get to know each other over tea, coffee and cake. We then used a large deanery map to highlight the many and varied facilities, activities and resources spread across our parishes. On 8th October 2024, at Aldeburgh Church Hall, we continued the theme of shared resources and networking. In a group activity we focused on how to use limited resources to make an impact and how pooling resources and sharing strengths across our parishes could transform our initiatives. On 25[th] February 2025 we took a creative look at how we can use church buildings and parishes to extend outreach and mission beyond our regular worshipping communities. Speakers from different parishes in the deanery shared ways in which they had opened up their churches for creative, artistic and musical activities. Events contributed to fund raising but also gave opportunities to link with their communities beyond usual attenders. Our deanery will remain in its current structure next year as no pastoral reorganisation in neighbouring deaneries is planned. Our Rural Dean Richard Finch will be on Extended Study Leave (Sabbatical) from 12th May to 3rd August inclusive. SKC Deanery Synod members this year were Tony Gibbs, Stephen Hart, David May and Fran Raven _Fran Raven (Deanery Synod Rep)_ 10 ## **Safeguarding** The church of England nationally hit the headlines last year over historical safeguarding issues that had been poorly handled. This was sad and regrettable, particularly as the issue of safeguarding has been talked about for many years now. Whilst we can not change the past, we can, moving forward, do our very best as individuals and as a local church to ensure such mistakes are never made again. To that end we need to ensure any of our activities fall into line with our safeguarding policy. All that we do needs to reflect the love of God. We must care for the wounded, the victims, the vulnerable and all people who walk through our doors. I am pleased to say that the number of people having completed safeguarding training is rising slowly. Thank you to anyone who completed training when I have prompted them. Training is not just a tick box exercise. It is a means by which everyone can gain the necessary information to conduct themselves in a safe way and also informs us of the types of behaviour to look out for when running activities. I have had 7 safeguarding referrals made to me this year. In 2 cases the police were already involved and I was informed as a courtesy. 2 other cases were already being monitored by social service agencies and the other 2 were handled in house as pastoral care by myself and/or the clergy, 1 is currently being monitored after discussion with the diocese. If you know you need training or would just like to get some basic training to inform yourself, please talk to me and I can show you how to access the courses. If you can’t manage an online course there are several face-to-face options available. As we look ahead to our mission week later this year and anticipate more people being involved in our churches and activities we need to remember that safeguarding is not just up to me or the clergy. Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility. _Julia Kinsey (Safeguarding Officer)_ 11 ## **Report from The Parish Church of St. Peter's, Carlton** St Peter's, Carlton, resumed services on Sunday 21st April 2024 (4th Sunday after Easter) and subsequently every third Sunday in the month with Holy Communion until Harvest Communion (Trinity 17) on 22nd September. Grateful thanks to Dave, Nic, and Phil Abrey for being celebrants at those services, and also particular thanks to Jacqui Studd who supported me in services. There was a total of 6 Communion services throughout the summer and a total of 62 Communicants. The annual Candlelit Carol Service took place on 8th December with 74 people and 3 children attending and followed by mulled wine and mince pies. £229.40 was donated to the St Elizabeth Children's Hospice. There was 1 Funeral (Sir Peter Batho) on 8th May and 1 Funeral and Memorial Service for Beth Sellwood, who had been a faithful and much-loved parishioner at St Peter's. There was also 1 burial of ashes (Alexander Hurley) on 11th July. Total collections (excluding collection for St Elizabeth Children's Hospice) were £164.50. Again, many grateful thanks to Ann Moynihan, Sonya and Claire for faithfully and beautifully decorating the church for every service. Tony Driver maintained the churchyard regularly, and issues in relation to St Peter's fabric are highlighted in the Church Council's strategy. A Quinquennial inspection is due. _Nigel Pite (Former Churchwarden)_ 12 ## **Report from St Mary & St Peter’s Church, Kelsale** A floral feast of red, white and blue greeted visitors to St Mary and St Peter’s flower festival in June. Co-inciding with the village’s celebrations to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day, we took that as our theme and many a model Spitfire was spotted tucked into the wonderful arrangements. A mannikin dressed in Michael Marson’s flying suit stood guard at the entrance and we dressed in 40s attire to welcome visitors. That evening saw a concert given by Julian Larkin (harpsichord) and Caroline Foster (flute), which boosted funds still further. We raised the amazing total of £1,350, the majority of which after paying for some of the flowers, went to the fabric fund, boosting our efforts to raise money for a toilet at church. Thanks, too, to Elizabeth Rowson and the Barnabas and Emmaus Home Group who held two coffee mornings during the year, the proceeds of which, more than £1,000, have also been donated to the Kelsale Fabric Fund. Work continues towards the addition of a toilet in church. Over the past few months, we have been strengthening our links with the village and have plans for further collaborations in 2025, the next being a Harvest Supper at the Village Hall. There have been several special services throughout the year and two well-attended Muddy Church events took place in the churchyard at Easter and Christmas. A moving All Souls service was held in November and our carol service, followed by mulled wine and mince pies, was joyful, as usual. The Midnight service on Christmas Eve is always special, attracting many who do not normally attend church. Harvest Festival saw food items collected for the local food bank and Community Fridge. The church is filled to capacity with young voices a couple of times per term when Revd Dave leads a service for all children at Kelsale CEVC Primary School and a Christingle service was also enjoyed. Our family service has now been rebranded as Intergenerational, to welcome everyone of whatever age and takes place on the second Sunday of the month. During the year at St. Mary and St. Peter’s there were four baptisms, nine funerals and three burials of ashes. No weddings, surprisingly but we are making up for that this year when we already have three booked. Regular cutting and upkeep of the churchyard is maintained thanks to Tony Driver and his team and it is worth noting that after the spring flowering, the grass is not cut until the end of June to protect seeds and wildlife. We have explained this to the very few people in the village who take exception to “untidiness”. We enjoyed seeing the Ride and Striders in September, who visited both Kelsale and Carlton, raising money for our churches and Suffolk Historic Churches Fund. Once again we held a spring cleaning day and our thanks go to Rob Potter who cleared away the many high-level cobwebs, to the annoyance of our arachnid friends!! We are fortunate to have Carrie Wright, our cleaner, shared with St. John’s and have had many lovely comments in the visitors’ book on the spickand-span appearance of the church. _Cheryl Payne and Jacqui Studd_ 13 ## **Report from St John the Baptist, Saxmundham** It has been a privilege and honour to serve as Churchwardens to St John’s. We are both very grateful for the support and love we have received from the church and without which our role would be much more demanding. Below are some of the things we together with the CC Secretary have been involved with over the year. There has been the ongoing maintenance, a Cleaning Day and Work Party. The church has gained an Ecochurch Bronze Award, tree work has been undertaken, visits were received from Diocesan Officers and the Rural Dean. New information leaflets were produced. Oh, we also planned a Gathering of Churchwardens at Sizewell Hall and meet fortnightly with the Standing Committee. As we write, SKC is well poised for a year of mission with good attendances over 2024 at Services, the Filling Station, Christianity Explored, the Lectio Course, Home Groups and Prayer Triplets. Events at St John’s have included Dave’s induction, a Curry Nite, a CAP meal, the Art Festival, Parliamentary Hustings, St John’s Eve Hog Roast, the Garden Party, two Sea Baptisms, a Worship Nite, Ride and Stride, a Wreath-Making Workshop and Nic’s Talk on his amazing 500-mile Camino Walk. The Town’s Christmas Fayre was cancelled due to bad weather, but Dave managed to dress up as a Christingle – would you Adam and Eve it! We have submitted plans to the Diocese and East Suffolk District Council relating to refurbishment of the car park area adjacent to the church hall. This is necessary to improve the safety as the original surface laid some 16 years ago has deteriorated. Fundraising has included: £400 towards the Car Park project from the Wreath-Making workshop; £1750 to Elizabeth Hospice raised over Christmas; grants from the Diocese of towards the Christmas activities and community bags; a grant of £5000 from the Diocese towards the Car Park; a grant of £2700 from the Benefact Trust towards the Car Park. It has been good to see members of the church engaged within the community and supporting each other in different ways over the year, and also in discussing controversial topics with a level of respect for each other! It’s been a privilege as Churchwardens to see not only the close teamworking of the clergy and leadership, but also the outworking of the weekly and monthly rotas. So, thank you all! And yes, Jesus is alive! _Carol Cotton and Roger Hedley Lewis (Churchwardens)_ 14 ## **Our Schools (including Open the Book)** It has been another good year for our schools’ work. Dave has been in Kelsale Primary School leading collective worship every fortnight throughout the year. The entire school comes up to Kelsale Church at least once a term for a bigger celebration in which we see 180+ children and 80+ adults squeeze in leaving standing room only for the last adults who join! At Christmas the school came up and shared a special Christingle service which saw over 170 lit Christingles brought forwards by the children. Thank you to David May for regularly helping sort the space when the school are coming and to those who helped at the Christingle. We have had a successful year with Open the Book too. It has been really encouraging to see the children’s excitement when they realise we’re coming in. We head into Kelsale Primary and Saxmundham Primary every half term. Thank you so much to all the team who give up time, dress up, and present the love of God to the children! _Rev. Dave Preece (Rector)_ ## **Busy Bees – Toddler Group Mondays 9-11am** Busy Bees has continued grow over the past year and we have the privilege of working alongside many families in the area and beyond. Most Mondays we have between 35 and 45 children along with their parents, grandparents and carers. It has been wonderful to get to know both the children and the adults over the past year. We said goodbye to a few who have started school in September and also some who have started nursery. We have had very sad farewells to some treasured Grandparents who we’ve grown to love dearly which is one of the hard parts of our job. We have been blessed with new babies which we watch grow up before our eyes so fast! At Christmas we enjoyed our Christmas Party where we had a visit from Santa where 56 children all went away with a gift bag! Some of our families came to the Crib Service which was very special and we also did our annual collection for The Moses Project collecting items and clothes for newborns. Many people comment on how lovely our group is which is testament to our fabulous team who spend time loving and supporting the adults and also playing and caring for the children. It has been great to see friendships blossom between the adults and the children and creating a space that is welcoming and loving to all. We are very keen to share with the adults that we pray after each session and make it our goal to follow up on issues that they may be dealing with. Please pray for our little community of Bees as so many families have struggles and issues and we count it a privilege to be able to love and support them. Pray for our team – Katherine, Carol, Sue.M, Sue.C, Lynn, Jill and Caroline as we serve God in this way. I couldn’t do it without them! _Lou Boswell_ 15 ## **Saxmundham Community Fridge (SAXCF)** We have seen a large increase in the number of people reached by the project in 2024. Tesco asked if we could take on an extra evening collection – long story short, this has resulted in our being able to give a weekly donation to a toddler group, two local nurseries, and an early Wednesday morning pop-up CF at Saxmundham Primary School. This means we are reaching a wider range of ages (not just those able to visit us at 10:30am on Monday and Friday) especially young families. As you can see from this photo, our volunteer team is getting younger by the minute! This young lad is our youngest volunteer and helps every Wednesday… For those you of a Health and Safety persuasion, this box was actually feather-light!! Christmas week saw the first SAXCF “Flash Fridge”! This resulted from a large donation from the supermarkets late on Christmas Eve… 18 people were able to come to the church hall following a Facebook announcement. In addition these people were able to give food to their friends and neighbours – see some stats: We are now part of the East Suffolk Food Network and recently sent volunteers to the inaugural Suffolk Food Summit in Stowmarket. We continue to work hard at building relationships with other local food projects and we all help each other as and when we can. We have recently been asked by the East Suffolk Food Network to meet with two ladies hoping to open a Community Fridge/Pantry in Framlingham. They were very enthusiastic about the SAXCF, took lots of notes and are hoping to follow a similar model to ourselves and we look forward to supporting them in the future. Having said that we are not a crisis food bank we have continued to support and build local relationships with families, through our links with the Suffolk Coastal Rural Debt Centre. We are able to respond quickly to a need by giving a SAXCF “Pay It Forward” voucher for Project 40Seven and IP17 GNS using donations given to us. 16 We were again asked to be involved in the SAX Art Fest 2024 as a community project. We were once again able to provide a community-focused area in the car park that Saturday. Amongst other things we provided free tea and coffee and St John’s church (now SKC Church) provided Take Home Messages and a cake stall. Representatives from East Suffolk council also gave us field to fork kits to hand out, and provided Food Savvy information. We held our fourth Apple Pressing session using apples provided by William again! We were able to give out freshly-squeezed apple juice to everyone who came along to the church hall. The “Foundation Fitness” weekly sessions started by one of our volunteers, for volunteers and friends, continues to flourish. This class encourages and educates on movement and flexibility as we grow older. It has raised a considerable amount of money for Third World projects. Our FaceBook page also continues to grow and now has nearly 1,000 members. _Marion and Martin (Community Fridge Team)_ 17 ## **Historic Churches Ride and Stride** The SHCT annual sponsored ride and stride took place on Saturday 14th September 2024 700 Suffolk churches and chapels were open to receive visiting cyclists and walkers. This year we had a good number of striders completing a route which took in 5 churches, starting in Kelsale and returning to Saxmundham via Carlton. We enjoyed coffee and biscuits in Kelsale and Carlton and picnic lunch at St John’s. The SKC combined total raised was a brilliant £2,360 ! Huge thanks to the team who staffed our 3 churches throughout the day welcoming visitors and to all who generously sponsored our riders and walkers helping to raise money for our church buildings. _( Plus the Preece Family who had already hurried on for extra time at the playground ! )_ Thank you all ! ## And the date for this year’s event is **Saturday 13[th] September.** _Fran Raven_ ## **At the Crossroads** At the Crossroads continues to be a constant presence on the High Street, providing a friendly meeting place for our customers. We enjoy being part of the community, offering a place where the Community Fridge can make their coffee and opening up for the street fayres. Groups from Church also meet here when the cafe is shut, including the book club, a home group and a contemplative prayer group. During the year we have looked at developing the cafe side of things. We promoted a couple of mornings, inviting Church members to pop in for a coffee. We also trialed a coffee machine, which was not as successful as was hoped. Some days are quieter than others in the cafe- Mondays seem to be quiet but Wednesdays are usually very busy. As well as the cafe, the shop has continued to offer Christian greetings cards, books and gifts. There have been regular orders for Bible Study notes and sales were boosted by orders for Lent Course resources for SKC and other churches. Approaching Christmas, the new stock of gifts and cards proved popular, and a sale of them after the services at St John’s on one Sunday in October was successful. At the Crossroads is manned by a fantastic group of volunteers, who are vital in providing a friendly and warm atmosphere, serving refreshments, engaging in conversations and offering a listening ear when needed. Without these people and those behind the scenes who are responsible for shop and catering purchases, rotas and repairs, amongst other things, At The Crossroads could not function, so a huge thankyou must go to them. _Katherine Dunnett_ 18 ## **Suffolk Coastal Debt Centre** The Debt Centre continued to grow in both scope and scale in 2024, helping to meet the growing needs of those experiencing poverty across East Suffolk. The leadership team, drawn from six different churches, has worked extremely effectively during the year, with no loss of energy, despite the fact that there has been some turnover during the year, with Mike and Sue Rugg-Gunn moving to Bromley to be near their family and Keith Pickersgill joining our number to take on Adult Money Coaching co-ordination. ## **Debt Help** Our core Debt Help service saw steady demand year-on-year, using up all our capacity for it both internally and within CAP. As in recent years, we have observed a steady deterioration in both the levels of wellbeing (or lack of it) of newly taken-on clients as well as their budgetary circumstances. Despite the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, we managed to limit our waiting list for appointments to manageable proportions. Our contract with CAP limits us to two new client households per month and we need to look for ways of increasing our capacity. We still continue to seek to recruit and train a new Debt Coach to work alongside Laura and the evergreen Chris Cotton (who share our current Debt Help workload) and to increase our contract with CAP. However, neither of these proved to be possible so we had to innovate: we created the concept of the Debt First Responder (DFR) that is covered in more detail below. By the end of the year, however, although we are still at full capacity, we no longer had a long waiting list for appointments. ## **Debt First Responders** A DFR is a volunteer who has been trained in a number of important areas to support debt help and other service users in a way that goes beyond the normal befriender role. These areas include: Money Coaching, mental health awareness and specific training on forms of emergency assistance available to those in poverty. Where a new debt help client has a first appointment that is more than one month into the future, the Debt Coach handling the client will call upon the services of a DFR to intervene immediately. Given that most people who ring Bradford only do so when in dire distress, the need to provide an immediate response is vital. The DFR may be able to sit alongside the client to help organize emergency financial support (e.g. a Discretionary Housing Payment) or simply to hear their story. The DFR is able to help the client collate financial information speeding the process of Debt Coach meetings when the appointments start and is likely to get a sense as to the ability of the client to complete the CAP process (by no means a certainty!). Although the early response role of the DFR explains why we designed the concept originally, our deployment of DFRs is increasingly associated with supporting those in poverty who do not have excessive debt. Such people do not fit into the CAP model (which is primarily about getting people out of debt) but constitute a very large proportion of those experiencing poverty. CAP nationally has shown great interest 19 in the concept (meeting both of the above objectives) and is now committed to working with us to roll out the concept nationally. We continue very much to appreciate and enjoy our bilateral relationship with CAP. Ten DFRs have been fully trained and most of them are actively involved with clients whose needs are often protracted and complex. We are seeking new volunteers. ## **CAP Money Coaching** ## CAP Money comes in adult, youth and children’s formats. After our success in Schools in 2023 (when we were funded by Suffolk County Council to run the Primary school format in 20 classes), 2024 was a quieter year for our Schools work. Using a different, Church Sponsorship, funding model we took the course into 5 classes during 2024 but 2025 has already seen a marked uptick in this work with more funding and the recent recruitment of a dedicated Schools and Teaching co-ordinator. The Adult variant of CAP Money – now called Money Coaching and completely revamped in late 2023 as a four-session course – was well-co-ordinated by Julia Rose to offer budgeting advice whenever requested or proposed by our Debt Coaches to clients. In late 2023 it was integrated into our DFR programme and this has enabled it to be used flexibly to support the needs of DFR service users. Keith Pickersgill is picking up the management of this aspect of our work in 2025. ## **CAP Life Skills** Under the leadership of Sue Rugg-Gunn, our Life Skills manager, our programme of Life Skills group courses really blossomed in 2023 (we were commissioned to run three (9-week) courses by East Suffolk District Council). The course is designed for up to 10 people to learn, amongst other things, how to deal with the pressure to spend, cooking cheap but healthy meals, spotting a good deal, improving relationships and a number of other essential life skills. Aside from the coaching, the key benefit of the course has been the opportunity to combat social isolation: startlingly in our technologically-networked society, large numbers of people lack opportunities for social interaction. Those who attended the courses have felt loved by the team, by Christ and by each other by the end of the nine-week course. Sue left us last Summer to move to Bromley, with Julia Rose, for a long time a stalwart of the Life Skills course themselves, changing responsibility to this aspect of our work from her previous leadership of Money Coaching. Our next Life Skills course will begin in Woodbridge after Easter. ## **Other activities** We continue to seek to expand our church partnerships (mainly done by Laura and Nic). Doug Fletcher has carried on doing our newsletter, administration and (working with Julia Kinsey) our safeguarding. To that he added DFR and Befriender co- ordination. Julia took over Life Skills from Sue Rugg- Gunn and Keith took over Money Coaching from Julia! So, we had an organisational game of musical chairs with the additional twist that we keep adding chairs rather than removing them! Our need for funding continues to be blessed by God (but we have never yet turned away humanlyinitiated gifts!) so that we are currently funded until late Summer. 20 The success of the DFR concept in meeting the needs of a wider range of people experiencing poverty (but who do not have unmanageable debt) together with our growing understanding of the complex dynamics of poverty and its causes in people’s lives, is causing us to review our strategy radically. At a superficial level, this will entail a change of name as well as a different relationship arrangement with CAP (though still very much in partnership). We will be rolling out this revised Strategy during Q2. I am privileged to be able to be part of such a gifted and committed team, leading a mission that is manifestly dear to God’s heart of covenant love and compassion. _Rev. Nic Stuchfield (SCDC Chair)_ 21 SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2024 Annual Accounts of SKC Church For the year ended st 31 December 2024 Reg Charity no 1171576 st SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2024 Index Introduction Trustees report Consolidated statement of financial affairs Balance sheet (Combined) Treasurers report At the Crossroads 10 Suffolk Coastal Debt Centre (SCDC} Independent Examiners report 13 st SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2024 Introduction SKC Church was formed in January 2023 as a result of a restructur8 and Combined the assets of 2 parishes, comprising 3 churches.'_ St John's Church Saxmundham- a large wèll used Church in the heart of Saxmundham with a verv versatile worship spa Stma and St Peter's Church Kelsale - in the heart of the next village north. St Peter's Church Carlton, a delightful, small rural Church with no mains service. All worship is by candlelightl A Scheme was approved by Special Par¢)Ghial Church Meelings in each parish to create a Joint Church Council (under the 2020 revision lo the Church Representation Rules) with effect from January 1st 2023. The Scheme included the amalgamation of the parishes, assets within SKC Church, the new name of both the Benefice and the Registered Charity. 31 Page st SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 De￿rnber 2024 Report of the Trustees The trustees present the financial statements ol the Gharity for the year ended 31 De￿mber 2024. The accounts have been reviewed by our Independent Examiner. Aim and Purposes The Church Council (CC) has the responsibility of cooperating with the Incumbent to promole, in the ecclesiastical parishes, thè whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, S￿la1 and e¢umenical. The CC is also SFecifically responsible for Ihe maintenance of Ihe Church building(s) of which there are three Churches, one Church Hall and a Café (At the Crossroads) on Saxmundham High Street. Background Kelsale and Carlton12 and 3 on page 3 above) became a united parish in the late 19th Century. The creation of a Joint Church Council (under the 2020 revision to the Church Representation Rules) on January 1st 2023 saw the assets of the 2 parishes (Saxmundham and Kelsale-cum- Carlton) combined under the leadership of Rector, Rev. Dave Preece and Assistant Priest, Rev. Nic Stuchfield. SKC- our Church funds The 3 pillars of SKC remain in place'.- The Church is at the core of our activities, Covering all 3 buildings and communities. The SOFA of the Church alone is included on Page 7. The Café "At the Crossroads, or "@tc° is a small unit in Saxmundham High Street, manned by volunteev6 and serving coffee and snacks and a selection of Christian themed books, cards and gifts, with mission orientation. Th8 SOFA and report are induded on Page 10. Suffolk Costal Debt Centre is based at St Johns but serves and supports folk with money and debt advi￿ and training along the Suffolk coast area from Beccles to Woodbridge. The Debt Centre SOFA and report are included on Page 12. These are brought together as Gonsolidated Charrty accounts for the purpose of this document. Following the combination of the 2 panshes. accounts at the beginning of 2023 a healthy surplus in the Unrestricted °pot° was apparent. The CC made a decision in 2023 to use some oflhis to furtherthe word of God in the area. They failed to need this and the Church made surplusl They again budgeted a deficit for 2024 but failed here too, carrying out all the Mission we identified, giving over £5k to Mission partners and still having a surplus. In nearly 2 years of being involved with the Church. I have yet to report a deficit for a period. 41Page SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31" December 2024 SKC Church Sofa Con801idated Forthe ￿rfod from 01 Janugry 2024 to 31 Doe•mber 2024 UnratrF¢tsd Deslgnat•d funds tunds Restricted funds Total funds PrSor year total funds Income and endowments from.. Donations and legaaas 100.597.40 21.843.84 28,544.64 150,985.88 170,891.70 In(￿rne from charitable activIt￿5 6.363.51 3.759.92 3,340.55 13,463.98 13,895.44 Other trading activitie$ 9.763.05 9,763.05 6,569.67 Investments Total inGom8 Exponditure on.. 7.853.87 114814.78 42.82 35,409.63 7,896.69 182,109.60 3 709.41 195,066.22 31,885.19 Raising ftjnds Expenditurè on charitable activities 21.60 1,197. 378.05 1,597.25 821.65 97,572.11 35,856.75 17,611.22 151.040.C 147,852.40 Other ex nditu diture 141.49 97.735.20 12,OOS.39 49,059.74 1,746.65 19 735.92 13,893.53 166 530.86 44 193.48 192 67.53 Total ex Ngt income I1oxp8nditurel resou￿¢ beforn trdnsfgr 17.079.58 113.650.111 12.149.27 15.578.74 2,198.69 Transfers." Gross transfers behveen ftJnds- in 13,571.C 15.675.57 1.030.40 30,277.03 81.489.10 Gross transfers befyveen fiJnds- out {14,471.201 115,041,46} 1764.37) 130,277.03} 181.489.10) GainsJlosse$ on investment assets 4.025.32 4.025.32 (1,721.181 Gains on revaluation, fixed assets Ntrt movemont in funds 7 362.21 16,884.701 16,179.44 113.016.001 16.440.62 19,604.06 Total funds brou ht fornard Total funds carried forward 84 243.42 100A22.86 62,708.79 49.692.79 98,924.83 115.365.4S 245,877.04 265,481.10 238 037.32 231,152.62 Sl Page SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31¥ December 2024 SKC Consolidated Balance Sheet 31st Decem￿r 2024 Asat 3111212024 Asat 3111212023 Current assets SKC Church (CAF Curr6nt) 2,146.85 5,580.54 Debt Centre (CAF current) 17,944.77 18,140.60 At the Cross Roads (CAF Current) Kelsalo Bell fund {CCLA Inveslment) 3,321.93 4,788.27 60.883.40 58.858.08 SKC Church CCLA Deposit 142,264.10 135,328.37 SKC Church {CAF deposit) 40,447.60 25,545.70 Total Current agsets 267,008.65 246,239.S6 Liabilities Agency Collections Total Liabilities Not Asset surplus Ideficlt 1,527.55 1,527.55 265,481.10 362.52 362.52 245,877.04 Represented by Funds General {Unrestricted) 100,422.86 84,243.42 Designated 49,692.79 62,708.79 Restricted Total 115,365.45 265,481.10 98,924.83 245,877.04 SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31. December 2024 Treasurer's Report 'SKC° has had another very successful year. Following its creation, and the amalgamation of the accounts, it became clear at the beginning of the year that th8 newly-reorganised Charity would have a healthy general unrestricted reserve and consequently, in a declaration of faith the Church Council (CCI set a deficit budget for the year 2023 to use some of these reservés. We were able to deliver God's work during the year and had a small surplus. In 2024 we had again budgeted to use part of our accumulated general reserve to fund our work. Again God and our supporters had other plansl Al the end of the year. tPEre was an amount of tidying up and rationalisation of the funds we hold. A balance of £4.5k was collected by SKC Church and shown as a Restricted reserve for th8 Debt Centre. partly from donations following Nic's very successful walk of the entire Camino de Santiago {nearly 500 milesl) and by a long-term supporter having a fundraisin9 "special" birthday event where prO￿ed$ supported the Debt Centre. These funds were transferred in January 2025 and are shown in the accounts as a post-Balan¢e Sheel transfer. The accounts are presented in detail b8low. The previous two pages comprise a consolidated Statement of Financial affairs for the Charity and a Balan￿ she8t. A few comments are made with éach section. Finally I would like to thank Rev Dave Preece and Rev Nic Stuchfield for their friendship and support through the year and for their leadership of a Church team that 1$ enthusiastic and dedicated to the cause. Church Council meetings are always rewarding events as members debate and challenge on matters discussed showing a good understanding of the various issues that surround "Being Church. Table of major Funds Fund General Car Park re Debt Centre Mission & Oulreach At the Crossroads Church away weekend de osits Carlton Fabric Kelsale Fabric Community Barn & Frid Kelsale Bells Kelsale Reorderin Other funds Total Unrestricted 100.423 Desi natsd R8stricted airs 5,000 9,433 24,382 3,322 2.020 10,545 4,685 6,698 80,883 13.913 2,976 100,423 11536S 71Page SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31$1 December 2024 The Church SKC Church Sofa S•parate Designatsd For tho pèriod from 01 January 2024 to 31 Oecember 2024 Unrestricted Designated Restrlcted funds fund$ funds Totsl fvnd$ Prior yèar total fund¥ Income and endowments from.. Donations and legacies IIXJ,597.40 2,417.94 21.265.76 124.281.10 135.393.58 Income from charitable ac￿V￿a$ 6,363.51 3,759.92 3,340.55 13,463.98 13,895.44 Other tradin9 a¢tivitie3 1,830. 1,830.CX) 150.CM) Investments 7,853.87 114.8q4.78 7,853.87 147.428.95 3,681.38 153.120.38 Total income Expenditure on.. 8,007.86 24.606.31 Raising funds Expenditure on charitable activities 21.60 117.60 378.05 517.25 324.85 97,572.11 13,720.57 13,831.79 125,124.47 117.993.93 Other ex Totsl ex enditurg Not incomo I lexpendliur•l rosources before transfer enditur 141.49 97 735.20 2,660.18 16 498.3S 1,746.65 13 956.49 4 548.32 35 241.09 130 190.04 153,559.87 17,079.58 18,490.491 8.649.82 17,238.91 1439.491 Transfers.. Gros8 transfer$ between funds- in 13.571.( 15,125.57 980.40 29,677.03 58,507.70 Gross transfers bethen fvnds- out Post balance sheet transler- out (14,471.201 {14,491.461 14,018.341 1714.371 129,677.031 (58,507.101 (543.271 14.559.611 Gainsllosses on investmtnt assets 4.025.32 4,025.32 71,*1.97 Net movem•nt in funds ReconcAliation of funds Total funds brou ht forward Total funds carrled forward 16,179.44 111.872.721 12,397.90 16,704.62 71,522A8 84,243.42 100,422.86 44 793.88 32.921.16 93,912.87 106,310.TI 222.950.17 239.654.79 151.427.69 222.950.17 Unrestricted or "runnin and costs. Unrestricted income was £115k Church members continue to support the Churches and give generously. Stripping out hlstoriG Gift Aid reGlaims and other one-off factors in 2023, total giving rose by around 30￿. Maximum use is made of Gift aid recoverable and most funds are kept in a high interest account, leading io a more than doubling of interest incorne to £7,800. Unrestncted expenditure was £98k before transfers. Parish Share of £76k was once again paid in ￿11 and the othercosts of£22k inGluded Insuran￿, maintenance contracts and upkeep of the Church buildings and grounds and service-relaled costs. SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2024 The transfer in of £13.5k is a designated fund {General Reserve) set up some years ago to keep a contingent fund to cover running costs should giving cease. This has now been combined with the general reserve and the balan￿ of £100k would run the Churches for 12 onths, even if no income were received. on￿ again, the CC will try to redu￿ these reserves by setting a deficit budget for unrestricted funds for 2025. The transfer out of £14k is to clear some other designated funds operated during the year such as Ha51 running costs, training and Youthwork. It also inGludes a transfer of £5k to our Giving to Mission and Charities fund. This sum was distributed during the year to local, national and international Charities. nated or'mone ut aside for a Designated funds have reduced by £11.9k to £33k. The reduction is entirely due to the reclassification of the General Reserve fund to the Unrestricted funds. This total Carried forward is mainly constitLrted by funds held for Mission and Outreach (£24,400) which will fund multiple mission activities in 2025. Restricted funds or'funds received which can onl be used for a arti¢ular ose" Restricted funds have increased to £106k. This includes funds comprising money raised for Kelsale reordering (£14k). Members of Kelsale are desperate to have toilet facilities on their site and are raising money to increase these funds to the level needed to fund the installation of these facilities. The Kelsale Bell Fund now totals £61 k, with very limited scope for being spent on its original purpose. In the latter part of the year £4.5k was received into Church bank account on behalf of the Debt Centre. It was transferred to the Debt Centre bank in January, but 1$ Shown as a post balance sheet transfer. Money is also held as the balancÉ of grants and donations to support the work of the Community Fridge and Bam operated under the umbrella oflhe Church. Finally, I would like to thank Rev Preece, the Church Council and people of SKC for making me so welcome and not forgetting ihe support, help, encouragement and friendship of Nic which has made Serving the Benefice such a pleasure. Robert Flemlng Treasurer Stat•m8nt of Going Concern Accounts are regularly reported to the SKC Church Council. Annual costs include essenlials such as Insuran￿ and Utility costs, "Obligations. such as Parish share and costs of maintaining and delivering Mission and Ministry. In 2024, unrestricted costs were £98k. Unrestrictèd reserves are £1 Ook. meaning that the financial strength of the Charity means its reserves could support the Charity for 12 months, should it re¢eive no further income. The Church Council believe there are no financial barriers to its operations and consider the Church a going con￿rn. Robert Fleming Treasurer SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2024 SKC in the High Street SKC maintains its Presen￿ in Saxmundham High Street with the Café serving hot and Gold drinks as w811 as selling Christian cards, books and literature. It is manned by volunleers and run by a separate Management committee which includes mèmbers ofthe SKC Church Council. During the year. the Management Committee and representatives of CC made some mlnor improvements to the Café to make it look more welcomin9 and to encourage people in. Modest costs have been incurred in doing this but there are green shoots of growth appearing that encourage us that the annual deficit is reducing. InGome from café sales was almost £1,300 higher than 2023 and sales of books remained at similar levels. Total income was £1,500 higher, although £500 was a transfer of funds from a reserve held by the Church. Costs were almost £400 higher due to extra purchases of coffee and café supplies. SKC places huge Importan￿ on having the café and are looking tofurtherdevelop it, including running some COLtrseslmeetings in there which will generate rental income. At the Crossroads Statement of Financlal Activities for the 8ar ended 31st December 2024 Unreslricted Funds 2024 2023 Income from.. Other Tradin activities Interest from Investment Total Income 7.933.05 7.82 7,940.87 6,419.67 6.78 6,426.45 enditure on'.- Raisin funds Other Ex nditure Total Expenditure 60.¢)0 9,345.21 9,405.21 50.00 8,952.39 9.002.59 Sho sales Net Incomel enditure for thè ear Sur lus brou hl fotward Total Funds carried forward 1,464.34 4,786.27 3.321.93 2,575.94 7,362.21 4,786.27 IOIPage SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 Detember 2024 SKC and CAP- the Suffolk Coastal Debt Centre {SCDC) Th8 Debt Centre was established in 2018 to help people experi8ncing debt distress manage their debt and beGome debt-free. The Debt Centre works in partnership with Christians Against Poverty and helps people in a large area along the coast from the River Deben in the south to the Waveney in the North la total area of some 1,000 km ). It has a Management Committee drawn from a range of partner churches, chaired by Rev Stuchfield. It operates its own bank account and records and reports its results to the SKC Church Council. The ntre is funded by Grants and donations, pays a Debt Centre Manager but is supported by a signifiGanl number of volunteers, SKC also provides meeling space free. SCDC is a REAL Living Wage employer. Note 3 below shows the financial affairs of the Debt Centre. Total Income in 2024 amounts to £26.7k in the year. However during the year, as mentioned elsewhere a friend of SCDC held a special birthday celebration and Nic walked the Camino de Santiago, both in aid of the work of SCDC. The funds, along with some other amounts, amounting to £4.559 in total were received into the SKC Church bank account. They were transferred into the SCDC account in January and are shown as a post-Balance sheet transfer. As mentioned above, the Centre bears the full payroll cost of th@ Debt Centre Manager together with her (and others,) expenses. Total expenditure was £26.9k. Taking into account the post-Balance Sheet transfer lof SCDC funds earned in 2024 to its own accounl), the surplus for the y&ar across all SCDC funds amounted to £4,363. The distribution of reserves across the range of SCDC funds at the yearond was.. Main Fund.. £11.779 Life Skills Courses £1,671 Money Coaching Adults CAP Money Schools Debt cent￿ Relief Fund £352 £1,032 £6,751 Youth Opportunity Grant £920 There are amazing testimonies, from clients who have approached the Debl Centre and have not only been helped to improve their financial affairs but have been exposed to the message of the Gospel and become practising Christian believers. IIIPage SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31st December 2024 Suffolk Coastal Debt C¢ntro Sofa Sèparatè Designated For the dod Irom 01 J•nu# 2024 to 31 December 2024 De8ignated Re•tri¢ted Totsl Prfor year funds funds fundB funds Inc<>me and endowments from.. Donations and legacies 19,425.90 7.278.88 26,704.78 35,498.14 Investmentg Total Income Expenditura on.. 35.00 35.00 21.25 26.739.78 36.619.39 19,460.90 7,27B.88 Raising fvnds 1,020.00 1,020.00 Ex Ènditure on d)aritsble activities Total ex enditure Net income I (expenditure) Yesour¢e befo￿ trartsfer 22,136.18 23 156.18 3,779.43 3.779.43 25,915.61 29,858.47 26 935.61 30.305.27 13.695.28) 3.499.45 1195.83) 6.214.12 Transfers.. Gros¥ transfers btheen funds- in Gross transfers beNveen ￿nd$- out Post-Balan￿ Sheet transfer in 550.00 1550.00) 4016.34 50.00 150.001 543.27 8CK).00 2,982.00 1600.00} 12,982.001 4,559.81 Gain8n088es on investment a55et5 12,926.48 Net movement In fund8 321.06 4,042.72 4.363.78 18,140.60 Total fund¥ brought forward Total fund$ carried foTh¥ard 13,128.64 5,011.96 18 140.60 13.449.70 9,054.68 22,50&38 18.140.60 121Page SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31st Dttember 2024 Ind•pend•nt examinerfs report to the trustees of Tho Parochial Church Council of: Beneflce of Saxmundham with Kelsalo cum Carlton I report on the accounts of the Trust for the year ended 31 December 2024 Respectlve responslbllltles of trustees and examlner The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the a￿oUnt8. The charitys trustees ¢onsiderthat an audit is not required for this year under section 144121 of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examlnation is needed. It is my responsibility to.. exarnine the accounts under seclion 145 of the 2011 Act. to follow the Pro￿dureS laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commlssion under section 145151(b) of the 2011 Act; and to state whether particular matters have come to my attention. Basls of Independent examiner's report My examination was carried out in accordanTr with the general Direcllons given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting re¢ords kept by Ihe charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts -and seeking explanations from you as trustees con￿MIng any such matters. The prO￿dureS undertaken do not provide all Ihe evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view, and the report is limited to Ihose matters set out in the statement below. Indopondant oxaminérfs statsmont In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention: (1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements: to keep accounting records in accordants with section 130 of the 2011 Act,. and to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act have not be8n met. or (2) to which, in my opinion. attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper underslanding of the aGGounts to be reached. Name: Mrs Ann Clarke Signature: Relevant professional quallficatlon or body.. HND Business & Finance Address: 4 Abercom Way. Witham, Essex, CM8 2UF Date: 211212025 141Page st SKC Church Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2024 Outslde of St Johns- the graveyard. adjacent to the Car Park whlch we hope to work on thls year The inside of St Johns, welcome and worship Is wami and inviting and the Urn is always onl The driveway to St Johns Saxmundham, we are hoplng to improvo it by taking out the "chicane" thls year SKC church 141Page lThJ•wnd•nl •xamln•rf• r•port to th• tr￿1•￿ olTh• Px¢*chW Church Cwncll OP. I rerth ￿ Ihe a￿jnts clthe Tr￿ttsthe star ended 31" Dacembor 2024 R•wctfv• re•pon•lbllStl•s of tru•t•M and •xamln•r The charitys trustetss artr re5pcnsibb for the prBpardtion of lh8 ￿nts. Th8 d￿rity8 trustees considerlhatan auditis Tr)t requirgd forthisye8r undarsth 14412)oftho Ch8riti9s Aa 2011 Its 2011 and that an examknaiKn Is ne￿d. It 1$ my r8sF¥)n$ibllty to: exarnlne the accounts undersecvcm 145 oflh& 2011 Act, to I￿1¢W the pffj¢edures laid dMI in th8 gen8rn1 Dlr8cUons ty th& ( CommL8slon under section 145(5llb) of th6 2011 A¢t and to stste whether particular matters h8¥¢ com& to my att6ntion. 8a•l• of Ind•p•nd•nt •xIn￿n•￿* My examlnation was cathed out In ￿Cl￿nce general DhedS￿s glven bythe Charlty Commission. An examination a r•vthw of the accountiryJ regyd8 kepl by the ch&ity and a coMpa￿S0n ofthe ace¢*Jnts pre5ent&J ￿ Ihose recuts. 1181so indudes cor*rfleralon of any unusual Item8 ￿ th8dosurns In th$ ￿)unty -8fKI 8eeklng explanabons from you a trustees ¢o)cemlng 8fty 5uth matters. The prc¢e4Jur8s urb*rtaken do not syovld8 811 th8 &vldfjnce that would be required inan 8udiiand L¥Jrth]uenlly rKJ 0￿"fi￿n is gNen as towhothor th8 accounts pr88ont a and 8nd tho T9p￿t is limit•J to Ilthè mattèrs 8•t out in the 8tsteThnt bobw. In conn8cIkn wNh my ¢x•minaUcffi. Th) matter has (XM)a to my 111 whlch g￿0& me r088onablè c*u#• to b9110¥0 that In Ory mat•rlal r•sF*Cttha r•wlr0m￿t•'. to koep 8¢Cx)unlng reoJrd8 in 8ccordgrts 8o¢bon 130 of the 2011 Actr. and lo prepare accounts whlcli wlth Ihe PXCQLTrnlng rgo)rds and c¥)m￿Y *ilh th occounbng requirbrnnts ofthg 2011 h£t hove not been rnetr, or 121 tr) whlch, In my cpin*)n. ¥ttenllon 8hLxdd b• dr8*71 in ordgr *) enabkn a propgr understandlrwJ of th8 a￿OUnts to be reac*ei1. Nam•.' Ann C￿rke Slgn•ttw•." R•l•vant prOf•￿10n￿l qu*llll¢•tkn or body.. HND 8￿1r*S & Flnance Addms: 4Abèrecth Way. Wtham, EssoK CM8 2UF Dat•: 21r2r2025 141P48e