## Letchworth Baptist Church Report and Accounts Year ended 31 December 2024 1 Lamb's Passage, London EC1Y 8AB www.stewardship.org.uk ## **LETCHWORTH BAPTIST CHURCH** ## **LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS** ## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024** ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE Letchworth Baptist Church West View Letchworth Garden City Hertfordshire SG6 3QJ GOVERNING DOCUMENT CIO - Association registered June 2017 as amended December 2021 CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1173298 TRUSTEES RESPONSIBLE FOR David Chan _Pastor_ MANAGING THE CHARITY Michael Cornell Mike Waddell _Secretary & Treasurer_ Steve Whittall CHURCH ASSOCIATIONS Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC) BANKERS HSBC Bank plc Epworth Investment Management Limited FINANCIAL ADVISORS Yoke & Co SOLICITORS Edward Connor Solicitor INDEPENDENT EXAMINER Jaimée Young Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB ## **INDEX** Page 1 Legal and Administrative Details Pages 2-6 Trustees' Report Page 7 Independent Examiner's Report Page 8 Receipts and Payments Account Page 9 Statement of Assets & Liabilities Pages 10-11 Notes to the Accounts Page 1 ## **LETCHWORTH BAPTIST CHURCH** ## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT** ## **1[st] January 2024 to 31[st] December 2024** The Trustees present their annual report and the financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. The accounts employ the cash-based receipts and payments method and comply with Charity Commission guidance CC16. ## **1 Structure, Governance and Management** ## **Governing documents** The governing documents are: - Letchworth Baptist Church Constitution, November 2021 - Letchworth Baptist Church Rules, June 2024. ## **Constitution** Letchworth Baptist Church was registered by the Charity Commission on 6[th] June 2017 as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation. ## **Recruitment and appointment of trustees** Trustees are appointed and recruited in accordance with the procedures set out in the governing documents. ## **Governance and Management** The Trustees have overall responsibility for ensuring that the church fulfils its charitable objectives in a manner that is compliant with the provision of the Constitution and Church Rules, especially the Basis of Faith. In accordance with the powers set out in the Constitution a Standing Order has been established by which the Trustees delegate the day-to-day management affairs of the Church to the body of Elders. They are supported by deacons who are appointed by the elders and have been assigned specific responsibilities for administrative, ministry or operational functions. The Elders, who include the pastors, serve as Trustees and generally hold monthly meetings to oversee church operations, review financial matters, and manage the church's affairs. Additionally, they usually gather once a month for prayer. Church members’ business meetings have been conducted both in-person and via Zoom. Page 2 ## **2 Objectives and Activities** ## **Charitable Purposes** The purposes of the Church are: 1. The advancement of the Christian faith in accordance with the basis of faith primarily but not exclusively within Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire and the surrounding neighbourhood; and 2. Such other charitable purposes as shall, in the opinion of the members of the church in general meeting, put into practice the Christian faith in accordance with the Basis of Faith, including but not limited to: the prevention and relief of need, hardship and sickness and the advancement of education. ## **Summary of activities** The Church seeks to fulfil public benefit regarding the advancement of the Christian faith in the following ways. - Promoting and developing spiritual awareness - Encouraging spiritual and emotional growth - Encouraging fellowship - Providing Bible teaching consistent with the Basis of Faith - Providing opportunities for public worship and prayer - Supporting Christian missionary and community work consistent with the Church’s charitable purposes and ethos, both in the UK and overseas. - Supporting the local community in a manner consistent with the charitable purposes of the church. These are generally achieved through a combination of Sunday services, midweek meetings and other activities for adults and children throughout the year. As a general principle, meetings are open to the public and visitors are warmly welcomed. Communion services are held regularly and participation is open to all who profess faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Activities are advertised on the Church web site, via a church WhatsApp group, the noticeboard and by word of mouth. Seasonal and other special events may also be promoted by leaflet distribution. Both spiritual and material support has also been provided by Church members for missionary and community work in the UK and overseas. As a general principle the church is funded by donations, not charges, and no one is excluded from membership or participation in the general activities of the church on financial grounds. Page 3 All of the activities described have been conducted in accordance with the Charitable Objects and Basis of Faith set out in the governing documents. ## **3 Achievements and performance** In planning the activities, the Trustees have applied the guidance on public benefit issued by the Charity Commission. The Church maintained its ministries, in order to provide public benefit, in the following ways: - Weekly Sunday preaching, teaching and worship meetings, including communion. - The Church comprises English and Cantonese speaking congregations. Joint English and Chinese meetings include monthly Lighthouse Breakfast services which are open to all. - Prayer meetings and Bible Studies, in person and via Zoom, aid adherents and enquirers in developing their spiritual life and support the direction of the Church. - Noah’s Ark, a well-loved and attended pre-school toddlers play group. - Origin8, a weekly, evening activity for young teenagers. - The weekly afternoon “Friendship Group” for older folk has been maintained. - In support of the community the Church facilitates the provision of a public defibrillator, hosted a Macmillan coffee morning and arranged and hosted community emergency first aid training. - Pastoral care has been provided by various Church members on-line, via phone and in-person. This has included welcoming a number of Chinese families who, due to the change in circumstances, had chosen to leave Hong Kong for Great Britain. - The Church website is used to advertise the church services and activities to the general public and also provide access to Bible teaching by hosting recordings of sermons and other teaching sessions. - The Missionary Fund enabled Church members and adherents to support specific individuals engaged in Christian work in the UK and overseas, providing a similar public benefit to that of the Letchworth Baptist Church in our community. - The Church subscribed to the Christians Against Poverty (CAP) Money Coaching programme and a team have been trained to deliver the course, which will be offered to church contacts and the broader community from spring 2025. ## **The Role of Volunteers** The Church’s volunteers comprises both members and adherents who enable all its activities to take place. Page 4 ## **4 Financial Review** As the Church income level is well below £250,000 it has adopted cash-based receipts and payments accounting. ## **General** As an overview, the Church charity received £107,300 income during the period and had outgoings totalling £278,000. There was an overall decrease in funds of £170,700. The funds carried forward are £654,900 and include restricted fund balances of £17,000. The Church's primary income consists of gifts and "Gift Aid" contributions from members and adherents and is given either as cash offerings or via standing orders. Additional income is generated through interest earned on funds deposited with the Epworth Cash Fund for Charities. The pastor responsible for the Chinese congregation is an Office Holder Trustee, as set out in the constitution, and is financially supported in order to fulfil his role. The Church also supports two missionaries. The funding for this is dealt with separately from the general church accounts. A target for missionary support is set in the last Church Business Meeting of each year. Any money collected in this fund is paid out to those missionaries which the Church members, at a Church Business Meeting, have agreed to support. Occasional gifts are made to other Christian ministries. Additionally, a ‘Chinese Ministry Fund’ exists to support the work of the Chinese congregation and pastor in the Church and amongst ethnic Chinese and associated communities in the United Kingdom and overseas. A settlement agreement with the departing pastor, which included a payment-in-lieu of pension, was completed. The support provided to the pastor responsible for the Chinese congregation was reviewed and, in order to be equitable and non-discriminatory, the level of regular pension contributions was aligned with the Baptist Union pension scheme and a lump-sum pension fund contribution of £49,068 was authorised by the church members. The funds generated by the sale of the manse in 2023 have been designated for three purposes: Pastor Support (for use when a new pastor is appointed to cover items such as accommodation or other associated costs), Evangelism, and Church property maintenance. ## **Reserves policy** The trustees have determined that the charity should aim to hold unrestricted cash of no less than £21,000 (which equates to about 3 months of pay and operational costs once a new pastor has been appointed) so that the charity could continue to operate should income and / or expenditure vary adversely. Page 5 The Church membership is relatively small in number, and income is almost exclusively provided by the donation of members and is thus limited. Should a greater need arise, the policy is to request additional donations from Church Members, in this way additional funds can be quickly raised. ## **5 Risk review** As a small charity, Letchworth Baptist Church is not subject to the compulsory requirement for risk reviews. However, the Trustees maintain awareness of areas of concern. The Trustees are conscious that the work of the church is dependent upon the financial support of members and congregation. Without this support the work would be unable to continue. Also maintaining teaching in line with Basis of Faith is important from a spiritual, theological and constitutional perspective, and hence in achieving the church’s charitable purpose. Informal risk assessments for the property and activities are carried out and, where appropriate, action is taken to monitor and mitigate identified risks. In the year a major review of safeguarding led to updating the Church safeguarding policy and manual, which is now based on the Baptist Union Model. Thirtyone:Eight is retained as the safeguarding advisor. The Church’s GDPR/privacy policy and procedures were also reviewed and a new policy, based on the model provided by the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC) was established. The review led to the adoption of the GDPR compliant ChurchBox database which considerably eases privacy management for personal data. ## **6 Responsibilities of the trustees** Charity law requires us as Trustees to prepare financial statements for each accounting year which record the receipts and payments of the charity for the year. The Trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records, which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. ## **ON BEHALF OF THE TRUSTEES** Mike Waddell Secretary Date:……………………………… Page 6 ## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT** ## **TO THE TRUSTEES OF** ## **LETCHWORTH BAPTIST CHURCH** I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Letchworth Baptist Church ('the charity') for the year ended 31 December 2024 on pages 8 to 11 following. ## **Responsibilities and basis of report** As the trustees of the charity you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’). I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act. ## **Independent examiner’s statement** I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect: 1. accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; or 2. the accounts do not accord with the accounting records. I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Jaimée Young Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB Date: Page 7 ## **LETCHWORTH BAPTIST CHURCH** ## **RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT** ## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024** |||||||Unrestricted|Funds||||| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |||||||General|Designated||Restricted|Total|Total| |||||||Funds||Funds|Funds|2024|2023| ||||||Notes|£||£|£|£|£| |**_Income receipts_**|||||||||||| |Donations||||||40,973||-|15,539|56,512|72,102| |Gift aid receipts||||||10,034||-|3,714|13,748|17,268| |Lettings||||||200||-|-|200|-| |Income from charitable activities||||||853||-|786|1,639|2,104| |Interest||||||32,201||-|44|32,245|3,995| |Other||||||2,002||-|-|2,002|-| |||||||86,264||-|20,082|106,346|95,469| |**_Capital and similar receipts_**|||||||||||| |Sale of property (manse)||||||-||-|-|-|805,000| |Loan repayments||||||1,000||-|-|1,000|-| |||||||1,000||-|-|1,000|805,000| ||||||||||||| |**_Total receipts_**||||||87,264||-|20,082|107,346|900,469| |**_Payments_**|||||||||||| |Payments
in
relation
to
activities undertaken directly|||charitable||2|259,625||-|2,501|262,127|100,184| |Grants
paid
in
relation
to
activities undertaken by others|||charitable||3|370||-|14,202|14,572|16,136| |||||||259,995||-|16,703|276,698|116,320| |Loans made||||||1,300||-|-|1,300|-| |||||||1,300||-|-|1,300|-| ||||||||||||| |**_Total payments_**||||||261,295||-|16,703|277,998|116,320| |Net
of
receipts
/
(payments)
transfers||||before||(174,031)||-|3,379|(170,652)|784,149| |Transfers between funds|||||5|(582,205)|582,200||5|-|-| |**Net movement in funds**||||||(756,237)|582,200||3,384|(170,652)|784,149| |Cash funds as at|last year|end||||803,017||-|13,578|816,595|32,446| |**Cash funds at this year end**|||||A|46,781|582,200||16,962|645,942|816,595| The notes on pages 10-11 form part of these accounts. Page 8 ## **LETCHWORTH BAPTIST CHURCH** ## **STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES** ## **AS AT THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024** |**A**
**Cash funds**
Cash at bank with immediate access
Notice deposits
Petty cash
**B**
**Other monetary assets**
Gift aid due to charity
Other debtors
**C**
**Liabilities**
**Falling due within one year:**
Payments in lieu of pension
Note 6
PAYE and pension due
Fee for Independent Examination
**D**
**Assets retained for charity's own use**
_Church building_
Contents and equipment|General
Designated
funds
funds
£
£
13,627
-
33,154
582,200
-
-
**46,780**
**582,200**
794
-
300
-
**1,094**
**-**
-
-
261
-
1,170
-
**1,431**
**-**
Unrestricted Funds|Restricted
funds
£
16,962
-
-
**16,962**
329
-
**329**
-
-
-
**-**
Fund to
which asset
belongs
_General_
General|Total
2024
£
30,588
615,354
-
**645,942**
1,122
300
**1,422**
-
261
1,170
**1,431**
Value
2024
£
_-_
66,645
**66,645**|Total
2023
£| |---|---|---|---|---| |||||210,612
605,655
328| |||||**816,595**| |||||255
207| |||||**461**| |||||137,259
174
1,320| |||||**138,753**| |||||Value
2023
£| |||||_-_
59,504| |||||**59,504**| The trustees have used insurance values for contents and equipment as the trustees are unable to reliably estimate current values; insurance values may differ materially from current values. _Current values have not been quoted for the church building because reliable valuations are not available (disclosure is not mandatory)._ ## **E Guarantees and secured debts** The charity has not given any guarantees and has not provided its assets as security for any liabilities. The accounts were approved by the trustees and signed on their behalf by date _____________________________Mike Waddell _________________ The notes on pages 10-11 form part of these accounts. Page 9 ## **LETCHWORTH BAPTIST CHURCH** ## **NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS** ## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024** ## **1 Accounting policies** The accounts have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis and comprise a statement that shows the charity's receipts and payments, a statement that summarises the charity's assets and liabilities and related notes. The accountancy profession have determined that only accounts prepared in accordance with applicable accounting standards present a 'true and fair' view and, as these receipts and payments accounts have not (and cannot) be prepared in accordance with accounting standards, these accounts do not present (and are not intended to present) a 'true and fair' view of the charity's financial activities and state of affairs. General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Designated funds comprise unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the trustees for particular purposes. Restricted funds are donations which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors; they include donations received from appeals for specific activities or projects. |**2**
**Payments in relation to charitable activities undertaken directly**
Employment costs (including mileage)
Note 4
Additional employer pension contribution
Note 6
Payments in lieu of pension
Note 6
Church ministries and activities
Church repairs, maintenance and equipment
Church utilities
Insurance
Manse upkeep
Legal and professional fees
Independent examination fee
**3**
**Grants paid in relation to charitable activities undertaken by others**
Organisations:
Illyrian Gospel Trust
Organisations < £1,000
Support of missionary
Other individuals||Unrestrict|Designated
funds
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
ed Funds|Restricted
Funds
£
-
-
-
1,960
542
-
-
-
-
-
2,501
6,326
1,560
6,316
-
14,202|Total
2024
£
18,011
49,068
137,259
10,318
39,326
3,735
1,122
-
1,967
1,320
262,127
6,326
1,560
6,316
370
14,572|Total
2023
£| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |||||||17,469
-
30,000
9,749
2,121
2,920
987
9,918
26,360
660| |||||||100,184| |||||||7,552
831
7,552
200| |||||||16,136| ## **4 Transactions with related parties** D Chan served as a church leader and was paid £14,890 [2022: 11,465] for serving in that capacity, not for serving as a trustee; these payments are permitted by the charity's governing document. Employer pension contributions £514 [2023: £260] - please see note 6 below regarding additional employer pension contributions. No payments were made to trustees or persons related to them, except for reimbursement of expenses paid out on behalf of the charity. Page 10 ## **LETCHWORTH BAPTIST CHURCH** ## **NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS** ## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024** |**5**
**Movement of funds**
General funds
Designated funds
Church maintenance
Pastor support
Evangelism and Community work
Restricted funds
Missionary fund
Noah's Ark
Ladies Breakfast
Chinese Ministry funds
Harvest
Refurbishment
Christmas Day
Total funds|Opening
balance
£
803,017
-
-
-
803,017
3,329
419
73
8,355
(6)
542
866
13,578
816,595|Receipts
£
87,264
-
-
-
87,264
12,365
995
41
5,175
547
-
959
20,082
107,346|Payments
£
(261,295)
-
-
-
(261,295)
(12,642)
(743)
(84)
(1,133)
(591)
(542)
(969)
(16,703)
(277,998)|Transfers
£
(582,205)
102,200
450,000
30,000
(5)
-
-
-
(45)
50
-
-
5
-|Closing
balance
£| |---|---|---|---|---|---| ||||||46,781
102,200
450,000
30,000| ||||||628,981| ||||||3,053
672
30
12,351
-
-
856| ||||||16,962| ||||||| ||||||645,942| ## _Designated funds_ £102,000 has been set aside for church maintenance, including repair of the church roof which will be undertaken in 2025. £450,000 has been designated for pastor support, for use when a new pastor is appointed to cover items such as accommodation and other associated costs. This fund is expected to be utilised within two years, contingent upon the successful appointment of a pastor. £30,000 has been specifically designated to support regular evangelistic and community activities over the next few years. ## _Restricted funds_ Missionary fund is for the purpose of raising funds to support a particular missionary/organisation supported by the church. Noah's Ark is a parent and toddler group that is run by the church; the attendees give donations which are used to provide refreshments and renew play equipment. The Ladies Breakfast fund is used to cover food for these meetings. The Chinese Ministry funds are used to support projects including Ministry in China, Ministry to Chinese elsewhere in the world, support of Pastor Chan's Ministry and Central. The transfer relates to reimbursement of expenditure paid from general funds. Harvest - This is in support of the Mill Grove Children's home. The refurbishment fund relates to a grant provided by the Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation to fit an automated sliding door. The majority of the work was completed in 2022 and further funds spent in 2024. The Christmas Day funds were paid to the recipient charities after the year end. ## **6 Payments in lieu of pension and other pension matters** In 2022, in consultation with charity solicitors and the Charity Commission, a settlement agreement was made with the departing pastor which included a payment-inlieu of pension of £177,106 once the manse had been sold. In 2023 an interim, initial advance payment was made to aid the rental of a property and a tax-efficient plan was recommended by their financial advisor for the remaining amount. The remaining amount, less expenses incurred, was paid in full in 2024. Regarding the pension for the current pastor, D Chan, after having received professional advice the unconnected trustees made a decision for the employer pension contributions to be aligned with the Baptist Union pension scheme. This resulted in a lump sum payment of £49,068 being paid to NEST pensions. Page 11