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← Outpost Church

2023-09-30-accounts

OUTPOST CHURCH TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS FOR THE PERIOD 1[ST] OCTOBER 2022 – 30[TH] SEPTEMBER 2023

Contents:-
 Page:-
Administrative & legal information 1
Objectives and activities 2
Achievements and performance
 2
Financial review 5
Independent examiner’s report 7
Receipts and payments account 8
Statement of assets and liabilities 9
Notes to the accounts 10
Summary 11

OUTPOST CHURCH

Administrative & legal information

Registered Charity Name: Outpost Church Registered Charity Number: 1173519 Registered Office: Trustees: Roger Tanton (Chair) Peter Morris (Treasurer) Jessica Cayuela Joe Lillicrap Amanda Nunn Elders: Roger Tanton (Pastor) Deacons: Peter Morris

Structure

Outpost Church is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), governed by a Constitution registered 21[st] June 2017, under which the trustees (the elders, plus others appointed) are responsible for the general control and management of the administration of the Church. The appointment of new trustees is initiated by the elders and approved by the trustees once all necessary eligibility checks have taken place. Anyone may make suggestions to the elders for a proposed trustee appointment.

The beliefs and practices of Outpost Church are set out in our handbook and the spiritual leadership of the Church rests with the elders. The work is supported by deacons who lead and serve in practical and spiritual ways under the guidance of the elders.

Our handbook sets out the provisions whereby Christian believers at Outpost Church may join as members. Any person wishing to join the church as a member should speak to an elder or deacon to request a copy of the handbook and/or to express their desire to join in membership.

We are an independent church affiliated to the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC).

Charitable objects

The Church is required to comply with its legal charitable objects in all its activities:

provided that the advancement of such purposes must be undertaken in a manner that is consistent with the Doctrinal Distinctives and Ethical Statements as may be adopted and amended by the CIO from time to time.

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OUTPOST CHURCH

Objectives and activities

As a Christian church we aim to point people who God is and what he has done for us in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We are passionate about spreading the good news of Jesus to all and desire to see people experience his presence and the power of the Holy Spirit at work in their lives.

Our mission is to live as Outposts of God’s kingdom by raising the flag of Jesus in our hearts, homes, church, communities, and the world.

The main activity of the week is our Sunday service where we gather for worship, prayer, praise, and bible teaching. Our services are open to all and aim to be contemporary in style, friendly and informal. During the service, primary school aged children are able to attend Adventurers where they learn about the bible through games and craft. We meet up at mid-week groups throughout the year to pray, encourage and support each other, and learn how to apply the bible to our lives.

We were able to hold a number of other public events during the year; a light party, carol service, Good Friday walk and a summer family festival.

In the planning of all our activities, the trustees have complied with their duty to have regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit.

Achievements and performance

Sunday Services

We continued to make use of the Woodchurch Community Centre for our weekly services, with numbers in attendance steadily growing and regularly remaining above 60. In the second half of the year, we began to see numbers rise above 70. It has been encouraging to see additional families settle into regular attendance with those joining typically hearing about Outpost Church via our affiliation to the FIEC and/or other personal recommendation. We have always encouraged those attending to invite family, friends and neighbours to our weekly services and it has been great to continue establishing new connections in this way.

Bible teaching is a key part of our Sunday services and during the year we were able to cover a good range of series. Between October 2022 and March 2023 we returned to our long running series in Luke’s gospel, covering chapters 13 to 18, with a short break over the 2022 Christmas period to focus on the wise men in the Nativity story. We then covered the book Ephesians, between April and August 2023, culminating in a three week mini-series on the armour of God. At

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OUTPOST CHURCH

the end of the year we returned to our series in Luke’s gospel to continue where we left off in chapter 18.

Our 2022 Christmas services were well attended and provided a key opportunity to invite family and friends to church to hear the good news of Jesus, as was our outdoor evening service and BBQ held in summer 2023. In July 2023, it was a joy to welcome the Scouts and Guides (while on their summer camp) to one our services. We had around 120 people attending that Sunday, and it was a great opportunity to share the message of Jesus, with discussions continuing after the service about a range of topics including the authenticity of the bible, existence of God, and the nature of reality and truth.

One of the ways in which we continued to resource people, to advance our mission to point people to Jesus, is by providing a range of free books and materials at our Sunday services for both Christian and non-Christian attendees and visitors. The book table has continued to be well used.

We give thanks to God for those who have continued to serve in the Outpost band throughout the year, leading us in our times of praise and worship, and for those serving in various other ways to support our weekly services; setting up, packing away, leading services and serving refreshments.

Children’s work

Adventurers, for primary school aged children, was held throughout the year during our Sunday services. The children learnt about the bible through craft, games, and teaching, covering the story of Esther, the parables Jesus told, the book of Acts and the growth of the early church. In 2022, the adventurers practiced and performed the nativity at our carol service.

Mid-week groups

Over the year we held men and women’s life groups, once a month, which gave us opportunity to help build friendships and share, pray, and support each other through life’s challenges. It has been great to see these groups growing and to see individuals feel able to share prayer points and encouragements with each other at other times during the week over group social media.

Once a month, we held a homegroup for everyone to come together – we typically looked again at the message from the Sunday service, with time for discussion to draw out application for our lives.

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OUTPOST CHURCH

Other events

During the year we hosted several other key events. Our light party in October 2022 was a great occasion for families to come and celebrate with us, through games, craft and a short message, the light of Jesus instead of Halloween. Our Good Friday walk in Easter 2023 provided an opportunity to deepen friendships within the church family, especially with those new to the church.

It was a joy to host our summer family festival again this year. Despite a very rainy day, which did limit some of our activities, it was very exciting to see four individuals baptised. The day began with a service in the morning – we celebrated God’s goodness to us as a church on our twelfth anniversary, and heard the testimonies of those to be baptised. The event was very well attended and we hosted an indoor lunch after the baptisms and finished the afternoon with games and craft.

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OUTPOST CHURCH

Financial review

Introduction

We have prepared our accounts using the simplified receipts and payments format accompanied by a statement of assets and liabilities. The totals for the previous year are given for comparison.

We continued to use two funds to help us manage our resources effectively which were as follows:

All funds were unrestricted in nature meaning that they could be used to freely advance any of the church’s charitable purposes (objects).

Receipts & Payments Account (see page 8)

In God’s goodness, incoming funds have continued to grow on previous years due to additional and increased gifts received, while at the same time our costs have not increased as significantly as had been originally anticipated. This has enabled us to end the year with a notable surplus on our general fund of £4,712 as outgoings of £29,890 were covered by an income of £34,603. We were also pleased to be able to support one of our members attending the Cornhill Training Course (1yr) by the Proclamation Trust at an additional cost of £1,950 from our reserves.

Thus, we ended the year with an overall surplus of £2,762 and a closing balance across both funds of £26,818. These funds are now available to spend in accordance with the church’s charitable purposes.

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OUTPOST CHURCH

Statement of Assets and Liabilities

(see page 9)

The statement on page 9 lists the assets held by the church and gives a broad understanding of the liabilities at year end. The liabilities shown is a list of the main payments that were immediately due at year end.

Reserve Policy

Our reserve policy is to hold four months of expenditure to enable the church to adapt to reductions in income, plus a further £2,000 to meet larger extraordinary expenses and as a means of responding to new opportunities that may arise. The target reserves figure based on the budget for the year was therefore £13,045. Reserves held at the end of the year across all funds were £26,818.

It is acknowledged that reserves amount to more than the target figure and we plan to use these funds in ways that will advance the work and mission of the church.

Employees

The church had one paid employee during the year; Roger Tanton. In line with the regulations and our governing documents, Roger’s employment related solely to his role as pastor of the church under a contract of employment for three and a half days per week (his work as a trustee was voluntary).

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OUTPOST CHURCH

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT

TO THE TRUSTEES OF OUTPOST CHURCH

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Outpost Church ('the charity') for the year ended 30 September 2023 on pages 8 to 10 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

  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.

Sarah Crispin, ACA

Stewardship 1 Lamb’s Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB

Date: 22[nd] March 2024

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OUTPOST CHURCH

Receipts and payments account

Notes
Receipts
Donations received
Gift aid recovered
FIEC cost of living grant
1
Bank interest
Total receipts
Payments
Wages & payroll costs
2
Insurance, fees & memberships
3
Supplies for weekly activities & events
4
Venue hire
Sound & visual equipment
Donations to individuals/organisations
5
Office supplies
Study materials, books & literature
Training
6
General publicity
Total payments
Excess receipts over payments
Opening balance on 1 Oct 2022
Internal transfers between funds
7
Closing balance on 30 Sept 2023		 General
Fund
£
General
Reserve
Fund
£

28,361
-
5,697
-
500
-
45
-		 This year
2022/23
TOTAL
£
28,361
5,697
500
45		 Last year
2021/22
TOTAL
£
23,191
4,913
-
8
34,603
-		 34,603 28,112
22,843
-
2,276
-
1,867
-
1,487
-
588
-
500
-
270
-
59
-
-
1,950
-
-		 22,843
2,276
1,867
1,487
588
500
270
59
1,950
-		 19,621
1,398
2,286
2,655
1,969
410
13
163
-
65
29,890
1,950		 31,840 28,580
4,712
(1,950)
10,496
13,560
(14,000)
14,000		 2,762
24,056
-		 (469)
24,524
-
1,208
25,610		 26,818 24,056

*Note: Numbers may not add up precisely due to rounding.

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OUTPOST CHURCH

Statement of assets & liabilities

Notes
Assets
Cash at bank with immediate access
Cash in hand
Gift aid still to be received
Total assets
Assets retained for charity’s own use
8
Liabilities
Venue hire fees to be settled
FIEC annual membership
Annual independent examination fee
Annual licence renewals
Total liabilities		 General
Fund
£
General
Reserve
Fund
£
1,208
25,610
-
-		 This year
2022/23
TOTAL
£
26,818
-
1,208
25,610		 26,818
635
-		 635
1,843
-		 27,453
1,375
840
480
-
-
-
285
-		 1,375
840
480
285
2,980
-		 2,980

*Note: Numbers may not add up precisely due to rounding.

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OUTPOST CHURCH

Notes to the accounts

1 FIEC cost of living grant

We were grateful to receive a one-off gift of £500 this year from the FIEC Hardship Fund towards the work of the church.

2

Wages & payroll costs

In addition to wages, the figure shown includes the monthly overheads and administration costs relating to running the payroll.

3 Insurance, fees & memberships

The total expenditure of £2,276 comprised of the following: FIEC membership [£780]; accounts examination fee [£420]; insurances including public liability [£392]; copyright licences [£214]; online/digital media [£207]; safeguarding [£145]; microphone licences [£56]; bank fees [£63].

4 Supplies for weekly activities & events

The total expenditure of £1,867 comprised of the following: Coffee/tea supplies and refreshments [£601]; family festival [£521]; Christmas services [£327]; Adventurers [£144]; craft for all-age services [£135]; Light Party [£68]; Easter [£63]; communion supplies [£9].

5 Donations to individuals & organisations

The expenditure of £500 comprised of honoraria for visiting speakers at Sunday services, and for provision of photography at our carol service.

6

Training

The additional expenditure of £1,950 against the general reserve fund was for 1 year of the Cornhill Training Course for one of our members.

7 Internal transfers between funds

A total of £14,000 was transferred at year end to consolidate most of our reserves, for simplicity and ease of identification, into the general reserve fund.

8 Assets retained for charity’s own use

The key assets retained comprise of sound and visual (PA) equipment.

9 Other disclosures

There are no debts or guarantees to report in relation to the specific disclosures required under section 62 of The Charitable Incorporated Organisations (General) Regulations 2012.

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OUTPOST CHURCH

Summary

The trustees give huge thanks to God for another year of his grace and blessing on Outpost Church. It is so encouraging to see more individuals and families encounter the presence of God through the work and ministry of the church, and it was a joy to see four individuals baptised over the summer.

We give thanks to God for the continued financial support through the kind and generous donations of the individuals and families of the church along with the ongoing support of those serving from week to week, without which the work of the church would not be possible. With an expenditure totaling £31,840 and income of £34,603, we now go forward into the next accounting year with a balance of £26,818. All funds are unrestricted meaning that they can be spent in line with any of the church’s charitable purposes.

Our prayer going forward is that we would use these resources wisely in ways that will be to grow the work and mission of the church, and that all the glory and honour would go to Him alone as we continue to point people to Jesus.

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think…” Ephesians 3:20 (ESV)

Rog, Jess, Amanda, Joe & Pete Trustees

Declaration

The trustees declare they have approved the trustees’ report and accounts. Named and dated 17[th] March 2024 on behalf of the trustees:

Joe Lillicrap Amanda Nunn (Trustee) (Trustee)

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