Annual Church Meeting Reports Sunda 6th AJ)ril 2025
Contents: Leadership and Pastoral Care Minister (Rev Shaun Sanders) Leadership Team (Ross Richardson) Pastoral Care (Ruth Evans) Church Administration and Stewardship Finance (Duncan Curtis) Property (Chris Mills) Safeguarding (Catherine Heffernan) Worship and Outreach Section Pudding and Praise (Ross Richardson) Sunday School (Catherine Heffernan) Youth Group (Jeannette Curtis) Messy Church (Jeannette Curtis) WITS (Rosanne Jackson) Prayer Group (Ross Richardson) Small Groups: TAF Tuesday Afternoon Fellowship; Lent Groups, Contemplative Group (Jeannette Curtis / Ross Richardson)
Minister s Report Rev. Shoun Sanders l am grateful for everyone's support during my first six months here at Walton. I reflect that despite the challenges which all churches face, there have been several highlights which should encourage us for the future. The harvest festival service in September saw the church packed with people of all ages as we were joined by the Guides, Scouts, Cubs and Beavers who meet on the premises during the week. They all contributed to the worship and donations of food and other items were given for the Walton and Hersham Foodbank. A service of remembrance and thanksgiving took place in October when we named those we love but who are no longer with us and we lit candles in their memory.
On Christmas Eve, we held Messy Church for all ages and came together for a simple act of worship with our Christingles which we had made. We enjoyed pancakes on Shrove Tuesday in a special coffee morning and raised money to support ovarian cancer research and care. Throughout the year a small band of volunteers from the church have joined me at Glendale nursing home where we have led a small act of worship and we have sung familiar hymns with the residents. Other activities include our work with children and young people, pudding and praise, fellowship groups, contemplative oasis meditations, other coffee mornings and special services, pastoral care, stewardship of our premises and finances, safeguarding, admin- istration, weekly worship and much much more which allows us to support the ministry and mis- sion of our church. Thank you for everyone's contribution in whatever way.
I reflect over my many years of ministry that churches which flourish or survive against the odds are more likely to have broad edges. They have links which reach out to the wider pastoral community, user groups, local community and wider world so that many more folk feel they belong or have a connection with the church. That's always a challenge to maintain when we already feel under pressure. However, it's a key part of our Methodist tradition and reflects the Christian Good News for all. Shaun
The Leadership Team Report Ross Richordson The Church Stewards who (together with Rev Sydney Samuel until August 2024 and Shaun Sanders from September 2025 onwards) constitute the WMC Leadership Team have been across the past year (since April 2023): Ross Richardson (Senior , Val Barker Dave Paterson Dave Paterson also continues in his roles as Circuit Treasurer and Local Preacher and Chris Mills is our Circuit Invitations Committee Member. We are very grateful to Chris for her role in this group as she worked tirelessly in this role to help secure our new minister Rev Shaun Sanders. Aside from helping with some administrative elements of the weekly services, the Leadership Team attempts to navigate a course for the Church through the Liturgical year. We try to meet every 6 weeks where we attempt to plan for
each quarter- which I sometimes find difficult (for example thinking about Christmas in June and Lent and Easter in October). The visible part of the role is on a Sunday morning, where you will see the steward opening the service, welcoming the minister and highlighting any notices. We try to resolve issues (practical, pastoral, and administrative), keep an eye over various aspects of Church Administration (GDPR, Risk Assessments, EDI and Safeguarding). We also try to think "Creatively and Strategically" about new worship, service, church growth or community outreach ideas. All of us are involved in other parts of Church ministry though this is absolutely NOT a requirement of being a stewa rd. We also try and execute some of these ideas. Some of us went to the Circuit Planning days last year and came away with seeds of new ideas for services and initiatives, some of which we have put in place over the past year.
We have not reviewed our Mission Statement and our plans, purposes and future direction as a Church. This is a project for this next anniversary year, and together with our minister, and hopefully whole community involvement we will look at what this may entail. We are always looking for new stewards to join the Leadership Team. If you feel called to contribute of your time and energy and would like to be part of what I have described, then please speak to me. I would be very keen to explore this further with you. As ever, we would appreciate your prayers for our efforts as stewards, for our Minister and for our Church in the coming months as we seek to be Salt and Light to each other and in the world outside of our Church. Ross Richardson
Pastoral Secretary's Report Ruth Evans It is good to report that although several pastoral visitors have retired, after years of faithful visiting, we still maintain a reduced team of Pastoral Visitors who have taken on extra visiting. However, with a smaller team of Pastoral Visitors, it is difficult to maintain the same level of care. We are still managing, just about, to cover the whole church with our care. It does mean an extra load for our caring but if folk are not visited, we phone to keep in touch or make contact by email. We hope no one feels neglected. Our aim is to look out for each other especially at Sunday Services. If anyone feels the need for a visitor, please let me know. Our Minister Rev Shaun Sanders and I visit anyone who is housebound. Many thanks to Catherine who helps me with the administrative side of things and she herself is a dedicated Pastoral Visitor.
If anyone who is reading this feels led to come forward as a pastoral visitor, please come and speak to me and I can let you know more about this rewarding role. Ruth Evans
Finance Report Duncan Curtis Walton on Thames Methodist Church Notes to the Annual accounts for the period ending 31" August 2024 Another satisfactory year is behind us and thankfully we are still on a relatively sound financial footing. Can I thank you once again for your generosity, whilst so many other costs are increasing for us all. However, although collections remain around static, our Gift day result was substantially down and my expectation is that this will continue. So our savings will be depleted and it will be harder to find cash for essential work on property repairs and the like. These notes are meant to be read in conjunction with our annual accounts and are a way of explaining them more clearly than just in figures. Our Income and Expenditure statement for the year end highlights reasons why the predicted
deficit was smaller than anticipated. If you don't have a copy of the accounts and wish for one, please ask. Thanks to Chris who works with me so well on all matters, propety related. Also to Rosanne, who has been instrumental with help in keeping our lettings going again, although they were well below budget. For the benefit of the Charity commission and in relation to VAT rules, we are in no way profitable. Our rental income is only around 16 % of our total income although of course our renters occupy the building for far longer than the average Church member. Catherine and Tony save us money too and Catherine helps wherever she can on property matters. This year both Electric and Gas contracts have been renewed at sharply higher rates. So do your bit please to keep costs down by turning off lights and water heaters and boilers when they are not needed.
Our Charitable giving fell this year but mainly because of a lower Gift Day result. Bank interest on our funds is increasing but of course inflation is reducing the capital value and the cost of building work, (which most of the funds are for) is going up by leaps and bounds. However it came in at £6357 as compared with the budget of £4000 Cash collections were around 14% of our total collections, the rest coming by standing order, cheque and internet banking. Many thanks again to Alan Weight, for all his help with both accounts and the Gift Aid claim. He is of great assistance. As your treasurer l am at your service and in the event of any query please contact me. Duncan E Curtis
Property Report Chris Mills We have had a quieter year on the Property front this past year- I'm sure our treasurer is happy with that! Most of the jobs carried out were routine servicing or small maintenance jobs. The more significant jobs were: Re-sanding of the hall floor- costing £2750 Purchasing of new pew cushions - £3950 - from our legacy funds, from which we also purchased some more hymnbooks. We have been approached by the Guides group for permission to replace their outside storage unit which is leaking badly (this is at the back of our grounds at the side of the church).
However, this has led to concerns about the agreement we have with the Guides over use of this storage space. At the recommendation of TMCP (Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes) we have sought legal advice about how to put a formal agreement in place. This is an ongoing process. At the suggestion of church members, we plan to purchase a bench for outside the front of the church. l am always interested to receive suggestions of improvements to the church premises from anyone. Chris Mills
Safeguarding Report Catherine Heffernan l am pleased to report that it has been a relatively quiet year, Safeguarding wise. We recently had our Circuit Safeguarding audit to complete, where we are asked various questions about the necessary paperwork being in place and confirmation that we are following the Safeguarding Policy, Procedures and Guidance as set down by The Methodist Church. I was able to submit a return showing that we are almost fully compliant. All our Volunteers have been safely recruited, including obtaining references and where necessary DBS checks. Safeguarding training has been completed or is due to be completed. I continue to monitor when DBS checks and Safeguarding training become due and remind the respective individuals.
We are very lucky that our Circuit has several Safeguarding Foundation module trainers, including our own Carol Morgan, and so the Circuit are able to deliver the necessary training courses to keep the Safeguarding training at Walton Methodist Church up to date. We are also very fortunate that Claire Coles has joined the South East District as our new District Safeguarding Officer and she has been on hand to offer help and guidance where needed. Our church took part in Safeguarding Sunday on Sunday 17th November, where Rev Shaun gave a very insightful sermon on this subject. At a recent Church Council meeting we were reminded that Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility, and we had an insightful True or False Quiz. Catherine Heffernan
Pudding and Praise Ross Richordson Now in its l O year of existence, our Pudding and Praise café styled service, held 3 or 4 times a year, continues to do "what it says on the tin has a heavy focus on lovely Puddings and Spirit led Praise always beautifully curated by Breeze our pop up group of musicians led by Tracey Ball who is supported by Lynda Shaw, Glen Penfold, Mark Hargreaves and Caroline Pearce. li I believe that Pudding and Praise offers a blank sheet, experimental "liminal space" opportunity for the Holy Spirit to abide with us, and I would encourage anyone who would like to enjoy a different worship experience to come along and enjoy this service. We encourage the leadership of this to be from our lay people rather than clergy, and try to involve different voices and faces in them.
If you have suggestions for a theme for the music, discussions or puddings or would like to be involved then we would love to hear from you - so get in touch! Cornerstones of this service are Breeze under Tracey Ball's leadership and Dave Paterson who spends a lot of time sculpting these services. l am very grateful for their energy and efforts which go into making every one of these services very special. Additionally, we have enjoyed a thoughtful P&P service which was led by our Youth Group - special thanks again to them for the care and attention that they took over this particular service. This year we will have a theme running through some of our services which is based on our relationship with God - these are titled "Up, Out" and "In" Intrigued? Come along and discover what it all means for yourself ! li li Ross Richardson
Sunday School CalBirE enlan Our Sunday School continues to thrive, with 6 regular teenagers and now some new under l Os starting to come more regularly. On the I" Sunday in the month, when we have Holy Communion, we do not have Sunday School, but the young people are encouraged to stay with us in the service instead. Ih The 2nd 3, and 4 Sundays are covered by our three regular Sunday School teachers: Catherine Heffernan, Lynda Shaw and Ross Richardson, who each take one session a month. Jeannette Curtis has also kindly said she will take a session in a 5 week month, to ease the strain on the other Sunday School teachers, which is very much appreciated.
We have been faced with quite a tough challenge, in that our younger children are now too old for the creche, but are much younger that our current cohort of Sunday School young people. As we do not have enough volunteers for two Sunday School groups we are trialling having one extra person in the room to help if some younger children come, while the main Sunday School teacher works with the older ones. We have been very fortunate that seven additional people from the congregation have come forward to be that 3rd person, when necessary. Materials and activities are prepared for the extra helper by the Sunday School teacher and it is hoped that this will provide a fun time for the younger children, without disrupting the more mature lesson the older ones will be having. Watch this space!
We follow the material provided by 'Roots' which is available in a magazine and online. 'Roots' provide all the material and the Sunday School teacher just has to choose which items they think will work best for our groups, so they do not have to think up a lesson themselves! It would be really great if someone could come forward and offer to take one Sunday School lesson a month. So, if you are reading this and think you can spare one Sunday morning a month, please let us knowl We are also very blessed that several members of the congregation have agreed to be a 2, DBS checked adult, to sit in on our sessions. Without their help it would not be possible to run the Sunday School, so we are extremely grateful to Rita Hopkins, Linda Holden, Rosanne Jackson, Joy Lord and Wendy Mulvagh for their amazing support. All the Sunday School teachers and helpers have up- to-date DBS checks and have attended the relevant Safeguarding Training. Catherine Heffernan
Youth Group Report Jeannette Curtis At Walton Methodist Church, we are fortunate to have a wonderful group of young people. They enjoy coming to church and having a chance to have their own part of worship in Sunday school. l am very appreciative of Catherine for organising the rota and the teachers and their helpers. The young people certainly challenge us in these meetings. l am glad that they also take up challenges. As we saw at the Local th Arrangement (LA) on Sunday 19 January. Some time ago Divine was not sure whether he was too old for Sunday school and I did explain that it was good to have him in Sunday School, to keep the discussions going. Certainly, during the fvrfo Sunday school sessions that I took, to plan the LA service, he was very useful in giving ideas. The theme for the LA was God's love. The two stories that were used to illustrate this love were Jonah, which Divine spoke about and Zacchaeus, which lan spoke about.
lanna and Joanne wrote the prayers and they decided on the hymns together in the early stages of the planning. It was good to have Seram to close the service and Elikem did the PowerPoint and a reading. They have now taken a Pudding and Praise and a LA. l am hoping they will take the service on Palm Sunday i which is a LA. Sunday school is really the youth group meeting time. They do use many forms of social media to communicate with each other. I was thankful to Joanne for allowing the group to meet at her house to do the final planning, for the LA in January. They do consume quite a lot of food when they meet. It is good that we have a generous amount of money in the youth group fund so that Duncan can pay for this. There are plans for a day in London on Easter Monday. If we do not have a youth leader it is great that the youth can organise themselves and if we can help them out financially sometimes, that is good. There is money in the church account to pay for some of these outings.
Messy Church Report Jeannette Curtis Since Lockdown we have started up slowly with Messy Church. Then at the start of 20241 started treatment for cancer. This meant that we did not do much at the start of the year. At Easter the young people set up the Easter garden. In September Shaun joined us and has shown an interest in Messy church so we did do Christingle on Christmas eve. We had three families and it was good to see the young people helping the little ones make the Christingles and colour angels to hang up. The wonderful team that helps with Messy church has changed. We are pleased to welcome Margaret, Cynthia and Wendy, their talents are much appreciated. Ashvir, my grandson, has been involved with the technical side and has prepared the PowerPoints. He tells me he would like to do these in future.
Talking to Shaun, l anticipate doing Messy Mothers on March 29th when we will look at mothers in the bible possibly Ruth and on April th 19 (possibly in the morning) Messy Easter when we will make the Easter garden and think about the new life that is about to come. I do appreciate the prayers that we have for Messy Church, it is outreach into Walton and other areas, we are part of a bigger organisation and there is plenty of help for us on the Messy church website. Jeannette Curtis
WITS Rosonne Jockson Chris hosted a summer get-together in her garden one evening and we were blessed with the good weather. We also organised a Macmillan coffee morning at the church in October. Jeannette hosted an evening in November remembering Christmas past. Our annual January meal was held at Carluccio's and was enjoyed by all. Rosanne Jackson
Walton MC Prayer Group Ross Richordson Our prayer group has been meeting since 1998 each Saturday morning. As Christians - we are encouraged to "pray at all times" not just "some" times. We are encouraged to pray for all people and across the whole spectrum of life's circumstances and seasons - joy, grief, success, happiness, celebration, doubt, distress, illness, lament and pain. The Prayer Group prays through all these things, every Saturday from 8am for our Church, Na- tion, Local Community, and World. We successfully moved our prayer meeting online as soon as we went into lockdown 4 years ago. It is very rare for us to have missed a week in the last year and meet online via WhatsApp each Saturday. Messages flow as we discuss the lec- tionary scriptures and pray through the needs of our world and community each week.
You are welcome to "pop in" and join the conversation any Saturday, or you can simply sit in them, read the messages and not join the conversation. Our meetings are always uplifting. If you would like prayer for yourself or a friend, please contact the prayer group through the website or speak to Ross. Ross Richardson
TAF - Tuesday Afternoon Fellowship Jeannette Curtis During lent last year we, with the other group, read and studied "Tarry Awhile" a book written by Selina Stone and recommended by the Archbishop of Canterbury as the Lent book for 2024. We all found this book very challenging in many ways. However when Lent finished we realised that we had hardly touched the many topics that are raised. So in May and June we continued to study two more chapters, as we were now meeting once a month. July and August we used the prayer handbook of the Methodist church as the basis for our devotion. l am grateful to Sandra and Colin for providing the refreshments and the suggestions that the group makes. There was difficulty hearing what was being said, when we met in the church, and so now we meet in the Narthex and the sound is a bit better. With Lent this year about to start we will be ecumenical as a group as there will Catholics and URC members joining us for'soul Food"
Lent Group Ross Ri(hordson We have run Lent Groups for the past 25 years, sometimes with ecumenical members. This year we have 2 groups which meet on a Tuesday afternoon and evening. We are currently studying the Methodist Church interactive material which is titled Soul Food and also has the feature of a daily email update from the Methodist Church. The material will give us the opportunity to think about different elements of our spirituality some of which may be challenging which is perfect for the Lenten season. Ross Richardson
Contemplative Group Ross Richardson I came across the TakeTime contemplative organisation some time ago, and sensed that there may be an opportunity and desire for this spirituality for this at WMC. The meditations are based on the principles of Ignatian contemplation which involves immersing yourself as an onlooker in a piece of Gospel. I trained myself on one of their courses, which enables me to lead these sessions in their style, and in the Ignatian tradition. We have purchased a licence which gives us access to a huge database of scripts and videos that can be used in services or small groups. I run this group in blocks of around 6 weeks usually following the lectionary readings each week following Lenten and Advent themes in these seasons.
The meetings are short usually running to befvrfeen 25 and 40 minutes and there is no requirement to be involved or say anything - you can simply sit quietly and enjoy some peace infused time for yourself. The response to these has been enlightening and gratifying with around a dozen people dipping into these groups and really enjoying the opportunity to slow down and sit quietly in the presence of the Divine each week. We meet both in person in the Church and by Zoom - so you can join in from the comfort of your couch if you would like to. Ross Richardson
CHURCH RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS THE METHODIST CHURCH STANDARD FORM OF ACCOUNTS Walton-on-Thames Church FOR THE YEAR ENDED Sunday 31 August 2025 Wey Valley Circuit Circult Circuit no. 3616 Registered Charity - Charity Registration number 1174524 If not a registered charity His Majesty's R8vonue and Customs Gift Ald number (The HMRC number is equivalent to a registered charity number in tems of evidence of charitable status and may be used to give to donors or grant funders wishing to see eviden ofthe organisation's charitable status. Methodist charities in England and Wales that are not registered Gharities are excepted from registration under Statulory Instrument 2014 No.242) Minister. RÈV Shaun Saunders Church Stewards: Ross Richardson Dave Paterson Valerie Barker Treasurer.. Duncan Curtis
ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025 Walton-on-Thames Church Llnrestrictèd R•strlcted Totals this Funds Funds year Totals last year SECTION A a1 RECEIPTS Notg a2 Offerings and Tax re¢overed Bank and CFB interest and Investment income 59,503 120 59,623 60.346 5,873 1,501 7,374 14,773 325 8.024 13,476 1,806 83.653 Lettings other receipts TOTAL RECEIPTS 14,773 325 a6 80,474 1,621 82,095 la7) SECTION B b1 PAYMENTS b2 Circuit Assessment or Share 38.274 38,274 38,274 2,116 30,483 b3 Don8tions 2.500 50 2.550 Repairs and Maintenance Utilities Ilnsurances, water charges. heating & lighting) 9,695 9.695 b5 7.894 7,894 7,479 b7 Other payments TOTAL PAYMENTS 7,153 65,516 209 7.362 65,775 9.465 87.817 b8 259 Ib91 SECTION C NET RECEIPTSIPAYMENTS FOR THE YEAR c1 la6-b81 14,958 1,362 16,320 14.1641 Total funds brought forward from last year c2 132,147 33,902 166,049 {c61 170,213 c3 Sub total (c1+c2) 147,105 35,263 182,369 166.049 Transfers and adjustments {c7 c5 TOTAL FUNDS AT END OF YEAR (c3+c41 147.105 35,263 182,369 {c81 166,049 Ic6} SECTION D FOR INFORMATION ONLY: MONEY RECEIVED AND PASSED ON TO EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS (these amounts are not to be Included in totsl receiptslpayments ligures above) d1 Balance brought forward from18St year 61 d2 OfferingslGifts - received for external organisalions 3,094 3.014 'd3 OfferingslGifts - passed to external organisalions 2,898 3,020 d4 BALANCE STILL TO BE PAID {d1+d2-d3) 257 61 Wmf. SlAndard Fnm of AoTr 20 11) xls 2of5
Wallon-on-Thames Church hlMARY OF C RCH ACCO NTS AND INTERNALORGANISATIONS R PORTI GTO HE CHURCH CO NCIL SECTION E Please follow tht G I lete thls Summary ollhe ChurGh acoJunisforlhtryearended 31 Au9U$I and llllefflal Oryanisabonts port1 to the Church Counclllchurch IAeeUny. Welhatthefur$ of an Inletnal OrganrJaikn would nornally bè Reswicied fund5 unle55 il could be clearly shcwn th81 they Cy)uld be used forany Meldil purpose. This sectiDn must be compleied toarrivE allhe gfossin¢tyne and expendiiurelota15 olthe Churth. If grog9 Inm¢eXCeedS IheAccnJals thshOld, then theAcuual$nth of acwjnting ANDA DIFFERENT FORM musl be used to wtthB accounts {tsMethodi$lwebsitel. Pka5e referto theydarK notssregarding tr8ngfws bdween th& Thsbl¢t and connect Oislnct Organisaiion5. com IMTERNAL ORGANISATIONS Net Re¢ptsi P8ym8ffls OkEning ances Rewpts payments Adjustments b4ance5 e4 ¢7 Sub iotsl of Iniemal Organis8bon5 fiMN16 Church accounts (totsla broughtforward from pag• 2-totals column) TOTAL CASH FUNDS HELD BY CHURCH {a71 65.775 16,320 166,Q49 182,369 BI095 65.775 16,32 186,049 182.369 ConliM&L a separats sheei ifnettss8ryond briw the tctsLs lorward TOTAL RECEIPTS TOTAL PAYMENTS SECTION F STAYE SETS AND LIABILITIE OPENING AL4NCES CLOSING BALANCES CHURCH. CASH FUNDS HELD at 31 Auyust 2DZ5 Cash in hand 25 25 Bank CUtrentAxJDI 10.933 s.5 B8nk DewsitAcccunl Central Finan Boaitl 155.091 175.839 TrLrslee8 fyMethLvth5tChutth PLty)ses Otherftthid5 SUB TQTAL- Churth a¢¢out)ts 166.049 ILSI 182,369 Total fund5 he by Inleml Org8rds8kn8 Ithedosiny e totalfrotn atN)vel181¥ TOTAL CASH FUNDS HELD BY CHURCH 186,049 IB2,369 SECTION G At 1 septem2024 31 Auoust 2025 OTHERASSET5 awj LWWUTIES Investrne$ lindude Endumntsl Land & Buildiws I5ee re Insurance wauel OlherASSèts Loanlsl- show amowl Quista1nll 8tyeorend OlhBr knabililies f4 InL4udè Fund$held althe Cgnlfai FiDarte Board IS Indude onty Fundshdd aiTrustees forMelhodi5tChurth Purpose$ 1 Indudeany otherinve9tment$lnot ItrEca5h eiamèrt of TMCP Itustsac()yJntsthiq 1$ Inckhled in Ilf5
Name of Church Wallon-on-Tharnes Methodist Church No 1174524 Declarations and Scrutiny l Confirm that these Receipt and Payment based accounts for the year to 31 August 2025 have been prepared frorn the records the Church and that they include all funds ursder the control of the Church trustee$. Signature of taSUrer . Dale..... Name and address of treasurer Duncan Curtis 1 Wadham Close, Shepperton Post Code TW17 9HT Presentation to Ihe Church trustees I confirm that the annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 August 2025 werelwill be. presented to the meeting of the Church trustees held on . Signature of the Chair of the meeting Name of the Chair of the meeting .ifj LL, Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of the Walton-on-Thames Methodist Church Charity Number 1174524 Responsibilities and basis of report I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the .NA4k.A-. Church for the year ended 31 August 2025 sel out on pages . to As the Church's trustees, you are responsible for the preparatlon of the accounts in accordan with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 I'the Acl'l. I report in respect of my examination of the Church's accounts carried out under section 145 of the Act and. in carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145{5llbl of the Act. delete or circle as appropriate C StandBtd FoTh ofAcMunts g025111* 4of5
Name of Church Walton-on-Thames Methodist Church No 1174524 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 { ) which give me cause to believe that in, any material respect.. the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act., or 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 this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. I4elhave not. obtained independent verification of all investments with the Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes or held in other trusts, bank balances and funds at the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church which are individually in excess of £10,000 (ten thousand pounds) at the balance sheet date. Signature of independent examiner Name of independent examiner Relevant professional qualtfication of independent examiner Name of fimi (where appropriate) £ CJ g< Address Post CcKle K ! i 1 gc Date delete or circle as appropriate WMC Stsndard Fom ofAccounts 2025 {11.xls 5of5
WALTON-ON-THAMES METHODIST CHURCH Income & Expenditure Account for the period 011091202& 3110812025 RESTRICTED FUNDS INCOME EXPENDITURE 2023124 rrEM Benevolent Fund Collections Trdnsferfrom General fund Deficbt 2024125 OUDGET 2023124 rrEM 2024125 BUDtXT 120 Payments Surplus 70 120 120 Charltsble FLbnds Collections DefieAt 3.014 2.537 3,020 Paid lo charit9 Surplys 2,342 19S 2.537 3.020 3.020 Connexional Funds Collections Defidt 557 Paid lo ¢onnaxion Surplu5 557 557 557 Messy Church Fund 00n8On$ Tax Rebate Defi¢il 38 Expenses SuFpIus 36 Youth Work Fund Tmnsfer from GeneTal Fund Donatlons Interest Tax Rebate Deficil 623 1.667 Salary Expenses 1.501 2.447 208 156 Surplus 1,292 1.501 SURPLUS r8 Restrf¢led 1.557 Grand Totsl Grand Totsl 4.714
WALTON-ON-THAMES METHODIST CHURCH Income & Expenditure Account for the period 0110912024- 3110812025 UNRESTRICTED FUNDS INCOME EXPENDITURE 2023124 ITEM 2024125 BUL)GET 2023124 38,274 4,484 246 1,815 ITEM Circuit Assessment Secretarial Exptrnsos Office Expellses Worship Expgnses Mission Expens¢s Training Gift Day Charities Transfer ILI Yth Work Fund 2024125 BUDGET 38,274 38,275 4,768 5,250 479 750 1,675 2,500 1,000 31.429 5,265 36,694 Envelopes & Std Orders Cash 28,946 5,640 34,586 30.000 10.760 12,065 455 1,207 6,357 13.476 175 30 144 Gift Day ax Rebate Circuit Grants Legacies lllt8fvSt Lettings FundraSsing Donations Sundry Income 13.315 11,350 10.000 10.000 210 1.616 2,000 5,873 14,773 5,500 12.500 4,631 6,382 4.791 19-.311 166 2.848 soo 60 Utilities General expendllure Cleaning Repairs & Rèplacernents Junior Church Insurance Connexional Funds Bank Charges 4,657 3,452 4,912 1,331 171 3.238 500 7,500 5,5(Xl 15,000 250 3,300 5(Xl 252 325 500 81,362 80,474 68,500 85.334 65,516 67,025 3,972 18,525 SURPLUS re Unrestricted 14,958 85,334 Grand Total 87.025 85,334 Grand Totsl 80,474 87,025
WALTON-ON-THAMES METHODIST CHURCH Balance Sheet as at 3110812025 31Aug-24 31U9-25 Bank & Cash Balances 10,994 18,294 15,751 22,280 63,267 2,306 33,193 25 CAF Bank Central Finance Board- Depos Alc Legacies General Reserve 2023 Propety Reserve {from Gift Days) Mental Health Reserve 2019 Spla1 Projects Youth Work Petty Cash 6.762 19,684 15,427 23,290 80,541 2,410 34.485 25 166,110 182625 resent d b UNRESTRICTED FUNDS 136,119 13,972) 132.147 General Fund Ibalce blf 011091241 Surplus l Deficit { ) 132,147 14,958 147.105 132,147 TOTAL OF UNRESTRICTED FUNDS 147.105 RESTRICTED FUNDS 129 Benevolent Fund {balce blf 01109124} Surplus l Deficit I I 129 70 129 199 68 Charity Collections Ibalce blf 01109124) Surplus l Deficit I I 61 195 61 257 Connexional Funds Ibalce blf 01109124} Surplus l Deficit l ) 616 (361 Messy Church Fund Ibalce blf 01109124) Surplus l Deficit { ) 580 580 580 33.350 11561 33,193 Youth Work Fund Ibalce blf 01109124) Surplus l Deficit ( } 33.193 1,292 34,485 33,963 TOTAL OF RESTRICTED FUNDS 35,520 166.110 182,625
WALTON-ON-THAMES METHODIST CHURCH Charitable Giving 2023124 2024125 Connexlonal Funds World Mission 500.00 500.00 500.00 500.¢)0 Other Donations Action For Children All We Can Bible Society Christian Aid Crisis Elmbridge EGohub Foodbank Love Russia Mcmillan Cancer care MHA 826.87 547.89 50.58 93.15 141.26 157.60 820.84 151.51 141.00 155.00 279.00 168.16 181.17 170.40 205.00 233.00 396.00 Smiles2Smiles st Georges Target Ovarian Cancer Tear Fund 152.66 85.00 131.27 222.57 62.74 War Child 3,013.80 178.13 2,537.00 Gift Day Charities Action For Children All We Can Alzheimerfs Society Anna Chaplaincy Foodbank Fund For Human Need MHA Rent start War Child 202.00 500.00 500.00 202.00 202_00 202.00 202.00 202.00 202.00 202.00 500.00 500.00 1.616.00 2,000.00 5,129.80 5.037.00
Wahon-on-Thames Methodist Church Govemanc8- decision making The following was agreed al the Church Council ICC) Meeting 18 October 2016 and reviewed Au usl The propgrty secretary can agree expenditurè up to £2500. The Propgty Secrglary will always check with the Treasurgr il ovor £500. Thg Propety Secretary wlll continue lo report any expenditure to the next CC meeting. Any item over £2500 will ba brought back to CC. a dgcision is required in advance of the next scheduled CC meeting the Propety Secretary and Treasurer will request the Leadership Team call an extraordlnary CC meeting. 14 days, notice is required. 11 tha mattel Is urgent and above £2500 emails can be used to appTove the decision, with a minuled agenda Ilem at the ne CC meetlng. Emafls wlll not be usad outslde of these Circumstan$. aintenance contracts are in place for expenditure such as the lir¢ alarm, photocopier, lire extinguishers and sound system. AII BACS payments have lo be electronlcalty released. and at present a norninated authorlsed signatory does them all, after the Treasurer enters then into the CAF bank system. This is lor any amounl. However, in future. a nominated aulhorised slgnalory will conla¢l a member of the Leadership team lor conllrmallon that sihe can release any ilam over £2500. This GontaGt can be by phone, email or in person, bul slhe wlll make a note of who has agreed and koep records which will be pa55ed to the Treasurer 88ch Augusl and kept on file with the rest ol the papeNork All cheques are signed by two pe¢)ple {the Treasurer and an aulhorised signatory). If the Propety SeGrelary Feceives a quote IOT £2,500 and over she will seek a second quote unless a rg¢ognised provider is used whose standard ol work t)as pioved sallslaclory in the past. She wlll then liaisg with a Steward and then the Trgasurer. This will be ieported to the next CC meellng. The Benevolent Fund 18 to be used at the Minlsler's dlscrellon. In the absence ol a Minier, the Leadership learn are allowed lo authoTise any amount from this lund when it was needed, and report back to CC. Any project which is done in the name ol Ihg Church should come to the CC for its approval. for example the Uganda project and 3Generate. CC should approve projects before plans go ahead. This helps to ensure projects are aligned with the vision and strategy of Wakon-on- Thames Methodlst Church and helps lo achleve the widest reach ol Ilmrted resources. Small raffles are allowed. at the discretion of the CC. in line with the Methodist Church Constitutional Practice and Discipline. A raffle can only be held wilhln a fundraising event, the cosi of prizes must be undeT £50 and no alcohol is allowed as Pfizes. These notes wlll be Illed In the front ot the CC folders stored at the Chwch. Currgnl role holders- Chris Mills - Property Secretary Duncan Curtis- Treasurer Hilary Rlchardson- the only person lan authorised signatory) who can relea8e the el8clronlc payments
Minutes of Zoom meeting 14 January 2026 regarding Charities to be supported at Walton on Thames Methodist Church during 2026 Present Shaun, Val, Catherine, Jeannette and Duncan Coffee Collections Feb Mar Mind Apr May Bible Society June July Local Ecohub Aug Sept War Child Oct Nov Wood Green Animal Sanctuary Dec Jan Foodbank Collections on December 20 in the evening and on Dec. 25 will be taken for Crisis. At the Carol Service the collection will be taken during the service and prior notice given of these cash collection& Gift Day pause May 3" Charities Action For Chilthen Rent Start Cherry Tree5 M.H.A. A quarter each of how much is raised Article for this coming Aspire regarding the charities World Mission Fund from Church Funds £500 plus individual donations. During July 21 March SaNrday Poems for Mind Charity David, Catherine and Val Ties in with Coffee collections 23 May Tear Fund Quiz 24pm Dawn and Catherine to run this One off donations in lieu of Gift Day throughout the year if people wish to make them for the benefit of the Church We will not be seeking sponsors this year foT the SuTrey Churches cycle Tide Macmillan Cancer charity coffee date to be fLxed Jeannette and Rosanne in OctobeT. Should Dot dash with Harvest. Harvest Food donations for Foodbank. Date to be fixed by L T Pauline Wakefield will speak about Wood Green Animal sanctuary on Animal Sunday with cakes being sold to beef up our coffee collections in October and November. Date to be fixed. Catherine to possibly sell Cherry Trees cards for Xmas. Duncan 14101126.
WALTON4)N-THAMES METHODIST CHURCH PHASED BUDGET 2024-25 INCO BUDGET 2024125 Phased Cumulative Budget other qtrs Q1 Q2 Q3 ITEM Unrestricted Collections Tax Rebate Interest Lettings Gift Day Sundry 30,000 10,000 5,500 12.500 10.000 500 7,500 15,000 22,500 1,375 3,125 2,750 6.250 4,125 9,375 10,000 375 125 250 Grants Legacies Fundraising Donations Other Church Groups Restricted DEFICIT 18,525 8,684 20,809 16,990 41.240 19,754 EXPENDIT BUDGET 2024125 Phased Cumulative Budget other qtrs Q1 Q2 Q3 ITEM Unrestricted Circuit Assessment Secretsrial Services Office Expenses Worship Expenses Mission Expenses Utilities Propety - Gen Exp Propety- R&R Cleaning Junior Church Insurance Connexional Funds 38,275 5,250 750 2,500 I,ooo 7,500 7,200 15,000 5,500 250 3,300 500 9,570 1,315 187 625 250 1,875 1.800 3.750 1.375 62 19,140 2,250 375 1,250 500 3,750 3,600 7,500 2,750 125 28,710 3.845 562 1,875 750 5,625 5,400 11,250 4,125 187 3,300 500 Restricted SURPLUS 87,025 20,809 41,240 66.129
Walton on Thames Methodist Church Notes to the Annual accounts for the perlod ending 315t August 2025 Another satisfactory yeaT is behind us and thankfully we are still on a relatively sound financial footing. Can I thank you once again for your generosity, which is much appreciated. However, although collection totals remain rougbly static. Gift Day is much lower than past years although a littl¢ up on 2024. So our savings will be depleted and it will be harder to find cash for essential Work on Propety repairs and the like in fijttue year8. These notes are meant to b¢ read in conjunction with our annual accounts and are a way of explaining them more clearly than just in figures. Our Incorne and Expenditure statement for the year end hÈghligbts reasons why the predicted deficit turned into a sutplus! Virtually everything on the Income side of the accounts wa5 better than anticipated by me wl]ilst expenditure items were nearly all under budget. A good result in my book. I don't mind being wrong that way round. Part of the reason is because spending on Property this year was a lot less tban anticipated. l expect ChTiS will put tbis right in the coming yeaT? If you don't have a copy of the ac¢ouots and wish for on4 please ask. Thanks Éo ChrÉs who works with me so well on all matters, PTopety related. Also to Rosanne, who has been instn]m¢ntal with help in kccping our lettings going again, and this time up on budget. For the benefit of the Charity commission and in relation to VAT rnles, we ar¢ in no way profitable. Our rentsl income is only around 18 % of our total income although of course our renters occupy the building for far longer than the average Church member. Catherine and Tony sav¢ us money to and Catherine helps wherever she can on Property matteTS. Catherine has also b¢etL relieving Rosanne of 50m¢ letttngs work, allowing Rosanne to keep going with it and, in additton, we ¢ut out Children's parties to reduce paperwork and a lot of time and effort for not a lot of r¢ward. Please continue to do your bit please to ke¢p $tS down by tUrn2ng off lights and water healers and boilers when they are not needed. Our utaity costs were well inside budget but this was partly du¢ to a large refimd from E.D.F, some of which related to last year. We were paying them a flat amount ¢ach month. much as many of us do at hom¢, but the amount was too rnu¢h atkd tbey seemed reluctant to bring it down. Now I pay them each month for our actual consumption which l think will work better. Our ElectriGity contract runs out in April 26 but the gas one runs on until 2027. Charitable giving this last year was very similar overall to the year before, 8t around £5000, but Gift Day giviThg (part of the overall amount) was up about £400. Bank interest continues to provide a helpful Gontribution to our fidS and was over budget although interest Tates have dropped tbis last year. This of course only tends to partially compensate for inflation. Anyone who would like to switch to paying their Collection by standing order straight to our ChuTch bank accounL rath¢r than in the bags on a Sunday, would b¢ very welcome. It is easy and you know how rnuch you contribute. If you bave not adjusted the amount you pay upwards re¢ently, please think about doing so. Some have remained static for many years. We havc lost at l¢ast one generous giver this y¢aT and it takes a lot to make up the difference. Many that again to Alan Weight, for his continued help with both accounts and the Gift Aid clairn. He is of great assistan¢¢.
As your treasurer l am at your service and in the cv¢nt of any query pleas¢ c¢)ntact rne. Duncan E Curtis duncanandjeannette@gmail.com Sept 25 Banks now used ar¢ th¢ Charities Aid Foundation Batjk and tbe Central Finance Board of the Methodist ChuTCh.