OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2020-12-31-accounts

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA

TRUSTEES’ REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE PERIOD FROM 6[TH] APRIL 2020 TO 31st DECEMBER 2020

Charity Registration No. 1176598

Company Number CE012884 Charitable Incorporated Organisation

CONTENTS

Legal and administrative information Page 2 Trustees report (The Covid Year) Page 3 – 6 Leadership Review of the Covid Year Page 7-15 Statement of financial activities and budget for 2021 Page 16 Independent examiner's report for period April 2020 - Dec 2020 Page 17-19

1 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Legal and Administrative Information

Charity Name: Liberty Church Swansea

Charity Registration Number: 1176598

Charitable Incorporated Organisation Companies House Number: CE012884

Address: Liberty Church Offices Siloh Chapel Pentre Treharne Road Landore Swansea SA1 2PN

Trustees & Directors: Rev. M. Ritchie Mrs J. Alexander (stepping down 31-12-2020) Mr D.R. Hand (stepping down 31-12-2020) Mr D Weale (appointed 01-05-2019 resigned 31-12-2020)

Independent Examiner: Rev. Mark Lees Flat 2, 3 Station Road Llanelli SA15 1AF

Bankers: Lloyds Bank Oxford Street Swansea

The Trustees present their report and accounts for the period from 6th April 2020 to 31st December 2020. The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Charities Act 2011 and the Statement of Recommended Practice, "Accounting and Reporting by Charities", issued in March 2005.

2 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Trustees Report (The Covid Year)

Structure, governance and management

Liberty Church Swansea is a church in good standing with Assemblies of God Inc. UK and operates under their governing direction as a national body, as an independent charity. It has been operating under its governance structure since July 2017 and was accepted to be a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) type charity since 10[th] January 2018. The church is led by a leadership team, who function with the support of a Trusteeship, where the Trustees are the voting members, and a church membership structure. The leadership team are primarily responsible for the vision and operation of the day-today ministry within the life of the church, and the Trustees are responsible primarily for the fiduciary arrangements as regards, compliance, finance and legal oversight and reporting.

Recruitment and appointment of new Trustees

New Trustees may be recruited to the board at any time by the Trustees. In selecting individuals for appointment as Trustees, the Trustees must have regard to the skills, knowledge and experience needed for the effective administration of the charity. The Trustees may, by and from their number and from time to time, elect such officers (chair, secretary, treasurer) as required and as appropriate. Each new Trustee receives, on or before his or her first appointment a copy of the current version of the constitution and governing documents; and a copy of the charity’s latest Trustees' annual report and statement of accounts. Trustees receive regular updates from the Charity Commission's website.

Organisational Structure and decision-making process

Decision making takes place as a unit, and makes decisions based on collective research, discussion and agreement. Expenditure of more than £1,000 is referred to the board for approval unless included in a previously approved budget. All staff positions are authorised by the whole board, but recruitment of the person is delegated to the Senior Pastor who is also the Chairman of the Board.

Risk Management

As part of Liberty Church’s risk management process, the Trustees have established a risk assessment schedule in collaboration with relevant key staff members. The Trustee members acknowledge their responsibility for the charity’s system of internal control and for reviewing its effectiveness. The Trustees are satisfied that the systems in place are sufficient to mitigate exposure to the major associated risks. The Trustees, through the church leadership team have set policies on risk and internal controls, which cover:

Safeguarding

In 2019-20 Liberty Church Swansea worked in compliance with the framework of our safeguarding policy. Rachael McLeay was the safeguarding officer. The charity subscribes to thirtyone:eight, to facilitate our DBS checks of all workers with children, youth and vulnerable adults, as well as for Trustees and Pastoral Staff.

3 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Objectives and activities

The main objectives of the CIO as laid down in the constitution are (a) the advancement of the Christian faith in Swansea, the UK and overseas, (b) the relief of persons who are in conditions of need, hardship or distress and (c) the advancement of education on the basis of Christian principles.

a) Advancing Christian faith in Swansea and the UK

The Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) is responsible for Liberty Church Swansea, which is a missionary congregation reaching out to Swansea’s Christian community and the community surrounding its location. The aim of this congregation is not only to teach the Christian faith and offer opportunities to worship, but also to demonstrate the gospel through serving the local community (further details and activities below). The church runs a Kid’s Club and a separate Youth Group inside Siloh Chapel, Landore, where many children and youth from the local community come to have fun, play games and also receive encouragement through relevant Christian messages. The Church also runs a playgroup for families in the Landore area. The playgroup offers fun activities and social interaction for parents and Grandparents; as well as providing spiritual support and prayer as required. Liberty Church also hosts a Senior morning where the over 50’s can fellowship and receive encouragement through prayer and Christian teaching.

Advancing Christian faith overseas

Through Liberty Church Swansea, people are encouraged to be involved with various overseas projects. Opportunities are provided each year for people to participate in such projects. Members of Liberty Church Swansea also contribute to supporting a number of missionaries working around the globe.

b) Relief of persons who are in conditions of need or hardship, or who are aged or sick. The church regularly finds itself in a position to help local community members through prayer or by dispensing charity. The charity, although young, is very generous, and is keen to work with other charities and organisations as the opportunities arise and relationships develop. Examples are:

c) The advancement of education on the basis of Christian principles

Liberty Church Swansea has a strong relationship with Brynhyfryd Primary School and pre-Covid was regularly invited to be part of school assemblies.

Aims and Objectives for period

The aims and objectives of this period were to become firmly established as a Christian witness in the local community. As part of the charitable objective to advance the Christian faith, Liberty Church Swansea aims to create a church community in which people feel part of the family and feel at home.

4 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Liberty Church Swansea Leadership Team The leadership team of Liberty Church Swansea was as follows:

Mark Ritchie – Senior Pastor

Dave McLeay – Children & Youth Pastor Rachael McLeay – Children & Youth Pastor David Weale - Executive Pastor (resigned 27th September 2020) Deborah Harris - Church Administrator from 28th September 2020 Paul and Julie Button - Associate Leaders Liberty Church Colwinston (Stepped down 18th September 2020)

The complete pastoral team were responsible for the following areas:

During and despite of the Covid crisis, new safety and social distance policies were implemented, and the compliance team supported by others did a lot of serious work to establish new policies and practices for the new realties around the Covid infection and impacts locally. Many thanks to this small but dedicated team for working so hard to ensure all activities complied with latest guidance and in helping keep staff, volunteers and participants safe.

Public Benefit

The Trustees are aware of the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit in “The advancement of religion for public benefit” and have regarded it in their administration of the charity. The Trustees believe that by promoting the Christian faith it provides a benefit to the public by providing facilities for public worship, pastoral care and spiritual development both for existing church members and anyone wishing to benefit from the services offered by the charity, which are delivered with love, compassion, and a heart of service. Liberty Church Swansea commits to promoting Christian values and services both in the community and to the community for the benefit of individuals, families and society as a whole. Whilst many of the practices and opportunities usually presented to the church have been severely limited during this Covid period and especially in the strictest times of lockdown, curtailing most practical ministry and outreach. Liberty church developed a new on-line presence offering regular services and support of individuals through, Facebook, YouTube, Zoom and WhatsApp media methods. Developing “BE Groups” and an intercessors network in this period to help overcome isolation, and as a means of providing pastoral care to members and others. We are wholly thankful and grateful to all those in the Church community who give generously to the ministry of Liberty Church Swansea. These are new, strange and challenging days, but God is the same, His love is constant and His presence is ever with us in Jesus name.

5 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Financial review

Policy on reserves The Charity's policy aim is to work towards a minimum of general funds held in reserve to run the organisation for up to 3 months.

Statement of trustees' responsibilities

The trustees are responsible for preparing the annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice. Law applicable to charities in England and Wales requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of charity's financial activities during the year and of its financial position at the end of the year.

In preparing financial statements giving a true and fair view, the trustees are required to: - select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently. - make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and

The trustees are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011.

Trustees 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. The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.

During 2020 the Trustees with support from the Compliance Team created and updated a number of our policies to make sure we were legally up to date with charity requirements.

Trustees met regularly to ensure that the church fulfilled all legal and Charity Commission responsibilities and that the finances were in order. We wanted to make sure that we made sure the church leadership were free to run with the vision of the church without being held back by making decisions that the trustees could make to ensure a great partnership to see the church grow.

We look forward to a greater 2021 and are excited to be part of the vision for Liberty Church.

On behalf of the Board of Trustees,

Rev. Mark Ritchie, Chair of Trustees

Dated 29th March 2021

6 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

LIBERTY CHURCH REPORTS APRIL-DECEMBER 2020

When we started 2020, little did we know what was ahead. We could not have envisaged that by March the whole church building would be closed and the whole world would grind to a halt. Within weeks, every programme we ran from Siloh Chapel was stopped and we had to find new ways of pastoring people as well as continuing to reach our community. We had to build the ship while we were at sea! There has never been a time like 2020 and yet amidst it all God has been totally faithful and we have learned so much.

Here are some reports from April – December 2020 – we give God ALL the glory.

COMMUNICATION

Much of our communication was shared in the announcements in our Sunday service so we had to find ways of reaching and informing the Liberty family. For the first few months the leaders would try and call everyone in the church personally to find out we were all ok. As our leaders went back to work this became impossible but we called people when we heard or felt they needed encouragement or help.

One great thing we did was to set up a Liberty Family Whatsapp list where Pastor Mark could send information or links to events with one message. There are 186 people on the list and this has proved to be a great tool for sharing information and encouragement.

We also started a ‘Liberty Church Facebook Page – Closed’ that was for our Liberty family and not a public page. This has also been a great place to share information and also for our Liberty family to share prayer requests and encouragements. Our Liberty Church Facebook page had been set up for a number of years and is a public page for all to see.

Around July we started a ‘Liberty Zoom Cuppa’ for anyone in Liberty to join us for a coffee, catch up and laugh. This has been great and yet only a few people seem to come. The invitation is there every Sunday – join us!

So we have used many ways to communicate – Whatsapp list, Facebook pages, Zoom, our Youtube channel, our worship nights, prayer times and one-off messages and videos sent by Pastor Mark. The children and youth have also had many communications from Dave and Rachael. We have tried to keep people connected using whatever ways we can.

7 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

SURVEY

In June we wanted to know how our church family were and how you were feeling. We sent out an online survey where anyone could reply anonymously and share their thoughts. This was a real help to us in our planning. The general answers were:

The survey helped us plan well.

10:38 GROUP

At the start of the pandemic many vulnerable people and the elderly could not leave their homes. There was a call for key workers and charities to help. So we set up ‘Liberty 10:38’ because it says in Acts 10:38 ‘how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.’

Because we don’t have a working kitchen it was hard for us but we gathered a number of people from Liberty who did shopping, went to the Pharmacy, made calls to the lonely etc. We had a few trips taking people to hospital; and whatever else was needed. We worked closely with the Local Area Co-ordinators and with our local councillor Mike White. Whenever they needed something, we provided help in any way we could.

We also encouraged our Liberty family to become ‘Community Champions’ and help our neighbours in any way possible. This was a great blessing for many.

FINANCIAL GIVING

You will find a record of our giving below but as you can imagine, 2020 was a great challenge for us! Usually, many people would give their tithes and offerings through cheque or cash during the Sunday service. But now we have no Sunday services!

We are so blessed by the many people who heard our hearts and who switched to giving by Standing order or into our bank account. We are so grateful. As a church we have commitments to our own Pastors, to pay bills and to support our missionaries. And we were able to do all of this because of your faithfulness to the Lord.

8 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

WORSHIP NIGHTS

Without any planning or much thought two nights of worship started – Tuesday nights from pastor Dave McLeay’s home and Friday night from Pastor Mark’s home. They are slightly different in that Dave has worship with a word and Mark has worship with a prophetic and intercessory edge. Both nights have been a blessing not only to our Liberty family but people all over the world. They both continue on our Liberty Church Facebook page at 7:30pm on those evenings.

ONLINE SERVICE

One of the first things we had to do was to begin an online service every Sunday morning. The first two were from the church building but then we had to move to recording from our homes when the strict lockdown came in April. Due to the uncertainty of when we could go back to the church building we decided that we would keep the online service at 10:30am on a Sunday morning so that we could show a consistent service every week whatever the social conditions

The service has proved to be a blessing not only to our Liberty family but to many people from all over the world. We get regular watchers from the Philippines, USA, Australia, Singapore, Scotland, England and Ireland … and many other places. Let your glory fall from this room … let it go forth from here to the nations!

Our format is simple and is varied so everyone can enjoy something. We have worship, kids talk, a testimony or Big 5, prayer requests, Bible Reading, preaching and prayer. I know many have been blessed by our services and a HUGE thank you must go to Ben Gillot who was in charge of the media during this time and latterly to Jack McLeay who has taken over the mantle. We could not do what we have done without these guys. Thank you.

FROM THE GARDEN

In May, the Lord woke Pastor Mark up and asked him to go to his phone and do a Facebook Live. As he was doing this the Holy Spirit gave Mark the words and message to share. Since that day, every Sunday morning the Lord has woke Pastor Mark up with a question, song, message, challenge, thought ... and he has gone online and the Holy Spirit shows him what to say. It’s raw and it’s real!

This has become a huge blessing to so many people all over the world and is different to what you would get in an online service. If you haven’t listened join us on Liberty’s Facebook page 9am every Sunday until further notice!

9 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

SERVICES AT SILOH CHAPEL

By September the lockdown rules had changes and churches could meet again but with restrictions. Social distancing must be observed, seats had to be pre-booked for track and trace, the church had to go through thorough risk assessment and comply with regulations, we could not touch and we could not sing. Doesn’t sound like church! A big thank you is needed here for our Compliance Team and Trustees as they waded through regulations to ensure we were all safe during our services.

We knew that most of our Liberty family had indicated they would not come back with these conditions and that was very fair and a choice we all had to make. We started on September 27[th] and we could seat up to 63 people if every seat was full.

It was great to see each other again, despite the restrictions. Our services were good and it took a number of weeks to get into the new ways and new restrictions. But we did. And what we found was that the people who wanted to come were mainly new people that had found Christ through the pandemic or people who wanted to start making Liberty their church.

We had to stop meeting again in November and we didn’t start back again that year. At least we had made a start and were meeting again. We longed for the days where we could sit where we want, sing as loud as we want, hug whoever we want and drink coffee with people we love at the end of the service. We look forward to starting our Kids Church again. These days will come but we were just happy to see each other again. Our Liberty family will reunite when the time is right!

BE GROUPS

In March 2020 we had around 4-5 Be-Groups running. God had challenged is to have ‘cell church’ model where everyone was part of a small group where the leaders didn’t only teach but would look after and ‘Pastor’ the people. We tried so hard when we started Liberty but for some reason this didn’t seem to fit the welsh culture!

But in August God really spoke to Pastor Mark about getting our Liberty family into Be-Groups where they could get support and encouragement and grow in God. So we set about asking people who would like to be in a Be-Group and we set up new ones. All our Be-Groups were by Zoom so no travel or parking was needed!

We are glad to inform you that by December we had 8 Be-Groups running with another 2 to start in January. These groups are for a range of ages from kids, youth, young adults and adults’ groups. We feel that Be-groups will be a key for our church in the years ahead.

10 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

CHURCH HOUSE

From August 2017 we had rented the house next door to the church – 15 Pentre Treharne Road. We could not do what we have done without that brilliant house. It has been our offices, meeting room, Carl’s home, a place to host missions’ teams, kids church for toddlers … everything! But we never used it at all from April to November and so it was a waste of our funds keeping the rent going. So in Dec 1[st] we handed back the keys and moved our office into the church. It’s a temporary move until we get the side hall done.

PERSECUTED CHURCH

The church is intentional in its encouragement and support of the persecuted church with four B-Groups committing to pray and support named countries where Christians are persecuted.

The church actively welcomes representatives and speakers from Release International to share current news of the global needs of Christians who are being persecuted and the opportunities for the church to become involved. The church has actively supported persecuted Christians through targeted giving including online fundraising.

STAFF CHANGES

In September we were informed by David Weale that he was returning to his old job in London. This was a huge shock to us and we had to re-adjust everything we were doing in terms of administration, financial set ups and management plans. We must thank David for all he did for us and for putting together a plan for us to move forward. Davis was also our Chairman of Trustees and we thank him for all he has done as a Trustee and leader.

We were very grateful the Debs Harris took over the administration and financial responsibilities and is doing an incredible job. Thank you Debs. Also, Jack McLeay has taken over the media ministry which covers social media, website as well as the Audio and Visual ministry in the church building. We have a new PA and Media equipment and we are going to see a much better quality of media in the days ahead.

At the end of December Dave Hand and Jacqui Alexander also stepped down from their roles as Trustees for Liberty Church. They had served for over two years and along with David Weale and Pastor Mark have set up a good foundation to move forward. We appointed three new Trustees to join Pastor Mark as we move into a new season – Mark Lees, Andrew Tonks and Marion Morgan.

11 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

MEMBERS UPDATE

It is usual in church life that people come and people go. There are many reasons why people come and many reasons why people go.

From April – December 2020 we had a number of our members decide to leave Liberty Church. Each one gave reasons why they were leaving and said they felt it was what God wanted. As leaders we do get upset when people leave as they are our family, and we have many memories. But the good thing is that we are still in good relationship with them all. There is no problems or issues with any of these people and they are still loved and prayed for by our leaders.

We had 12 members leave during this period. At the same time there are many new faces and people at Liberty who have started coming and made Liberty Church their home! There are between 30-40 people who we are praying will become Liberty Family Members in early 2021. This is church life! This is family …

Liberty Kids

In April of 2020 the messages for Liberty Kids became integrated into our online Sunday Service. Some of the kids in our church families have been able to connect with this, for others it has been a struggle. Many of the adults (particularly new believers) have expressed appreciation for the simple teaching and others have been carefully implementing all the gardening lessons.

In June we started the Liberty Kids Hangout. This takes place via zoom every Sunday from 1010:30, just before the service. It is a great way to connect with the kids and has picked up momentum as time has gone on. During the 30 minutes we check in to see how everyone is doing, share some thoughts about the memory verse or the teaching and play a game. At the end we pray for all the kids and then encourage everyone to watch the service. One lovely benefit of the hangout time is that our missionary families in eSwatini and the Philippines can also join us. This has been so lovely for all our kids to have the chance to get to know them better and we can’t wait until they come and visit in person once Covid is all over.

12 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Generations Youth

Liberty Church has a very young youth group, as most of our kids have come through Friday Night Kids club. Year 6 is our crossover year when kids can attend both kids club and youth, so most of our kids are from school years 6 & 7, and not yet old enough to be on social media. This has made staying connected with the kids from our local community during Covid very challenging/impossible. We pray that God will give us opportunity to reconnect with these kids soon, and that the seeds of the gospel that have been sown in their heart will continue to grow and bring fruit.

In April we started a weekly Be Group for our 11-14 year old girls via zoom. The girls have become very close to each other and have challenged each other as they have grown in their relationships with the Lord.

In May a boys Be group also started for the 11-14 age group via zoom. The group is called boys to men, and we are so proud of the way they are all growing in their relationships with each other and with the Lord.

Compliance Team

As a result of Covid the Welsh Government issued different laws and guidelines describing how and when the church could meet. At Liberty Church we are very blessed to have people of incredible skills and expertise in these areas, and with a heart to serve the church with excellence. Kieron Dunning and Alison Leggett, along with David Weale and the Trustee team, spent many hours strategizing, planning and training volunteers so that as a church we could meet in the building in a safe manner. As a result the Liberty Church Compliance Team begun and remain dedicated to bringing excellence in compliance in all areas.

Prayer Meetings

In October, Liberty Church responded to the call to focused prayer. Lead by Debs Harris, Judy Goodwin, Andrew & Jayne Tonks, Dave McLeay and Mark Ritchie, various times of prayer were set up via zoom. This has been found to be a wonderful platform for prayer, allowing people to join when they are able, even if for a short time, and from their home. People have responded well to this call and many have participated in the various meetings. The schedule has been:

Tuesday: 6:30-8:00am Thursday: 10:00-11:00pm each week and then 7:30-9:30pm first Thursday of the month. Friday: 6:30-8:00am 10:00am-12:00pm

13 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

We are delighted to see that the attendance of our early morning prayer has trebled in this last year.

Alpha

In June 2020 we launched our first online Alpha Course, and it was a great success. Many of our church family volunteered, new believers attended to strengthen their faith, and unsaved friends were invited who were interested and ready to hear the gospel for the first time. The course was led by Paul & Julie Button with administration done by Ashelle Paras, they all did a fantastic job. The dynamic was incredible as people from all over the world could attend. There were 5 first time decisions for Jesus, and so much growth in many individuals that attended. Most of those who attended the Alpha course have become part of Be Groups and the Liberty church family.

Missions

During the months April to December Liberty Church has had the privilege to continue to partner with our missionaries on the field. Namely, Graham & Sandra Wade in Cambodia, The Smart Family in eSwatini and The Domingo Family in the Philippines. Each of these nations has had its own challenges as they have attempted to navigate this pandemic, and all of our missionaries have served so well during this time.

They have faced isolation, famine, fires, strict lockdowns, floods, lack of transport, no mail, just to name a few challenges; all with the strength of the Lord and have continued to serve their communities with passion and the love of the Father.

Amazingly, during this season, we have connected with our missionaries on an even deeper level. They have led us in worship, shared testimonies, attended Be Groups, Prayer meetings and been a big part of our Sunday online service and kid’s ministry. As a church we are so grateful for the way the Lord has brought us closer together throughout this challenging season.

14 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Worship

Worship remains one of the core elements of all we do at Liberty Church; we have such a strong value for experiencing God’s presence as we worship Him. During this year we have undergone a huge learning curve as we have adapted to times of worship online and in the church building with covid restrictions. With our worship team juggling so many things personally: work, homeschooling, studying, family, lockdown, they have been amazing at continually recording and bringing the heart of worship to our Liberty Family. This has been further supported by our media team. Ben Gillott brought so much expertise and professionalism to the online service and volunteered so many hours to serve the church as he edited the service together. This has been taken up by Jack McLeay who has been able to take on the editing, and who with the media team are developing the media department of the church and serving at our 4pm service in Siloh Chapel.

This year we also launched our media & sound appeal. We are so grateful that God has used so many of us, as well as people that we are connected with throughout the world to provide everything that we have needed (for now). Our sound system has had a complete overhaul and the team is undergoing training and working towards livestreaming our services.

So as you can see … Liberty Church may have left the building for a while but we have never been more open and never been more alive! We don’t know what is ahead and we know that somehow we have to blend what we were doing before with what we are doing now. They are completely different in so many ways. But we look to Jesus and we are listening to the Holy Spirit. One step at a time.

Thank your standing with us in 2020. It was a year we all had to make adjustments, re-think how we do things and it was definitely a year where we realised that people are more important than things. We miss seeing you all but look forward to seeing us all together again – what a day that will be! Until then, let’s keep praying for each other and supporting each other. Liberty Church cannot go back to what we were but we must move on to what HE wants us to be.

AS ONE!

15 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Liberty Church Swansea – Summarised Financial Statement: Period of actual expense AprilDec 2020. 9-month operational report and full year prospective budget for 2021.

INCOME Actual
Apr-Dec		 Budget
2021		 EXPENDITURE Actual
Apr-Dec		 Budget
2021
Voluntary Income: Governance
Offerings £27,304 £37,000 Utilities £4,510 £10,000
Taxable Offerings £42,443 £56,600 Building/Repairs £6,243 £9,000
Gift Aid Tax refunds £3,111 £20,000 Insurance £4,803 £5,000
Grant from others £9,565 £12,000 AoG/memberships £1,563 £4,000
Other Donations £6,517 £9,000 Audit/Accounts/Legal £3,046 £4,060
Administration £4,636 £7,000
Training/Development £90 £2,000
Sub Total £88,940 £134,600 Sub Total £24,891 £41,060
Minister's Costs
Salaries/NI/Pensions £60,142 £82,000
Other Ministers costs £869 £1,500
Sub Total £61,011 £83,500
Income from Charitable
activities		 Ministry Costs
Missions Fund £1,376 £2,000 Missions £4,262 £6,000
Liberty Heroes £0 £500 Liberty Heroes £157 £500
Kids Club £0 £500 Kids Club £94 £500
Generations Youth £0 £500 Generations Youth £68 £500
Liberty Seniors £0 £250 Liberty Seniors £261 £250
Other Ministries £0 £500 Other Ministries £0 £500
Church/Ministry/Outreach £0 £500 Church/Ministry/Outreach £4,181 £6,000
Sub Total £1,376 £4,750 Sub Total £9,023 £14,250
Church Sub Total £90,316 £139,350 Church Sub Total £94,925 £138,810
Account Balances 31st December 2020
Main bank account £6,647 Creditors/Loans £25,512
Restricted funds Held £2,348 Net value of Charity -£21,213

16 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Independent examiner's report on the accounts

Section A Independent Examiner’s Report

Report to the trustees
For the period
Responsibilities and basis of
report
Independent examiner's
statement		 Liberty Church Swansea Liberty Church Swansea
April 2020 through to December 2020 Charity no 1176598
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity
(“the Trust”) for the year ended 31stDecember 2020 (Part year April 2020 to Dec
2020 to bring the Charity Year end to coincide with the calendar year.
As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in
accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”).
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’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 Act.
[The charity’s gross income did not exceed £250,000 and I am qualified to
undertake the examination by being an independent person, of suitable
experience of Church/Charity finances and accounting and as an accredited
Minister of Assemblies of God.]

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:

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.

Signed: Mark Lees (Digitally Signed) Date: 23[rd] March 2020

17 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Name (Qualifications): Rev. Mark Lees, MA, PgCert.CEH, B.Sc.

Professional body Minister with Assemblies of God Inc. UK of good standing for 29ys.

Address: Flat 2, 3 Station Road Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, SA15 1AF

Section A Comments and recommendations as per CC Internal Financial Checklist

The software-based systems are used well and provide the basis for the whole financial process of recording and reporting within the church accounts. Invoices and receipts are stored externally in “the cloud” and bank reconciliations are semi-automatically confirmed with the charity banker’s online system, which is integrated well.

No real or working budgets have been produced or used in the past, and this is now possible due to the hard work and improvements in practice made in these last months. A rudimentary budget is now included in the summary of financial accounts submitted within this report. This is a big step forward and will help accountability and support of ministries in the life of the church as a whole.

Working practices that need to be reviewed over this next 12-month period are:

18 | P a g e

LIBERTY CHURCH SWANSEA CE012884

TRUSTEE REPORT and FINANCIAL STATEMENTS For the Period from 6[th] April 2020 to 31st December 2020

Section B Disclosure

Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight material matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners).

Give here brief details of any items that the examiner wishes to disclose .

There were no issues of material note in my examination of the accounts and review of the processes within the charity.

19 | P a g e