SEEK, SERVE AND SHARE OUR LORD TOGETHER
Annual Report and Financial Statements of the Parochial Church Council.
Year ending 31st December 2024
St Dunstan with St Thomas, East Acton Friars Place Lane London W3 7AW
## **Vicar’s Report 2024**
January saw our twelfth year of hosting the _Ealing Churches Winter Night Shelter._ Once again, Jacqui did a fantastic job of organising the team and caring for our guests. As always, God blessed us through our guests more than we blessed them.
We also hosted the work of _EASE_ for another year, welcoming around 750 asylum seekers and refugees through St Dunstan’s doors. Through the welcome they have received, several of our guests have wanted to know more about the Christian faith and have become very much part of the church family at St Dunstan’s.
For the first time since pre-covid, Churches in Acton came together for a Good Friday ‘walk of witness’ along Acton High Street followed by an outdoor service in Acton Market Place, outside St Mary’s. Then just over a month later about 50 of us set out on another walk, a pilgrimage to St Paul’s Cathedral to mark St Dunstan’s Day, perfectly timing it for Evensong.
St Thomas Patronal Festival (Sunday 7[th] July) was a day to remember. Manori, fresh from her ordination as a priest, baptised five adults who had attended an Alpha course, and four children. Manori then quickly dried herself, put on her robes and presided at Holy Communion for the first time. Afterwards the BBQ team laid on a great feast for us – a day filled with faith and joy.
Over the summer, services moved to the church hall to enable the reordering of the church. Paul Bretherton freely gifted us hours and hours of his creative energy in designing, presenting and overseeing the work as well as patiently answering all the PCC’s questions. Before work begun, the architect appointed by London Diocese for St Dunstan’s congratulated Paul on an ‘exemplary’ design and the _Diocesan Advisory Committee_ unanimously approved the plans. In September the work finished and what an amazing transformation! Paul, you might remember, also masterminded the lighting schemes in the church and hall. So, thank you Paul for the blessing and legacy you have enabled us to give to those who will follow us at St Dunstan’s.
Another significant change to St Dunstan’s was not so apparent and took most of the year, the installation of new, more efficient boilers. Thank you to Adam Shaw and Neil Yates for overseeing this work. Several unexpected difficulties arose, causing heating to be patchy over the winter. However, these have now been overcome with a warmer 2025 in view.
The reordering of the church and work on the boilers were mostly financed through the legacies of past members of St Dunstan’s. Part of the reason for the October stewardship, in which we were asked to
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prayerfully consider our own financial giving, was to honour the legacies given to us, enable the present work of the church to continue and bless those to whom we will pass the baton.
St Dunstan’s also had its five-yearly church maintenance inspection. Alongside this, the PCC commissioned an ‘Energy Efficiency’ report with the aim of developing a long-term maintenance plan that should help decrease our carbon footprint. On behalf of St Dunstan’s, I’d like to thank our Standing and Finance Team and PCC for their work in making the changes to the church possible and for considering the legacy that we pass on to future generations.
In September, Atlanta became our first Youth Apprentice. In a short time, Atlanta has made a real difference to our youth work, enabling 4TL to meet most Sunday mornings as well as developing evening socials. Thank you to Manori, AJ, Suzi, Sam and Carl for joining the youth team and supporting our growing youth work.
Can I also take a moment to express my gratitude to Rosanna and Esther for continuing to coordinate our 9am and 1045 Sunday Club, and to all the Sunday Club leaders and helpers. Our children’s work is genuinely remarkable for its size and quality. My clergy colleagues cannot believe the numbers of children who come to St Dunstan’s. I’d also like to thank John Everington, Jacqui Roberts and all members of the S _afeguarding Team_ as we work to provide a safe environment for all who attend St Dunstan’s.
St Dunstan’s was also able to increase its involvement in Wormwood Scrubs Prison. Under the guidance of Richard O Conor, a small team has started to lead Sunday morning services in the prison. Please speak to Richard or Manori if you would like to join the team one Sunday. With that in mind, I’d like to thank the musicians and choir who not only faithfully lead sung worship every Sunday but have helped with the services in the prison as well.
Indeed, there are so many people and activities (Kidzone, Toddlers, Homegroups to name a few) I’d like to reference and thank but space will not allow. I hope you will enjoy this report and maybe discover something new about St Dunstan’s. Please continue to pray for God’s guidance in all that we do so that like the church in Thessalonica in the Bible, God’s love will ring out to our parish and beyond.
## **Rev Jon Westall**
NEW WINE
NEW WINE
RE-ORDERING WORKS UNDERWAY
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**CHURCH ACTIVITIES 2024**
## _**Worship Services**_
Our main services on Sunday are: **9 am** – traditional communion service with choir and Sunday Club. **10.45 am** – with worship group, Sunday Club and monthly communion. Farsi translation provided. **Festivals and summer holidays** – All age service at 10 am. **On Wednesdays** , we hold a short said communion service at 10 am.
## _**Home Groups**_
These provide a great opportunity to grow in our relationship with God and each other as we meet on a weekly basis for Bible study, prayer and fellowship at the home of the Riddioughs on Monday evenings and the Morgans on Thursday evenings. 2024 saw us dive into meaty subjects in the books of Romans and Revelation. Manori also held a lunch time Listening Group. If you’d like to learn more about home groups, speak to Jon, Manori or anyone in the PCC.
## _**Sunday Club**_
We are so blessed to have so many children with us and we are wonderfully served with many leaders and helpers. Thank you all.
## _**Courses & retreats**_
For parents of secondary school age, Manori ran a 6 week Parenting course with material from Care for the Family. In October, we ran a day’s ‘Travelling Light’ retreat at church for a chance to rest and be restored in God's presence after the busy weeks of early Autumn.
We have 2 age groups at the 10.45 am service and there is one group at the 9 am service. We run a regular Messy Church. We are always looking for more volunteers. Please speak to Esther or Rosanna or any of the Sunday Club team if you want to be involved.
## _**Prayer**_
After the Sunday services a dedicated team are available to talk and pray with anyone who might value it.
As part of our communal prayers, you can join us on ZOOM at 8.30 am, Mondays-Thursdays when we loosely follow the Order for Morning Prayer. More detail can be found in the weekly email newsletter.
## _**New Wine**_
A number of St Dunstan’s families spent a week in the summer camping in Shepton Mallet for a wonderful celebration of God’s work in our lives. Please speak to the Riddioughs or the Perrymans for more information about joining us at New Wine, 30 July – 4 Aug 2025.
## _**Kidzone**_
This is a short, afterschool church service on _**Youth work**_ **Mondays** for primary For secondary school ages, school children and their Atlanta runs 4TL (for the Lord) parents. It’s a great way during the 10.45 service and to involve the children in she and the team hold regular church particularly if you evening meet-ups. can’t come on Sundays.
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## **Atlanta’s Story**
Helena interviewed our Youth Apprentice, Atlanta Henry, to hear about her life story.
- 1 **. Tell us a little about yourself and your family - where were you born and where did you grow up?** I was born in Ealing and grew up in Hanwell. I lived in Hanwell until 2019 which is when I moved to East Acton with my son, TeJay who is now 10 years old. I grew up with my Mum, Dad and 3 older brothers.
**2. As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?** As a child/teenager I always went back and forth wanting to either work with children or have a career in hair and beauty. When I finished high school I decided to study and work in childcare whilst being a nanny to some amazing children. In 2022 I decided I wanted a change away from children so went back and studied Beauty Therapy, however once I qualified, I quickly found myself back working with children! (clearly God was calling me to be with the children haha).
**3. So how did you become a Christian?** MY AMAZING
SON TEJAY! I've always believed there is a God, for as long as I can remember I've always had some great chats with God or found myself seeking comfort in him. I never went to church or grew up in a Christian family but God has always been there like a best friend who never leaves. But it was my son who started to really become very curious about Christianity and asked if we could go to church... he was only about 5 at this time. This is how we found St Dunstan’s, our church family, our faith and our love for Jesus. I did an Alpha course and decided that it was time to be baptised so we were baptised together, which was the most amazing experience.
**4. What do you do at St Dunstan’s?** Currently, I am the youth apprentice, which I am so grateful for as it's such a rewarding and fun job. This means I get to teach the
young people but I also learn so much through them also. I get to plan all the fun things we do and build such a lovely youth team. I have also helped lead Kidzone which is with the primary aged children after school on a Monday. whilst doing a course in youth work and theology with Ridley University.
**5. What can we do to help you?** I cannot tell you how many times I have been asked this since starting in September and it fills me with so much gratitude and love. Honestly I can't think of anything but I know I am so well supported by everyone at St Dunstan, the London
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Diocese and Ridley. I honestly feel so at home at St Dunstans and so grateful to have everyone supporting me.
6. **It's Friday night after a terribly busy week, how do you spend it?** At Friday Night 5's watching TeJay play football with his sister, giving him his weekly talk on how to be a team player and not sulk and reminding him that if it's another week of sulking he won't get his weekly treat pack of football cards! Then taking them to get a takeaway before dropping his sister home. My life is kids haha, whether it be the children I work for or my own and I’m ok with that. I have an amazing son who I am so proud of and a step daughter who is absolutely incredible so between them and work I'm kept busy and never bored!
**7. Three apps on your phone you can't live without?** 1.Instagram 2.Chat GPT 3.Whatsapp. However during July the only app that matters and is worth having is obviously the NEW WINE app!!!!
THANK YOU ATLANTA!
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## _**Drop-in**_
Every Thursday, during term time, we host EASE, a drop-in for people who are refugees or seeking asylum. The aim is to help them on their way with life in the UK. This service has grown massively over the last year so that a group of volunteers from the local community and our church now welcome well over 100 visitors who receive hot food, living supplies, English lessons and support.
## _**Stewardship**_
Thanks to Nyuk Lau for being our Stewardship Secretary. As her report emphasises, we thank everyone not only for giving monetarily but also providing time, talents, possessions and prayers. Opportunities to get involved include:
This is wholly volunteer led - so please consider how you could support this venture. And our heartfelt thanks to those of you who are involved. For more information about EASE and the struggles of those they help, follow then on X (twitter) and
- Cooking meals for anyone in need – from new parents to the recently bereaved, to helping with the Ease drop-in and the Night Shelter.
- https://ealing.news/news/opinion/helping refugees-and-asylum-seekers-in-acton-andealing/
- Giving lifts to those who can’t make it to church independently.
- Assisting Sunday Club leaders and helping with the children and young people.
- Operating the audio visual system on Sundays.
- The pastoral team’s work – prayer and practical help for anyone in need.
- Helping with mid-week church activities.
- Involvement with our **Green Team -** to make our church community more sustainable and looking at the challenges of meeting Net Zero.
- Joining Sunday service rotas for the music team, prayer, sidespeople, readings or tea/coffee making.
## _**Night Shelter**_
During the winter of 24/25, we welcomed a number of homeless people as part of a shared programme run by Ealing Churches Winter Night Shelter. At St Dunstan’s, our team provided a hot meal, somewhere to sleep, breakfast and, above all, companionship and friendship. Many thanks to Jacqui and her team of helpers for all their hard work - from washing dishes, preparing delicious food, braving the overnight shift and washing bed linen and towells. Good news this year as a significant number of the guests moved into accommodation after the winter.
- Joining the PCC and becoming involved in prayer and decision making for St Dunstan’s.
## _**Building hire**_
We hire out our wonderful building to a number of organisations including the Hammersmith Dog and Puppy Club and for one-off events and parties. We thank **Jacqui** for all her work overseeing the hires and using the wonderful building we have been blessed with.
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## **Stewardship Report 2024**
Thank you, church family - for your time, talents and faithful regular giving to St Dunstan’s. You’ve resourced and enabled the Church to be able to fulfil its mission in reaching out to the community with the good news of Jesus.
In 2024, total giving income (including gift aid) amounted to £84,388 (a 7% reduction from 2023 figure of £90,691). We trust that the positive impact of the stewardship campaign in the autumn of 2024 should filter through in 2025. Looking ahead, it is recommended that PCC members, measure actuals against budget from time to time, that appropriate actions may be taken to meet the target budget set for the year.
58 regular givers were responsible for 71% of the year’s total giving income - £59,980. 62% of donations were given via the Parish Giving Scheme (PGS). It meant that gift aid was automatically recovered every month, improving cash flow for the Church. If you are a regular giver and a taxpayer, please be encouraged to give via PGS, as we won’t have to wait for the end of the tax year to claim the gift aid.
It is worth noting that in the UK, the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme (GASDS) allows the church to claim a 25% top up from HMRC on ‘anonymous’ small cash and contactless donations of £30 or less. This is another easy win for uplifting the amounts given.
The table below summarises the types of giving.
|**Types of Giving**|**Amount**
**– P/Y**
**2023**|**Amount -**
**Year**
**2024**|**% of**
**Total**
**Giving**|**Number of**
**Givers**|**Budget**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Parish Giving Scheme
Other regular giving|£49,654
£17,092|£52,054
£7,926|62%
9%|38
20||
|**Subtotal – regular giving**
One-off donations
Plate collection|**£66,746**
£5,723
£1,180|**£59,980**
£5,739
£2,328|**71%**
7%
3%|**58**|**£64,500**
£4,000
£1,800|
|**Total Giving (before gift aid)**
Gift aid from PGS
Gift aid from other eligible
donations (claimed annually)*|**£73,649**
£12,348
£4,694|**£68,047**
£12,865
£3,476|**81%**
15%
4%||**£70,300**
£17,000|
|**Total Giving**|**£90,691**|**£84,388**|**100%**||**£87,300**|
* Other eligible donations for Gift Aid are claimed annually in April, at the end of the tax year.
## **Nyuk Lau**
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## _**Alpha**_
At the beginning of the year, we ran the Alpha Course. If you are interested in either being confirmed or taking part in an Alpha Course that explores the basics of the Christian faith, please speak to our Vicar, Jon.
## _**Little Acorns**_
The Little Acorns Toddler group continues to be a popular community service and numbers are increasing after the pandemic. It runs from 9.45 to 11.15 am every Friday during term time. The toddlers enjoy toys, snacks, stories and songs in the Church Hall.
## _**Prison Services**_
Richard O’Conor has been faithfully leading regular Sunday services at Wormwood Scrubs Prison with a number of our congregation and of course, his trusty guitar. Richard’s talents as a musician and communicator have been used to share Christ’s love to people in prison. Thank you RIchard and team!
We thank our wonderful helpers for their time, energy and service.
## _**Women’s Socials**_
Jacqueline Perryman and her fabulous team of helpers organised a number of very enjoyable Friday Night social evenings in the Goldsmith’s Room where we were able to chat and mingle and get to know each other more.
## _**Schools Works**_
Our previous children’s worker Sam helped build relationships with the local schools and we are still involved, particularly with East Acton Primary School with whom we ran a Christmas schools visit. We also made connections again with John Perryn School.
## _**Supporting charities**_
## _**Acton Churches Together**_
We support 5 charities:
This is an informal network of Christian Churches in Acton. Each year we sing carols and present a united witness on the Market Place before Christmas, and on Good Friday we walk together all along the High Street before holding a joint service. The network also works together to provide services to local people including the Night Shelter, Ealing Food Bank and Ealing Street Pastors.
- ALMA in Mozambique. ALMA is the Diocese of London's companion link with the Anglican Church in Angola and Mozambique.
- The Pain Exchange - a charity run by our own Sharon Morgans, a physiotherapist, upstairs in Church. PEX seeks to support those living with persistent pain.
- A Rocha - a UK based, international conservation organisation committed to environmental action through community-based conservation projects.
- CMS - we support Heba of the Church Mission Society working in the Middle East in difficult circumstances.
- Hope 4 Kids International in Guatemala - committed to serving at-risk children living in impoverished environments.Annual Report 2024
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## **Report on Church mission and ministry during weekdays**
We gather together on Sundays in church but the church, hall and other rooms are used regularly throughout the weekday for mission and ministry as well as being rented out for hires to help with finances.
Weekly events during term time have included Kidzone on Monday afternoons which has continued to grow. The charity, the Pain Exchange, led by Sharon Morgans, one of our PCC members, is a key presence on Monday mornings with a diverse group of people finding support within the walls of St Dunstan’s. A Persian language Alpha group met on Tuesday mornings during the first half of 2024 with many who did the course going on to be baptised at the St Thomas’ Feast day service on 7[th] July. The group continued to meet on Tuesdays in church for bible study until going online in the Autumn. On Wednesdays we have morning Communion and refreshments followed by setting up for EASE the next day. On Thursdays the church hosts the EASE charity supporting some of the most vulnerable in our community. Little Acorns Toddler group has continued to be well attended on Fridays with a number of new toddler and carers coming. The Friday bible and lunch group has continued to meet and they have supported the charity Home Start (supporting families with under 5s) which comes afterwards with lunch for their guests.
In addition, the church has been the place of hosting for a number of other mission and ministry events including the Winter Night Shelter, the Women’s Nights, Easter and Christmas Crafts, Monday Community lunches, a retreat day and Parentalk Course.
We are also grateful to those who host from their homes to support mission including the Mondays and Thursday evening Home Groups and the Listening Group hosts.
## **Rev Manori Wellington**
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## **FORMALITIES**
## **Parochial Church Council**
The PCC comprises the Clergy, Churchwardens, Representatives of the Deanery Synod and up to 12 elected plus up to 2 co-opted members of the congregation. The job of the PCC is to co-operate with the Vicar in promoting the mission of the Church in the Parish. Those who have served on the PCC since January 2024 are:
ex-officio: Jon Westall (Vicar and Chair), Manori Wellington (Curate), Sue Bolton (Deanery Synod representative), Camilla Slade Viles (Deanery Synod representative), James Riddiough (church warden) and Carlyon Viles (church warden).
elected: Peter Blagg, Roger Bowerman, Paul Bretherton, Deborah Everington, Helena Maitland (PCC secretary), Sharon Morgans (from April 2024) Lesley Moszoro, Eva Nabeta, Jacqueline Perryman, Alison Wood (treasurer) and Neil Yates.
The PCC met 6 times in 2024.
The Standing and Finance committee, which met 7 times in 2024, comprises the Vicar and the PCC chair, Jon Westall, church wardens Carlyon Viles and James Riddiough, secretary Helena Maitland, treasurer Alison Wood and Peter Blagg. This committee carries out PCC business, as directed by the PCC, in between its meetings.
## **The Electoral Roll**
The Electoral Roll stands at 134 persons. (Mark Moszoro)
## **Fabric Report**
The job of looking after the fabric of St Dunstan’s is sometimes challenging, sometimes hard, but looking back on 2024, I have to say it has been unusually exciting.
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The normal maintenance and safety checks on electricity, gas, water, fire extinguishers and ensuring that we are compliant and fully functioning for all users (regular and one-off) of the building are vital to demonstrate that we take care of our premises and welcome visitors. So, we need to change defunct bulbs, mend doors etc. on a regular basis. This is coordinated by Jacqui Roberts, to whom many thanks. A new dishwasher in the kitchen is a boon too!
We received the 2024 Quinquennial Report from our architect in January 2025, which details some areas of repair and maintenance that we should address in the coming year. Some of these are obvious – the damp in the Vicar’s Vestry, for example – and some are less obvious like the state of the brickwork on the spire and some loose/ missing tiles on the roof. Jon has started investigating possible grants both to pay for the work and some to scope out the extent of the work that needs to be done. Over the next year, the PCC will need to work on prioritising and costing these works.
The bigger items have included the installation of new boilers and an overhaul of the heating system throughout the building. This work is still being completed, as the overhaul of the heating has thrown up a few issues regarding the settings and water levels. We are most grateful to Adam Shaw and Neil Yates among others for their time and expert advice in managing this extensive project through all its various stages.
There has also been lots of hard work on installing raised beds and a path to the North of the Church, making this area both beautiful and useful. Messy Church appreciates this work greatly!!
Most noticeably, the plan for improving the interior of the church has been carried out. The new carpet looks fantastic, and we are all trying not to tread excess dirt into it or to spill coffee onto it. The redesign has enabled better sightlines for those in the North aisle and the reshaping of the worship area means additional seating capacity is possible. The refurbishment of the chairs (completed in 2025) has given the final lift to the refurbishment plan, making the whole of the church seem warmer and more welcoming. This is the most significant upgrade that St Dunstan’s has seen over the last 40 years. Grateful thanks go especially to Paul Bretherton who has brought his design skills and experience to glorify God and bless us. He has been working on this plan for a number of years, and it is a massive joy to see
this come to fruition.
Thanks go to all who have supported Paul in the administration of the works – for keeping us on budget and to time and for helping out with moving fittings, vacuuming the carpet, cleaning up after the builders, carrying waste to the skip etc. This really has been a team effort, but you know who you are and that as Churchwardens, we thank you for participating in the care for our buildings and our life together.
James Riddiough and Carlyon Viles
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## **Deanery Synod Report**
The Ealing Deanery Synod brings together representatives from all the 33 churches in the Deanery and the meetings are open to any church member. Our PCC representatives on the Deanery Synod are Sue Bolton and Camilla Slade Viles and they attended the meetings with our Curate and Vicar.
What is the Ealing Deanery Synod?
The Ealing Deanery Synod serves as a link between the parishes within a deanery and the wider Diocesan Synod (in our case the London Diocesan Synod). It elects lay representatives to the Diocesan Synod who can then be elected on to the General Synod which is effectively the Church of England’s parliament.
The churches and clergy of the deanery enjoy mutual support and benefit from working together on a number of joint projects, including praying for one another using the deanery prayer diary, a Mission Fund which is distributed by the synod each year to support projects across the deanery and which our church has benefitted from, the Winter Night Shelter and running training courses.
The Deanery Synod met 3 times in 2024, the first meeting in February was held at St Mellitus, Hanwell where the Ministry Experience Scheme was explained. It is a one year
scheme designed to allow young adults (18-30s) to see what goes on behind the scenes at a Church of England parish. Jeanny Wang, who many of you will remember is a Godly Play trainer, led those present through a session of Godly Play.
The next meeting in July was held at St Barnabas, Northolt Park. Business matters such as approval of accounts, election of school governors were dealt with followed by the distribution of grants by the Ealing Deanery Mission Fund.
October’s meeting took us to St Barnabas, Pitshanger. Bishop Lusa and the Archdeacon were in attendance. In this meeting, Diocesan Synod elections took place and our very own Neil Yates was duly elected.
We are grateful to be able to connect with our church family across the Diocese and to receive encouragement, ideas and inspiration from our church family across Ealing. We would also encourage any of you who have an interest in education to consider standing as a governor for one of the Church schools within the Diocese. Vacancies continually arise and for more information, see https://ldbs.co.uk/school-governor-and-academy-trustee-vacancies#gsc.tab=0 (Sue Bolton, Camilla Slade Viles).
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## **Sidespeople**
Our grateful thanks to those who served as Sidespeople during 2024 including Michael Arthur, Peter Blagg, Sue Bolton, Roger Bowerman, Paul Bretherton, Alex Cornell, Nyuk Lau, David Morgans, Sharon Morgans, Lesley Moszoro, Eva Nabeta, Derek Pasquill, James Riddiough, Jacqui Roberts, Nariman Sarafan, Adam Shaw, Paula Shaw, Carlyon Viles, Neil Yates and Joshua Yates.
## **Safeguarding**
Safeguarding is part of our core faith and an integral feature of our life at St Dunstan’s. St Dunstan’s church has due regard to the House of Bishops' Safeguarding Policy and Practice Guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults.
We continue to review practice in line with Diocesan guidance and in particular 2024 saw each of the PCC members complete their appropriate safeguarding training via the Church of England National Safeguarding Team's online learning portal.
Our Safeguarding Officer during 2024 was John Everington and our Children’s Advocate was Esther Brown.
## **Finances – Overview**
In 2024, the regular day-to-day accounts showed a loss of about £9,000. This was less than the expected losses, and not enough to cause any problems. We will, however, need to increase our regular income to sustain our future.
**----- Start of picture text -----**
common
fund
giving
building
gift aid
ministry & services
hall children & youth
charities
mast administration
other clergy housing
**----- End of picture text -----**
We also spent £77,000 on building projects, including new heating boilers and reordering of the interior.
We were blessed with a legacy of £21,000 from Evelyn Morrison.
For more details, our accounts can be found at the end of this Report.
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## **Glossary**
|Fabric|the physical church building and contents.|
|---|---|
|Incumbent|the priest responsible for the Parish (Vicar).|
|Parish|the area in which the Church of England has given St Dunstan’s|
||responsibility.|
|PCC|the Parochial Church Council - people elected by the congregation to|
||help the Vicar run the church.|
|Sidespeople|those who greet people on a Sunday morning, give out leaflets,|
||guide people up to communion, and help services run smoothly.|
## **Accounts 2024**
The accounts now follow. They were independently examined by Archie McDowall BA CA of Stewardship , 1 Lamb's Passage, London, EC1Y 8AB .
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## **INDEPENDENT EXA MINER'S REPORT**
## **TO THE TR USTEES OF**
## **PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF ST DU NSTAN WITH ST THOMAS, EAST ACTON**
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Parochial Church Council of St Dunstan with St Thomas, East Acton ('the charity'), for the year ended 31 December 2023 on pages 16 to 19 following.
## **Responsibilities and basis of report**
As the trustees of the charity, the members of the PCC 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 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.
## **Independent examiner’s statement**
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
1. accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; or
2. the accounts do not accord with the accounting records.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Archie McDowall BA CA Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB
> Date: 25 April 2025
**St Dunstan with St Thomas East Acton Registered Charity 1177614**
**End of Year Financial Statements Year ending December 31[st] 2024**
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## **Receipts and Payments**
||Unrestricted|Restricted|Total|Prior Year|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|Donations|68,047|100|68,147|74,649|
|Gift Aid|16,440|0|16,440|17,042|
|Grants|0|0|0|2,000|
|Event Income|2,875|0|2,875|2,220|
|Bank Interest|11,880|0|11,880|7,775|
|Rental Income|83,056|0|83,056|74,140|
|Other Income|68|0|68|30|
|Legacies|21,112|0|21,112|0|
|Total receipts|203,479|100|203,579|177,856|
|Admin|5,819|0|5,819|2,521|
|Common Fund|48,510|0|48,510|46,200|
|Gifts Given|9,886|597|10,482|20,613|
|Major fabric investment|65,973|0|65,973|15,443|
|Ministry and event costs|15,846|193|16,038|21,385|
|Premises|100,154|11,132|111,285|61,836|
|Staff Costs|9,361|0|9,361|8,938|
|Governance Costs|1,053|0|1,053|490|
|Total payments|256,601|11,921|268,522|177,426|
|Net Receipts / Payments (before
transfers)|-53,122|-11,821|-64,944|430|
|Fund Transfers In|25,761|0|25,761|71,569|
|Fund Transfers Out|25,761|0|25,761|71,569|
|Net Movement of Cash Funds|-53,122|-11,821|-64,944|430|
|Total Cash Funds Brought Forward|246,161|12,076|258,236|257,806|
|**Total Cash Funds Carried Forward**|**193,038**|**255**|**193,293**|**258,236**|
|Represented By|||||
|General (Unrestricted)|36,160|0|36,160|23,669|
|Children & Youth (Designated)|37,942|0|37,942|37,942|
|Fabric (Designated)|26,117|0|26,117|82,000|
|Mast Electricity (Designated)|0|0|0|11,731|
|Mission (Designated)|47,819|0|47,819|47,819|
|Refugee Housing Deposit (Designated)|1,000|0|1,000|1,000|
|Reserve (General) (Designated)|39,000|0|39,000|37,000|
|Vicar's Discretionary Fund
(Designated)|5,000|0|5,000|5,000|
|Bell Fund (Restricted)|0|130|130|130|
|Heating Appeal 140th (Restricted)|0|0|0|11,132|
|Mission Fund (Guatemala)
(Restricted)|0|0|0|597|
|Night Shelter (Restricted)|0|100|100|131|
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Pew Bible & Lectionary Fund 0 25 25 85 (Restricted)
## **2. Statement of assets and liabilities**
||**Total**|**Prior Year**|
|---|---|---|
|CAF current account|16,149|
20,657|
|CCLA (CBF) deposit account|176,404|
237,580|
|GiveALittle Contactless payments|740|
0|
|**TOTAL**|**193,293**|
**258,237**|
|**Accounts receivable**|**Total**|**Prior Year**|
|Grant from Deanery|1,000|
0|
|Gift Aid April-December|1,809|
2,258|
|Mast electricity use|0|
7,813|
|Hall rentals|0|
2,369|
|**TOTAL**|**3,549**|
**12,440**|
|**Accounts payable**|**Total**|**Prior Year**|
|Unpaid expenses|1,200|
0|
|NI and tax due Q3 2024|408|
385|
|Independent Examination fee|935|
938|
|Curate housing grant|1,000|
0|
|Electricity used but not billed|0|
19,839|
|**TOTAL**|**3,543**|
**21,162**|
|Net total assets|**199,645**|
**249,515**|
Assets recognised but not valued:
- Fixed assets retained for Church use include the land purchased at cost in February 2011.
- Movable church furnishings held by the churchwardens on special trust on behalf of the PCC.
## **3. Major refurbishment costs**
During 2024, two large refurbishment projects have been undertaken and mostly completed. Some expenditure is still to come in 2025. These were enabled to a large extent by the generous legacy of Valerie Forge in 2022.
|**Project**|**2024**|**2025**|**Total**|
|---|---|---|---|
|Heating (new boilers)|13,653|27,903|
41,556|
|Reordering of chancel|52,320|2,605|
54,925|
|**TOTAL**|**65,973**|**30,508**|**96,481**|
It is planned to continue the upgrade in 2025 by refurbishing the chairs. This will cost approximately £18,500.
## **4. Reserves Policy**
We aim to keep 3 months operating costs available in reserve. In 2024, this was £39,000.
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## **5. Notes to the Financial Statements**
- One of the organisations hiring space in the church became insolvent during the year. They had been paying £935 per month, but we did not receive any rent from them after July, and they have now terminated their contract. We are writing off this debt.
- £11,731 was paid to us by the mobile mast operator in 2019, possibly in error. This was discussed with them at the time and has been held as a designated reserve up until the end of 2023. It has now been returned to the general fund, as there has been no attempt to reclaim it in 5 years.
- The mobile mast operators reimburse us for the large amount of electricity that the equipment uses. This amounted to £36,384 during 2024.
- In 2019, £579 was collected towards a mission trip to the Oasis project in Guatemala. Since we have not made this trip, the money was given directly to the charity.
- The gifts given to charities in 2024 also included the tithing of Evelyn Morrison’s legacy from 2022
- The accounting system used in 2024 was ExpensePlus, migrating from Finance Coordinator used previously. This has resulted in some small re-categorisations in the accounts.
No remuneration was paid to any member of the PCC for their role on the PCC. All payments made to reimburse members of the PCC for expenses properly incurred have been documented. The financial statements of the PCC have been prepared in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations using the Receipts & Payments basis.
The accounts are prepared on a going concern basis, and there are sufficient reserve funds to cover calculated losses.
The accounts were approved by the PCC on 13[th] March 2025 and signed on their behalf by:
Rev’d Jon Westall, Incumbent
Alison Wood, Treasurer
Annual Report 2024
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