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2021-03-31-accounts

GRACE CHURCH CARDIFF

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REPORT AND ACCOUNTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31[ST] MARCH 2021

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C Management Services 69 Velindre Road Whitchurch Cardiff CF14 2TF

GRACE CHURCH CARDIFF

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] MARCH 2021

CHARITY INFORMATION

Trustees: Wendy Babawi Owen Cottom Chloe Davies Dafydd Morse Benjamin Saunders Pastor: Owen Cottom Treasurer: Dafydd Morse Charitable position: Registered Charity number 1177940 Governing Document: CIO Foundation Model dated 12[th] April 2018 Address for correspondence: Grace Church Cardiff 64 Paget Street Cardiff CF11 7JY Independent Examiner: Paul Burnell ACMI C Management Services 69 Velindre Road CARDIFF CF14 2TF Bankers: CAF Bank 25 Kings Hill Avenue Kings Hill West Malling ME19 4JQ

CONTENTS
Page
Charity Information 2
Trustees Report 3-6
Independent Examiners Report 7
Statement of Financial Activities 8
Statement of Assets and Liabilities 9
Notes to the Accounts 10

2

REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] MARCH 2021

Aim and purposes

Grace Church Cardiff exists to play a part in the advancement of the Christian Faith in such parts of the United Kingdom or the world as the trustees may from time to time think fit, including through providing services for prayer and worship and pastoral care and outreach into the community.

Objectives and Activities

Grace Church Cardiff is committed to enabling as many ordinary people as possible to worship as part of our church community, and to access the care and friendship of the church. We seek to be a community-facing church, consistently supporting community initiatives and starting new ones that allow us to serve as many people as possible along the lines of our aim and purpose.

Our year has been filled with activities that have sought to benefit the worshipping community, as well as the cross-section of society that we have come into contact with. When planning activities we have done so with the Commission’s guidance on public benefit in mind. The activities listed below encompass the ways in which we have sought to cultivate public benefit in our church and wider community, though;

Worship, prayer and developing people’s knowledge and faith in Jesus Provision of pastoral care for people in our church and wider community Local community outreach initiatives Mission and Evangelism

Achievements and Performance

Worship, prayer and developing people’s knowledge and faith in Jesus

Grace Church runs weekly Sunday services that are both spiritually enriching and relationally fulfilling. We make space for people to come as they are - encouraging people to engage as little or as much as they are comfortable with when it comes to the times of worship. All of our services seek to be as intelligible and accessible to those who are not familiar with the Christian faith as possible. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, these activities have taken place either in person, or online, or a combination of the two, depending on government guidelines and the needs of the local community.

We have seen our congregation grow in number in this year; starting the year with around 60 adults and a dozen children and ending it with approximately 70 adults and 20 children attending regularly. We have continued our children’s work that runs alongside the main church service where government guidelines have allowed. This provides respite for parents, with trained and safely recruited volunteers providing excellent children’s work provision and teaching children about faith in Jesus.

On occasion we have run special services, such as our Christmas events which saw the participation of many members of the wider community.

Midweek groups run alongside Sunday mornings as extra opportunities to study the bible and pray together in an informal, welcoming environment. We have also run occasional worship nights that

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provide another opportunity for people to deepen their faith experience. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, these activities have taken place either in person, or online, or a combination of the two, depending on government guidelines and the needs of the local community.

Pastoral Care

Our pastor and other trained and recognised members of the congregation regularly meet with attendees who have a wide range of spiritual, relational and emotional needs. Our Hardship Fund has been used to provide aid in instances of financial crisis amongst members of our congregation or those in the wider community with whom we have had a regular contact and has enabled us to welcome people into the congregation.

Additionally, we have regularly run social events for church members and members of the community during the pandemic when government guidelines have allowed with the purpose of preventing loneliness in an otherwise isolating period.

A small number of trained volunteers have been regularly involved in door-to-door work, taking questionnaires that seek to understand the community and in particularly find any who may be in need within the wider community, who can access the support and help of the church. This has provided a platform to help a small number of members of the community who struggle with loneliness.

We launched one of our most successful pastoral initiatives in the Summer holidays of 2020 called Make Lunch. This is a community outreach and pastoral activity in partnership with the charity Transforming lives for Good (TLG). Several times each week throughout the summer holidays, we ran a lunch club for families on free school meals in the area, providing a nutritious meal, fun activities and friendship during the school holidays to target holiday hunger and reach out into the community. Several members of the church have undergone training offered by TLG to better equip them to deliver this. We have also delivered food parcels to these families during other holiday seasons, and many of these families now join us for our other activities.

Local Community Outreach initiatives

We have sought to support members of the congregation who have initiated and participated in a number of community initiatives such as litter picks. During the Christmas period several low-key community events were organised, including carol services and a Christmas trail. For Easter 2021, in collaboration with other local churches, we organized an Easter art trail for the local community, with artwork depicting scenes from the Easter story displayed in various locations in the local community.

Our hope and desire to start a youth group, midweek children’s group and midweek toddlers’ group have been postponed due to the pandemic, but we eagerly anticipate being able to launch these in the near future.

We recognised that the Covid-19 pandemic had had a significant impact on our community’s mental health and many people were struggling to process the impact of the pandemic on their lives. For this reason, we ran “Conversations”, a virtually streamed series in which members of the church broadcast an informal conversation around the Bible’s view on relevant issues faced by much of the community. Topics included truth and trust, suffering and grief and peace and mental health. These were well received and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive.

Several members of the congregation visited local Mosques and Hindu Temples throughout the year, seeking to build bridges of friendship with those of a different religious affiliation in the area.

Mission and Evangelism

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Due to the coronavirus pandemic, our Alpha course has taken place online this year. The course seeks to help people to grow in their understanding of the Christian faith in a non-threatening environment where they can ask questions.

We dedicated £6000 of our annual budget to financially supporting mission work beyond our church or oversees (see financial report for breakdown). We have financially supported:

Members of our congregation generously gave to other mission initiatives through the course of the year.

Premises of activities

Across the year we have used a number of community venues for our in-person activities. Our Sunday gatherings have taken place in the community Leisure Centre and we have also hired a local cafe, the local pub, and a local pavilion centre for other community events. This enables us to meaningfully engage with our local community, as well as financially supporting other community groups. Naturally for much of this financial year, our activities took place online, either due to government regulations or to allow for the involvement of those who for various reasons were unable to leave their houses at various points in the year. When restrictions have been relaxed, we have often continued to offer a virtual option for activities as well as re-starting in-person, all risk assessed and in line with government guidelines.

Leadership

Our pastor, Owen Cottom, provides the primary coordinating leadership to the church, as well as carrying the responsibility for the spiritual teaching in the church. He is supported by a network of churches that we belong to (www.advancemovement.com) and is ably assisted by many voluntary leaders who coordinate many aspects of church life. This year we have also initiated the process of establishing a formal leadership team who will support Owen with pastorally caring for members of the church on a voluntary basis. Owen is responsible to the trustees, most of whom attend Grace Church Cardiff as members and volunteer in several other ways too. The trustees are also exploring the possibility of recruiting an additional paid member of staff, with the specific role yet to be decided.

Reserves Policy

Grace Church operates a reserve fund, as detailed in our policy, which sets aside a minimum of 2 months income for use as reserves. Use of the reserve fund must occur in three steps:

  1. Identification of need by the pastor and elders, including a financial plan for replenishment

  2. Authorisation by the treasurer and chair of trustees

  3. Reporting and monitoring by the treasurer.

This report is signed on behalf of the Trustees on 26th January 2022 by Dafydd Morse as Treasurer

Signed:

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INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS REPORT

TO THE TRUSTEES OF

GRACE CHURCH CARDIFF

I report on the accounts of the Trust for the period ended 31[st] March 2021, which are set out on pages 9 to 12.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (the Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to:

Basis of independent examiner's report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view' and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent examiner's statement

In connection with my examination, no material matters have come to my attention which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect:

I 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.

Paul Burnell

Paul Burnell ACMI

For and on behalf of:

C Management Services (trading name of C Mgmnt Services Ltd) 69 Velindre Road

Cardiff CF14 2TF

Date: 26[th] January 2022

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GRACE CHURCH CARDIFF

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[st] MARCH 2021

Note Unrestricted Restricted Total Total
Funds Funds Funds Funds
£ £ 2021 2020
£ £
RECEIPTS
Receipts from generated funds 2 69,754 - 69,754 55,724
Receipts from charitable activities 3 - - - 1,230
Other receipts 4 - - - -
Interest received
Total Receipts 69,754 - 69,754 56,954
PAYMENTS
Charitable activities 5 54,486 - 54,486 54,381
Governance costs
Total payments 54,486 - 54,486 54,381
Net Receipts/(Payments) 15,268 - 15,268 2,573
Transfers between funds
Fund balances at 1st April 2020 37,427 - 37,427 34,854
Fund balances at 31st March 2021 52,695 - 52,695 37,427

The notes on pages 11-12 form part of these accounts.

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GRACE CHURCH CARDIFF

STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31[ST] MARCH 2021

1. Fixed Assets
The value of assets owned are:
Equipment
2. Bank & Cash Balances
Cash at bank and in hand
3. Other Assets and Liabilities
Assets
Gift aid tax recovery not yet received
Liabilities
Unbilled fee for Independent Examination		 Insurance
Value 2021
£
5,000
5,000
2021
2020
£
£
52,695
37,427
52,695
37,427
2021
2020
£
£
- -
150
150

The accounts were approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf on 26[th] January 2022 by Dafydd Morse as Treasurer

Signed:

The notes on page 10 form part of these accounts.

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GRACE CHURCH CARDIFF

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS FOR THE PERIOD ENDED 31[ST] MARCH 2021

1. Accounting Policies

The accounts have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis with a statement of assets and liabilities

2. Voluntary receipts
Donations
Tax recovered
3. Receipts from charitable activities
Conferences and events
4. Other Receipts
Grant received
Other sundry receipts
5. Charitable activities
a. Direct Charitable Costs
Salaries & staff expenses
Other ministry/evangelism expenses
b. Support and Administration
Premises rental and expenses
Administration and general expenses
Insurance & professional fees
Weekend Away
c. Grants
J Harris
Advance
Union Theology School
Other organisations
Support for individual		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted
Funds
£
Total
2021
£
Total
2020
£
55,043
-
55,043
54,681
14,711
-
14,711
-
69,754
69,754
54,681
-
-
1,230
Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted
Funds
£
Total
2021
£
Total
2020
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Unrestricted
Funds
£
Restricted
Funds
£
Total
2021
£
Total
2020
£
25,741
-
25,741
27,369
7,424
-
7,424
5,014
33,165
-
33,165
32,383
5,699
-
5,699
9,899
571
-
571
580
162
-
162
791
-
-
-
2,932
6,432
-
6,432
14,202
1,800
-
3,950
-
-
1,800
-
3,950
1,651
2,500
-
2,000
7,139
-
-
2,000
7,139
2,648
997
14,889
-
14,889
7,796

6. Staff and Trustees

The charity has one full-time employed member of staff. Its activities are generally carried out by volunteers. No staff received salaries at a rate of more than £60,000 per annum.

The Pastor, Owen Cottom, who is also a Trustee, was employed and received payments totalling £19,573 in his capacity as Pastor of the church.

No remuneration or trustee expenses were paid to any other trustee during the year, nor to any person connected to them.

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