204-208 Pickersleigh Rd Malvern Worcs WR14 2QX
Tel: 01684 560277 E: office@mecmalvern.org www.mecmalvern.org Charity Reg no: 1178558 Registered with the Charities Commission in England & Wales
Trustees Annual Report 2024
Introduction
MEC began 2024 with a Revd. Roy Bourner being appointed as the new pastor following a two-year interregnum. We are grateful to God for his provision in bringing the Bourner family to Malvern and look forward to serving with Roy and Jitka as God leads us as a church.
As a congregation we have been involved in serving in various ministries within the church and in the local community, all of which has been made possible by God’s grace, along with the financial support and sacrificial effort of a large team of volunteers.
This report provides a small sampling of the activities that MEC has been involved in through the year. However, it will never fully capture all that God has done for us as a church and through us to reach others.
The leadership is grateful to God and the congregation, who have prayed and laboured to see lives transformed by God’s love.
The Congregation
MEC is a very diverse group of people from different national, regional and church backgrounds, drawn together by God’s love and working together to see God transform our lives and our community. We have been blessed with opportunities to serve together with familiar faces, and to see fresh faces join the congregation over the course of the year.
There have been times of joy and times of laughter, but there have also been times of difficulty as many in our congregation weathered storms with health, family and work situation. We have also shared the grief of those in our fellowship who have faced the loss of loved ones.
We have seen members in the congregation grow in their faith and we were excited to celebrate the baptism of three members of the congregation in April.
Through 2024 we have experienced God’s goodness to us as a congregation.
Members
MEC as a congregation is made up of attenders who participate in the life of the church, serve in various ministries and form an integral part of the church family. MEC also maintains a list of attenders who are registered members eligible to serve in various offices of the church, to vote on church business, and whose attendance at church meetings contributes towards attaining a quorum. We are grateful to God for all of those who call MEC their home church, both members and nonmembers.
Volunteers
With or without the presence of paid staff at MEC, much of what we do as a church is only possible because of the large number of volunteers who give up their time and gifts to serve the church and each other. This has been true once again in 2024. Many in the congregation have been involved in Sunday services, in volunteering at mid-week groups, working with children and young people,
taking care of the church facilities and most importantly, providing pastoral support to others in the fellowship. Thank you to all the volunteers who faithfully serve at MEC.
Governance
Minister
After a gap of over 18 months during which MEC did not have a full-time minister, at the start of January 2024, Revd. Roy Bourner began his tenure as the minister at MEC. An induction service was held on January 13[th] , 2024, where the congregation was joined by church leaders from many local churches.
At the MEC Vision Meeting in February 2024, Roy and Jitka were formally welcomed into membership.
Roy spent much of 2024 getting to know the church, providing pastoral care and visiting members of the congregation, while working with the Elders to discern God’s vision for MEC in our local community.
Trustees
MEC began the year with four serving trustees: David Ransom, Greg Chakko-George, Steve Atkins and John Jacob. David, Steve, and John also served as Elders, while Greg also served as a deacon and as MEC treasurer.
In October 2024, Steve Atkins, having served for over 20 years, stepped down from his role as an Elder, and in accordance with church rules, this ended his tenure as a trustee. We are grateful to Steve for his faithful service and for his continued prayer and encouragement as a member of the church.
MEC ended the year with three trustees, meeting the minimum required number of trustees to overseeing the statutory governance of the charity.
Elders
The minster or pastor along with the elders at MEC bear the primary responsibility for the spiritual direction and decision making at MEC. In 2024, the 5 serving elders were David Ransom, Colin Smith, Steve Atkins, George Webb and John Jacob.
At the Annual General Meeting in May 2024, Steve Atkins and George Webb stepped down from their roles as Elders. The Elders are grateful to Steve and George for their faithful and exemplary service in leadership at MEC.
The Elders had been prayerfully considering candidates to join the Eldership, and after allowing for a time of prayerfully consideration by the congregation, Elizabeth Hume was appointed as an Elder in August 2024.
Deacons
The deacons’ role at MEC is to oversee and facilitate practical aspects of the operation of the church to enable MEC to fulfil its mission and vision. Matt Greenhalgh, Colin Cameron and Greg ChakkoGeorge continued to serve as deacons during 2024.
With much work to be done and a limited number of deacons to share the load, the role required a significant amount of time commitment to fulfil these responsibilities. Among other responsibilities, the deacons have managed the process for the sale of the manse, maintained church facilities, administered the church’s finances and undertaken other administrative tasks. MEC is grateful for all that the deacons have accomplished in 2024.
Activities and Ministries
A flavour of what MEC has been involved in 2024 is highlighted in some of the activities described below. It should be noted that this represents only a part of what many in the church have been involved in, often unrecognised for their efforts. Many of the activities and ministries at MEC are made easier and often only made possible by those working behind the scenes, such as the Admin and Hospitality teams. There is always the risk when summarising that some things get left out. Any omissions should not be interpreted as less important or less impactful. We would like to honour all the seen and unseen ministries at MEC.
Sunday Services
Through the year MEC continued to host two regular Sunday services. The pattern of our services includes a contemporary morning service including sung worship, communal prayer and a sermon, and an evening service focused on praying for needs within the church and the community. In 2024, the evening service was changed to give opportunities for those in the congregation, especially students, to have an opportunity to develop skills in preaching. Following both services, attendees could stay for refreshments and spend time catching up with members of the congregation and visitors. Both morning and evening services include sharing of communion once a month.
During our morning services, separate provision is available for families with younger children as well as for young people aged 11-14. The morning service on the first Sunday of each month is a shorter “All-Together” service, allowing for attendees of all ages to worship together.
Our gifted team of musicians supported by volunteers who manage the technology, have made it possible for us to enjoy Sunday worship together and to livestream services for those who are not able to join in person.
In addition to regular services, special occasions and seasons were also celebrated throughout the year. This included Easter services, Harvest, Advent and Christmas, as we remembered the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus, as well as God’s material provision.
Children and Youth Activities
MEC has many volunteers who are dedicated to catering for the welfare of children and young people.
In addition to provision for young people on Sunday mornings, MEC also ran a regular mid-week youth group involving teaching, food, activities and fun for young people in secondary school.
Gaines Residential
As we have done over the past few years, in 2024 we held our summer residential for young people at the Gaines Manor Christian Activity Centre in Whitbourne. Youth and young adults at MEC participated in a 4-day residential with fun, food, worship and teaching organised by our Youth Ministry leaders with a lot of help and preparation from the young people themselves. Many of our gifted young people took part in organising activities, leading session, teaching, cooking and washing up. Thank you to all the amazing children and young people who are a part of our church family. We are very grateful to God for you and for the leaders who support you.
Hope Football
Soon after taking on his new role, in February 2024, Roy started Hope Football. With help from a few students from Regents Theological College, the group provided football coaching, friendship and Christian input to young people from school years 7-9. The group has been grown over the year with several young people going on to join MEC’s Thursday youth group.
Small Groups
Fellowship, Bible study, encouragement and support within the congregation at MEC happens most often in small group settings. In 2024 there were several midweek small groups, running in homes, at a café, or in the church building or online. The groups are very diverse in composition and format, but similar in their desire to learn together and to love and support others in the group. We are grateful to those who have led groups and to all who attend these groups. We encourage those who are not involved in a group to give it a try.
Weeks of Prayer
Prayer is a vital and regular part of our practice as a church. However, from time to time we also recognise the need for more intense and dedicated times of prayer. In May 2024 MEC held another week of focused prayer to seek God’s guidance for the church.
Community Focus
MEC has continued to serve the local community in different ways through 2024. Activities have included groups organised by the church as well as use of the building by external organisations to host community related activities. Some areas where MEC has been active in 2024 are highlighted below.
Rainbow Club team - a warm, welcoming environment for children, parents, grandparents and carers, and the team continue to receive more requests for places in the group than they can cater for.
Coffee and Chat - a weekly afternoon session for older members of the community to meet, talk or knit over refreshments. The afternoon ends with a short epilogue and prayer.
A rt Group – an opportunity for people within the local community, who have an interest in art to meet and discuss art related subjects or to practice their art related interests.
Welcome Space – Since 2022 the Welcome Space team provided a place for people to gather once a week, initially as a warm space during the height of the cost-of-living crisis, but latterly, through the warmer periods of the year, providing refreshments, friendship, conversation, prayer and a clothes bank. In May 2024, the team decided to close the space having served over 70 guests from the area over a period of 18 months.
Polling Station – The MEC building served as a local polling station for the parliamentary elections held in May 2024.
Support for local missions
As part of our aim to serve the local community, the congregation at MEC has support Christian organisations involved in the local community, but through financial giving and volunteering time. These have included Christians Against Poverty, The Lyttelton Well, and The Malvern Hills Foodbank.
Support for missions abroad
IN 2024 MEC continued our support for missions and individuals working in several different countries in Europe, Africa, India and Tasmania.
For several years MEC has supported the Teams4U initiative, packing and wrapping Christmas shoeboxes with presents for children from disadvantaged backgrounds in different places in Eastern Europe. An amazing 90 shoeboxes were filled in church and collected from church in December and taken to the Evesham warehouse to be checked and loaded onto lorries to be delivered to children in Moldova.
Finance
The treasury team at MEC has continued to administer the church’s finances faithfully through 2024. Through those who have diligently and generously given to God’s work at MEC, as shown in the attached accounts and comments from the treasurer and the independent examiner, MEC remains in a financially stable position. More details are available in the submitted reports and accounts.
Sale of the Manse
The building adjacent to the church at 210 Pickersleigh Road (The Manse) was owned by the church and served in the past as the residence for previous ministers. Following the decision taken by the trustees in 2023 to list the property for sale through estate agents, a few viewings of the property took place with subsequent offers received but not progressed. In September 2024 the trustees accepted an offer on the Manse, and following surveys and further negotiations, the sale was agreed but not completed by the end of the year. The church and the trustees are prayerfully looking forward to exchange of contracts and completion of the sale in the New year to improve the church’s financial position and fund other areas of ministry and service.
The deacons and the treasury team continued to manage the sale of the property on behalf of the church through 2024.
Safeguarding
Keeping children and vulnerable people safe continues to be an integral part of our Christian faith. The Safeguarding team has continued to raise awareness to remind everyone of their responsibility to protect and speak out for those in our care.
In April 2024 Christian Safeguarding Services, our safeguarding advisory service, conducted an allday on-site safeguarding training event for volunteers and staff working with children and vulnerable adults.
A Safeguarding Sunday service was held in February 2024 to raise awareness of everyone’s safeguarding responsibilities. As part of our safer recruitment guidelines, DBS checks were conducted on all volunteers involved in serving in these areas of ministry.
In 2024 there were no reportable safeguarding incidents raised with the designated safeguarding lead.
Concluding Remarks
2024 has been the start of a new stage of MEC’s journey. We look forward to all that God will do in our community in the coming years.
Thank you to all at who have served at MEC.
204-208 Pickersleigh Rd Malvern Worcs WR14 2QX
Tel: 01684 560277 E: office@mecmalvern.org www.mecmalvern.org Charity Reg no: 1178558 Registered with the Charities Commission in England & Wales
Trustees Annual Report 2024
Introduction
MEC began 2024 with a Revd. Roy Bourner being appointed as the new pastor following a two-year interregnum. We are grateful to God for his provision in bringing the Bourner family to Malvern and look forward to serving with Roy and Jitka as God leads us as a church.
As a congregation we have been involved in serving in various ministries within the church and in the local community, all of which has been made possible by God’s grace, along with the financial support and sacrificial effort of a large team of volunteers.
This report provides a small sampling of the activities that MEC has been involved in through the year. However, it will never fully capture all that God has done for us as a church and through us to reach others.
The leadership is grateful to God and the congregation, who have prayed and laboured to see lives transformed by God’s love.
The Congregation
MEC is a very diverse group of people from different national, regional and church backgrounds, drawn together by God’s love and working together to see God transform our lives and our community. We have been blessed with opportunities to serve together with familiar faces, and to see fresh faces join the congregation over the course of the year.
There have been times of joy and times of laughter, but there have also been times of difficulty as many in our congregation weathered storms with health, family and work situation. We have also shared the grief of those in our fellowship who have faced the loss of loved ones.
We have seen members in the congregation grow in their faith and we were excited to celebrate the baptism of three members of the congregation in April.
Through 2024 we have experienced God’s goodness to us as a congregation.
Members
MEC as a congregation is made up of attenders who participate in the life of the church, serve in various ministries and form an integral part of the church family. MEC also maintains a list of attenders who are registered members eligible to serve in various offices of the church, to vote on church business, and whose attendance at church meetings contributes towards attaining a quorum. We are grateful to God for all of those who call MEC their home church, both members and nonmembers.
Volunteers
With or without the presence of paid staff at MEC, much of what we do as a church is only possible because of the large number of volunteers who give up their time and gifts to serve the church and each other. This has been true once again in 2024. Many in the congregation have been involved in Sunday services, in volunteering at mid-week groups, working with children and young people,
taking care of the church facilities and most importantly, providing pastoral support to others in the fellowship. Thank you to all the volunteers who faithfully serve at MEC.
Governance
Minister
After a gap of over 18 months during which MEC did not have a full-time minister, at the start of January 2024, Revd. Roy Bourner began his tenure as the minister at MEC. An induction service was held on January 13[th] , 2024, where the congregation was joined by church leaders from many local churches.
At the MEC Vision Meeting in February 2024, Roy and Jitka were formally welcomed into membership.
Roy spent much of 2024 getting to know the church, providing pastoral care and visiting members of the congregation, while working with the Elders to discern God’s vision for MEC in our local community.
Trustees
MEC began the year with four serving trustees: David Ransom, Greg Chakko-George, Steve Atkins and John Jacob. David, Steve, and John also served as Elders, while Greg also served as a deacon and as MEC treasurer.
In October 2024, Steve Atkins, having served for over 20 years, stepped down from his role as an Elder, and in accordance with church rules, this ended his tenure as a trustee. We are grateful to Steve for his faithful service and for his continued prayer and encouragement as a member of the church.
MEC ended the year with three trustees, meeting the minimum required number of trustees to overseeing the statutory governance of the charity.
Elders
The minster or pastor along with the elders at MEC bear the primary responsibility for the spiritual direction and decision making at MEC. In 2024, the 5 serving elders were David Ransom, Colin Smith, Steve Atkins, George Webb and John Jacob.
At the Annual General Meeting in May 2024, Steve Atkins and George Webb stepped down from their roles as Elders. The Elders are grateful to Steve and George for their faithful and exemplary service in leadership at MEC.
The Elders had been prayerfully considering candidates to join the Eldership, and after allowing for a time of prayerfully consideration by the congregation, Elizabeth Hume was appointed as an Elder in August 2024.
Deacons
The deacons’ role at MEC is to oversee and facilitate practical aspects of the operation of the church to enable MEC to fulfil its mission and vision. Matt Greenhalgh, Colin Cameron and Greg ChakkoGeorge continued to serve as deacons during 2024.
With much work to be done and a limited number of deacons to share the load, the role required a significant amount of time commitment to fulfil these responsibilities. Among other responsibilities, the deacons have managed the process for the sale of the manse, maintained church facilities, administered the church’s finances and undertaken other administrative tasks. MEC is grateful for all that the deacons have accomplished in 2024.
Activities and Ministries
A flavour of what MEC has been involved in 2024 is highlighted in some of the activities described below. It should be noted that this represents only a part of what many in the church have been involved in, often unrecognised for their efforts. Many of the activities and ministries at MEC are made easier and often only made possible by those working behind the scenes, such as the Admin and Hospitality teams. There is always the risk when summarising that some things get left out. Any omissions should not be interpreted as less important or less impactful. We would like to honour all the seen and unseen ministries at MEC.
Sunday Services
Through the year MEC continued to host two regular Sunday services. The pattern of our services includes a contemporary morning service including sung worship, communal prayer and a sermon, and an evening service focused on praying for needs within the church and the community. In 2024, the evening service was changed to give opportunities for those in the congregation, especially students, to have an opportunity to develop skills in preaching. Following both services, attendees could stay for refreshments and spend time catching up with members of the congregation and visitors. Both morning and evening services include sharing of communion once a month.
During our morning services, separate provision is available for families with younger children as well as for young people aged 11-14. The morning service on the first Sunday of each month is a shorter “All-Together” service, allowing for attendees of all ages to worship together.
Our gifted team of musicians supported by volunteers who manage the technology, have made it possible for us to enjoy Sunday worship together and to livestream services for those who are not able to join in person.
In addition to regular services, special occasions and seasons were also celebrated throughout the year. This included Easter services, Harvest, Advent and Christmas, as we remembered the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus, as well as God’s material provision.
Children and Youth Activities
MEC has many volunteers who are dedicated to catering for the welfare of children and young people.
In addition to provision for young people on Sunday mornings, MEC also ran a regular mid-week youth group involving teaching, food, activities and fun for young people in secondary school.
Gaines Residential
As we have done over the past few years, in 2024 we held our summer residential for young people at the Gaines Manor Christian Activity Centre in Whitbourne. Youth and young adults at MEC participated in a 4-day residential with fun, food, worship and teaching organised by our Youth Ministry leaders with a lot of help and preparation from the young people themselves. Many of our gifted young people took part in organising activities, leading session, teaching, cooking and washing up. Thank you to all the amazing children and young people who are a part of our church family. We are very grateful to God for you and for the leaders who support you.
Hope Football
Soon after taking on his new role, in February 2024, Roy started Hope Football. With help from a few students from Regents Theological College, the group provided football coaching, friendship and Christian input to young people from school years 7-9. The group has been grown over the year with several young people going on to join MEC’s Thursday youth group.
Small Groups
Fellowship, Bible study, encouragement and support within the congregation at MEC happens most often in small group settings. In 2024 there were several midweek small groups, running in homes, at a café, or in the church building or online. The groups are very diverse in composition and format, but similar in their desire to learn together and to love and support others in the group. We are grateful to those who have led groups and to all who attend these groups. We encourage those who are not involved in a group to give it a try.
Weeks of Prayer
Prayer is a vital and regular part of our practice as a church. However, from time to time we also recognise the need for more intense and dedicated times of prayer. In May 2024 MEC held another week of focused prayer to seek God’s guidance for the church.
Community Focus
MEC has continued to serve the local community in different ways through 2024. Activities have included groups organised by the church as well as use of the building by external organisations to host community related activities. Some areas where MEC has been active in 2024 are highlighted below.
Rainbow Club team - a warm, welcoming environment for children, parents, grandparents and carers, and the team continue to receive more requests for places in the group than they can cater for.
Coffee and Chat - a weekly afternoon session for older members of the community to meet, talk or knit over refreshments. The afternoon ends with a short epilogue and prayer.
A rt Group – an opportunity for people within the local community, who have an interest in art to meet and discuss art related subjects or to practice their art related interests.
Welcome Space – Since 2022 the Welcome Space team provided a place for people to gather once a week, initially as a warm space during the height of the cost-of-living crisis, but latterly, through the warmer periods of the year, providing refreshments, friendship, conversation, prayer and a clothes bank. In May 2024, the team decided to close the space having served over 70 guests from the area over a period of 18 months.
Polling Station – The MEC building served as a local polling station for the parliamentary elections held in May 2024.
Support for local missions
As part of our aim to serve the local community, the congregation at MEC has support Christian organisations involved in the local community, but through financial giving and volunteering time. These have included Christians Against Poverty, The Lyttelton Well, and The Malvern Hills Foodbank.
Support for missions abroad
IN 2024 MEC continued our support for missions and individuals working in several different countries in Europe, Africa, India and Tasmania.
For several years MEC has supported the Teams4U initiative, packing and wrapping Christmas shoeboxes with presents for children from disadvantaged backgrounds in different places in Eastern Europe. An amazing 90 shoeboxes were filled in church and collected from church in December and taken to the Evesham warehouse to be checked and loaded onto lorries to be delivered to children in Moldova.
Finance
The treasury team at MEC has continued to administer the church’s finances faithfully through 2024. Through those who have diligently and generously given to God’s work at MEC, as shown in the attached accounts and comments from the treasurer and the independent examiner, MEC remains in a financially stable position. More details are available in the submitted reports and accounts.
Sale of the Manse
The building adjacent to the church at 210 Pickersleigh Road (The Manse) was owned by the church and served in the past as the residence for previous ministers. Following the decision taken by the trustees in 2023 to list the property for sale through estate agents, a few viewings of the property took place with subsequent offers received but not progressed. In September 2024 the trustees accepted an offer on the Manse, and following surveys and further negotiations, the sale was agreed but not completed by the end of the year. The church and the trustees are prayerfully looking forward to exchange of contracts and completion of the sale in the New year to improve the church’s financial position and fund other areas of ministry and service.
The deacons and the treasury team continued to manage the sale of the property on behalf of the church through 2024.
Safeguarding
Keeping children and vulnerable people safe continues to be an integral part of our Christian faith. The Safeguarding team has continued to raise awareness to remind everyone of their responsibility to protect and speak out for those in our care.
In April 2024 Christian Safeguarding Services, our safeguarding advisory service, conducted an allday on-site safeguarding training event for volunteers and staff working with children and vulnerable adults.
A Safeguarding Sunday service was held in February 2024 to raise awareness of everyone’s safeguarding responsibilities. As part of our safer recruitment guidelines, DBS checks were conducted on all volunteers involved in serving in these areas of ministry.
In 2024 there were no reportable safeguarding incidents raised with the designated safeguarding lead.
Concluding Remarks
2024 has been the start of a new stage of MEC’s journey. We look forward to all that God will do in our community in the coming years.
Thank you to all at who have served at MEC.
204-208 Pickersleigh Rd Malvern Worcs WR14 2QX
Tel: 01684 560277 E: office@mecmalvern.org www.mecmalvern.org Charity Reg no: 1178558 Registered with the Charities Commission in England & Wales
Trustees Annual Report 2024
Introduction
MEC began 2024 with a Revd. Roy Bourner being appointed as the new pastor following a two-year interregnum. We are grateful to God for his provision in bringing the Bourner family to Malvern and look forward to serving with Roy and Jitka as God leads us as a church.
As a congregation we have been involved in serving in various ministries within the church and in the local community, all of which has been made possible by God’s grace, along with the financial support and sacrificial effort of a large team of volunteers.
This report provides a small sampling of the activities that MEC has been involved in through the year. However, it will never fully capture all that God has done for us as a church and through us to reach others.
The leadership is grateful to God and the congregation, who have prayed and laboured to see lives transformed by God’s love.
The Congregation
MEC is a very diverse group of people from different national, regional and church backgrounds, drawn together by God’s love and working together to see God transform our lives and our community. We have been blessed with opportunities to serve together with familiar faces, and to see fresh faces join the congregation over the course of the year.
There have been times of joy and times of laughter, but there have also been times of difficulty as many in our congregation weathered storms with health, family and work situation. We have also shared the grief of those in our fellowship who have faced the loss of loved ones.
We have seen members in the congregation grow in their faith and we were excited to celebrate the baptism of three members of the congregation in April.
Through 2024 we have experienced God’s goodness to us as a congregation.
Members
MEC as a congregation is made up of attenders who participate in the life of the church, serve in various ministries and form an integral part of the church family. MEC also maintains a list of attenders who are registered members eligible to serve in various offices of the church, to vote on church business, and whose attendance at church meetings contributes towards attaining a quorum. We are grateful to God for all of those who call MEC their home church, both members and nonmembers.
Volunteers
With or without the presence of paid staff at MEC, much of what we do as a church is only possible because of the large number of volunteers who give up their time and gifts to serve the church and each other. This has been true once again in 2024. Many in the congregation have been involved in Sunday services, in volunteering at mid-week groups, working with children and young people,
taking care of the church facilities and most importantly, providing pastoral support to others in the fellowship. Thank you to all the volunteers who faithfully serve at MEC.
Governance
Minister
After a gap of over 18 months during which MEC did not have a full-time minister, at the start of January 2024, Revd. Roy Bourner began his tenure as the minister at MEC. An induction service was held on January 13[th] , 2024, where the congregation was joined by church leaders from many local churches.
At the MEC Vision Meeting in February 2024, Roy and Jitka were formally welcomed into membership.
Roy spent much of 2024 getting to know the church, providing pastoral care and visiting members of the congregation, while working with the Elders to discern God’s vision for MEC in our local community.
Trustees
MEC began the year with four serving trustees: David Ransom, Greg Chakko-George, Steve Atkins and John Jacob. David, Steve, and John also served as Elders, while Greg also served as a deacon and as MEC treasurer.
In October 2024, Steve Atkins, having served for over 20 years, stepped down from his role as an Elder, and in accordance with church rules, this ended his tenure as a trustee. We are grateful to Steve for his faithful service and for his continued prayer and encouragement as a member of the church.
MEC ended the year with three trustees, meeting the minimum required number of trustees to overseeing the statutory governance of the charity.
Elders
The minster or pastor along with the elders at MEC bear the primary responsibility for the spiritual direction and decision making at MEC. In 2024, the 5 serving elders were David Ransom, Colin Smith, Steve Atkins, George Webb and John Jacob.
At the Annual General Meeting in May 2024, Steve Atkins and George Webb stepped down from their roles as Elders. The Elders are grateful to Steve and George for their faithful and exemplary service in leadership at MEC.
The Elders had been prayerfully considering candidates to join the Eldership, and after allowing for a time of prayerfully consideration by the congregation, Elizabeth Hume was appointed as an Elder in August 2024.
Deacons
The deacons’ role at MEC is to oversee and facilitate practical aspects of the operation of the church to enable MEC to fulfil its mission and vision. Matt Greenhalgh, Colin Cameron and Greg ChakkoGeorge continued to serve as deacons during 2024.
With much work to be done and a limited number of deacons to share the load, the role required a significant amount of time commitment to fulfil these responsibilities. Among other responsibilities, the deacons have managed the process for the sale of the manse, maintained church facilities, administered the church’s finances and undertaken other administrative tasks. MEC is grateful for all that the deacons have accomplished in 2024.
Activities and Ministries
A flavour of what MEC has been involved in 2024 is highlighted in some of the activities described below. It should be noted that this represents only a part of what many in the church have been involved in, often unrecognised for their efforts. Many of the activities and ministries at MEC are made easier and often only made possible by those working behind the scenes, such as the Admin and Hospitality teams. There is always the risk when summarising that some things get left out. Any omissions should not be interpreted as less important or less impactful. We would like to honour all the seen and unseen ministries at MEC.
Sunday Services
Through the year MEC continued to host two regular Sunday services. The pattern of our services includes a contemporary morning service including sung worship, communal prayer and a sermon, and an evening service focused on praying for needs within the church and the community. In 2024, the evening service was changed to give opportunities for those in the congregation, especially students, to have an opportunity to develop skills in preaching. Following both services, attendees could stay for refreshments and spend time catching up with members of the congregation and visitors. Both morning and evening services include sharing of communion once a month.
During our morning services, separate provision is available for families with younger children as well as for young people aged 11-14. The morning service on the first Sunday of each month is a shorter “All-Together” service, allowing for attendees of all ages to worship together.
Our gifted team of musicians supported by volunteers who manage the technology, have made it possible for us to enjoy Sunday worship together and to livestream services for those who are not able to join in person.
In addition to regular services, special occasions and seasons were also celebrated throughout the year. This included Easter services, Harvest, Advent and Christmas, as we remembered the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus, as well as God’s material provision.
Children and Youth Activities
MEC has many volunteers who are dedicated to catering for the welfare of children and young people.
In addition to provision for young people on Sunday mornings, MEC also ran a regular mid-week youth group involving teaching, food, activities and fun for young people in secondary school.
Gaines Residential
As we have done over the past few years, in 2024 we held our summer residential for young people at the Gaines Manor Christian Activity Centre in Whitbourne. Youth and young adults at MEC participated in a 4-day residential with fun, food, worship and teaching organised by our Youth Ministry leaders with a lot of help and preparation from the young people themselves. Many of our gifted young people took part in organising activities, leading session, teaching, cooking and washing up. Thank you to all the amazing children and young people who are a part of our church family. We are very grateful to God for you and for the leaders who support you.
Hope Football
Soon after taking on his new role, in February 2024, Roy started Hope Football. With help from a few students from Regents Theological College, the group provided football coaching, friendship and Christian input to young people from school years 7-9. The group has been grown over the year with several young people going on to join MEC’s Thursday youth group.
Small Groups
Fellowship, Bible study, encouragement and support within the congregation at MEC happens most often in small group settings. In 2024 there were several midweek small groups, running in homes, at a café, or in the church building or online. The groups are very diverse in composition and format, but similar in their desire to learn together and to love and support others in the group. We are grateful to those who have led groups and to all who attend these groups. We encourage those who are not involved in a group to give it a try.
Weeks of Prayer
Prayer is a vital and regular part of our practice as a church. However, from time to time we also recognise the need for more intense and dedicated times of prayer. In May 2024 MEC held another week of focused prayer to seek God’s guidance for the church.
Community Focus
MEC has continued to serve the local community in different ways through 2024. Activities have included groups organised by the church as well as use of the building by external organisations to host community related activities. Some areas where MEC has been active in 2024 are highlighted below.
Rainbow Club team - a warm, welcoming environment for children, parents, grandparents and carers, and the team continue to receive more requests for places in the group than they can cater for.
Coffee and Chat - a weekly afternoon session for older members of the community to meet, talk or knit over refreshments. The afternoon ends with a short epilogue and prayer.
A rt Group – an opportunity for people within the local community, who have an interest in art to meet and discuss art related subjects or to practice their art related interests.
Welcome Space – Since 2022 the Welcome Space team provided a place for people to gather once a week, initially as a warm space during the height of the cost-of-living crisis, but latterly, through the warmer periods of the year, providing refreshments, friendship, conversation, prayer and a clothes bank. In May 2024, the team decided to close the space having served over 70 guests from the area over a period of 18 months.
Polling Station – The MEC building served as a local polling station for the parliamentary elections held in May 2024.
Support for local missions
As part of our aim to serve the local community, the congregation at MEC has support Christian organisations involved in the local community, but through financial giving and volunteering time. These have included Christians Against Poverty, The Lyttelton Well, and The Malvern Hills Foodbank.
Support for missions abroad
IN 2024 MEC continued our support for missions and individuals working in several different countries in Europe, Africa, India and Tasmania.
For several years MEC has supported the Teams4U initiative, packing and wrapping Christmas shoeboxes with presents for children from disadvantaged backgrounds in different places in Eastern Europe. An amazing 90 shoeboxes were filled in church and collected from church in December and taken to the Evesham warehouse to be checked and loaded onto lorries to be delivered to children in Moldova.
Finance
The treasury team at MEC has continued to administer the church’s finances faithfully through 2024. Through those who have diligently and generously given to God’s work at MEC, as shown in the attached accounts and comments from the treasurer and the independent examiner, MEC remains in a financially stable position. More details are available in the submitted reports and accounts.
Sale of the Manse
The building adjacent to the church at 210 Pickersleigh Road (The Manse) was owned by the church and served in the past as the residence for previous ministers. Following the decision taken by the trustees in 2023 to list the property for sale through estate agents, a few viewings of the property took place with subsequent offers received but not progressed. In September 2024 the trustees accepted an offer on the Manse, and following surveys and further negotiations, the sale was agreed but not completed by the end of the year. The church and the trustees are prayerfully looking forward to exchange of contracts and completion of the sale in the New year to improve the church’s financial position and fund other areas of ministry and service.
The deacons and the treasury team continued to manage the sale of the property on behalf of the church through 2024.
Safeguarding
Keeping children and vulnerable people safe continues to be an integral part of our Christian faith. The Safeguarding team has continued to raise awareness to remind everyone of their responsibility to protect and speak out for those in our care.
In April 2024 Christian Safeguarding Services, our safeguarding advisory service, conducted an allday on-site safeguarding training event for volunteers and staff working with children and vulnerable adults.
A Safeguarding Sunday service was held in February 2024 to raise awareness of everyone’s safeguarding responsibilities. As part of our safer recruitment guidelines, DBS checks were conducted on all volunteers involved in serving in these areas of ministry.
In 2024 there were no reportable safeguarding incidents raised with the designated safeguarding lead.
Concluding Remarks
2024 has been the start of a new stage of MEC’s journey. We look forward to all that God will do in our community in the coming years.
Thank you to all at who have served at MEC.