OpenCharities

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

2022-12-31-accounts

The Parish of Holy Trinity Littleborough

ANNUAL REPORT AND

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2022

St Barnabas, ShoreHoly Trinity, LittleboroughSt James, Calderbrook Sharing Christ with Littleborough

The Parochial Church Council of The Ecclesiastical Parish of Holy Trinity, Littleborough is a charity registered in England and Wales (1179711).

Bank

Virgin Money Rochdale

Independent Examiner

Mr D G Kershaw

Objectives

Holy Trinity P.C.C. has the responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent, The Reverend Ian Bullock in promoting in the ecclesiastical Parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. It also has maintenance responsibilities for Holy Trinity Church.

Structure, governance and management

The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules. All Church attendees are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and stand for election to the PCC.

The PCC held six meetings during the year (Including two joint ones with the other churches in the Benefice), and four meetings of the Standing Committee.

P.C.C. Membership

The Parochial Church Council (P.C.C.) is a body corporate (P.C.C. Powers Measure 1956, Church Representation Rules 2020) and registered with the Charity Commission.

PCC members are elected by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting in accordance with the Church representation Rules 2020 and during the year, in addition there are a number of officers who are Ex-Officio.

During 2021, the following served as members of the PCC

Incumbent The Reverend Ian Bullock (Ex-officio) (Chair) Readers Mr David White (Term of Office Expires 2024) Churchwardens Mr Frank Kershaw (Ex-officio) Vacant (Ex-officio) Deanery Synod Frank Kershaw (Ex-officio) Mr Graham Windslow (Ex-officio) Elected Members Sandra Backhouse (Term of Office Expires 2023) Marcus Pritchard (Term of Office Expires 2024) Val Lawrenson (Term of Office Expires 2024) David White (Term of Office Expires 2024)

Page 2 of 13

Christine Kershaw (Term of Office Expires 2025) Lynnette Windslow (Term of Office Expires 2025)

*Names in italic denote members of the Standing Committee

Standing Committee

This the only committee required by law. It has power to transact the business of the P.C.C. between its meetings, subject to any directions given by the council. It also meets to discuss other matters to be put before the P.C.C. and prepare the agenda.

It consists of the Vicar, churchwardens, P.C.C. Secretary, and in the absence of a permanent P.C.C. Treasurer, up to two elected members of the P.C.C.

Benefice Church Council

The Benefice Council resumed again at the beginning of the year, and has begun to look at our missionary outlook as we move forward. We also looked at some of the issues which the P.C.C.’s have been considering in respect of the sustainability of the Parishes, and the results of the Time, Talent and Treasure initiative.

We have looked to continue to develop our #prayerforeveryone initiative and will be looking to roll this out in 2023. We also devised a welcome leaflet that could be used at social events to promote awareness of the Benefice and Parishes.

Electoral Roll

After the annual update of the Electoral Roll there were 47 people on the electoral roll at the APCM in March 2022

Page 3 of 13

Review of the Year

COVID-19

The first half of 2022 saw the Benefice continue to maintain a number of safety procedures in place, until at Pentecost when the Common Cup was restored. We continued to offer communion by Intinction until the end of July and then at the beginning of August after agreement from all three PCC’s, and the opportunity for members of the Parishes to voice any concerns, the remaining procedures were removed.

After conversations with the people who had been receiving a weekly DVD, they advised that they were either returning to church, or would watch on Facebook, and so this was also discontinued. However, the live streaming of a service each Sunday morning (as well as festival services) continues to happen.

COVID continued to be reported on until the end of 2022, and it was agreed that this would be discontinued, only to be resumed if needed.

Matters discussed by the P.C.C.

The full PCC and the Standing Committee has met during the year (Via Zoom). As always, the PCC and Standing Committee have discussed a range of issues, these have included:

Financial Activities

2022 was another challenging year for the Parish, with giving down approximately £3,500 on 2021. (This does not include a generous one-off donation which we were given of £5,000 in 2021). It was a delight to see that the Youth Theatre resumed, and with the new cast and their October production, the church saw a net profit of approx. £1,000.

We have continued to keep a tight rein on the budget, we have made ends meet, and whilst we were unable to hit our full Parish Share, we paid 76% towards it.

We have made some modest gains in the Project 2020 fund, although fundraising is difficult at this time, and we continue to approach the funders who we may be eligible to gain grants from.

Through good financial management, the Parish has remained viable again this year, and we will continue to work on the principle of a balanced budget whilst we work on recovery, and

Page 4 of 13

strive to meet our commitments at the highest level it is possible to achieve whilst preserving a reasonable operating budget.

Sadly, for the second year running, we did not realise any of the lost giving, and this continues to have a knock-on effect to our ability to meet all our commitments, we also renewed our energy contracts this year for a new three-year term, and we will see a significant increase in our usage costs as we move forward, which will need to be budgeted for in the coming year. At the end of the year each Parish was given a £1,250 grant towards these increased costs, and we are grateful for this relief that has been given.

Despite the challenges that 2022 presented to us all, Holy Trinity has weathered the brunt of the pandemic quite well, but we now need to focus on recovery, and as we saw reductions in income in 2022, time will tell whether 2023 will continue to bring a downward trend, or whether we start to see an improvement. Holy Trinity continues to depend on its members for support, both practical and monetary, for its continued existence and outreach to the community.

The Church can claim an extra 25p for every £1 given if donated by a tax payer who has signed a “Gift Aid” declaration or completes and signs a one-off gift aid envelope, available at in each pew.

This is paid by the Inland Revenue (at no extra cost to you); if you are a tax payer and would like to help boost the Church income, please have a word about gift aiding your donations.

Thank you to all who support the Parish in all your various ways; your generous giving of time and money is greatly valued.

A copy of the Income and Expenditure, and Balance sheets are appended to the back of this report for inspection and have been independently examined by Mr D G Kershaw, to whom we are grateful for his continued support.

Fabric

Strange to think that another year has come and gone in the life of our Church.

During the year the topping stones on the wall around our old Garden of Rest were stolen. It makes a change as the year before someone tipped their rubbish in the same spot.

The council have heavily pruned some of the trees on the side of our Church School. Also the council have cut back some of the trees on the north side of the church, giving light to the houses on Victoria Street. They didn’t inform us that they were going to do the work, we just found out by chance.

Due to the excessive rain we have had some water coming into the Church on the north side of the chancel. Thankfully it stopped when the rain stopped and had nothing to do with the Church roof.

The same problem occurred with the bell tower, again due to excessive rain. This problem can be sorted by clearing the gutters inside the bell tower.

At the Service of Remembrance in November we were approached by a local business man who said that he would look into getting other business men and women to try and arrange a fund to have an electric system fitted to the clock so that it wouldn’t need winding etc.

Page 5 of 13

The ongoing problem with pigeons and their guano is still annoying due to having to clean it up before every service, to which we are working on a solution to this problem.

The problem of our Church windows on the north side should be solved when the School finally have work done on the fence between the schoolyard and Church. Until then it does seem pointless to spend money replacing the glass.

At long last the company that were repairing the gutters and the downspouts and also clear the moss (again) on the vestry roof finally came back to finish the task. Unfortunately, they didn’t return the next day to repair the damage that they caused inside the Church. It was always agreed that they would return to finish the job - we’re still waiting.

Study

In Lent 2022, we ran a lent course which focussed upon Vision 2022 – Time, Talents and Treasure, which gave the theological and practical background to our vision for the future. This year we ran the course in a hybrid manner, having two live sessions, and one session on Zoom, with approximately 40 people attending the sessions.

In 2022 we were again, unable to take any candidates through Confirmation, and we are already looking to run the course in 2023

The weekly study group continued through 2022 (Pausing for Lent) initially over Zoom, and then as restrictions were lifted by meeting together.

Worship

10.15 a.m. Holy Communion Holy Days and 5[th] Sundays - Benefice Services at 10.00 a.m. (rotating around the three Parishes)

We were unable to resume our BCP Service during 2022 due to a loss of the congregation.

Additionally, due to the constraints that continued during 2022 in respect of COVID, the Healing Service was not resumed. The format a of this service is being looked at with a view of re-launching next year.

We launched our Benefice Midweek service at St Barnabas on Wednesdays at 12.30 p.m. however, the take-up was low, with an average attendance of 3 or 4, and there were times when the service was untenable. Added to this the increasing energy costs, it was agreed that the service would be suspended during the winter months, and resumed after Easter to see if we could breathe life back into it.

During 2022 we cleared the outstanding Baptism requests, and by the end of the year were up-to-date with them.

We also saw the resumption of a number of other services which had either been run in a diminished capacity, or previously cancelled, this included our Christingle service, which saw a upward trend in attendance.

Page 6 of 13

Clergy

The Reverend Ian Bullock has continued the work of bringing unity to the Benefice, working on formalising and in places centralising methods of working in the Parishes and Benefice. Additionally, he has continued to build relationships with organisations within the Benefice, and continues to serve as vice-chair of LEAF (Littleborough Events and Associations Forum)

In addition to his duties inside the Benefice, Fr Ian also serves as the Clergy Chaplain to the Lay Readers in the Archdeaconry of Rochdale, Member of the Diocesan Synod, Member of Diocesan Giving Steering Group. Member of the Diocesan Mission and Pastoral Committee and as a member of other Diocesan Pastoral Groups.

Throughout 2022 Fr Ian’s work has concentrated on the restoration of things which had been suspended or removed during COVID, and he has continued to look at ways to bring the gifts and talents of the Benefice to the fore, so that we can re-build stronger than before.

As part of this a new Pastoral Team has been created and have started to work together, and this work will continue to be grown during 2023.

Lay Readers

In 2022 David was able to fully return to his active duties, including the sharing of leading Collective Worship in Holy Trinity School. He continues to be a valued member of the team, and assists Fr Ian in a number of ways. We were also delighted that during this year he was invited to become the Lay Chaplain to the Lay Readers in the Rochdale Archdeaconry, and is working in partnership with Fr Ian.

Web Site

Web address: http://www.cofe-littleborough.co.uk

The site continues to be popular, and whilst the throughput traffic reduced to approx. 240,000 hits in 2022, this still reflects that people are interested in getting to know the Benefice.

The greater control over our Benefice e-mail addresses continues to be a great benefit to us, with them being utilised both internally for a variety of purposes, and externally for people who want to contact us with queries regarding a variety of items such as baptisms, wedding and other general queries which are also received and answered.

Additionally, the Benefice Facebook page has continued to gather momentum, and at the beginning of the 2023, 691 people liked the page (This is an increase from January 2022 where we had 658), and is continuing to receiving a daily prayer update as well and other regular updates from us.

The Benefice has also continued to increase its use of Twitter, and can be followed @cofelittleborough . You can also follow us on Instagram: cofelittleborough

In 2022 The Benefice continued to use YouTube for livestreaming services, as well as other announcements that we made. It is envisaged that the use of YouTube and Facebook will continue for our livestreamed services.

Page 7 of 13

Outreach and Activities

Junior Church

During the COVID period we lost our Junior Church leaders. As a result of this, we had to recruit new leaders and therefore took the opportunity to revise our Junior Church arrangements. Junior Church is open to primary school aged children (who are in reception or above)and meets in the school, during term time. All leaders have completed DBS checks and as a minimum, the diocesan safeguarding training at the first two levels, one leader has also completed the third level of training.

We opened the group in May, with five leaders working on a rota basis. Sadly, in September we lost one leader due to other commitments and a further leader left us in December. We currently stand at three leaders.

There are currently seven children on our register and this means that we are able to operate with just two leaders.

The sessions follow a similar pattern each week, often including singing, a story, an activity and a prayer. As far as is appropriate, the session is based around one of the readings that is set for the Sunday and being read in church.

One of the changes that we made was related to the “show and tell” aspect of the service. Rather than taking valuable teaching time preparing children to stand at the front and talk about what they have done, we decided that we would display children’s work on a board in church allowing others to enjoy their art and writing. We also hoped that members of the congregation would talk to the children individually asking them about their activity. The Display Board also provides opportunities for visitors to the church to see the kinds of activities that we do in Junior Church.

If anyone would like to know more about joining the Junior Church, either as a leader or a helper, please speak to Fr. Ian or Lynnette.

Schools work

Fr Ian has continued to work with our two church schools, and we have this year fully resumed a Collective Worship schedule, as well as opening up the church services that the schools have to any parents who wish to attend.

Fr Ian has also spent time teaching in the schools, and has covered a number of subjects, the most notable for this year was a full afternoon session with Year 6, where the three main life event services were discussed, Baptism, Wedding and Funeral. For the first two, we had volunteers walk through the service, and for the third we had an in-depth conversation about death. We were grateful to our local family run funeral directors who loaned us a coffin, and the children had the opportunity (if they wished) to go and look inside (it was dressed but empty!). The children spoke afterwards about how much they had gained through our conversations, and I have already been approached to lead the same session again in 2023.

Page 8 of 13

Social Events

Due to the reduced numbers returning, it was decided that as we began to host social events again, these would be done as ‘Benefice Events’ and during the course of the year we did the following:

Summer Fayre Choir concert Band Concert Quiz night Christmas Fayre Afternoon with Santa

With this being our first year back, attendance and support was mixed, but we hope that as we move into 2023 and begin the planning of the events that there will be more consistency in support, not only of preparing and executing the events, but also through drawing the community back in.

Project 2020

Work has continued to be incredibly slow on fundraising for the project, and this is largely down to the fact that funders are looking to help those getting back on their feet after COVID.

Whilst we have not secured any significant funds during the year, we were able to hold our Art Exhibition, which increased the fund, Sainsburys continued to support us through counter collections, and other items were made and sold for the benefit of the project.

As we look to 2023, we hope that we will yield some more successful fundraising and get the project back on track.

Holy Trinity Youth Theatre Workshop

Mid-year, we were able to bring the Youth Theatre back, and whilst we lost the vast majority of the cast we had, we were given permission to speak with Years 5 and 6 in both of our church schools.

Through this initial contact, we were able to form a new cast, and put on a production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in October.

Even though most of the children hadn’t done anything before due to the years that they missed because of Covid, we have been encouraged by how they took direction and how they have learned to work together.

From the first rehearsal onwards, we as always have been delighted by the way that they have grown in confidence.

We would also like to thank John Nuttall for making the car that impressed everyone from the children to the adults.

Page 9 of 13

As always, we are thankful to both the cast and crew, as well as the many others who contribute to the theatre group, and are looking forward to our productions in 2023.

Good Causes

During 2022 the Benefice were able to support the following organisations:

Safeguarding

The Parish continues to take safeguarding of Children and Vulnerable Adults seriously and during 2022 has continued to operate in the Benefice in line with the guidelines and practices as set down by Manchester Diocese.

This has included DBS Checks and training, as well as the completion of the annual selfdeclaration forms. This information is now held confidentially and centrally, and the Parish and Benefice are committed to ensuring our churches are safe places for all people.

The Website continues to be updated to reflect best practices, and describes the ways that anyone who is concerned about a matter can get in touch, as well as offering links to other groups who can provide assistance.

We additionally commit to working together as a Benefice in ensuring that we meet our obligations.

Accounts

The Accounts were approved by the PCC on 8[th] February 2023 and signed on their behalf by:

The Reverend Ian Bullock (P.C.C. Chair) Vicar of Littleborough

Page 10 of 13

Independent Examiner's Report on the Accounts

Report to the Trustees/Members of Holy Trinity, Littleborough on the accounts for the year ended 31 December 2022

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

Examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act

To follow procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act) and

To state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of Independent Examiner's statement

My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the Charities 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 the 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 matter has come to my attention:

Signed Name Mr D G Kershaw Date: 24[th] February 2023 Address 21 Sunset Hill Top, Meanwood, Leeds, LS6 4LP

Page 11 of 13

Holy Trinity

Balance sheet (Church of England)

As at: 31 December 2022

As at 31/12/2022
£		 As at 31/12/2021
£
Current assets
Investments at CCLA
Cash at bank and in hand
Net current assets less current liabilities
Total assets less current liabilities
Total net assets less liabilities
Represented by
Unrestricted
Virgin Bank
Restricted
Restricted – Project 2020 awaiting trf to Inv.
Restricted – Benefice Mission Fund
Restricted - Benefice Shared Cost - Magazine
Restricted - Benefice Shared Cost - Printer
Restricted – Other Charity Donations
Restricted – Specific Legacies
Restricted – Benefice Fundraising
Restricted – PCC Investment Account
Funds of the Church		 76606.70
32493.74
109100.44
109100.44
109100.44
109100.44
2100.82
25698.87
128.71
143.19
119.68
0.00
1350.00
2952.47
76606.70
109100.44		 75612.21
17831.01
93443.22
93443.22
93443.22
93443.22
5141.75
12170.14
176.15
14.53
228.44
0.00
100.00
0.00
75612.21
93443.22

Page 12 of 13

Holy Trinity Income / Expenditure As at: 31 December 2022

Income
Bank Paid Covenants
Envelope Covenants
One-Off Gift Aid
Loose Plate
Other Planned Giving - Not GA
Donations - Non GA
Donations - GA Eligible
General Fundraising - Non GA
Parochial Fees
Magazine Income
Flowers
Refreshments
Youth Theatre Workshop
Project 2020
COVID-19 (‘19:Rental Income)
Gift Aid Rebate
Legacies
CCLA Account Trf's \ Interest
Other Charitable Collections
Benefice Mission Income
Benefice Fundraising
Benefice Shared Cost - Magazine
Benefice Shared Cost - Printer
Income totals		 2022
11,726.00
1,429.60
707.37
2,203.45
0.00
0.00
416.70
24.38
206.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
2,819.86
14,653.06
0.00
3,912.80
1,250.00
994.49
994.86
79.87
3,407.64
665.32
1,445.00
46,936.40		 2021
Expenditure
10,545.00
Parish Share
3,346.82
Gas
5,841.68
Electricity
1,702.67
Water
87.65
Ecclesiastical Insurance
1,865.15
Church Maintenance \ Repairs
0.00
Fire \ Alarm Systems & Safety Check
657.13
Cleaning
364.00
Liturgical Supplies
0.00
Refreshments
45.32
Flowers
0.00
Vicarage
0.00
Vicars Working Expenses
52,232.93
Training and Development
0.00
Organ \ Music \ Licences
3,341.58
Youth Theatre Workshop
0.00
Outreach, Evangelism & Discipleship
-21,958.73
Childrens Work
639.07
Printing \ Stationery
0.00
FWO Envelopes
0.00 Equipment Rental
218.69
Project 2020
1,500.00
General Fundraising Costs
60,428.96
Professional \ Locum Fees
Deanery Costs
60,428.96
Littleborough Churches together
-72,280.60
Charitable Donations
-11,851.64
Benefice Mission Expenditure
Benefice Fundraising
27,797.00
Benefice Shared Cost - Magazine
-28,891.35
Benefice Shared Cost - Printer
-1,094.35
COVID-19 Grant
Expenditure totals
 2022
2021
11,000.00
14,565.30
2,118.72
2,199.16
244.70
1,012.00
340.42
305.72
5,607.56
5,330.59
360.73
321.61
455.28
185.40
0.00
95.18
648.93
625.97
4.00
37.45
28.34
161.22
1,207.65
1,179.44
910.96
732.56
0.00
0.00
573.97
452.10
50.00
50.00
2,032.21
1,011.96
0.00
5.00
306.30
151.39
89.97
29.00
275.00
300.00
1,124.33
40,703.26
118.80
100.00
163.55
40.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
994.86
639.07
127.31
133.02
455.17
0.00
536.66
337.01
1,553.76
1,576.89
0.00.
370.39
Income
Expenditure
Surplus \ Deficit		 46,936.40
-31,279.18
15,657.22		 60,428.96
-72,280.60
-11,851.64
Income

Expenditure
Surplus \ Deficit		 23,446.16
-26,487.09
**-3,040.93 **		 27,797.00
-28,891.35
**-1,094.35 **
Actuals without restricted and charitable 31,279.18
58,179.60