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2022-12-31-accounts

Saint John’s Church, Shildon

Annual Report April 2022– April 2023

Contents
Parish Organisation 2
Report on the electoral roll 2
Minister’s report 3
PCC Secretary’s report 5
Treasurer’s report 5
Churchwardens’ fabric report 6
Report on Deanery Synod 7
Messy Church 8
Explorers’ Group 8
Toddler Group Report 8
Youth Group Report 9
Eco Church Report 10
Church Flowers 10
Social and Fundraising Committee 10
Craft and Chat group report 11
Memory café report 11
Home Communion report 11
Bell Ringers 11
Rainbows and Brownies report 12
Guides and Rangers report 12
W.I. 13
Shildon Alive Annual Report 14

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Administrative Information

St John’s Church is situated on Church St, Shildon. It is part of the Diocese of Durham within the Church of England. The correspondence address is St John’s Vicarage, 1A Burnie Gardens, Shildon, County Durham, DL4 1ND.

Parish Organisation

Priest in Charge: Revd. Carol Harris St John’s Vicarage, 1A Burnie Gardens, Shildon, DL4 1ND 01388 778998 carol@shildonparish.org.uk Assistant Minister: Revd. Frances Cooper frances.cooper@durham.anglican.org Assistant Curate: Revd. Emma Harte Emma.harte@durham.anglican.org

The PCC of St. John’s Church, Shildon, has the responsibility for co-operating with the incumbent in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical.

The PCC is a charity registered with the Charity Commission. Members of the PCC are either ex officio or elected by the annual parochial church meeting in accordance with the Church Representation Rules. During the year the following served as members of the PCC:

Church Wardens: Mrs A Sanderson (elected 2021)) Mrs A. Todd (elected 2020) Lay Chair: Mrs A Todd Treasurer: Mr. P. Arnold Secretary: Mrs D. Truby Deputy churchwarden: Mr C. Bennett

Mrs L. Arnold (Gift Aid Co Ordinator) Mrs. O. Bainbridge Mrs A. Cleasby (Safeguarding Officer) Mr. I. Cooper Ms. J. Copland Mr A. Harris Mr. T. Hillary Ms. B Walker

Deanery Synod Reps: Mr P. Arnold and Mr. C Bennett

The PCC has complied with the duty under section 5 of the Clergy Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016 (duty to have regard to House of Bishops’ Guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults.)

Report on the electoral roll

The number on the revised electoral roll for 2023 has gone down by 25 people to a total of 68 . The electoral roll officer is Mrs Mary Harrison.

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Minister’s Report April 2022 – April 2023

Reading through my report from last year as I prepared for this year made me realise how a year ago we were just emerging out of covid restrictions and starting back. That world of masks and restrictions today seems many years ago and this year it has been wonderful to be able to open out and move forward.

Thank you to everyone who has served on the PCC this year, to Adele and Ann our churchwardens who have worked tirelessly through the year, to Paul our treasurer, to Dorothy our secretary and to everyone who has served the church this year whether they are on the PCC or not. There are so many people who work together to serve the church some seen some unseen – thank you to everyone for all you do.

On our PCC vision evening back in August we looked together at the John 15 passage where Jesus describes himself as the vine and us all as the branches. We are one branch as St John’s Church here in Shildon and we were reminded in the passage that we abide in Jesus, his life flows through us and apart from him we can do nothing. We all are followers of Christ and he has called us each individually and us all together as his church, the people of God, to abide in him and to shine out his love, his light, his hope and his peace here in Shildon and the surrounding area as we worship together, as we proclaim Jesus in word and deed and as we look out and serve our local community.

We looked again at the priorities we set the previous year and saw how these all fitted into this picture of the vine and Jesus’ life flowing through us. Having priorities helps to shape who we are as a church and where we choose to invest our energy and time.

The priorities we have are church growth, both in numbers in the congregation and in discipleship with a particular emphasis on seeing a diverse range of ages represented in the church congregation. The second is to focus on children and young people and how we can engage with this group in more depth and the third is to continue with the priority of engaging with and serving our local community with a particular emphasis on continuing to work with and support our church project Shildon Alive.

As I look back over this year that has gone I can see how we have seen some growth and fruitfulness in each of these areas and I can see how God has been working in our midst. There have been many highlights and encouragements in the year and much to give thanks for within our church community and the wider community. I have listed some below but it is not an exhaustive list -

Looking back you can see God at work in so many ways in and through our church community! You can see how as we continue to abide in Jesus his life is flowing through each of us and we are producing fruit.

Thank you to everyone for all your prayer, commitment and hard work in the year that has gone and let us look forward to where God is leading us in the year to come! I finish with a verse from Ephesians –

‘Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations for ever and ever! Amen’

Revd. Carol Harris – April 2023

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PCC Secretary’s report.

It is good to report that we are now receiving all services in our church building.

We held 7 PCC meetings, with good attendance at all plus in August we had an evening reflecting on and praying about the vision of the church.

Messy church is now an established Saturday afternoon activity, which is held once a month, on the second Saturday. We plan our sessions on stories from the bible and of course Church celebrations such as Christmas, Christingle and Easter. The children enjoy the stories and activities plus the tea to round off the afternoon. We have a steady group of volunteers that prepare and deliver the activities. Special thanks must go to Barbara who makes the sandwiches etc for tea time.

Our First Sunday evening services have continued this year which have contemporary music and a guest speaker to talk of their faith journey. These have been well attended by members of the congregation and also those who do not usually attend more formal forms of worship.

During October we had our church outing to Whitby via a steam train ride from Grosmont to Whitby. The trip was not without its hitches. The coach driver had been given the wrong start time and when we did reach the station and got going the train actually ran out of steam. Never the less we all had a lovely day. Well done the fundraising committee.

Our Alpha course was very successful and this has resulted in the re-establishing of House Groups.

In July we welcomed Emma Harte who has become our curate for three and a half years. Emma has joined our congregation with zeal and has joined in with many of the church’s activities.

We also welcomed Gareth Gladman who is studying at Lindisfarne R.T.P. on placement before preparing for ordination. We wish him well with his studies and future.

Carl Bennett left St John’s Church to worship elsewhere and so left the PCC and he had also been a Deanery Synod rep. We thank him for his contribution to St. John’s church.

We welcomed Ian Cooper and Beverly Walker as new members of the PCC.

It has been a very busy year at our church, with lots of services and activities.

Dorothy Truby - PCC Secretary

Treasurers Report

Financial Review for Parish AGM 10[th] May 2023.

Annual Financial statements and accounts for the year ended 31/12/2022.

These have been circulated for your perusal. It should be noted that we ended the year in debit by £15,130. This was due to the PCC agreeing to investing the reserves of £20,000 into the Church of England investment fund with CCLA Fund Managers, to increase the returns from this money. This was decided before the interest rate rises we have seen since October 2022. These are shown on the last page of the accounts.

Taking this into account we actually ended the year in credit of £4,870. Most of this was due to a grant provided by the church commissioners of £4,308 towards our energy costs. The general account was in deficit, but the excess in the building and maintenance account meant overall we had more income than expenses. Any money from fundraising is credited to the building and maintenance account.

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Income

Planned giving decreased, collections increased. Gift Aid decreased as planned giving decreased. Income from other sources, Grants and Legacies increased substantially.

Income from fundraising increased substantially and rent from the mission hall increased. A lot of these increases are due to recovery from coronavirus lockdowns, activities recommencing and weddings resuming etc. Thanks go to all who have contributed to the fundraising, especially the Social and Fundraising committee led by Adele.

Expenditure.

Clergy and staffing costs were slightly higher.

Church running costs were significantly higher due to higher utility bills, repairs and maintenance costs, as well as the costs of everything increasing due to high inflation.

Mission Hall running costs were higher for the same reasons.

Future Challenges.

I see this as being the effect of inflation and our ability to keep pace with it. Every year when our own personal income increases, either wage rises or pension income, we need to review what we give to church as the church is feeling the effects of inflation just as we do with our personal lives. In particular at present the costs of energy are being felt in our expenses.

The work required as identified in the quinquennial report is also going to continue to need a lot of financial support.

Reserves Policy.

The recommended reserves to be maintained are equivalent to three months payments. If possible, we would like to maintain a balance on our general (unrestricted) fund which would equate to three months payments. This would mean we would need to maintain £15,000 to cover emergencies. I am pleased to report that over the last year we managed to just about maintain that amount.

Thank You.

I wish to use this opportunity to thank Joan Hodgson who deals with the collections and day to day banking and also Lynne Arnold who co-ordinates the gift aid keeps records and submits the claim. Without these people my role as treasurer would be significantly more time consuming.

Paul Arnold - Parish Treasurer. Church Wardens’ Fabric Report

Annual checks and servicing complete as well as general repairs and replacements where required.

Quinquennial Report

This year has seen major work completed re-recommendations from the report.

All glazing to windows has been completed, remedial work to tower, lighting conductor affixed to the tower, woodworm treated in bell tower, and the ground floor decorated following the completion of the roof repairs.

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Awaiting stonemason to complete work to several eroded stones to the south east of the Church, except for this all work has been completed well within the time scale requirements.

Quiet Garden

A huge thankyou to David Dent who has volunteered to maintain the quiet garden, maintaining the lawns and borders for everyone to enjoy, with the Guides and the Brownies upkeeping their Nature Garden area.

We would like to thank the P.C.C. and the congregation for their support throughout the year.

Adele Todd

Ann Sanderson

Deanery Synod

The parish was represented on the Deanery Synod by Revd Carol Harris, Revd Frances Cooper, Revd Emma Hart, Paul Arnold, Carl Bennet.

There are usually three meetings annually, where various topics are discussed. This year we had speakers on Caring for the environment, Christians against poverty, and diocesan youth work.

We also hear about good news from other parishes, where other parishes share what they are doing and works well.

This year we had a deanery prayer walk where Bishop Paul and Bishop Sarah accompanied by the bishop’s chaplain walked around various parts of the deanery. For our part in which I had a large part organising, the party were met at Spout Lane where they walked up from Aycliffe Parish. The route then took them to Shildon Alive where they were provided with lunch. They visited St. Johns School and walked back to Shildon Alive before walking to the gates of Hackworth Park.

They were met by the mayor and representatives of the Town Council. The council people took them on a tour of the park, where they stopped at various places and prayed for people. Then the proceeded to Locomotion where we were given a tour accompanied by Anthony Coulls the curator.

Following some refreshments provided by Locomotion the party then went to the monument where the very first passenger train left from and visited the original rail lines. The walk then finished with a meal in Cape to Cairo.

The following Sunday we hosted a Deanery confirmation service attended by the party who shared with us all the places they had visited in the deanery and the people they had met.

I am volunteering to continue as elected deanery representative and Tim Hillary is also volunteering, this will be voted upon at the annual meeting.

Paul Arnold

Deanery Representative.

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Messy Church

Messy church continues to thrive. We meet once a month on the second Saturday (except August).

The sessions last for two hours from 2pm until 4pm, and welcome children of all ages.

With hospitality and creativity at the heart of Messy church, our stories and songs are Christ centred and the crafts chosen echo this. The children are certainly engaged during the sessions.

Our Christmas and Easter sessions were very popular. This year we held an Easter egg hunt in the vicarage garden. The children were tasked with finding letters hidden around the garden, which were then arranged into a sentence from the bible relating to the Risen lord. The children were then rewarded with an eater egg. Following on from the activity the families enjoyed cakes, juice and tea on a lovely sunny day.

With many thanks to the adults who prepare the activities, set out the tables and clear away afterwards. Many thanks also to the catering team who make the tea which is shared by all at the end of the session.

Jane Copland Dorothy Truby

St. John’s Church – Explorers’ Group AGM Report 2023

Sunday Schooll happens during our Sunday morning service from 10.15am t0 10.45am. We do this in the foyer so the children are able to see what is happening in the service through the large windows and are included in the peace waving.

Crafts and activities follow alongside with the Gospel Readings.

Becky and I touch on the way the children see God, what he would like them to do and how to translate some of these stories into our modern world. The children take their crafts home and we try to keep one to display on our Sunday School display board.

The children are asked, if they feel comfortable to do so, to go to the front of the Church, after Communion to show Carol, Frances or Emma and the congregation what they have achieved and retell their own understanding of the lesson.

The number of children in our Group varies every Sunday morning from 1 up to 6 (approx). We look forward to our coming year and welcome all children to join us Exploring God.

Anne Cleasby and Becky Callaghan

St John’s Toddler Group Report

The toddler group which had been ran by Byerley Road Pre School once a week in termtime stopped due to Covid and the preschool did not want to continue when the group could restart.

Various mums at Messy Church were keen to be part of a new group and volunteered to help run a new group. We started on the 28[th] April. It is held on a Thursday morning from 9.15am to 10.30am during term time. The pre school very kindly donated the toys that were in the cupboards.

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After Emma was ordained she took up leading the group alongside those who were already there. She writes -

‘This last year has been one of change and growth but one where God has been at the centre of it all.

Reverend Emma Harte-Waters became a group leader alongside Shannon Bennett and Gemma Pattison in August 2022. At the time there was little structure to the group. After discussions with the team leaders and the parents/carers, a loose structure was established: welcome, stay&play, refreshments with a story (which alternates between secular and Christian) followed by songs and ending with a blessing and bubbles. The registration process was updated along with the keeping of financial/data records.

In the October Shannon Bennett left as a leader. In December the group held their first nativity service and in April held their first easter service, both in church. They were able to gift the children a nativity and easter story book respectively.

The group is going from strength to strength, there is a waiting list, of 5, despite several children leaving to attend nursery. People come to the group through recommendation from other parents and through contact with church ministry and mission.

There are regularly 15-20 toddlers attending each session. Paying £1 per family. This has enabled the group to be self-sufficient: purchase gifts, arts and crafts for messy play, refreshments and equipment needed for the group. We currently have a balance of £84.50.

A new graphic, in consultation, was designed for the group. The graphic, can be seen on everything related to the group and is printed on hoodies/t-shirts for the leaders. The purpose of this is to help build recognition and a sense of belonging/ownership of the group.

The display board has been utilised and displays the children’s work. There is a private Facebook page and WhatsApp group to enable the parents/carers to communicate, build and deepen relationships with one another.

Due to a sense of belonging and passion for the group three parents have come forward to be group leaders and are currently undergoing the safer recruitment process.’

Revd. Emma Harte

Youth Group Report

Last July we started a youth group! Carol and I had been into St John’s School to deliver an Admission to Communion course and invitations were given to Year 6s, and from here we now have a regular group of between 6 and 8 young people who meet every Monday night during term-time. We have a very committed group of leaders: Revd Frances, Bev Walker, Chris Barnes and myself. Every week we have games, challenges or other activities, eat food and have the opportunity to learn about the Christian faith together. Some of the highlights have included attending The Pulse youth event at Durham Cathedral, smoothie-making bikes with Tracey from Shildon Alive, a bowling trip to Planet Leisure and taking part in the Pancake Party and Talent Show.

We hope to invite current year 6s to join the group after half term.

Andy Harris

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Eco Church report for St John’s Church AGM

In May last year we set up a small working group to think about how as a church we could reduce our carbon footprint and be more environmentally aware. The group consisted of Elise, Dorothy, Ian and myself and we met a number of times to work through the Eco Church survey, with help from Paul and our church wardens. The questions related to our energy use as a church, use of church land (ie the Quiet Garden), our church projects (like saving waste food in Shildon Alive) and encouraging church members to think about lifestyle decisions. You might have noticed the regular monthly eco tips on the service sheet!

We have been awarded the Eco Church Bronze Award, which Archdeacon Rick Simpson presented to Elise at the Harvest Service. Tim very generously purchased the Eco Church award plaque for displaying this.

The challenge is to keep thinking about ways to have a positive impact on our environment and community.

Andy Harris

Church Flowers

We would like to say a huge thankyou to everyone for their donations you give so generously for the flowers. This ensures us that there are always floral designs in the Church especially at Church festival celebrations and events and throughout the year. We also provide floral arrangements for weddings, and floral tributes for the bereaved in memory of their loved ones.

Adele Todd

Social and fund-raising committee report

On behalf of the social and fund-raising committee I would like to say thankyou to all our volunteers who help to make it such a success.

This year has seen two very successful Fayres, both in the summer and Christmas, when we had lots of stalls with lots of people attending the events.

We have also had our annual Church trip to Pickering with a steam train journey which everyone thoroughly enjoyed.

October was a pie and pea supper with a quiz.

February, we had a low bar talent show and pancake party, with a huge range of talented people participating, both young and older, singing, dancing, joke telling and more.

We continue to host our Saturday morning monthly coffee mornings, which is a chance for the people in our town to meet up chat and enjoy a cuppa and home baking, and again a huge thankyou to our volunteers and Bakers.

Adele Todd

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Craft and Chat Thursday afternoon group

We meet every other week on Thursday, 1.00 - 2.30, upstairs in church in the Susanne Cuthbertson Hall. We have covered a number of crafts, flower arranging, card making, marzipan modelling, Stone and glass painting, to name a few.

You do not have to be crafty people! Just come a long for a cuppa and a chat. New members welcome, our next meeting after the AGM is 11[th] May.

Adele Todd and Ann Sanderson

Memory Café

Our aim is for people living with dementia and or are supporting someone living with dementia or memory problems to come along meet new people, share their experiences, or simply have a cuppa and a chat in a relaxed enjoyable environment, and with a variety of activities.

After two years in lockdown with the Covid Pandemic and the restrictions we were finely able to open, since opening again we have had a range of activities, which all our attendees especially the residents from Holly Lodge enjoy.

Adele Todd

Home Communion

We have a small team of dedicated ladies who are willing to bring communion to those of our church family who are no longer fit and well enough to attend church.

At present four ladies undertake to do this once a month. I you know of a church member who would like a visit, or if you are considering joining the team, please contact one of our priests.

It is a blessing to share the Eucharist and the love of our fellow /Christians with those no longer able to join us in church.

Thank you for blessing others Dorothy, Olga and Mary.

Barbara Hall

St. John’s Bell ringers

2022 saw us start to be able to ring more readily as restrictions were lifted. We still have hand sanitising for anyone who wishes to us it.

We have rung for a few weddings and a couple of school services. Unfortunately at the moment Sunday morning ringing isn’t possible as we need a minimum of 3 ringers and as most of our ringers are from out of the town and involved in other towers we haven’t been able to ring. Some of our young ringers have come back to ringing but like to have a lie in on a Sunday morning!

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Our grateful thanks must go to Mike Hodgson from Hurworth for his unending patience with us along with the other regular Hurworth ringers Phil, and Brenda, who come along to assist and encourage each Wednesday to give support and help with teaching our new ringers and the rest of us to move forward and try different ringing methods. We have also been able to welcome two ringers who have recently moved to Hamsterly and come along as and when they can.

We continue to enjoy being part of the Summer and Christmas fayre, and selling jams etc to help with the upkeep of the bells. We have had a couple of visiting towers this year and have hosted a training session for those who want to learn to call changes and Bobs in method ringing.

We meet on a Wednesday evening from 7pm until 9pm in the bell tower with a short break around 8pm for coffee and a cake or biscuit. Ringing is for age 10 years and upwards. If you would like to come along contact Trevor on 07533311250 or meet in the foyer at 6:50pm on a Wednesday.

Trevor Thompson Tower Captain

Shildon St John's Rainbows and Brownies

Well, we have had a busy year. Back in March 2022, a Division Day was held at The Hub in Barnard Castle, where the girls took part in making twists and dampers on a large open fire pit, they used the high ropes, did archery as well as canoeing, yes even the Rainbows took part in these activities. In May Rainbows had a challenge of building a structure from straws, sturdy enough to hold a cup of water, and of course they did it and no one got wet. We held many promise activities, from racing games to baking, with several Rainbows and Brownies making their promises. As part of one of the themes we have to complete, Brownies had to hold a fashion parade with their creations being made from recycled paper and coloured plastic bags; many of the creations would have been worthy of the London Fashion Week Awards. In June Shildon Brownies joined with St Helen Auckland Brownies to go to an event at Waddow Hall in Clitheroe, named Magic an Mayhem. The girls took part in a variety of circus themed activities, with them sleeping in a big top with 700 Brownies from all over the country. The day time was magic, with the night time as you can imagine was the mayhem. The girls also enjoyed many weekends away at the Guide Camp Site on Raby Estates, building dens, making fires, cooking on trangia stoves and toasting marshmallows over BBQ's. The guide leaders got in on the act when we held the lighting of the Beacon for the Queen. What a glorious site that was, when we looked around the area, we made out 18 other Beacons

2nd Shildon Guides and Rangers

It all seems so long ago now, but the start of 2022 began with an increase of Covid cases and we were not able to meet indoors in January. The infection numbers went back down again and we were able to meet up and from then we have been able to restart our Guiding programme in the same way it was before Covid. Following the covid restrictions our group numbers reduced but they are building back up.

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We applied successfully for a grant from County Durham Foundation and then enabled us to buy outdoor cooking equipment and to replace our older tents, which meant we could plan more camping trips and outdoor activities.

Thank you to the Church for supporting us with our Thinking Day celebrations in February and including us to lead part of a Church service.

With the new cooking equipment the Guides and Rangers took part in a Guiding Outdoor cooking competition. For which they spent 6 weeks planning and practicing their cooking skills, everyone had a fab time and one of our teams won.

We went camping in May and the theme was codes and signals. We planned activities using morse code, sign language, semaphore, map references and number cyphers. It was a lot of fun cracking the codes and finding hidden treasure, which was edible.

In the warmer weather, we continued to look after our wildlife area in the Church garden and even saw a frog living there.

In October we stayed for the weekend in Barnard Castle and the theme was faith, trust and pixie dust, which including activities on self-confidence and team building in fun ways.

Throughout the year in the weekly meetings we completed activities that are part of the Guiding programme and we worked towards badges on the topics of ‘know myself, express myself and have adventures.’

At Christmas we took part in a very special Christingle service in Church for the Rainbows, Brownies, Guides and Rangers.

We are looking to build on this in 2023, with even more plans.

Report from Howden le Wear WI at Shildon

Howden le Wear WI at Shildon has continued to be a successful, albeit small, Women’s Institute.

It was decided, via a vote from Members, to try an alternative venue for our Meetings. We have been holding our recent Meetings at West Close Community Lounge in Shildon. However, after discussion it was voted to return to St John’s Church in Shildon to hold our Monthly Meetings. We anticipate this will take place in the near future.

Our Guest Speakers are interesting and varied and members appreciate the hard work and dedication of our Committee.

It is anticipated that numbers will continue to be steady and therefore ensure the continuity of Howden le Wear WI at Shildon.

We would like to thank both venues for always being cooperative.

Barbara Coia Secretary

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Shildon Alive Annual Project Update

One of our greatest achievements at Shildon Alive is our volunteers of all ages, we have the privilege of watching grow and develop new skills for life, reuse forgotten skills, as grow in confidence. Many often begin with extremely low esteem, anxiety, and depression.

Comments such as, ‘I will never be able to do that’ are common.

They work with our passionate, caring team and they start blossom.

This lovely young man in the picture, started as a very shy volunteer with no confidence in himself or his ability and he our apprentice chef and runs his own team of volunteers learning needs!

The catering team, with, our amazing Senior Food Coordinator at the helm are at the heart of Shildon Alive.

team of them as well selfsadly to

now is with

We

hope this lovely lad is the first of many to get the opportunity to train at Darlington College and work alongside us to support our community. The team have also been working with Public Health England and have completed a HOT takeaway award. The kitchen and takeaway can be a challenging environment to work in, but his growing confidence allows him to take the lead. What a difference a year can make! He has grown so much, he can manage a team of volunteers with learning needs to run the HOT takeaway, feeding as many as 400 heads in a day.

We currently have eleven dedicated volunteer drivers and one amazing employed driver who collect food surplus from supermarkets, wholesalers and local businesses, we are also members of ‘Fareshare Go’ and get weekly deliveries of food surplus from this project. The food we get is displayed in the community fridge and shelves as you first walk into the shop on the left, we encourage people to take a basket, fill it and leave a donation at the checkout. This is for everyone in the community and helps to prevent food waste as well as make the hub an easier, inclusive space. Over the last year of collecting, we have redistributed a staggering 60 tonnes of food which was destined for landfill whilst helping families and individuals reduce their shopping bills and access fresh fruit and vegetables.

The takeaway offers a paid menu, meals on wheels, a free menu for vulnerable families and individuals and free meals for school age children throughout the year. This makes the takeaway and shop a busy, inclusive ‘space for all’ and works well in our town.

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Workshops and life skills:

As a trusted Community Anchor Organisation we have become well known and popular for our free workshops for people of all ages. They are always fully booked with a waiting list, the feedback is just wonderful.

One lady who joined a six-week course of adult sessions, explained to Tracy that it was the first time she had done anything away from her home for a number of years. She felt safe with our team, not judged, and included.

One young lad commented, ‘ my mam never lets me use a sharp knife, I am going to show her, I can use one safely,’ he proudly demonstrated his bridge hand to his mam when she came to collect him!

Our Community development worker has been all three of our local primary schools and a centre with learning needs and has developed and workshop, teaching them about the journey of food impact of food waste on the environment. All four get weekly deliveries of rescued food from Shildon they offer to their families and their community on own pop-up rescue stalls. As well as learning skills they help their families and their community affordable, rescued fruit, vegetables and cupboard teachers, pupils, carers, and parents have on the positive impact of this project on their lives community.

working with for adults delivered a and the venues now Alive which their very valuable with staples. The commented and the poster and design!

The young people designed their own pop-up stall this is Ruby, one of the winners with her fantastic

Advocacy support:

Our Advocacy support service is well known in the area, having an excellent reputation, the team offer support with benefit claims and enquiries, housing issues, digital skills, food crisis (we offer a 3-4 day crisis food parcel) and small grants for household goods, rent arrears or utilities. Our team of staff and volunteers are part of the Advice in County Durham network and take full advantage of the training offered by them to keep our knowledge and connections to partner services up to date.

Sophie and her team of Social Workers in Shildon commented:

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‘Hi I am just writing this email to provide some feedback regarding the Shildon Alive service. I am a Social Worker covering the Shildon area within my work and I must say that Shildon would be lost without the support that is offered from the Shildon Alive service. I don’t only speak for myself when I say that the service is a ‘god send’ to the community and we often use it ourselves as practitioners to access fresh, healthy food produce for our families. We find that the quality of food and the quality of the service provided is far beyond expectations and completely different to the service received at other food banks. I wouldn’t hesitate to use Shildon Alive myself if I ever found myself to be in a difficult or vulnerable situation. The staff are all welcoming and offer a wide range of different support. The Social Workers in my team I know would hugely benefit from continuation of the service. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need anything further. Keep up the good work – Thanks!’

In 2022 three members of staff and two volunteers with an excellent skill set were able to offer Advocacy support to 956 customers whilst referring a further 152 to partner agencies for further support.

One member of staff and three volunteers are currently offering basic support and have shown a keen interest in training though Advice in County Durham next year for this expanding and much needed service.

We also work closely with several partner organisations who offer more complex support around debt, housing and energy.

Some of the individuals we have supported have benefited from small grants up to the value of £150 from ACTS 435. This year’s grant total of 58 grants is helping individuals.

Several older members of the community have accessed the Community Takeaway and been involved with events such as Community Bingo and our Jubilee Tea. They have been confident enough to access our Advocacy Service after meeting volunteers at these events. This has led to an increase in older people accessing support particularly around housing and applications for Attendance Allowance.

Our clients include many people living in financial poverty. This is caused by a range of issues from high rates of unemployment, mental health issues, drug and alcohol, homelessness, victims of domestic violence, crime hate and recently refugees from the war-stricken Ukraine. Their needs are often complex and Advocacy support is at the forefront of our work.

The interventions given are unique to the individual and an immediate service is offered. This is critical as due to funding cuts; many services are no longer available.

Here are some examples of this year’s Advocacy support.

K is suffering with domestic violence and needs to leave her family home with her 3 children. She turns up at the hub covered in bruises. Her husband owns the house, and he is refusing to leave, devastated, and unable to stay she comes to ask for help. Support:

An Advocate carried out a benefit calculation and sourced a rental property where she could safely take her children. A small grant was sourced to pay the initial deposit to secure the property and the family were moved. A food parcel was also given, and the local council were contacted.

L is a Ukrainian refugee known to us as we helped to sort out her visa and her entitlement to benefits as she is a pensioner. She has fallen out with her host who she has been living with and is wandering around the streets, it is a Saturday morning, and she has nowhere to go, and has no money. Support:

An Advocate went to location to meet with L and used crisis support funding to place in an Air B&B over the weekend as no services were available in the area. L remained there for 3 days before the council intervened and placed her in a hostel for further support. L is still closely linked with Shildon Alive and is

16

hoping to secure housing in Shildon. We have been collecting furniture and household items to help L with her transition when she gets a home.

Food support can be accessed by self-referral (which is monitored by staff) or by service referral for example: GP, Local Authority, Probation, Social Services., School Teachers, Job Centre Coach.

Community Events:

Our Community development worker planned and delivered a Jubilee Picnic and afternoon Tea in June, involving lots of our and volunteers along with several partner organisations, Lottery Awards For all funding.

It was a fabulous event with 500 people in attendance, all attendance received a packed lunch and all older persons an afternoon tea. Supported by Bright Water and Groundworks young people plant flowers in a previously disused, untidy area field and created a display honouring her late majesty the

We also organised a fun run, with the support of Park Run, Town Council and Shildon AFC with 100 people in attendance.

large residents accessing families in were given we helped of the picnic Queen. Shildon

Our partnership with Shildon Town Council saw us giving 400 young people attending Fun 4 All free drinks and snacks.

At Chrismas an anonymous donor who has now sadly passed away funded our young people and vulnerable families a trip to the theatre, we filled two buses with happy, excited folk and went to Durham Gala Theatre to watch Sleeping Beauty. It was an ‘Oh yes please’ to trying to do a similar thing this year!

We have had two volunteer days events this year. We all had a team building trip to South Shields in the summer and we had a Christmas meal at Shildon Civic Hall. Both days were greatly received and helped to build and say thanks to our fabulous team for all they do.

Credit Union:

Our NE first credit union collection point is growing, and our team of volunteers are doing a fantastic job, we recently had a relaunch event encouraging savers new and old with a 10 week incentive where they received a bonus for regularly saving. Volunteers have been given training and feel confident running the collection point for savings and loans.

Community Hub:

The Community hub has been busy all year with events and activities and is open as a Warm Space with a rolling programme of activities including Arts and Crafts, Life Skills, Games, crocheting. Free use of phone and laptop is also available with support if needed.

It is a safe space, and the team of volunteers work with people of all ages and abilities to help them gain new skills or simply provide a listening ear.

Youth Work:

We support a weekly Youth Group with up to 35 young people attending This is made possible because of partnership working with Shildon Town Council, SCYPAN and AYCC.

We provide free food for the young people attending and a member of our team supports the sessions. At Christmas the young people came to the Theatre trip and we created a free Christmas market with

17

presents for them, so they could choose their families presents. One young girl commented,’ I was so worried I wouldn’t be able to get my mam anything with my pocket money, thanks so much’ and another girl took one of the local shop owners a present from the market. They made a positive Facebook post thanking the girl and improving relationships with the young people and the shop owners.

Guerrilla Gardening / Gardening:

Our school and Guerrilla Gardening is growing’ again. Throughout June, July and August we worked with 350 young people and families with gardening, Guerrilla gardening and Forest School activites. The sessions were fun with lots of learning. In all of the sessions everyone worked as a team to tidy and plant flowers and vegetables and learn survival skills along with sharing food and stories around the campfire.

Volunteer and job opportunities:

We will be recruiting for a full time Advocate and part time Food Surplus Worker volunteer advocates and drivers during February and March 23.

Opening times:

Shildon Alive 91-95 Church Street DL4

Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri 9:00-3:00

For support outside of these times contact info@shildonalive.org.uk

Tel:01388417600

http://shildonalive.org.uk/

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1DT
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Fundraising and donations:

Our donations, particularly after our piece on BBC news have been overwhelming, individuals have held fundraising events as well as individuals and groups giving cash and cheque donations. PPG industries, Hathaways, Asda and TJ Manners all gave us extremely generous monetary donations to support us to support others.

One anonymous donor in extremely poor health and who has now sadly passed away donated a large sum of money to allow us to take families to the theatre and to help our running costs.

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Food parcels 1207
Free baskets of fruit and veg 2160
Free meals adults 928
Free meals children 3890
Advocacy support 1108

We would like to say a huge thanks to everyone at St John’s Church, Shildon, St Marks Church Eldon, Shildon Town Council, LIVIN, Garfield Weston, Bishop Auckland and Shildon AAP, ACTS 435, County Durham Community Foundation, The Auckland project, ‘closed doors open hearts’, Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys, Greggs, Morrison’s, CO-OP, Aldi, Lidl, Greenfield Community College, St Johns C of E Primary School, Timothy Hackworth Primary School, Thornhill Primary school, Byerley Road Pre-school, The Frank and Phyllis Scotto Charitable Trust, Shildon AFC supporters club, Busy Bees, Bookers wholesale and The National Lottery Community Fund for giving us the chance to make a difference in our town and surrounding villages.

Two of our amazing team members

19

ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, SHILDON FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022 RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT

Note
Unrestricted Unrestricted Restricted Endowment
Total
Fund
Designated
Fund
Fund
Funds
Fund
2022
RECEIPTS
£
£
£
£
£
Voluntary Receipts:
Planned Giving
16,882
-
-
-
16,882
Collections
5,747
213
-
-
5,960
Gift Aid Recovered
5,236
-
-
-
5,236
All Other Giving/Voluntary
1
380
10,308
763
-
11,451
28,245
10,521
763
-
39,529
Activities for Generating Funds
2
2,009
4,221
-
-
6,230
Investment Income
3
14,857
-
-
-
14,857
Church Activities:
Income from Trading
4
170
272
-
-
442
Other Receipts
5
18,482
-
-
-
18,482
18,652
272
-
-
18,924
Total Receipts
63,763
15,014
763
-
79,540
PAYMENTS
Church Activities:
Parish Share
33,657
-
-
-
33,657
Clergy and Staffing Costs
6
2,754
-
-
-
2,754
Church Running Expenses
7
19,033
3,121
-
-
22,154
Hall Running Costs
8
6,229
170
-
-
6,399
Mission Giving and Donations
9
660
834
246
-
1,740
Costs of Trading
10
156
-
-
-
156
Asset and Investment Purchases:
C of E Investment Fund Income Shares
20,000
-
-
-
20,000
82,489
4,125
246
-
86,860
Cost of Generating Funds
11
7,710
-
-
-
7,710
Governance Costs
12
100
-
-
-
100
Total Payments
90,299
4,125
246
-
94,670
Excess of Receipts over Payments
13
(26,536)
10,889
517
-
(15,130)
Transfers between funds
(413)
413
-
-
-
Cash at Bank and in Hand 1 Jan
34,890
26,916
2,506
-
64,312
Cash at Bank and in Hand 31 Dec
7,941
38,218
3,023
-
49,182		 Total
Funds
2021
£
19,548
5,031
5,631
4,294
34,504
3,896
12,950
164
14,384
14,548
65,898
33,657
2,327
12,915
5,705
587
204
359
55,754
7,096
854
63,704
2,194
-
62,118
64,312

Page A2

ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, SHILDON

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT

**Note ** **Unrestricted ** Unrestricted Restricted Endowment Total Total
Fund Designated Fund Fund Funds Funds
Fund 2022 2021
Receipts £ £ £ £ £ £
All Other Giving/Voluntary Receipts 1
Donations, appeals etc. 380 6,000 763 - 7,143 2,671
Grants - 4,308 - - 4,308 1,623
380 10,308 763 - 11,451 4,294
Activities for Generating Funds 2
Summer Fayre 70 1,546 - - 1,616 1,420
Winter Fayre - 1,782 - - 1,782 1,629
Church Trip 1,321 - - - 1,321 -
Concert - Northern Voice - - - - - 220
Quiz - 171 - - 171 170
Beetle Drive - 127 - - 127 -
Musical Bingo - - - - - 153
Other Events 87 10 - - 97 -
Tea & Coffee/Coffee Mornings 531 585 - - 1,116 304
2,009 4,221 - - 6,230 3,896
Investment Income 3
Rent from Mission Hall 14,580 - - - 14,580 12,949
Bank Interest 169 - - - 169 1
Dividend 108 - - - 108 -
14,857 - - - 14,857 12,950
Income from Trading 4
Hall Rents 170 272 - - 442 164
170 272 - - 442 164
Other Receipts 5
Receipts for Weddings & Funerals 18,482 - - - 18,482 14,384
-
18,482 - - - 18,482 14,384

Page A3

ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, SHILDON

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT

**Note ** **Unrestricted ** Unrestricted Restricted Endowment Total Total
Fund Designated Fund Fund Funds Funds
Fund 2022 2021
Expenses £ £ £ £ £ £
Clergy & Staffing Costs 6
Vicarage Expenses 318 - - - 318 234
Refunded Vicarage Expenses - - - - - (419)
Working Expenses of Clergy 947 - - - 947 659
Visiting Clergy Fees 392 - - - 392 318
Organists' Fees - - - - - 120
Vergers' Fees 1,020 - - - 1,020 1,065
Youth Work Expenses 77 - - - 77 350
2,754 - - - 2,754 2,327
Church Running Expenses 7
Light & Heat 7,935 - - - 7,935 1,152
Insurance 4,680 - - - 4,680 4,417
Repairs & Maintenance 2,680 3,121 - 5,801 3,631
Water Rates 105 - - - 105 140
Cleaning 1,460 - - - 1,460 759
Upkeep of Services 1,650 - - - 1,650 1,825
Post Stationery & Admin Costs 523 - - - 523 831
Parish Training & Mission - - - - - 160
19,033 3,121 - - 22,154 12,915
Hall Running Costs 8
Light & Heat 4,486 - - - 4,486 2,910
Insurance 1,089 - - - 1,089 1,037
Repairs & Maintenance 108 170 - - 278 1,203
Water Rates 546 - - - 546 555
6,229 170 - - 6,399 5,705
Missionary Giving & Donations 9
Other Donations to Charities 441 - 101 - 542 89
Community Garden 40 - - - 40 40
Other Mission Expenses 131 834 145 - 1,110 444
Other Gifts & Donations 48 - - - 48 14
660 834 246 - 1,740 587

Page A4

ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, SHILDON

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022 RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT

Costs of Trading 10
Licences & Other Expenses 156 - - - 156 204
156 - - - 156 204
Costs of Generating Funds 11
Assigned Fees for Weddings & Funerals 6,427 - - - 6,427 6,959
Cost of Fayres, Kitchen etc 1,283 - - - 1,283 137
7,710 - - - 7,710 7,096
Governance Costs 12
Independent Examination Costs 100 - - - 100 -
Quinquennial Inspection & Report Costs - - - - - 854
100 - - - 100 854
Movements in Restricted 13
& Designated Funds Restricted Designated Restricted Designated
Bal b/f Receipts Receipts Payments Payments Transfers Bal c/f
£ £ £ £ £ £ £
Charity Donations - 31 31 - - -
Knit & Knatter 396 - 35 - - - 431
Upkeep and Maintenance 4,719 - 14,291 - 3,291 - 15,719
Bellringers 3,706 200 - 70 - - 3,836
Youth Workers Wages 15,661 - - - - - 15,661
Youth Group 1,367 - - - 190 21 1,198
Youth Assistant 2,360 - - - - (21) 2,339
Youth Gardening 1,000 - - - 102 - 898
Messy Church 626 - 688 - 542 - 772
Memory Café - 532 - 145 - - 387
Community Project (413) - - - - 413 -
29,422 763 15,014 246 4,125 413 41,241
Restricted 2506 3023
Designated 26916 38218
29,422 41,241

Page A5

ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, SHILDON FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022 RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT

Monetary Assets
Bank Current Account
CCLA Deposit
Cash in Hand		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
-
7,941
-		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
-
7,941
-		 Designated
Funds
£
28,159
10,059
-		 Designated
Funds
£
28,159
10,059
-		 Restricted
Funds
2022
2021
£
£
£
3,023
31,182
44,214
-
18,000
20,000
-
-
98
Totals		 Restricted
Funds
2022
2021
£
£
£
3,023
31,182
44,214
-
18,000
20,000
-
-
98
Totals
7,941 38,218 3,023
49,182
64,312

Fixed Assets Fund to which asset belongs CBF Church of England Unrestricted Investment Fund Income Shares 932.31 shares

Page A6