2022-12-31-accounts - The Parochial Church Council Of The Ecclesiastical Parish Of St Matthew, High Brooms

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

TRUSTEES REPORT The Parochial Church Council of The Ecclesiastical Parish of St. Matthew, High Brooms (Also known as St. Matthew’s Church, High Brooms) For the period January to December 2022

Here at St. Matthew’s Church, we welcome everyone who comes to worship at our church and who attends and makes use of the groups and community projects we run. We are committed to enabling as many people as possible to become part of our church community at St. Matthew’s, High Brooms. The Parochial Church Council (PCC) and Leadership Team maintain an overview of worship, ministry and outreach throughout the parish and consider how our worship services and activities can involve the many groups that live within our parish.

The mission statement of St. Matthew’s Church is ‘Igniting Passion for Jesus’ and we aim to do this through:

Worship and prayer - we hope to bring people to faith through our services;
Reaching out to our community - including maintaining and developing links with key community members;
Supporting the work of mission agencies around the world.

To facilitate this work, it is important that we maintain the fabric of St. Matthew’s Church and St. Matthew’s Church Hall and that we continue to stay up to date with policies and procedures which keep everyone safe.

WHAT WE DO

2022 was a year of new freedoms and normality following Covid, but also of new challenges, both nationally and globally, and also locally within St. Matthew’s Church.

During 2022 we were able to continue to build and grow our services, groups and activities following Covid lockdowns, and we also started up new initiatives, like the warm space, to help meet new needs in the community.

As this report shows, much of what we do as a church is only possible because of the support and commitment of those in our congregation and community.

None of the activities and services which St. Matthew’s Church runs would be able to happen without the many volunteers who give their time and energy. We are immensely grateful to all our volunteers, especially as we have gone through another year in which so many have faced so many challenges.

Mission & Vision

As well as the PCC, St Matthew’s Church has a Leadership Team which meets to plan and develop the ministry of the church. We also have various forms of Ministry Groups that meet regularly to pray and plan for mission and ministry in the church, including youth ministry, children’s ministry, women’s ministry, fabric, finance, community larder, pastoral care and worship.

At the beginning of 2022, the PCC and the Leadership Team spent a morning together, looking at what areas of church life we wanted to focus on for the year, and developing some priorities to help shape the direction of planning and activities during the year. The following three priorities came out of this:

Youth – to find and establish routes to grow relationships / community among our youth in church.
Fellowship – Planning and using social events to give opportunities to build relationships.
Bethel – Following the success of the community larder in the Bethel building, we will continue to explore the development of the building as a church and community resource in conjunction with the Bethel Trust.

All of these priorities shaped what we did in 2022 and will continue to shape our planning for 2023.

1. Worship and prayer

Sunday services

2022 was a year of settling into a new pattern of worship services here at St. Matthew’s Church, following Covid lockdowns and people’s nervousness at coming back into church regularly.

Following the decision that was made towards the end of 2021, the 5pm service (more traditional and liturgical) and the 7pm service (an informal service with café style layout and mainly attracting younger adults) restarted in early 2022, each once a month to start with. This pattern of once of month worked well for these services and the numbers attending were good, so it was decided halfway through the year that we would continue with this pattern of services.

Therefore, during 2022, we had our weekly 10am service and then 3 other monthly services on different weeks (8am communion, 5pm service, 7pm service). This has worked well, as most Sundays in a month have two different services for people to choose from.

The 10am service is still a hybrid service every week, with the decision being made to intentionally keep live-streaming this service indefinitely, as well as other key services like Christmas and Easter. We have a family service on the first Sunday of each month at 10am, as well as on all the Sundays through the summer holidays, where all ages stay in church together for a more relaxed, informal and fun service.

The average weekly attendance for our different services in 2022 is as follows: 8am communion – 6 adults 10am service – 60 adults and 20 children 5pm service – 14 adults 7pm service – 17 adults

We also had an average of about 20 people watching our 10am service live online each week, so we therefore had a combined weekly average of about 90 adults and 20 children across all our services, both in person and online.

Electoral Roll

At the end of December 2022, the number of names on the Electoral Roll of St. Matthew’s Church was 114, which includes 3 additions and 12 deletions during the year. The Electoral Roll was revised before the APCM in April 2022 and there were no changes for the rest of the year.

The number of people on the Electoral Roll is used to calculate the number of representatives we have on Deanery Synod. Electoral Roll additions, deletions and rolling totals are reported at each PCC meeting.

Special services

Christmas and Easter are special times in the church calendar.

Easter 2022 was our first normal festival since Covid, and we returned to our full programme of services in church and online. We had a Palm Sunday family service with a baptism, a Tenebrae service on Maundy Thursday, and then family services on both Good Friday and Easter Sunday. We reached about 200 people on Good Friday and Easter Sunday, which was a real encouragement.

All our Christmas services were also in church and streamed online, with 550 people coming through the doors across the Christmas week, and a further 180 views of our Christmas services online. There was a real sense of joy during the Christmas week, and of the community of High Brooms being able to come together to celebrate Christmas once again.

On Remembrance Sunday, St. Matthew’s Church held a Remembrance Day service in the morning and a memorial service in the afternoon. These services were well attended and appreciated.

We also held a special family service for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, with lots of fun activities about the Queen and prayers for Her Majesty.

Life Events

Life events were finally back to normal in 2022, and therefore people were keen to have the services which had been postponed due to Covid.

Seven baptisms were carried out in 2022, all for young children.

5 funerals were conducted by our clergy during 2022 – all at the cemetery / crematorium.

There were two weddings at St. Matthew’s Church during 2022, both for long-standing members of the church.

Prayer meetings

A worship and prayer evening was run by a couple in the church once a month, meeting in their home. This was a chance for people to pray and to worship in a smaller group.

Unfortunately the couple left St. Matthew’s Church in the summer of 2022, so this meeting stopped happening.

Home Groups and Pods

There are 6 Home Groups at St. Matthew’s Church, which meet weekly or fortnightly during the day or in the evening. These groups enable people to worship and pray together, explore their faith, ask questions to gain a greater understanding of both the Bible and Christianity and form a closer relationship with God and each other.

There are also numerous Pods, which are smaller prayer groups. These form out of existing friendships and connections and help people to further grow in their faith and deepen relationships with God and each other.

Revive Women’s Ministry

The women’s ministry at St. Matthew’s Church is another way of helping people to feel supported and to build relationships.

During 2022, the team who organise Revive events reduced significantly, so only two events were held throughout the year.

In March, they held a walk with a coffee shop at the end, to give women the opportunity to build relationships and support each other.

In November 2022, Revive ran a Christmas Wreath Making evening, which was well attended and was a great way to invite people from midweek groups into church for something different.

We want to say thank you to those volunteers who have stepped down from the Revive committee this year, for all their hard work and commitment over the years.

Link Mission Partners

St Matthew’s Church continues to have Missionary Links with Geita in Tanzania, Ruth Radley at Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Life & Soul locally in Tunbridge Wells. We also support Tearfund and Nourish Foodbank as a church.

During 2022, Pat Blanchard retired from working with CMS in Peru. She came to visit in May and said goodbye to us as a supporting church.

Following this, we have taken on a new mission partner to support as a church – Sam and Abby Baguma and their two girls (Rachel and Rebecca) who live and work in Uganda. Sam works for Mission Aviation Fellowship, and Abby teaches in the girls’ school. The Bagumas visited us in August 2022, to share about MAF and about their lives in Uganda. We are looking forward to supporting them going forward.

A Mission Prayer Meeting is held once a month for anyone who would like to hear updates and pray for all our mission partners. These are now hybrid meetings, which means some of our mission links who are not local can still join in the meetings by Zoom, and this has made the links stronger than before.

Retired Clergy

Richard Arding joined St. Matthew’s Church in September 2018 and has been actively involved in St. Matt’s and helping other churches in the area as requested. He has been a great help in covering services during Chris’ study leave over the last year.

2. Youth and children

Reaching out to children and young people and helping them to feel like they belong to our church family is very important to us as a church.

During 2022, St. Matthew’s Church employed a Children and Families Minister (Lois Fryett). There was no Youth Minister in post for the whole of 2022, but thanks to Lois, Berti from Tunbridge Wells Youth For Christ, and a small but dedicated team of volunteers, we have been able to continue and grow our youth provision during the year.

All our children and youth groups have been running in person throughout 2022, and we have seen growth in the numbers of children being part of these groups, and in the volunteer teams running them. We have been offering Sunday morning groups for primary school aged children and for youth every Sunday (except family services), and midweek groups for children in school years 3-6 and young people in secondary school, as well as a toddler group for preschool children and their carers.

On Sunday mornings, families start off in church altogether, and then the children and young people go out to their groups after the first song. Primary school aged children are all in a group together, and were meeting in the Bethel Hall during 2022. Young people in secondary school met in the youth office each Sunday. We also have a dedicated space on a Sunday morning for parents to be with their preschool children during the service, where there are toys and where the service is live on a TV for them to watch. These groups have been focusing on helping the children and young people to build friendships and bringing them closer to God in a fun, relaxed environment.

Our midweek clubs for children in church and in the community ran throughout 2022 in the church building and have grown steadily throughout the year.

Lois was running these groups during 2022, helped by Berti from Youth For Christ and groups of volunteers.

Deeper (for school years 3-6) meets on Mondays after school and has lots of fun activities for the children to do, as well as giving them toast and squash. An average of 12 children come each week, and these are a mixture of children from church families and children from the community.

Ignite is our group for secondary school age young people. They meet on Tuesday evenings, and one of the successes of this session is that they share a hot meal together and have time to chat and build relationships. Ignite is run in conjunction with Berti from Tunbridge Wells Youth For Christ, and we are so grateful for everything he has put into the group. Ignite has an average of 14 young people each week, and it is growing as they are bringing friends along. Again, these are a mixture of church young people and those from the community.

Ignite ran some special events in 2022 for the young people, including a pancake evening, boating at Dunorlan Park, a campfire, fireworks and ice-skating.

We also run a baby and toddler group on Thursday mornings, for preschool children and their parents or carers. The group is very relaxed, with lots of time and space for the children to play and the adults to connect with each other over refreshments. We then have a story and song time at the end, with biscuits for the children. The toddler group sees an average of 23 children a week, with their carers.

All these groups are great at nurturing and encouraging the children and young people who attend, but they are also great opportunities for us to then invite families to key services at church throughout the year, or other events we are running.

Thank-you so much to Lois, Berti and Tunbridge Wells Youth For Christ, and to all the volunteers who have been involved in this work throughout the year.

We really appreciate all our volunteers who kept all the groups going during the year and who went above and beyond to make sure we could still welcome children and young people into our church each week.

3. Reaching out to the community

St. Matthew’s Church is a key part of the community of High Brooms. The Covid pandemic and the more recent cost of living crisis have increased the needs in our community, and we have been trying to work with our community to meet some of those needs.

Community Larder

(written by the community larder team)

St. Matt’s Community Larder opened in November 2020 and has been open every Friday morning since in the Bethel Hall. This is only possible because of the dedication of a committed group of around 35 volunteers from the church and community. These volunteers cover a wide range of activities, including multiple supermarket collections, unloading FareShare deliveries, serving visitors on Friday mornings and packing up the Bethel Hall after the larder has taken place.

When the larder first opened, we obtained almost all our food via Fareshare and supermarket donations, but the last year has seen a very different picture. Supermarket donations have dropped off very markedly, and Fareshare deliveries are also very erratic and not always useful. Meantime, the numbers of people accessing the larder have escalated with the cost-of-living crisis, and we are regularly seeing 90-100 visitors each week.

We have therefore had to source food by other means and are buying in supplies each week. Thankfully, we have received generous financial donations from both individuals and organisations, as well as some grant monies, and some from our own fundraising at a Christmas event. We have also been blessed by large amounts of food donations from the local schools’ harvest festivals.

Once a month we have a member of Crosslight charity available to help individuals with financial worries. Look Ahead have also helped some individuals in particularly difficult financial situations.

The cafe area has become increasingly busy, and we are greatly encouraged by a developing sense of community and welcome and friendship. We are very pleased more church members have found time to drop in. Greg Clark MP has also visited.

We are so grateful for what we feel is a God sent opportunity to put the good news of Jesus into practical action in this way.

We cannot tell what the future will hold, but we will continue from week to week, all the time we have our brilliant team of volunteers and enough resources to supply food.

Warm space

One of the new initiatives that started nationwide in the autumn of 2022, was the idea of warm spaces, for those who couldn’t afford to heat their homes during the winter. St. Matthew’s Church opened a warm space in November 2022, on Wednesdays from 10am to 4pm in our church centre. We are so grateful to all the volunteers who have committed their time to make this happen. The warm space offers somewhere warm to be, but also hot drinks and a hot soup and roll lunch, all for free. We also have board games and newspapers for people to use, and people to chat to. Once the warm space had started, we were able to partner with Embark21, a charity supporting people’s emotional and mental health. Jill from Embark21 is in the warm space for a couple of hours each week, running art activities. This attracts not only her own clients, but anyone using the warm space can take part as well.

Although this initiative was set up to meet the need of giving people somewhere warm to be, we have found that it meets other needs more, like giving people a place to meet others, and supporting people with their mental health.

Pastoral Care

The pastoral care team at St. Matthew’s Church has continued to work very hard through 2022 to ensure the holistic care of individuals in need. This includes hospital visits, home visits where people are ill, suffering or unable to leave their homes, provision of cooked meals, coffee mornings and generally being available to listen. One of the members of the pastoral care team does odd jobs for those who are unable to do them.

Hubs

Hubs are small groups based around a shared hobby or interest. These mostly involve church members but are also great places for people to invite friends to. These didn’t really happen much during the two years of Covid; however, some have now restarted in person. The groups that have been running during 2022 are knitting hub, sewing bee hub and table tennis teams.

Social Events

One of the priorities for 2022 was building relationships through social events. Our church community has changed over the last couple of years, with some people leaving and new people joining, and it was felt that helping people to make friends and feel like they belong to the church community was important. In 2022 we held various events to do this – a church picnic, a BBQ with one of our mission partners, a church walk and coffee, a bring and share Harvest lunch, a men’s day to Hastings, and an evening ‘Eating Out’ meal in church. All of these events gave opportunities for friendships to grow.

Community Events

Our community events were back up and running in 2022 in person, and it was lovely to be able to invite people back into church without any restrictions.

Rosemary and her team ran several coffee mornings during the year for older members of the community, as well as a Macmillan Coffee Morning in September.

The local churches table tennis league used the church building for practices and matches, and a local choir also met in the church for rehearsals.

School links

St. Matthew’s Church continues to maintain good relations with St Matthew’s High Brooms CE Primary School. In 2022, we were able to welcome the school back into church for services in person, which we did at Easter and Christmas, and for a year 6 leavers’ service in the summer. Chris Wicks (our vicar) started taking regular assemblies again from the autumn term of 2022.

3 members of the church served as Governors at the school during 2022 – two as foundation Governors (Chris Wicks and David Johnson) and one as an associate Governor (Lynn MacKay).

Support for charities

At Harvest, food gifts were collected for Nourish Foodbank and an offering was taken for Tearfund.

Our Christmas offerings in 2022 were sent to Tearfund, to help children who had been orphaned through the Covid pandemic.

Support continues for a number of local, national and international charities and organisations through the tithe that St. Matthew’s Church gives each year.

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

St. Matthew’s Parochial Church Council (PCC) has the responsibility of working alongside the Incumbent, the Reverend Christopher Wicks, in promoting within the ecclesiastical parish the whole mission of the Church, including pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical activities.

The PCC also has the responsibility for the maintenance of St. Matthew’s Church and St. Matthew’s Church Hall in High Brooms.

St. Matthew’s Church is situated on High Brooms Road in High Brooms (correspondence address: St. Matthew’s Church, High Brooms Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN4 9BW). It is part of the Diocese of Rochester within the Church of England.

The PCC is a body corporate (PCC Powers Measure 1956, Church Representation Rules 2006) and a charity currently registered with the Charity Commission (registered charity number 1185772). Members of the PCC are either ex officio or elected by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) in accordance with the Church Representation Rules. PCC members as at the APCM of May 2022 are:

Ex Officio Members:

The Reverend Christopher Wicks Incumbent David Johnson Church Warden Brian Hobden Church Warden Hannah Mwesigwa Secretary (also employed as Operations Manager) Kate Whitehead Treasurer Elected Members: Mary Wilson Deanery Synod representative Michael Southwick Suzanne Owen Ian Wilson Julia Church Graham Church Matthew Taylor

Other key office holders in the church, but not on the PCC are: Clergy – PTO: Rev Richard Arding Operations Manager (employed): Hannah Mwesigwa Children’s Minister (employed): Lois Fryett Pastoral Assistant Carole Wicks

The following roles are appointed	by the PCC:
Parish Treasurer:	Kate Whitehead
PCC Secretary:	Hannah Mwesigwa
Safeguarding Officer:	Julia Church
Recruitment Officer:	Elaine Latchford (until April 2022)
	Hannah Mwesigwa (took over in April 2022)
Health and Safety Officer:	Michael Southwick
Banks:	Lloyds TSB Bank Plc, Nat West Bank Plc
Independent Examiner:	David Stephens FCCA
Patronage Board includes:	Church Pastoral Aid Society

Induction and Training of Trustees

The PCC members are responsible for making decisions on all matters of general concern and importance to the parish including deciding on how the funds of the PCC are to be spent.

All new Trustees (PCC members) are provided with a link to the Charity Commission’s publication: “The Essential Trustee: What you need to know” which provides guidance to all Trustees on what is involved in being a Charity Trustee. All new Trustees are provided with Guidance Notes covering the various meetings throughout the year and other responsibilities of PCC members plus a copy of the booklet jointly produced by the Charity Commission and The Church of England entitled “Trusteeship – An Introduction for PCC Members”.

PCC Meetings

The full PCC of St. Matthew’s Church met seven times during 2022 with an average level of attendance of over 90%. All of these meetings were held in person. Given its wide responsibilities the PCC has a number of committees each dealing with a particular aspect of parish life. These committees, which include worship, children’s ministry, youth ministry, mission, pastoral care, community larder, fabric and finance, are all responsible to the PCC and report back to it regularly with minutes of their decisions being received by the full PCC and discussed as necessary.

A Standing Committee is required under Church Representation Rules and has the power to transact the business of the PCC between its meetings, subject to any directions given by the PCC.

The Standing Committee which was agreed at the APCM of May 2022 consists	The Standing Committee which was agreed at the APCM of May 2022 consists	The Standing Committee which was agreed at the APCM of May 2022 consists	of:
Incumbent	Chris Wicks	Secretary	Hannah Mwesigwa
Church Warden	David Johnson	Elected member	Ian Wilson
Church Warden	Brian Hobden	Elected member	Graham Church
Treasurer	Kate Whitehead

The standing committee carried out three electronic votes during the period 2022 and had one in person meeting.

Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM)

The APCM was held on 25[th] April 2022 at St. Matthew’s Church. At this meeting, Church Wardens were elected and sworn in, and Lay Representatives to the PCC were elected. Sidespeople were appointed for the coming year and the Independent Examiner was also re-appointed for 2023.

Reporting Public Benefit

The trustees of St. Matthew’s Church, High Brooms, are aware of the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit in The Advancement of Religion for the Public Benefit and have had regard to it in their administration of the charity. The trustees believe that, by promoting the work of the Church of England in the Ecclesiastical Parish of St. Matthew, High Brooms, it helps to promote the whole mission of the Church (pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical) more effectively, within the Ecclesiastical Parish, and that in doing so it provides a benefit to the public by:

Providing facilities for public worship, pastoral care and spiritual, moral and intellectual development, both for its members and for anyone who wishes to benefit from what the church offers; and 2. Promoting Christian values and service by members of the Church in and to their communities, to the benefit of individuals and society as a whole.

Major Risks

The Trustees consider that major risks have been identified. Those which are not covered by insurance through EIG plc are namely Health & Safety and Safeguarding. These topics are reviewed regularly by the PCC. The PCC has complied with the duty to have due regard to the House of Bishops’ guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults and the PCC complies with GDPR guidance.

Responsibilities of the PCC

In preparing the accounts of the PCC, the Trustees must make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent, follow suitable and consistent accounting policies, follow applicable accounting standards, subject to any material departure disclosed and explained in the accounts and must apply the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate. The PCC is also responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and to enable it to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011. It is also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

OUR STAFF

The PCC of St. Matthew’s Church employed 2 members of staff during 2022. Hannah Mwesigwa was employed as the Operations Manager and Lois Fryett was employed as the Children and Families Minister.

The Vicar of St. Matthew’s Church is the Rev. Christopher Wicks, who is employed by the Diocese of Rochester. The vicar took a period of study leave during 2022, from May to July.

WARDEN’S REPORT - OUR BUILDINGS

Report by the Church Wardens – David Johnson and Brian Hobden

Church Fabric, fittings and ornaments

The fabric of the Church is in generally good condition. Following the storm in February, a few tiles were missing in the roof above the Church Centre and had to be replaced. In November there was some ingress of water as a result of cracked lead sheeting in the valley gutter above the hospitality area. A new sheet of lead was installed which resolved the leak.

The fridge-freezer in the kitchen was found to be faulty and was not reaching the appropriate temperature. A new fridge freezer was purchased, the cost of which was largely met by a generous donation.

A working party was held during November during which gutters and gullies were cleared, the extractor fan beneath the cooker hood was cleaned, child proof locks fitted to kitchen cupboards and finger guards fitted to the Church Centre door. The Boiler Room was also cleared of rubbish and tidied.

Work was carried out to the church Wi-Fi equipment to provide a better signal to both the Church and the Church Centre – allowing guest Wi-Fi to be opened up. We are grateful to MF Telecoms for donating the equipment and associated engineering time.

In November we began providing a Warm Space in the Church Centre on Wednesdays between 10am and 4pm for anyone who was having difficulty in heating their home. Free tea and coffee was served and at lunch time hot soup and a roll were made available to those who wanted it.

Church Hall fabric

There was a leak from the water heater in the adult toilet which was replaced by a new heater.

After the storm in February a few loose and missing tiles were replaced on the main roof.

The electrical distribution board was replaced, and emergency lighting updated to meet current regulations. The fluorescent tube lights in the hall were changed to LED lights.

Health and Safety report

There were no Health and Safety matters to report.

Thanks

We would like to thank all those that have volunteered within church over the last year. We would also like to thank Hannah Mwesigwa for picking up the additional workload during the vicar’s study leave period.

SAFEGUARDING

Report by Julia Church – Parish Safeguarding Officer

I have been Parish Safeguarding Officer (PSO) for St. Matthew’s Church since November 2021. I oversee all safeguarding issues in the parish with the Vicar, Operations Manager and church wardens support. My role includes being the contact person for anyone needing to report safeguarding issues or wanting advice, dealing with any safeguarding incidents within the church, keeping up to date with guidelines from the Diocese and Church of England, and making sure the children and young people in our groups know who they can talk to if they feel unsafe in any way.

Elaine Parratt stepped down from the safeguarding administration role earlier this year. The operations Manager now oversees all DBS checks and training updates for all church employees and volunteers. Everyone that works with children, young people or vulnerable adults in the parish must have a current DBS check and training to the appropriate level before they are allowed to work or volunteer with groups.

Hannah is doing an amazing job at keeping track of all the training that is required by us all, so please, if you are due to do any courses or training modules, could you please complete those as soon as you can.

Safeguarding Issues

There was one ongoing safeguarding issue during 2022 that continued to be dealt with by the PSO, Vicar, Operations Manager and one of the church wardens with some much-valued advice and support from the Diocesan Safeguarding Lead, Greg Barry.

There have also been a few very small safeguarding issues that were discussed with the Diocesan Safeguarding Lead. These issues have all been reported and filed but no further action has been taken.

Volunteer recruitment

Safeguarding is always considered in the planning of all groups and activities that involve children, young people and vulnerable adults. We are continuing to recruit much-needed volunteers to help with all our groups and in turn, each of these volunteers needs to be DBS checked before starting to help.

At our PCC meetings, all the names of the people who have applied to be volunteers with children, young people and vulnerable adults and have had DBS checks are put before the PCC for their approval. Safeguarding is included on the agenda at every PCC meeting so that updates can be made regularly.

Safeguarding Training

All those who become volunteers in a role requiring some safeguarding training are advised of which modules to do and how to do this. The Church of England safeguarding training needs to be refreshed every three years, and most of our volunteers have now completed their refresher courses.

Safeguarding training completed in 2022: Basic module – 19 people Foundation module – 21 people Leadership module – 5 people Domestic Abuse Awareness module – 10 people Safer Recruitment module – 1 person Great work everyone who completed these modules.

In 2022, 16 DBS checks were carried out. We had 6 renewals and 10 new checks. Thank you to all our new and old volunteers – we couldn’t do without you!

Conclusions

Safeguarding for all children, young people and vulnerable adults continues to be a major part of our church family life and it is all our responsibilities to ensure that we are all kept safe. Please can I urge anyone who feels uncomfortable or sees an incident that they feel unhappy with to contact myself or Chris immediately. We have excellent support at the Diocese to discuss any issues or concerns if we feel we need to. All matters disclosed to us will be kept confidential. Safeguarding is never straight forward but always much better if shared with the correct professionals so that resolutions can be found.

DEANERY SYNOD REPORT

Report by Mary Wilson - Deanery Synod representative on the PCC

In 2022 Tunbridge Wells Deanery Synod met 3 times under the joint chairmanship of Rev. Douglas Wren, Area Dean and Andrew Smith, Lay Chair.

The first meeting of the year was held on 23[rd] February and was hosted by Christ Church, Southborough.

Tunbridge Wells Youth for Christ (Karen Cox) gave input about their current activities which support young people – both churched & non-churched. Their Youth Centre in Grosvenor Road opened in April 2021. Young people from different schools are dropping in after school for activities, chat & building relationships. They also gave details of the joint churches events and resources they facilitate including ‘the Noise’, live music events and prayer meetings for youth leaders.
‘ Living in Love & Faith’ initiative. Nick Cornell reported back on the process so far. The Deanery ran the LLF course with people from different churches within the Deanery from which there was very positive feedback. The House of Bishops will receive national feedback which will then be considered by the General Synod in 2023.
Intergenerational Worship - Cheryl Trice [Diocesan Team Lead, Children & Young People’s Mission &

a) Taking stock ‘post-pandemic’ – there are glimmers of hope that signs of mental health & wellbeing are gradually improving. There is a huge ‘drop-off’ of volunteers across churches – people are tired / worried about health.

b) Cheryl is passionate about Intergenerational Worship - Church that is our relationship with God & people without segregation – broad & diverse. It is a challenge & people can be apprehensive.

c) We discussed what ‘church’ is, our own experience of church & how that has affected the views & vision we have.

d) Stepping stones towards Intergenerational Worship: Positive interactions, Developing connections, Fostering interdependence, Empowering people, Accommodation, Explore further with CYP Team.

e) We were then asked to discuss ‘What does intergenerational church look like to you?’

f) Taking it forward: looking at the direction & flow of ministry. Learning & teaching both ways. A sharing of life - sharing stories that foster faith. Everyone should feel part of the tribe/community. Taking stock – listening to God’s leading as a church. In the ‘not perfect’ God meets with us. The challenge of developing community.

The second meeting of the year was held on 15[th] June and was hosted by King Charles the Martyr. Began with fellowship over a meal followed by thoughts from Archdeacon Sharon Copestake (Archdeacon of Tonbridge). She reflected on things she has learnt after being 6 months in post:

Church wardens are amazing – make sure you appreciate them!
Clergy are awesome - & tired – hold them.
Lay people are also great.
Church is about doing God’s work – building the Kingdom.
It’s a large archdeaconry, she’s done 700 miles a month.
“You cannot give what you do not have” [P Scazzero]
We don’t pray enough – she needs people to pray for her (& Sam in the office).
We’re all different & it’s important to listen to others’ stories (Active listening).
Meeting fatigue is a thing! Also, decision fatigue.
There can be a problem with trust between parishes and Archdeacons so a need for transparency & relationship. [Relationships & spirit of trust need to be built].
Parishes are the building block of the Church of England.

Questions: Sharon mentioned liking problem solving, managing change and being strategic. Her main priority is to see growth and flourishing centred on the Kingdom of God. She diaries in Quiet days and a retreat.

The third meeting of the year was held on 8[th] November and was hosted by St Peter’s Church, Pembury.

This was a meeting of 3 deaneries (Tunbridge Wells, Paddock Wood and Malling) to meet the new Bishop of Rochester, Jonathan Gibbs.

Firstly the 3 Areas Deans each gave a short input highlighting particular features of their deanery: -

Malling has 24 parishes & a planned new church in Kings Hill - St Gabriel’s. The parishes are a mix of rural & small towns. There has been a lot of reorganisation with new teams being established. There are local secondary schools & care homes which are just outside of their deanery, so they liaise with Canterbury diocese on how they offer ministry/support.

Tunbridge Wells has 15 parishes (19 benefices) and the Church of England secondary school Bennett Memorial School – lead school of the Tenax Trust. There is diverse churchmanship. Although mainly affluent, the poor are also there – Community Larders have been established by a number of churches to meet the increasing needs.

Paddock Wood is a mix of villages and small towns that surround Paddock Wood. Characterised by clergy & laity working together. One current challenge to respond to is the large amount of new housing being built in and around Paddock Wood.

Secondly, the Bishop was interviewed via a ‘Desert Island Discs’ style format followed by questions from the Area Deans & Deanery Synod Representatives. Some highlights:

He believes that ‘Hope’ is very important – it’s what we have to offer the world.

His ‘special’ verse: John 10:10 “I have come that they may have life and have it to the full”. The hope we have is the power of God to transform our lives and to see people flourish. Three key words of vision/priorities for the diocese – Change, Serve, Grow.

With numerical decline in church attendance and ageing congregations, ‘Growth’ is the biggest challenge. We need to re-engage with the communities we are set in, get outside our churches, make relationships and in practical ways make the love of Christ known e.g., Larders / Warm spaces.

Mission & Evangelism won’t happen by accident – needs to be intentional.

Preaching & Teaching – we need to equip people to be confident to speak about their faith. Our churches should be rooted in the community, outward looking and reflect the diversity of the communities we serve.

Links with Church schools are valuable – need to be built on trust and relationship. How can we support our Bishop? Pray for “wisdom to listen, courage to lead & a heart to serve”.

Parochial Church Council of The Ecclesiastical Parish of St Matthew, High Brooms Charity No: 1185772

Notes to the Financial Statements for the twelve months ended 31 December 2022

1. BASIS OF PREPARATION

These accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant notes to these accounts.

The PCC is a public benefit entity within the meaning of FRS102. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations 2006 governing the individual accounts of PCCs together with applicable accounting standards and the Statement of Recommended Practice 2016 as the applicable standard to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (SORP(FRS102)).

2. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

ASSETS

Consecrated and benefice property: In so far as consecrated and benefice property of any kind (i.e. the church and vicarage) is excluded from the statutory definition of 'charity' by Section 10(2) (a) and (c) of the Charities Act 2011 such assets are not classified in the financial statements.

Moveable church furnishings: These are capitalised at cost and depreciated over their useful economic life other than where insufficient cost information is available. In this case the item is not capitalised, but all items are included within the Church inventory.

Tangible fixed assets for use by the charity (functional fixed assets): Larger items are capitalised and written off over their useful lives. Smaller items are written off as incurred.

Short term deposits: These are the cash held on deposit either with the Diocese or at another bank.

FUNDS

Unrestricted Funds: These represent the income funds of the PCC that are available for spending on the general purposes of the PCC. These include amounts designated by the PCC for fixed assets for its own use or for spending on a future project and which are not included as 'free reserves' as disclosed in the trustees' report. If part of an unrestricted fund is earmarked for a particular project it may be designated as a separate fund, but the designation has an administrative purpose only, and does not legally restrict the trustees' discretion to apply the fund.

Restricted Funds: These are income funds restricted by the donor that must be spent on restricted purposes and details of the funds held and restrictions provided are shown in the notes to the accounts.

Endowment Funds: These are restricted funds that must be retained as trust capital either permanently or subject to a discretionary power to spend capital as income, and where the use of income or other benefit derived from the capital may be restricted or unrestricted. Full details of all their restrictions are shown in the notes of the accounts.

INCOMING RESOURCES

The financial statements include all transactions, assets and liabilities for which the PCC is responsible in law. They do not include the accounts of church groups that owe their main affiliation to another body nor those that are informal gatherings of church members.

Voluntary income and capital sources: Collections are recognised when received by, or on behalf, of the PCC. Planned giving under covenants or gift aid donations is recognised when received. Income tax recoverable on gift aid donations is recognised when the related income is recognised. Grants and legacies to the PCC are accounted for as soon as the PCC is notified of its entitlement and the likely amount due. Funds raised by church events and activities are accounted for gross, i.e. before any associated expenses.

Other ordinary income: Rental from the letting of church premises is recognised when the rental is paid. Parochial fees due to the PCC for weddings, funerals etc. are accounted for when received.

RESOURCES USED

Grants: Grants and donations are accounted for when paid, or when awarded, if that award creates a binding obligation on the PCC.

Activities directly related to the work of the Church: The Diocesan Parish Offer, in respect of clergy and diocesan costs, is accounted for when paid. Any additional amounts agreed by the PCC but not paid across as at 31st December are shown as creditors in the balance sheet.

DEBTORS

Amounts owing to the PCC at 31st December in respect of income tax fees, rents or other income are shown as debtors less provision for amounts that may prove uncollectable.

Diocesan Church Repair Fund - Quinquennial Funds

The Diocesan Church Repair Fund consists of funds designated by the PCC for future repairs.

2022 Accounts commentary

The accounts are presented for the PCC’s approval. During the year ending 2022 the PCC recorded a surplus of £9,269 (2021: deficit of £4,640) on day-to-day activities. In addition, at the end of the year, the PCC received a very generous legacy of £84,571 giving a final overall surplus of £93,841.

Regular giving fell during the year but was boosted by ad hoc donations. Unrestricted voluntary income, not including the legacy, decreased by £2.2k year on year to £144,076 but this included two one-off donations totalling £10.6k including gift aid, received in Nov/Dec (2021: unrestricted voluntary income decreased by £8,781). Restricted giving/income increased in 2022 to £24,485 (2021: £14,131). This is due to the continually growing Community Larder and the successful fundraising. Also included within the restricted funds is a donation towards children and youth activities (£100).

Total costs decreased by £3,504 year on year to £173,982 (2021 expenses decreased by £24,021 – however, significantly higher expenses were incurred in 2020 compared with previous years, mainly driven by quinquennial remedial works). Unrestricted expenses in 2022 were £10,793 lower than in 2021 whereas restricted expenditure increased by £7,289.

Unrestricted income/expenditure resulted in a surplus of £86,370 (£1,798 before the legacy). Restricted income/expenditure resulted in a £7,471 surplus. £13,296 is now held for restricted expenditure.

The PCC has retained reserves, in cash, of £280,830, as at 31 December 2022. This is a sound financial position and meets the reserving requirements set by the PCC.

Kate Whitehead - PCC Treasurer

19nilin9PG5Fion foTJe5U5 DECLARATION The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees, Report above. Signed on behalf of the PCC: Rev. Christopher Blairwicks (Chair) Date (of the APCMI: ................. 16

ANNUAL ACCOUNTS

Parochial Church Council of The Ecclesiastical Parish of St Matthew, High Brooms Charity No: 1185772

Notes to the Financial Statements for the twelve months ended 31 December 2022

1. BASIS OF PREPARATION

These accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention with items recognised at cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant notes to these accounts.

2. ACCOUNTING POLICIES

ASSETS

Tangible fixed assets for use by the charity (functional fixed assets): Larger items are capitalised and written off over their useful lives. Smaller items are written off as incurred.

Short term deposits: These are the cash held on deposit either with the Diocese or at another bank.

FUNDS

INCOMING RESOURCES

Other ordinary income: Rental from the letting of church premises is recognised when the rental is paid. Parochial fees due to the PCC for weddings, funerals etc. are accounted for when received.

RESOURCES USED

Grants: Grants and donations are accounted for when paid, or when awarded, if that award creates a binding obligation on the PCC.

DEBTORS

Amounts owing to the PCC at 31st December in respect of income tax fees, rents or other income are shown as debtors less provision for amounts that may prove uncollectable.

Diocesan Church Repair Fund - Quinquennial Funds

The Diocesan Church Repair Fund consists of funds designated by the PCC for future repairs.

2022 Accounts commentary

The PCC has retained reserves, in cash, of £280,830, as at 31 December 2022. This is a sound financial position and meets the reserving requirements set by the PCC.

Kate Whitehead - PCC Treasurer

ignilin9PG5sion foTJe5U5 P¥ochlal Church Council ofst Matthew High Brooms-Ch¥ity No: 1185772 BALANCE SHEET at 31 Deceml)er 2022 Flxed Assets )re 2022 2021 CurrentAssets Notè Debtors & Prepayments Short tem de6rts £11913 £27.761 £195,453 £109fi99 Repair funds £2S266 £19.429 Cash at bank and In haNI £70320 £48999 Toialturr¢ntasstts £303.453 £205.887 Credorsnblties: Falling due within e year £22.623 £18,898 NcuRRENT ASSETS £280,830 £186.989 FUNDS OF THE OIARITY un$Itted £267534 £132% £181.164 £502S £0 Enrknvment £280,830 £186,989 Prlnt n¥r Ire¥ (M5 Wks 27 Kate Whttel*•d Z3

P¥ochial Church Council of St Matthew Hi8h 8roDms- Ch¥ity No: 1185772 STATEMENTOF FINANaAL AcfiviTIES For thè montsÈndÈd 31 DtombÈr 2022 2022 2021 Endowmeftt Un5111(ted Funds Restrkted Furtds Endowment Funds Unrestrlctsd Funés Resirkted nés TOTAL COMWG RESOURCES Noie Volvntsry Income vlts for Inco IncomefTom Investrrthis Incomefrom church t1vhtes Ila) Ilbl Ilcl Ildl 228.647 163 873 13h55 14.433 243.080 163 873 23.707 J46288 669 284 11.474 5.143 963 151.431 1.632 284 19.499 IOn52 8.025 To 243338 24A85 267 J23 158.716 14.131 172A47 RESOURCES EXPEND PIsh shae Sa&rtes. honorarta cRY & staff penSeS Church runfiln£ eAp&)ses Church tIty g4pen5e5 Msn gn8d don305 Hall eApenses 4or to church 4or to hal M4or repairs to p0e Ne bulldlng Irk Other 21al 21bl 21cl 2101 21el 62KJO 46537 4,646 2102 210 8,710 IOA63 62) 46.537 4.646 21B02 19A24 8.710 lo63 62.000 38.822 3.828 15A83 1.782 14.952 4.487 26.008 62.tXIO 38,822 3,828 17.477 9.913 14.952 4,487 26.008 1594 8.131 17P14 2181 21hl 21k) Totsi 156 17 14 173 982 167 761 177 86 NEf InCOrn8 resources btfore otherfo£o8nL%ed gans and losse5 Gans on In¥e5tmeni assets f)n Ilsposal f)n malu*kJn NEf MOVEMET IN FUNDS TRANSFERS BETWEEN FUNDS BALANCES BROUGHT FORWARD AT I JANUARY 2022 BALANCES CARRIED FORWPAO AT 31 DECEM8ER 2022 86370 7A71 93I41 f9.046J 4.406 f4.640J 86370 7.471 9341 f9.046J 4.406 0.00 f4.640J 181.164 502S 186.989 190210 1.419 191.629 267 34 13 96 280 30 181 164 25 186 89

P¥ochial Church Councll ofst MatthewHigh Brooms-Ch¥ltyNo: 1185772 INCOME 2022 2021 Unrestrtted Funds Restrkted Funds Endowment Funds Unrestrfrttd Funds Restrkted Funds ndowmEnt Funds TOT l{al V0ty¥ Income Gift ded donations Other donatlons Tax ie£overab coll10n5 at swe5 Grants LeEacle5 TOT•L Ill35 4212 263OS 2324 5248 3,132 i.oii 1162B4 7344 275lS 2J24 SP42 84 71 243 113.041 5J93 26.268 lJ70 315 1.475 2.380 688 I141? 7.673 269S6 1370 91S 5.042 600 84 228 71 14 33 151 31 Ilbl A¢iwes forynerath¢hKome Fundfasing her income 163 163 669 963 1.632 TOT 163 163 669 963 l{cl tr•comÈ fffjm knstmènts Dlvidends and Intertst TOT 873 873 873 873 284 284 284 284 Ildl kncomè frnfflchutth 477 8930 2027 477 8930 2127 1267 8.610 934 1267 8.610 934 Mall knlng5 Childrw &Youih Church 1$ Pastoral Conmnuniry ethts Cornrnnity Ladw TOTAL 1.171 250 lJ71 250 io 52 23,707 664 10.052 IOJJ52 8.025 8,025 13ffi55 11,474 19,499 TOTAL 243338 24A85 267*23 158,716 14,131 172A47

Parochlal Church Council ofst Matthew Hl8h 8rooms-Chawlty No: 1185772 EXPENSES 2022 EffidCmÉrt1 Funds 2021 iihrtstrkt•d Funds Ritrlttd Funds T07 TOTAL Fvnds Funds Funds Churth 21al Partsh share 21bl S¥s, and honorarf• 21¢1 Ckn & slaff eXSe$ PatsonaÈe Traknln8 Ploblle5 Other Wc¥op•ise5 Other erryloywt costs 62AIOO 38A22 62ml 38A22 46517 46.537 3327 3S 192 114 979 46 3327 Js 191 114 979 3,181 120 409 118 3J81 120 409 118 28 28 21dl Church runnkngeApense5 OpOn$ Fabric Wo(shlplserte5 CaiwnE Govunw Oth Ctturch utlltty bll Cost ol fundrslne 2.712 6,778 l.S59 744 S23 2.712 6.778 1.559 744 523 2,348 5.363 2.243 174 2J48 SJ63 3A36 174 844 1594 .119 9.119 4.188 366 357 4.188 366 357 17.477 367 21JOI 367 21 J02 i94 21el Church actJ%ltye4penses Chlbjren & Youth Pastor Churth Coft))untyèrtnis Comiunty L¥der 1.904 785 194 2fv98 785 6S8 1.074 51 658 si 121 121 20 24 16%20 17 14 16 19 8.710 IOh63 8.131 io 8.710 IOJ63 2111 Mlssbn 8Mngand donnS 21RI Hall etpen5e5 21hl Maloc repars to chur(h 2111 Mah)c rar5 to hall 2UI reprs to par50naee 21kl NewbuikllnE X)rk 2111 Other 14J52 4A87 26008 14.952 487 26,t J7 J4 17J 982 167 761 177 486

Pochlal Church Councll ofst Matthew Hl8h Brooms-chalty P40: 1185772 Notestothe STATEMENT OF FINANOALACTIVITIES For the months ernled 31 Lember 2022 I RESTRicfED INCOME Donaticffis lincludlng Grft Aldl and gTrnts totslling tothe value of £3071 have teen glven IardS Church fuel costs arJ set upof a Warm Spa. t)onalicffl5 lincluding GrftAidl and erants totsllin¢ £11262 Ve given to Silpfththe costs of the Communrty tsrtler. In add¢), a furtrE101)s2 has been eived as a Corttribubon towards food. UNRESTrICTEDINCOME Towards the end of 2022 a very BerouS le8acy of £B4.Sk was receNed, with otherf dmations of c£lOk linchn$ 8rft aidl. Ila) GRANTS Community Larder recefved £2.329 in grants. £2.713 was received in8rants towards 2023 enefgy costs. 21al PARISH SHARE The pansh Sha was set at£62k for2022. 21bl STAFF COSTS AND PENSION Durin8 the year the PCC emplcyed a faMilS & chiklren wther. an CrationS mana8er a thaner. Pkne ofthese empk4ees ean more than £&)Im p.a. truSteeS recevied remunernkn fortheirservtes as trustees. Totsl Stsff Costs Ere". Gross SaLars indLJln8 reduThJar EmF4oyer Nl pens Cosis 45329 46537 All empkwees are entitled a defined benefft pensKffi scheme adminlnsted ty The National EMpmentSavln8s TrtGtINESTI. The PCC meets its autoenrc4ment ot4¥atiMs for all eligib stsff. The inaSe in salary costs1£39k in 20211 of £7.8k is to afklitrml dYja costs and abo increased hcwrs worked the Chiklren & Families Minister)Nl the Operats'ons Mana8er throUght the yearto supportChiWft and ycth wor. 21d) CHURCH RUNNINGEXPENSES GcNemance: indudes IrKlependent EyamKrfs fee of £450.

2(el CHUROI ACTIVITY EXPENSES- RESTRICTED No devebpment of online proviskjn has en required in 2022,. therefore, £525 remains towards providing online servKes. A totsl of £1616 has been spent cm) expeftses latinE to the Community Larder, leaving a further £4A98 towards 2023 Costs(£9,7 w) totsl, IdIre previous yeats'l The £3071 pIed ttrwards energy costs for use in 2023. £194 of restrkted giving has been spent on Children and Ythjth costs with £0 caThied forward. Online AV wisk)n Community Larder Energy costs Children & Yothh 525 9.7CQ 3JJ71 13296 21fj MISSIONARY ANDCHARITABLE (aviNG fy•nts of£l,OC¥)•y m(Ye made perKrfI Lrfe & s11 Grants of< £l,OLKI math kn the for mks otherganisatIOns/£hat]eS Other indr¥idua 6.170 940 8.710 3 PCC Members It is a ccmmcffj Pfdcttt, for 3$C•S of expedi and value for morw, f¢y members lor other church members} to be requested to make wrchases CM) tehalf of the PCC for whKh are later lMtr5ed of dccumentstion. AU sh transac1K$ a recorded in the accwnts and ac£(xJnted fly uftder vant hea(Js ofeXpenditu.

19nilin9PG5Fion foTJe5U5 Parochial Church Council of St Matthew High Brooms-charity No: 1185772 Notrstothe STATEMENTOF FINANaALAcnviTIES For the twel¥• NK)nths ended 310ecember 2022 4 DEBT0 & PREPAYMENTS 2022 £11,913 £0 13 2021 £27,761 £0 £27 761 Tax reco¥wab Other <lOOO Éli S SHoKfTERM DEposris 2011 £195.453 £195 53 2021 £ 109.699 £109 99 D8F kcount 6 REpR FU140S 2022 £io,oso £15.216 £25 66 2021 £5.005 £14.424 £19 29 Church Hall 7 CASH AT BANK & IN H¥lND 1022 £0 £80 £0 É135 É36521 £25.825 £8,225 £34 20 2021 £76 É79 £100 £0 £24,393 E19.602 É4.383 £366 48 99 Breakfast Café Cash c¥d . Communrty L¥der Cash card . Lo&5 ta5h card . Hannah Lloyds Nat Wesi Lloyds - Lardef Petty Cash £70 CREDITORSILWAILIIKS Faling vlthln one year PA . HMRC1p$)n Late invoice5 theMark•d *6ng Insurance Chward blll Other <£l.000 2012 £1313 £5.853 £8.206 £3200 E233 £3.758 £22 23 2021 É1,088 £4.050 EIO.017 £0 £218 £3.526 £18 98

19nilin9PG5Fion foTJe5U5 IndeFendent EyAmin8f s Report to the PCC of St Matthew (High Broom8) I report on th8 acuunts of the PCC for the year ended 31•t December 2022. Resp9dive re$pongbililies of Trustees and Examiner The th8rity's trustees are SponSIble for the preparation of the a¢xounl$. The charitys trustees ojnsider that an audit 1$ not required for this year under Sedion 145 of the Charits'es Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and th* an indopendent exanation 15 needed. It is my responsibility lo.. 8xamine the accounts under Section 145 of the 2011 Ad,. to follow the produreS laid dovm in the General Direthons given by the Charity Commisstoner under S8c#ion 14515} Ib} of the 2011 Act", and to stste ether partiabl8r matters have o)ma lo my attents'on. 8asis of Indep8ndent Examinerfs Report My examination was carried out in a02)rdan wth the general diredions given by the Charity Commission. An examination indudes a review of the accounting records kept by the tharity and a ojmparison of th& a¢xounls pr&sented wth those récords. 11 also indudes cL)nsderalion of any unusual items or disdosures in the acUnts and the seeking of explanations from you as trustees conLYning any suth matters. The proceduras undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and cx)nsequently no opinion is given as to %thelher the accounts present a 'tru8 and fair and the report Is limited lo those matters set oul in the staterrnt below. Independent Examinels Statement In connection with my examination, no matter has rne to my attention.. 1. 14Vhich givos m reasonable cause to believ8 that. in any material respect. the requirements.. to keèp accounting records in ac£ordance wth sedion 130 of the 2011 Act,. and to prepare accounts accord th the auntIng reo)rds and to comply with th8 Counting requirements of Ihe 2011 Acl have rnl b88n ma( or 2. To wfiith. in my opinion. attenlion stKJuld be drawn in order to enable a proper undorstanding of tho acuTrts to be reathed. 11 2rJz3 Dated David Sl8phens FCCA 13 NthandS Road Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN4 9AS 10

Indtyendent Eyaminerfs Roport lo Ihg PCC of Sl Matthew (High Brooms) I report on the actyunts of the PCC for the year ended 31° De¢¢mb8r 2022. Respective responsibilities of Trustees and Examiner The tharity's trustees are responsble for the preparation of the accounts. The Charity's trustees Ct)nsid8r that an audit is not required for this year under Section 145 of the Charilios Act 2011 Itha 2011 A¢tl ond that an independent examination is needed. 11 is my responsibility to.. examine the attounts under Seclion 145 of the 2011 Ad. to follow the procedures laid in the General Diredions given by Ihe Charity Commis&oner under Section 145{51 {bl of the 2011 Ad.. and lo stale vknelher partilar matters have com8 lo my attention. Ba%s of Indep8ndent Examinels Report My examination as carried out in aCa)rdan wth the general directions given ty the Charity Commission. An examination indudes a review of the accountsng recL)rds kept by the charity and a CL)mparison of the aLxounls presenled wth those records. 11 also indudes con%deration of any unusual or disdo$ures in the accoufts and the seeking of axplanalions from you as trustges concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the ev?dene8 that would be required in an audit, and consoquontly no opinion 1$ given a$ lo whether the accounts present a 'true and fair and the report 1$ limited lo those matters set out in the stalemnl below. Independent Examine¢s Slateffent In ojnnection with examination. no matter has oJm8 to my attention.. 1. Which gives m reasonable cau$fr to believe that. in any mat¢rial respecl, the requirements.. to keep accountsng reccrds in a1xordan with sethon 130 01 the 2011 Act; and to prepare accounts vh)ith accord wlh the aco)unling records arKI to con4)ly with the aUntIng requirements of the 2011 Act have 1 been met,. or 2. To vknlch. in my opinion, attentton should b6 dra in order lo enable a proper understanding of the accJJunts to be reached. 11 2r)23 Dated David Stephens FCCA 13 NevAands Road Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN4 9AS