CHURCH (Short Form) RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNTS THE METHODIST CHURCH STANDARD FORM OF ACCOUNTS (SHORT FORM) Christchurch L.E.P. Church FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 December 2023 Granlham and Vale belvoir Circuit Circuit no 22115 Registered Charity - Charity Registration number 1187168 If not a registered charity Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs Glft Aid number (The HMRC number is equivalent to a registered charity number in terrns of eviden of charitable status and may be used to give to donors or grant funders wishing lo see eviden of the organisation's charitable status. Melhodist char¢ties in England and Wales that are not registered tharities are excepted from registration under Statutory Instrument 2014 No.242) Minister.. Rev.Dr.Peter Stevenson Church Stewards: Mr Alan Greenslade June Ruddock Mrs Isabel Wyatt Mr Trevor Ridsdale Mrs Jean Breckenridge Mrs Sue Sulston Mr John Heald Brian Bowes Marion Bevan Mrs Lesliey Mees Treasurer= Mr Chris Morgan 1014 Church short Std form of accls 2012 R.P.xL*
Chwrh Fonn Short thb AC¢(YJNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDEDJ1 A$¢223 SEt¥lONA ftE¢EIPTS a2 ILX) e4 16.982 52.9 13.703 TQTALRECEIPT5 66M14 SECnOM B PAYMENTS b2 24.3rJ b3 RepaIrs#j b5 33fft1 OtherYents TOTAL PAYMENT$ 19.814 15371 b7 •1.5S9 SECTk)W NETRECEIPTSTrAYMENTS FOR THEVEAR (-b7> f14.Wl tz Totellunds brovgthlloAwd Iromlasls ¢25.481 140.1&3 TofAL FUNDSATENDOF YÈAR 1$2.791 12S.4I1 SlatettérÈtr lotsl erassèts(eth ts $14le her8 kn&tolaofarryWhtse5&thÈCPK statee&15£d SECllON DANALYSL8OFFUNO8 al TMCP4131 14747. Ba$ hea1¢F u131 A 05.120 d3 bank andCashW41t2f 51.617 d4 TOTAL Sox 11SWI sECTN E FOR INFORMATKJNQNLY.. klONEY RECÈWED ANDPASSEDON TO EYTERlIIL¢RGAfrK)S lihèaè 4mounLs ar¢nottob&includ•d lrt totsl fvJuFw•bobl Batrh1 wardfrornve4r e2 orrertngslGrfIs . IqC•Avedioiextefn• ¢3 OffenngsIGIlls - p&s88d 370 BALANCÈ sLL TO8E PWD 297 201
Name ofchurch.......... Chrlst Church Declarations and Scrutiny I confirm Ihal these ReIpl and Paymenl based accounts for the year lo 31 August 2023 have been prepared from the records of Ihe Church and that they include all funds under the control of the Church Iruslees. Signature of treasurer. Name and address ol treasurer . L A. 111oLGft G R I¥ Posl Cc4Je. t! ¢£ 11 8 IL Presenlallon to the Church trustees I confirm that the annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 All9[ 2023 weAlI1 be" presented lo the meeting of the Church Irtjstees he don.... Signature of the Chaii of the meeting Name of the Chair of the meeting Dale. l! 119491 Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of the Christ Church Charlty Number 1187168 #Ml*#lf Responslbilitlgs and basis of report I report lo the trustee5 on my n of the accounts of the . Church for the year ended 31 023 sel out on pages . lo As the Church's Iruslees. you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requ1mentS of the Charities Act 20111'lhe Acl'l. amina I report in respect of my examination of the Church's accounts carried out under section 145 of the Act and, In Carrying out my examination, I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under se¢lion 14515llbl of Ihe Act. delete or circle as appropriate 3of4
Name of Church . Christ Church Independent Examinerfs Statement I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come lo my attention in connection with the examination (other than that disclosed below") which give me cause to believe that in, any mateiial respect.. the accounting records were not kept in accordall with secb.on 130 01 the Act., or the accounts do not accord with the accounting records. I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection wtth the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts lo be reached. I havelhave not. obtained independent verification of all investments with the Trustees for Melhodisl Church Purposes or held in other Irusls, bank balances and funds at the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church which are individually in excess of £10.000 {len thousand pounds} at the balance sheet dale. Signature of independent examiner 119491 Name of independent examiner . Mrs Susan Radf(Kd Relevant professional qualification of independent examiner . ci Name of firm {wheie appropriate) Address Cordwaifters Car Cols¢cx) Notts Post Code .. NG138JG Dale . 1510212024 delete or circle as appropriate short-rorm-standard-forrnf-aCtoUnts-IrX-rknUrChes-2023 4of4
CHRISTCHURCH FINKIN STRf, ET GRANTHAM NG316QZ A Welcoming Local Ecumenical Partnership TRUSTEES, A]¥NUAL REPORT FOR 2023. Introduetion: The accounts are being prepared and will be submitted to ihe Independent Examiner. and show a true refleclion of payments and income over the financial year which runs from I, January 2023 to 31, December 2023. Aims and organi$ation'. Christchurch is a Local Fcumenical Partnership b¢lwe¢n the Meth(Klist Church and the United Reformed Church. It ts part of the Grantham and Vale of Belvolr Circuit in the Nottingham and Derby Districl of the Meihodist Church of Great Britain, and the United Reformed Church East Midlands Synod. 'rhe Church Mission slalement was developed in line with those of the two sponsoring denominations using the five marks of mission. We seek io make our worship stimulating, challengingy and relevant to the n¢¢ds of our congregation. We share in fellowshtp ihrough study, fundraising activities and social groups. Review of the year: The members of ihe Ecumenical Church Council, (E.C.C.) are the Managing Trnstees of Christchurch. 2023 has been a challenging year with th¢ Church still being affected by ihe Covid 19 pandemic although things have improved on this aspect. but Covid is still around and as a Church we do need to be mindful of that especially with some of our more vulnerable congregation. Our letlings have almost retumed io normal. On the posilive side we have also gained some new lettings. The Managing TnteeS (E.C.C.) were kept fully updated on the Covid siluation locally. and ECC having fully assessed all the risks and mitt8ations put in place. The Risk Assessment was regularly r¢viewed and updated. Probably the factor that has affected us most, especially the financial side. is ihe Cost-of-Living Crisis. As a Church we have suffered just as much as individuals have and we have se¢n our gas and electricity bills soar to 3 times more than it had been previously. Income: The church's regular income is primarily drawn from the giving of Church members, Sunday colleclions, regular coffee mornings and letting income from users hiring rooms. For 2023 thi5 income has been slightly reduced Ihan the expeclalion. due lo the cautiousness of some of our groups returning to hire the rooms and the relevant reduction of attendanc¢ once the pr¢mises were opened. However, the Congregation have continued to Supply iheir offerings by direct bank payments. for which the Trustees are v¢ry grateful. Wiihout this support and financial help, it would not be wssible to maintain the premises to a salisfactory standard and develop ihem to serve the Church's mission more eif¢¢tively.
Expenditur¢: The major regular expenditure is ihe assessm¢nt paid to the Grantham and Vale of Belvoir Circuit, and the Minislry and Mission payment made lo th¢ U.R.C. East Midlands Synod, the conlribulion Inade by Christchurch to the cosls met centrally by the Circuit and ihe Synod, including the slipends and Manse costs for Ministers. Additional costs this year have related to ongoing maintenance issues ihal arise from the running and maintenance of a Grade Il listed building over 175 years old in a conservation area. Repairs thi5 year were just under £34k (the previous year they were just over £20k) but we have had the Shepherd 14all roof replaced, and new flooring in the Shepherd Hall and also had lh¢ ceiling repair in the Sanctuary fully completed, so all in all I believe this is an acceptable figure Fund Balanc.. As stated in ih¢ first paragraph, the accounts are being prepared for the Independent Examiner. As of 31, December 2023. we had the following balances in our accounts: H.S.B.C. (working account) £29,847 H.S.B.C. (Kenwick Drive account) £6.688 H.S.B.C. (Friends account) £1331 Central Finance Board Account. £63.120 Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes (T.M.C.P.) Accouni £14,782 TOTAL £115,768 {2022 £30,212) (2022 £6.354) (2022 £1.418. ) (2022 £59,062) (2022 £14,782) £111,828 As can be seen from those figures we have £3.940 more in our accounts as 0131112123 as. the same time. Ihe previous year. In my view this is quite an achievemenl considering our expected total expenditure for the year. but I do want to comment too much on this unlil the Stsndard Fom] of Accounts are received back from ihe Independent Examiner. Plans: Durin8 2024 there are a number of plans that will require lo be finalised a) The next Phasc of th¢ Community Project. has been fully discussed and consulted up on. lo redevelop the rear of Church. lo make this into a more accessible and working area, for m¢mb¢rs of Church and other Church users. The awhitects work needed. went out to tender and cbp Architects of Nottingham were the successful architects. We have been in regular contact with them and they are preparing plans for the work. The initial cosi for ihis (architects) work as agreed with cbp is £60k which has bcen approved by E.C.C. However cbp are hopeful that this amount will be reduced, because of the recent changes that have been proposed. b) The building itself is a Grade Jl listed building, in an important Conservalion area and due to its age will always r¢quire maintenance, and because of its statu5, this does mean ihat any work and advice can be expensive. The Quinquennial report was completed during 2022 and there are still a number of issues here that do need to be tnvcstigaled and resolved- This work has already commenced. and will hopefully be completed within the proposed Project. Basis of preparation and legal framework: Christchurch accounts for the year ended 31" December 2023 have been prepared in accordance with the giiidance from the Methodist Church and will be presented at the Church meeting in April 2023. for approval, once they have been returned from the Ind¢p¢ndcni Examiner. Full Name of Chureh - Christchurch L.E.P. - The Church is regislered as a charity. Due to ihc annual income. This was approved by the Charity Commission and Christchurch L.E.P. is now a Registered Charity (Charity No. 1187168). The members ofihe Christchurch Ecumenical Council are the Managing Trustees, membership being made up of ofyice holders, represenlatives apinted by ihe Church at the Annual General Meeling wilh a Circuit Represcnlative.
The Ircasurer, Mr Chris Morgan, has acted as the principal oificer overseeing the day-to-day financial management and accounting for the Church during the year. Independent Examiner: Mrs Susan RADFORD. Screveton Road, Car Colston. Nottingham NGI 3 7ND Inv¢$lment Bankers: Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church Trustees for M¢ihodisi Church PuTFK)ses. Present¢d to Christchurch L.E.P. E.C.C. meeling of January 2024 for the report to be discussed and the request Ihat full approval given to the report. Chris. Morgan, Treasurer. Christchurch L.E.P. (January 2024)
Chrlstchurch Methodist Unlted Reformed Church L.E.P Reserves Polic This policy relates to bank accounts held by . Central Finance Board HSBC 2024 T.M.C.P. What are Reserves? A reserve is an amount of money held by the church to carry out its ongoing commitments and set aside for specific purposes. These monies may be classified as.. Unrestricted, which are the general funds of the church, Restricted, which means their use is restricted under the provisions of a trust deed, or Endowed. which in most cases only allows the interest to be used by the church. Planned expenditure Usual running costs Surplus funds to cover unforeseen expenditure Property repair5 and maintenance (including quinquennial inspection outcomes) Planned developments in the property at Christchurch, which includes the Christchurch Community Project It Is "best practice" that any organisatlon should keep at least 6mths of expenditure in reserve. For 2024,1 would recommend that the reserve is set at £38,000 the same as last year Total expenditure for 2023 was just over £94k, (more than the previous year of approx. £76k}. Durin8 2023 we were able to maintain the reserves, despite the difficult times and we are more fortunate than a number of other Churches in the area. It is seen as best practice to hold approx. 6 months expenditure figure as a Reserve. However, our expenditure for 2023 was unusually high due to the fact of the costly replacement of the Shepherd Hall Roof, and the new flooring in the Shepherd Hall which obviously will not need doing again for some time. So, as I have said, I recommend that the reserve remains the same as last year Income can be unpredictable e.g., lettings, giving. Thus, it is important to ensure there is a reserve to cover all essential costs e.g., assessment, utilities, and maintenance. The Treasurer/Managing Trustees will monitor the church finances at regular intervals to ensure the reserve is kept, where possible, and action taken if the reserve is not maintained, I have not recommended an increase in the amount for this year, because last yearfs expenses were unusually high, as stated. However, to take into account Cost of living increases, especially the energy costs and increased costs for any work that needs to be carried out due to the age of the building and the fact that it is a Grade 11 listed building in an important Conservation area within Grantham town centre, it is important to maintain this flexibility and the reserve5. 2023 has obviously been a challenging year, the Covid 19 pandemic is Still with us, the "C05t of
Living Crisis" and major repairs and maintenance that have been carried out. Our Income has increased, in 2023 with lettings income starting to get back to pre-covid figures. Income from the coffee mornings, has reduced, as it was decided not to charge for coffee but to ask for donations. However, our Congregation have remained very supportive, and regular giving has carried on through giving via direct bank payments and the Stewardship account, and the Gift Aid payment received. Money set aside for projects Money may be set aside from the reserves towards a long-term project. However, not to the risk to general church finances. This money will be listed as such to evidence why it is not being used currently. Christchurch 15 currently developing the Christchurch Community Project, which is part of the overall development vision that our premises should be used to develop town centre ministry and serve the poor and marginalised in the town. It is hoped that during 2024, the next phase, .hich has been consulted on will be planned. Christchurch is looking at the possibility of redeveloping the rear of the Church to make this a more accessible and useable place for all our congregation and other users of the premises. All reserves should be earnlng Interest where possible. No interest is earned in the HSBC accounts.so where possible larger sums of money will be transferred to the CFB account where interest can be earned. The Reserves policy will be reviewed each financial year. Trustees are under a general legal duty to apply charitable funds within a reasonable time of receiving them. If reserves are held without reasonable justification the trustees may be in breach of trust. The treasurer will report to General Church Council, advising reserve status. Signature CAM Date January 2024 Accepted at Ecumenical Church Council Date li Accepted at General Church Council Date 111214 Review due 31112/2024