Longmeadow Evangelical Church CIO
Report and Accounts Year ended 31 December 2021
1 Lamb's Passage, London EC1Y 8AB www.stewardship.org.uk
LONGMEADOW EVANGELICAL CHURCH CIO
LEGAL & ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2021
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE Oaks Cross Broadwater Stevenage Hertfordshire SG2 8LT GOVERNING DOCUMENT CIO - Constitution dated 07 Apr 2020 CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1188950 TRUSTEES RESPONSIBLE FOR Wayne Campbell MANAGING THE CHARITY John Cooper Ben Epps Russell Knell Ian Thompson CUSTODIAN TRUSTEES FIEC Limited 39 The Point Market Harborough LE16 7QU BANKERS Santander CAF Bank Bridle Road 25 Kings Hill Avenue Bootle Kings Hill Merseyside West Malling G1R 0AA Kent ME19 4TA INDEPENDENT EXAMINER Archie McDowall BA, CA Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB
INDEX
Page 1 Legal & Administrative Details Pages 2- 4 Trustees' Report Page 5 Independent Examiner's Report Page 6 Receipts and Payments Account Page 7 Statement of Assets & Liabilities Page 8 Notes to the Accounts
Page 1
LONGMEADOW EVANGELICAL CHURCH CIO
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DECEMBER 2021
The Trustees have pleasure in submitting the Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2021.
Legal Status
Longmeadow Evangelical Church was constituted in 1959 as a church and was governed by the Constitution and Notes adopted on 24 October 1959, and amended on 15 September 1962. A new constitution and church practices was adopted on 2 December 2008. The church was registered as a charity on 3 February 2010. A new constitution establishing a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) was approved by the Charity Commission on 7 April 2020.
During the financial year ended 31 December 2017 the trustees and church members voted to approve a motion to begin the process of changing the charity’s legal structure from that of an unincorporated charity to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation.
This Charitable Incorporated Organisation, Longmeadow Evangelical Church, was registered on 7 April 2020. We had hoped to be able to transfer assets and liabilities to the new CIO at the end of 2020 and begin operating as a CIO from January 2021. Unfortunately delays in obtaining access to a suitable bank account for the CIO resulting from the pandemic meant this wasn’t possible. Assets and liabilities we finally transferred to the CIO on 19 May 2021.
Objects of the charity
The charity, which is a church, is governed by a Constitution and is constituted as a charitable incorporated organisation. The charity's principal objects, as set out in its governing document, are:
1) the advancement of the Christian faith in accordance with the Basis of Faith primarily but not exclusively within Stevenage and the surrounding neighbourhood; and
2) such other charitable purposes as shall, in the opinion of the members of the Church in general meeting, further the work of the Church
Aims and Organisation
Longmeadow Evangelical Church is a fellowship of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ gathering together in His Name in the Longmeadow neighbourhood of Stevenage and affiliated to the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC). We are a gathering of ordinary people who by faith in Jesus have been adopted by God our Father. So with prayer and love we seek to: listen to His voice in the Bible, serve one another, and share His good news in the power of the Holy Spirit. Longmeadow Evangelical Church; it’s trustees, elders and members are committed to following these New Testament principles.
Our vision is to encourage and serve one another so that we grow in our love for God and make the most of where He has placed each of us; to support and mentor members in training for gospel work; to plant a new church or revitalise an existing church, as the Lord grants the opportunity.
The church employs two full-time pastors, two part-time church visitors to assist primarily with ministry to women, and one part-time church administrator.
The two pastors are also elders and trustees of the church. The elders are required by constitution to call a meeting of the members to conduct Church Business at least once in each quarter of the year.
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Summary of the charity's main activities and achievements
The church seeks to fulfil its charitable object of advancing the Christian faith in accordance with its Basis of Faith in the following ways which bring benefit to the community of Stevenage in which it is situated.
With Covid-19 restrictions lifting and the pandemic easing we were able to restart many of our regular community activities. The notable exception to this is our senior citizens lunch club which remains suspended.
Every Sunday the Church holds two services of worship at its Oaks Cross building which include preaching and/or Bible teaching; age-related activities are also provided in the morning for children and teenagers. All of these meetings are open to the general public, whom we regularly invite by word of mouth and through door to door leaflets and visitation.
Our weekday activities for children include an evening group for 6 to 11 year olds, and an evening group for those aged 11 to 16.
Home groups are also held on various days and evenings during the week.
The pastors of the Church take funeral services for deceased members of the community who are not members of, nor attend, this Church. From time to time we engage in various activities such as family fun days which are for the benefit of all members of the public. The Church building is regularly used as a public polling station by Stevenage Borough Council.
The Church assists with the religious education of local school children, with the pastors taking assemblies in local primary schools.
We support the local branch of Good News for Everyone!, which has as its main activity the distribution of Bibles to local Year 7 school children, hotels, sheltered accommodation for senior citizens and hospitals.
The Church promotes the spread of Biblical Christianity which has brought significant public benefit to society. Some of the Church's current members are former offenders and addicts whose lives have been dramatically changed for the benefit of society. The Church also supports the Living Room, a local addiction treatment and counselling centre.
The Church also seeks to fulfil its charitable objects by supporting a number of overseas missionaries working in various countries in relief, education and other Christian activities. In times of disaster the Church also facilitates the collection and sending of funds to various parts of the world where the Church has contacts for emergency relief.
It has been possible for our Sunday mornings, small Bible study groups and young people’s groups to return to in-person meetings, though with additional safety precautions guided by the changing Covid19 transmission rates. We continue to live-stream Sunday morning services for the benefit of those not able to meet with us in-person, and some of our small groups have found advantages in continuing to use online meeting software.
These activities are made possible through the voluntary support of the members and friends.
In planning the activities the Trustees have applied the guidance on public benefit issued by the Charity Commission.
Financial review
We are grateful to the Lord for meeting our financial needs.
We were able to continue our financial support to our mission partners who are serving the Lord both in the UK and in other parts of the world.
During this period we were able to make some improvements to the entrance-way of the church building with new, more visible signage and a redecorated foyer. We also replaced the old wooden main entrance doors with new power-assisted aluminium & glass doors to improve both accessibility and visibility into the building. The final invoice for the doors was still pending at the end of this period, but would come to £6,815.
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During this period total income was £67,999, and total expenditure was £76,232. This meant cash funds held by the charity was £49,474, of which £48,958 is unrestricted and can be used for any charitable purpose.
In December 2020, recognising the additional hardships facing people brought on by loss of income due to furlough and the prolonged closure of many industries due to Covid-19 a Community Support Fund. The intent of this restricted fund is to help to low income families and individuals in our area with the costs of food and daily essentials. In addition to helping people known directly to us we are working with our local primary school to provide support to families. During this financial period we have been able to give £1,241 in Easter gifts and supermarket vouchers to families in our local community. At the year end the fund stood at £1,415 which will distributed to those in need in the coming year.
Once again we want to express our gratitude to all church members who have given so generously towards the work at Longmeadow. Most of all we want to give thanks to God for all his blessings and provision for yet another year.
Reserves policy
The Church seeks to retain reserves at a level which will enable it to continue its activities. Given current regular obligations we seek to hold minimum reserves of £28,000 (which equates to about 3 months’ of unrestricted expenditure) so that the charity could continue to operate should income and / or expenditure vary adversely. The unrestricted reserves of the fellowship at the year end were £48,058.
Governance
The trustees are those who exercise oversight as elders within the church. New elders are appointed by nomination of the elders from the membership of the church and subject to the approval of the church membership at a business meeting of the church. Each elder is required to be fully in agreement with the Basis of Faith.
Risk statement
The charity is exposed to various risks - be they operational, financial or reputational. The trustees review the charity's activities regularly to identify significant risks and, where possible, they take appropriate measures to mitigate those risks.
Responsibilities of trustees
Charity law requires us as Trustees to prepare financial statements for each accounting year which record the receipts and payments of the charity for the year.
We are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable us to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011.
We also have a responsibility to safeguard the assets of the charity and to take reasonable steps to prevent fraud or any other irregularities.
Approval
This report was approved by the trustees and signed on their behalf by:
Ian Thompson
Benjamin Epps
Ian Thompson
Benjamin Epps
Date: 9 October 2022
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INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT
TO THE TRUSTEES OF
LONGMEADOW EVANGELICAL CHURCH CIO
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Longmeadow Evangelical Church CIO ('the charity') for the year ended 31 December 2021 on pages 6 to 8 following.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the trustees of the charity you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’).
I report in respect of my examination of the charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act.
Independent examiner’s statement
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect: 1. accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; or 2. the accounts do not accord with the accounting records.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Archie McDowall
Archie McDowall BA, CA Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB
Date: 17 October 2022
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LONGMEADOW EVANGELICAL CHURCH CIO
RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2021
| Notes Income receipts Gifts and donations Gift Aid Recovered Other Letting of facilities Interest Capital and similar receipts Cash received from predecessor charity Total receipts Payments 2 3 Total payments Transfers between funds 5 Net movement in funds Cash funds as at last year end Cash funds at this year end* A Net of receipts / (payments) before transfers Grants paid in relation to charitable activities undertaken by others Payments in relation to charitable activities undertaken directly |
General Funds £ 54,534 12,150 255 150 177 67,266 55,784 123,050 62,918 12,074 74,992 48,058 - 48,058 - 48,058 |
Restricted Funds £ 696 38 - - - 733 1,923 2,656 1,241 - 1,241 1,415 - 1,415 - 1,415 |
2021 £ 55,230 12,187 255 150 177 67,999 57,707 125,706 64,159 12,074 76,232 49,474 - 49,474 - 49,474 |
2020 £ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| - - - - - |
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| - - |
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| - | ||||
| - - |
||||
| - | ||||
| - - |
||||
| - - |
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| - |
*From 19 May 2021 the Trustees ofLongmeadow Evangelical Trust transferred its cash and bank balances to the CIO to carry out the church’s activities.
The notes on page 8 form part of these accounts.
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LONGMEADOW EVANGELICAL CHURCH CIO
STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2021
| Notes A Cash funds CIO Current Redwood 35 Day Senior Moments Cash B Other monetary assets Gift aid due to charity C Liabilities Pension due HMRC Payments Fee for Independent Examination Accrued expenses |
General funds £ 22,389 25,602 67 48,058 2,630 2,630 456 1,774 2,010 6,815 11,054 11,054 |
Restricted funds £ 1,415 - - 1,415 25 25 - - - - - - |
2021 £ 23,805 25,602 67 49,474 2,655 2,655 456 1,774 2,010 6,815 11,054 11,054 |
2020 £ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| - - - |
||||
| - | ||||
| - | ||||
| - | ||||
| - - |
||||
| - | ||||
| - |
D Assets retained for charity's own use
| Property Equipment, Furniture and Fittings |
Fund to which asset belongs £ unrestricted 882,538 unrestricted 68,477 |
|---|---|
The trustees have used insurance values as an approximation for current values.
From 19 May 2021 the Trustees of Longmeadow Evangelical Trust transferred its cash and bank balances to the CIO to carry out the church’s activities.
F Guarantees and secured debts
The charity has not given any guarantees and has not provided its assets as security for any liabilities.
The accounts were approved by the trustees and signed on their behalf by:
Russell Knell Wayne Campbell _____ Russell Knell Wayne Campbell
Date: 9 October 2022
The notes on page 8 form part of these accounts.
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LONGMEADOW EVANGELICAL CHURCH CIO
NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2021
1 Accounting policies
The accounts have been prepared on a receipts and payments basis and comprise a statement that shows the charity's receipts and payments, a statement that summarises the charity's assets and liabilities and related notes. The accountancy profession have determined that only accounts prepared in accordance with applicable accounting standards present a 'true and fair' view and, as these receipts and payments accounts have not (and cannot) be prepared in accordance with accounting standards, these accounts do not present (and are not intended to present) a 'true and fair' view of the charity's financial activities and state of affairs.
General funds are unrestricted funds which are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Designated funds comprise unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the trustees for particular purposes. Restricted funds are donations which are to be used in accordance with specific restrictions imposed by donors; they include donations received from appeals for specific activities or projects.
From 19 May 2021 the Trustees of Longmeadow Evangelical Trust transferred its cash and bank balances to the CIO to carry out the church’s activities.
| 2 Payments in relation to charitable activities undertaken directly Care Ministry Activities Office/General Administrative Expenses Payroll Expenses Premises Costs Insurances Utilities Staff Costs 3 Grants paid in relation to charitable activities undertaken by others Grants to other charities and organisations SIM International Africa Inland Mission OMF International Other small grants to organisations Grants to individuals |
General funds £ 250 2,082 3,873 46,709 7,148 1,333 1,111 412 62,918 3,007 2,569 1,663 1,946 2,890 12,074 |
Restricted Funds £ - 1,241 - - - - - - 1,241 - - - - - - |
Total 2021 £ 250 3,323 3,873 46,709 7,148 1,333 1,111 412 64,159 3,007 2,569 1,663 1,946 2,890 12,074 |
Total 2020 £ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| - - - - - - - - |
||||
| - | ||||
| - |
4 Transactions with related parties
Brian Epps and Russell Knell served as church pastors and were paid a gross salary of £19,979 and £19,933 respectively and each benefited from employer's pension contribution of £797 for serving in that capacity, not for serving as a trustee; these payments are permitted by the charity's governing document.
5 Movement of funds
| General funds Restricted funds Holiday Club Groups within church Community Support Fund Straight Up Building Improvement Total funds |
Opening balance £ - - - - - - - - |
Income Receipts £ 67,266 - - 708 25 733 67,999 |
Transferred from Trust £ 55,784 95 67 795 - 967 1,923 57,707 |
Payments £ (74,992) - - (1,241) - - (1,241) (76,232) |
Transfers £ - - - - - - - |
Closing balance £ 48,058 95 67 262 25 967 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,415 | ||||||
| 49,474 |
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