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2024-12-31-accounts

St Andrew’s Church, Girton

Annual Report for the year ending 31st December 2024

Presented at the

Annual Parochial Church Meeting

Sunday 18th May 2025

Registered Charity no. 1189339

Table of Contents

Agendas for the Meeting of Parishioners and Annual Parochial Church
Meeting 5
Meeting of Parishioners Agenda 5
Annual Parochial Church Meeting Agenda 5
Introduction 6
Rector 6
Churchwarden 7
Objectives and Activities 7
Ministry 8
The Ministry Team 8
Rector 8
Associate Priests 9
Curate 11
Readers / LLMs 11
ALM - Authorised Lay Minister 12
Children and Young Families 12
Ordinand’s Report 14
Services 15
Sunday Worship 15
Occasional Ofces 16
Messy Church 16
Pastoral Care 17

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Pastoral ALM’s Report 17
Pastoral care in the parish 17
Music 18
Outreach 18
Safeguarding 19
Building and Fabric 19
Fabric 19
Churchyard 20
Health and Safety 20
Net zero 21
Flower Arrangers 21
Church Cleaning 21
Administration 22
Electoral roll 22
PCC Membership and Activity 22
Standing Committee 23
Ministry Team 23
Secretarial / Pews News 23
Finance 24
The Wider Church 25
Deanery Synod 25
Action Abroad 26
Appendix 27
Minutes of Previous APCM - 12th May 2024 27
Meeting of Parishioners 27
Annual Parochial Church Meeting 27
Annual accounts 29
Copy of the Independent examiner’s report to the PCC 31

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Agendas for the Meeting of Parishioners and Annual Parochial Church Meeting

To be held in the church following the 10 a.m. service on Sunday, 18th May, 2025

Meeting of Parishioners Agenda

  1. Apologies for absence

  2. Minutes of the meeting of 12th May, 2024. See Appendix.

  3. Election of Churchwardens

  4. Any other business

Annual Parochial Church Meeting Agenda

  1. Apologies for absence

  2. Minutes of the meeting of 12th May, 2024. See Appendix.

  3. Matters arising from the minutes

  4. Number on the electoral roll

  5. Questions about Annual Report (the report itself will be taken as read)

    • Please note - it would be helpful to have written questions in advance if you have questions of detail to ask.

  6. Safeguarding

  7. Financial report and accounts

  8. Appointment of External Examiner of the accounts

  9. Elections to the Parochial Church Council

  10. a. Election of up to 2 members

  11. Plans for 2025

11. Any other business - Items should be given to the Rector at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting, please.

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Introduction

Rector

In last year’s report I commented that 2023 was “a year of building foundations” and I very much feel that we have started to see structures develop on the foundations God has put in place in 2024.

As always, this Annual Report is evidence of the wide range of ministries that come out of our church life together. Some of those ministries are obviously forward-facing (and I am hugely grateful to those who contribute to our public ministry). Much of our ministry is much more private and unseen – the many hours of pastoral care, diligent administration, preparation for services, cleaning and flower-arranging, care for the churchyard, prayer for one another (I could go on). One of the regular themes in my preaching has been Paul’s image of the church as “the body of Christ”. All have different roles to play and this report briefly notes many of those things. It is a snapshot of a huge amount of work, love and dedication that has happened over the course of a year.

One of my personal highlights has been to see a core ministry team developing into a new pattern. With the arrival of Marie as associate priest, and Kevin as curate, we now have a pattern of meeting with clergy, LLMs and Children and Families Minister that enables us to share news, to grow in faith together, and to discern God’s leading together. I hope that the benefits of this pattern will start to become more evident throughout 2025.

If you are reading this report I encourage you to do two things. Firstly, give thanks to God for all he is doing through the many people involved here. And secondly ask yourself: “What might God be calling me to contribute?”.

Huge thanks to Dugald once again for compiling this report – I commend it to you.

Revd. Michael Bigg

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Churchwarden

We were all very glad that the reordering work was completed so that we could enjoy using the new space and servery area after services. Most of the old chairs went to be used elsewhere in the village and 30 new ones are now in the church.

We enjoyed several social events including a pancake party on Shrove Tuesday for children and their carers, a wonderful concert, organised by Jeremy Wong, involving many singers from the local community as well as from our own congregation, and also a concert/recital by the Grove Ensemble, a group of university musicians and singers.

The Art Show in May was extremely well organised and popular again.

I must mention an amazing high level clean when all the cobwebs were completely swept away using six bamboo poles strapped together with a brush on the end, all without ladders!

In Holy Week, there was an interesting display of Stations of the Cross, again with plenty to read and think about.

Wendy Hunter had to end her time as Church Warden (after 9 years) due to illness, but Bruce Hunter is continuing.

One of the highlights of the whole year was the display of Nativity scenes in the first week of Advent. There were nearly 130 exhibits beautifully displayed on boards across the pews as used in the Art Show. The church looked very welcoming indeed and there were hundreds of visitors from far and wide as well as locals and children of all ages from the village schools. Thanks go to Marjorie Carrier and her daughter who loaned the collection of Nativity sets and helped us so much with the event.

Thank you very much indeed to all the people who are always there to help in so many different ways to make St Andrew's what it is. You are all very much appreciated.

Bruce Hunter

Objectives and Activities

Girton PCC promotes the mission of the Church of England in the village of Girton by providing public worship and other related activities. In 2024 we have enjoyed a full programme of public worship that has benefitted from the recently completed building work.

In 2024 our “Worshipping Community” numbered 122 people with a usual Sunday attendance of 70. This reflects a slight decline in overall attendance, but we are seeing new people fairly regularly. I would encourage regular attendees to make it a priority to attend every week where possible!

Outreach among children and families is focussed on Bobtails at the moment, which continues to provide a valuable place for pre-school children and their families to enjoy hospitality and friendship. We also enjoy a hugely successful “pancake party” on Shrove Tuesday and a well-attended Remembrance Sunday activity for children. The Christingle service in 2024 was also one of the biggest it has been, with hundreds in attendance.

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In the run-up to the 2024 General Election we served the local community by running a hustings for the St Neots and Mid Cambs constituency in the church. All of the candidates came to answer questions, and well over one hundred people turned up to hear them (along with many more tuning in by YouTube). This was a well-received event for the benefit of the wider community.

In December we hosted a wonderful Nativity Set exhibition, with many hundreds of people from across East Anglia coming to visit our display of 120 sets. Much money was raised for Action Abroad, as well as giving people an opportunity to reflect on the Christmas story. We are grateful to Marjorie Carrier for the loan of the exhibition.

Marie now oversees our work at Arlington Manor, Abbeyfield and Gretton Court. She is doing a wonderful job of creating services and study-groups that are suitable for the people in each place. The need among the older people in our parish is significant and I expect this part of our life as a church to grow and develop.

Pastoral care is overseen by Christina with able help from Suzie, Marie and Kevin. They meet regularly to ensure that people are looked after and to share ideas together. Our funeral ministry continues to grow.

Dugald continues to do a wonderful job in organising us all, and has started a well-received fellowship group, that is helping people to deepen their faith.

We pray for wisdom to discern how God is calling us to use our resources well as we continue to develop in 2025. We are learning to measure success in a range of ways.

Revd. Michael Bigg

Ministry

The Ministry Team

Rector

My primary highlight this year has been the development of our core ministry team. With the addition of Kevin and Marie we now meet together fortnightly (clergy, LLMs and Children and Families Minister) to study together, to pray for one another, and to share what’s going on in the church together. This has been a fruitful time of enabling things to happen. We are all very different, but there is a good sense that we are growing together into God’s calling for us.

Now that the west end of the church has been redeveloped we can share fellowship together at the end of services more easily. This has created a warm and welcoming atmosphere and enables us to offer hospitality in new ways. At the moment we are considering how we can build on our culture of hospitality into a culture of invitation so that more of the people around us can meet us and meet the Lord we serve.

Our welcome and hospitality is now a hallmark of our life together. This year we were able to host a pancake party for dozens of children and their parents; we’ve had a range of concerts; we held another excellent Art Show; we offered a brilliant Nativity Exhibition. All of these things are wonderful but it will be good to develop a culture whereby we invite others to worship with us as well as coming to occasional events.

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Part of our progress here is in building a confident people of God. One way this is developing is through Dugald’s leadership on the Tuesday Fellowship. If you want to grow in your faith then go along to something like this – it won’t happen by magic! Another way to build a confident people of God is through preaching and teaching. We have an embarrassment of riches in preaching here (I can count at least 13 people who preach at St Andrew’s) and it was a real delight to be able to self-publish a short book of sermons from our series looking at the Letter to the Philippians. This little volume was well-received and enabled us to reflect more deeply on the text. Thanks go to Dugald for compiling and it and getting it printed!

But prayer is also vital. I know many of you have private habits of prayer, but we also get together regularly to pray for those we know who are struggling or unwell. Every Tuesday at 9am we meet to read the Bible and pray together for about 45 minutes. Come along!

God is good. He is at work in our lives and within our church. It’s not always clear where we are being led, but we have hope that the God who sent his son Jesus to die for our sins and to rise to new life has a good plan for us! You are invited to trust him and to invite others to do the same.

As I write, Newcastle United have just won their first trophy for 70 years. I preached yesterday about how God took 25 years to fulfil his promise to Abraham that he would have a son. We are called not to be people of instant expectations, but people of hope who can live in the uncertainty of the world and seek the God who brings about his purposes over centuries.

Revd. Michael Bigg

Associate Priests

Last year I blithely reported that life at St Andrew’s Church was returning to a more even keel after the disruption caused by the pandemic. Unfortunately while that may have been true of the church in general, by the summer my own life was turned upside down by a diagnosis that I had a cancerous growth in my ascending colon, so my own contribution to church life in the final three months of the year was curtailed as I spent much more time in hospital than had been predicted originally. Mercifully I have been told that the surgery was totally successful, so I am now on the road to recovery.

Prior to all that happening I had continued to help out by taking services at Gretton Court and officiating at the funeral of a still born baby – one of the more pastorally demanding aspects of serving in the church.

As I write this I am still in the process of building up my strength, having lost a tremendous amount of weight as part of my treatment, but I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their regular prayers on my behalf, which helped me through some very trying weeks and I’m sure contributed to my healing.

Revd. Chris Barrow

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Although I have lived in Girton for nearly fifteen years, I had never been able to worship at St Andrew’s until recently, because I was a Lay Reader in Cambridge, and after ordination, I served my curacy in a different village.

So I was really happy and excited to be able to do a placement at St Andrew’s in January and February 2024. Finally, I got to worship with friends and neighbours.

At the end of the placement, Michael and I reviewed things, and he offered me to be licensed in Girton and Madingley at the end of my curacy.

It was with great joy and honour that I was licensed to minister in this place on the 6th of June 2024 by the Archdeacon of Cambridge, Alex Hughes. After a quiet morning of prayer and reflection, Michael and I made our way to the Archdeacon’s house where we had a lovely, relaxed, and yet official and important licensing meeting. Here are Alex and I, holding the beautifully written license document (lots of whereof and hereunto – I love it!).

I find ministering in Girton very much life-giving and faith-nurturing: there are of course the Sunday services, but also all the wonderful Tuesday Fellowship evenings and all the things that happen outside church and in the community.

Here are some of the things that I have been doing since I was licensed:

I have presided and preached on various Sundays and I had the joy of preaching a very short homily (the shorter the harder) at our candlelit carol service; I loved singing with our choir too, and it’s a happy time when I can help with the music at the All-Age service.

I have been taking the monthly Holy Communion services in our three residential/care homes. At Gretton Court, I am temporarily replacing Christine while she recovers from her recent operation. I was very happy when our Christian friends there asked for an Advent course. We explored the book by theologian Isabelle Hamley Embracing Humanity. You can read on the back: ‘God became flesh at Christmas. But how does God, who created all things, live within the limitations of humanity? And what does it truly mean to be human?’ We had some fascinating conversations. We are now having a Lent course with the book by Jo Swinney The Whole Easter Story. What happened on the cross is not just a story of us and Jesus. It is far deeper and wider than that. And that’s what we are exploring.

I am working closely with Suzie, Kevin, and Christina who oversees the pastoral team. We have regular meetings at her house, where we support each other in the work and pray for each other, the whole community, and the people we visit.

On the 2nd of February, I was commissioned as an Anna Chaplain by Peter Leech, Director of Mission and Ministry. Anna Chaplains are people who have a heart for the older generation and who feel called by God to offer spiritual care to the elderly of all faiths and none. They are sent by the Church into their community for that purpose, after a thorough and enriching training over six weeks.

I am also the coordinator of Anna Chaplains in the Diocese of Ely, and I am very aware that Chaplains have a lot of work to do. Who do you know who would like to be an Anna Friend? Anna Friends help the Chaplains in their pastoral work. I can offer training, it’s lighter than the

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training for Chaplains, but it’s very interesting, and above all, very empowering. I can already think of someone in our wonderful congregation, but if you have some thoughts, please let me know!

Thank you so much for having me at St Andrew’s. It is very special to work among you with Michael and the team, witnessing all the things that God does for all of us.

Revd. Marie Lucchetta-Redmond

Curate

I find myself reflecting on nearly completing my first year as Curate to St Andrew’s, Girton, having been ordained at the end of June 2024. It has been a huge privilege. Before arriving, everything I knew about Girton was in the abstract. As such, I have tried to spend these opening months getting to know as many people as possible; visiting the area and trying to get a real sense of knowing the rhythms of the place. Since ordination I’ve led five funerals, four burial of ashes, a double baptism, preached on multiple occasions and joined the church band. Having fully immersed myself in the life of the church I get a real sense of a community that loves God, and wants to grow. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting people who are new to church in Girton, and have been struck by how grateful they always seem for the warmth of their reception. It is certainly something I have felt, and continue to feel. I am still in a transitional phase as I move from Deacon to Priest. I am extremely grateful for the opportunities I have received at St Andrew’s, and the unwavering love and support I have felt from everyone in the congregation. I could not have wished for a better place to serve my curacy, and would like to express my heartfelt thanks to you all.

Kevin Parks

Readers / LLMs

Note: LLM = Licensed Lay Minister; ALM = Authorised Lay Minister; SSOM = Self-Supporting Ordained Minister

We do feel included in the Ministry Team sharing and helping in the work of the church. The Ministry Team works well together, with complementary skills. As Licensed Lay Ministers we have assisted and preached in services in Girton and Madingley, at weekday Morning Prayer services, and elsewhere in the village or beyond the parish.

Christina Deacon writes…

As well as being involved in the services in Girton; and sometimes Madingley, I occasionally take services in Wicken.

I have the privilege of leading the pastoral team, which consists of Suzie (ALM), Marie (SSOM) and Kevin (curate). Together we aim to care for as many of the pastoral needs in the church as we can. When we meet together, our meetings always go very well, as there is inevitably lots of cake and coffee!!

I also enjoy the odd times when I am able to help out at Bobtails etc

Apart from church activities, I am a vocations adviser, which means seeing those who are at the early stages of exploring some sort of calling to ministry; be it lay or ordained.

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Also I am part of the panel who select those who have put themselves forward as candidates for LLM training.

Dugald Wilson writes…

Early in 2024 we started the St Andrews Fellowship, later renamed the Tuesday Fellowship. This has continued fortnightly throughout the year. We have discussed a wide variety of issues. Most recently, we have followed a course from the Jubilee Centre covering Jesus’ interactions with people as recorded in Mark’s gospel. The purpose was to help people grow in faith, understanding and fellowship, enabling us to learn from each other. There is a solid core of people of about 13-15 who attend most sessions.

As well as helping out in services in Girton, I have helped the Five Folds group from time to time.

And I continue to manage the service staffing rotas. (See the Secretarial report.)

Susan Rawlings writes…

I greatly welcome the continued invitation to offer a service of Evensong (Book of Common Prayer) at St Andrew’s on the third Sunday of the month, except when other services are being held. I am pleased that the invitation has been renewed for 2025.

I always find the church a welcoming place - like a safe harbour at the end of a busy day. The congregation at the service is very faithful and responsive, and has increased slightly in numbers. I continue to find its commitment and fellowship very encouraging. The service is greatly helped by the music of the organists, particularly the regular organist, Matthew Nall, and of Mrs Kathryn Nall who acts as cantor. I am grateful also for the support of the readers and sidespersons.

Christina Deacon, Susan Rawlings and Dugald Wilson

ALM - Authorised Lay Minister

In early 2024 I completed the Foundations for Ministry course which was the final component of training as a Worship Leader ALM (Authorised Lay Minister), and immediately embarked on the Preacher ALM course to complement it. The Preacher ALM and pre-requisite courses were completed over summer and my first sermon given. I again set up a Stations of the Cross display (originally part of my Worship Leader training) during Holy Week.

Caroline Blackmun

Children and Young Families

Bobtails

Bobtails playgroup has run every week during school term-time, led by Eona, Caroline and a wider team of volunteers from St Andrew’s, with occasional help from parents and grandparents attending the group. We meet on Tuesday mornings in the Cotton Hall. Sessions include free play, art and craft activities, refreshments, Bible stories and singing.

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Attendance increased over the year, to an average of 20 families each week, with children aged from 0-4 accompanied by parents, grandparents, childminders or nannies.

We see Bobtails as an important part of our mission and service to the wider community. It is a safe and welcoming place to nurture the spirituality of very young children and their carers, as they explore issues of faith among friends.

We are grateful for the continuing support of the Girton Town Charity. This year we were selected as a Local Cause for the Co-op’s members in Girton and received a one-off grant which was used to purchase new toys and art materials.

St Andrews for Kids

Our Sunday morning group for children of primary-school age met every week, except when we were in church for All-Age Communion. Attendance ranged from one to nine children. We have two families attending regularly and others who have joined us occasionally. The group is led by Eona with Susanna Carleton Paget, Wairimu Gatome, Jenny Prince, Jenny Knights, Judith and Peter Heslam.

Our sessions typically mirror the Liturgy of the Word, using the Godly Play approach to support children’s spirituality and Christian learning. We have also enjoyed more traditional Bible study, including sessions on Philippians to mirror the sermon series in church.

We continued the tradition of performing a nativity play in church on the second Sunday of Advent, with Jenny Prince once again writing an original script for an all-age cast.

St Andrew’s Youth

In July we launched St Andrew’s Youth, a monthly group for young people aged 10-16. The group currently has five members, led by Eona and Kevin, and activities have included board games, pizza, chips and Bible studies on the theme of “encounters with Jesus”.

School holiday activities

We ran a holiday club over three weekday mornings after Easter, with a programme of games, crafts, quizzes, music and Bible stories on the theme of Resurrection. Ten children enrolled. During the sessions we learned a song which the children sang during all-age worship the following Sunday and made a banner which has been displayed in church.

In the summer holidays, Eona created a ‘tree trail’ in the churchyard and Hibbert-Ware Memorial Garden, encouraging people of all ages to stop and read a poem or Bible verse while reflecting on our place in God’s creation. We ran drop-in play sessions on the Tuesdays in August, providing nature-themed craft activities for families in the churchyard. These events were opportunities for conversation and building relationships with families.

Schools and community

On Shrove Tuesday we welcomed approximately fifty children and parents to church for a Pancake Party during which they learned about the season of Lent, created ‘blessings jars’ as a focus for Lent, and of course ate pancakes made by Marie and Jenny.

Michael and Eona led assemblies at Girton Glebe Primary School on the themes of Lent and Easter, and children from the Glebe attended Harvest and Christmas services in church. Eona, Kevin and Merilyn ran a card-marking workshop during the Girton Glebe Christmas Fair, another opportunity to meet people and offer an enjoyable activity for parents and children together.

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A group from Cottontails Preschool attended church at Harvest and heard the Parable of the Sower.

Eona visited the Girton Brownies in advance of Remembrance Sunday, and we provided activities and refreshments for children and families in the Cotton Hall following the wreathlaying ceremony at the village war memorial. This was attended by some 40 Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Brownies and parents from Girton and Oakington.

Eona worked with Rev. Nick Lowe and a team from Girton Baptist Church to deliver a “Christmas Unwrapped” workshop for Year 5 children from Girton Glebe Primary.

We welcomed groups from Bobtails playgroup, Cottontails preschool, Girton Glebe Primary and the Gretton School to the Nativity Exhibition in December. In addition to viewing the wonderful exhibition, children heard the nativity story and took home an illustrated version.

Eona Bell

Ordinand’s Report

My time at St Andrews has been a great joy, the welcome and patience I have received during one of the hardest times in my life has been a real blessing. Working with Marie has been one of my highlights of theological training, her joy and passion for serving is infectious.

I am truly grateful of every opportunity I have been given and the encouragement I have received from the congregation will carry me for some time.

Matt Regan

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Services

Sunday Worship

The heart of our life together continues to be our Sunday worship where we gather to meet with God, to bring God praise, to hear God’s word and to receive from him. Since 2021 there has been a steady growth in total monthly attendance (see the graph below).

It is heartening to see the church regularly looking fairly full, and to enjoy the hubbub of conversation after 10am services. The 8am and 6pm services continue to be steadily attended and we are bringing back a more reflective evening service on the 1st Sunday of the month this year.

However, I would re-iterate again that regular attendance at church usually means every week. For a Christian, gathering with others week by week is not really an optional extra, but a core part of our journey. It’s not just that you miss out if you’re not there, but that we miss out when you’re not there! I would urge all of us to make coming to church on a Sunday a real priority, not something to be side-lined if another option comes up.

Towards the end of 2024 we have seen a more substantial music group developing for our All Age services on the 2nd Sunday. It has been good to see this developing, along with our desire that “all age” worship is where all ages are actively involved, not just present.

In 2024 we were encouraged to see so many people at Christmas services and events (particularly Carols by Candlelight and the Christingle service). We are also pleased to see strong attendance at Easter and on Remembrance Sunday.

The church continues to stream 10am services online for those who cannot attend in person, and I’m grateful to the team that enables this to happen.

Revd. Michael Bigg

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Occasional Offices

We continued to take a lot of funerals in 2024. The total number of funerals was 20 (at church and crematorium), which is up from 17 in 2023 and almost doubled from 2022. We also interred the ashes of many who had been cremated. Funeral ministry is a valued part of what we do and we take seriously the responsibility of commending the dead to God. Our “In Memory” service was also well-attended with over 100 names on the list of people to be remembered.

There were 3 baptisms and two marriages in 2024, all of which were joyful occasions. Our current position remains that baptisms should normally take place during Sunday services unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Revd. Michael Bigg

Messy Church

This is the last Messy Church report as it had its final meeting in July 2024.

The group has been meeting monthly at the Baptist Church for approximately 16 years and several people from St Andrews have been involved from the start—Alice Few along with Mandy Maxwell in the first few years and then Beverley Suttle, Sheila Hiley and Jenny Knights latterly with several other people pitching in as needed. Also, of course, several members of the Baptist Church were there and Jen Mills made a delicious and nutritious supper for everyone.

The order of events was that children arrived after school for refreshments after which the theme of the day and creative activities were explained and then done. Next came a Bible story or talk and this was followed by food. An enjoyable and instructive time for everyone.

Sadly, after many years of successful meetings and high attendance levels we began to see fewer children through the door and then, when a larger group from Oakington was going to give up due to a move to Durham, the writing was on the wall. This coincided with our wish to step down as craft organisers so it was decided that Messy Church should finish. We very much hope that something else will emerge to take its place.

Our last meeting was an end of Summer term party in the North Room and our churchyard and was a very enjoyable occasion.

Jenny Knights and Sheila Hiley

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Pastoral Care

Pastoral care is a duty we all owe to each other and I know that many people quietly look after friends in need (both within the church and beyond). It is one of the many good things about the church here that people look out for one another.

However, where a need for more formal “Pastoral Care” is identified a core pastoral care team (led by Christina, with Suzie, Kevin and Marie) take responsibility for looking after people. For this I am hugely grateful, as many need careful time and attention.

If you know anyone (inside or outside the church) who could use a pastoral visit above and beyond the normal care we show for one another then please let Christina know. I am very happy to visit people personally where appropriate, but much of the day-to-day pastoral care is delivered by the Pastoral Care Team.

Revd. Michael Bigg

Pastoral ALM’s Report

The purpose of our pastoral visits is to maintain a meaningful connection with members of the congregation some of whom are now unable to attend Church Services.

These pastoral visits aim to provide spiritual support, companionship, and a sense of belonging to those who sometimes may feel isolated from the church community.

During these visits, we want to ensure that every individual feels valued and remembered. It’s good to share uplifting messages, to listen to concerns and stories or to whom may need just spiritual guidance, emotional support, or simply a listening ear.

By maintaining this personal contact, we would like to foster a sense of continuity and solidarity within our congregation, making sure that each member is an integral part of the Church family, regardless of whether they attend Church in person.

If you or someone you know would appreciate a visit from our Pastoral Team, please don't hesitate to reach out. We are here to offer a listening ear and a helping hand. Please contact us if you feel a visit would be beneficial.

Suzie Filmer (Pastoral ALM)

Pastoral care in the parish

Marie has taken responsibility for the services in the the three care/retirement establishments in Girton. These happen monthly. Suzie is a great support to her in Arlington and Abbeyfield, whilst Christina supports in Gretton Court. Kevin helps in these where he can. Although only monthly, they do require some planning. Marie is also running a Lent course in Gretton Court, after doing a very successful Advent course there.

Suzie’s remit is to make most of the individual visits (see her separate report), with Christina doing some. Kevin is a very useful help here as well. We need to make the most of his three years with us!

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There are always people to link up with in some way; whether for a visit, or simply to supply a listening ear. The main thing is that no-none feels in any way ‘left out’ because they either cannot get to church, or have been unable to come for a while.

I (Christina) struggled to think how to end this short report, then I realised that there is not an end to it; as our pastoral work simply goes on - and we keep pressing on with it!

But please do always alert us to any need that you see; and our heartfelt thanks to those who already do that.

Christina Deacon and Michael Bigg

Music

We continue to be grateful for our many regular organists (Richard, Jeremy, Matthew and Maureen) who enable much of our sung worship. It has also been pleasing this year to develop the music group for our All Age worship (thanks to Richard, Marie, Helen, Bob and Kevin - others welcome!)

At Pentecost we enjoyed getting a choir together under Jeremy's direction for a special service of Choral Evensong. The choir then went from strength to strength to put on a wonderful Carols by Candlelight.

We have also had several concerts in the church throughout 2024, which have included Girton Musical Theatre, Jane Bower, and a regular appearance from The Grove Collective. It is good to see our space well-used for such events.

Revd. Michael Bigg

Outreach

We continue to seek new ways to reach out to the community around us with the good news of the Gospel and the love of God. Much of this takes the form of events to which we invite others.

Eona and her team have done much this year through Bobtails (and we continue to note the financial support of the Girton Town Charity with thanks). But we also ran several one-off events, such as the well-attended pancake party and Remembrance Sunday activities for children.

Christmas is another particular time for outreach. In 2024 a huge number of people came to special events and services (particularly the “Carols by Candlelight” and “Christingle” services. We were also pleased to work with the Old Crown to run “Curry and Carols” for the first time – this was a well-attended and great fun evening! We note with thanks the support of Girton Baptist Church in delivering a Christmas card to every house in the parish.

In 2025 one of our watchwords is “invitation” and we will be looking for opportunities to enable the congregation to invite people to discover more about God’s love in Jesus Christ.

Revd. Michael Bigg

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Safeguarding

Safeguarding issues in the Church of England dominated much of the news towards the end of the year, following the publication of the Makin Report, and the resignation of the Archbishop of Canterbury. As part of acknowledgement of these concerns, Safeguarding Sunday was given a special emphasis at St Andrew’s this year, with the sharing of a letter from Bishop Dagmar, reiteration of the role of the whole church in safeguarding, and special prayers.

Within our wider church and village community there have been three individuals and families who have been the subject of safeguarding related concern by parishioners and the ministry team this year. We would ask that people continue to pray for those whose situations place them at risk, and that they would be able to access the help they need.

We are continuing to work on our procedures, policies and training to ensure that all our church activities are conducted with safeguarding in mind. During the coming year, I will be contacting PCC members and others whose training needs to be renewed because of their role in the church. However, anyone in the church can enrol to take one of the online safeguarding courses. They can usually be completed in an hour or two and do give useful advice on things to look out for in order to keep children and vulnerable adults safe. Please speak to me if you would like to know more about the courses, or any aspect of safeguarding.

Helen Wilson

Building and Fabric

Fabric

The reordering of the West End was completed but various snags still needed sorting out. The Welcome Table had to be taken away and refitted with suitable wooden panels at the base and a few other things adjusted.

On 14th April a lightning strike caused considerable damage to the audio system, some cables in the North Room, and also 2 heaters in the North Aisle. A local electrician and also NPower checked the whole church and repaired the damage. The audio system was repaired by the firm who had installed it. Fortunately we were well covered by our insurance.

The Quinquennial survey was carried out in June. Work is needed on some stonework on the South parapet. This will be done in Spring '25 as it took a long time to find workmen who could/would do the necessary work. A faulty downpipe was causing damp plaster on the inside of the South wall near the porch and this was fixed quite quickly.

In December, some further defects were found in the West end cupboards. Universal Stone and our architect are endeavouring to remedy these problems next year.

Bruce Hunter

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Churchyard

The monthly churchyard work party has continued to keep everything looking splendid. Most of the help now is from people in the village though some members of the congregation are still able to be there too.

There have been more burials and burials of ashes than usual and the Parish Council have again been reminded that they must be aware that they will need to provide another burial site soon.

The area between the wall of the 'new' area and the North side of the church was designated to be a 'no mow' area from March - July. Lucy Fisher and colleagues marked it off and put up notices about interesting plants that grew. They also scythed the area in July and added hay to the compost bins.

In May, after several branches had fallen off, a very old poplar had to be completely removed. It was the one by the car park and was becoming dangerous. A regular tree survey is now in place. The blue cedar shed several branches and two miniature cypress had grown too big for their space and had to be cut down. The trees are beautiful but have to be constantly maintained.

The Quinquennial report was complimentary about all aspects of the churchyard.

Wendy Hunter

Health and Safety

In 2024 the PCC reviewed its Health and Safety policy. Under that policy a nominated person is to conduct an annual audit of health and safety at the church and to write this up for the Annual Report. In the absence of a nominated person at this time and while Bruce (Church Warden) is unwell, I will write a brief report.

During 2024 there have been no significant accidents reported at the church. The fire extinguishers and the boiler were serviced in December 2024. Members of the cleaning team keep the church tidy and free of obstructions. The new cupboards in the west end enable us to keep things stored properly. The tower is routinely locked when not in use. We are confident that our electrics are in good working order after repairs arising from the lightning strike. All relevant electrical appliances had a PAT inspection in July and items were repaired or disposed of where problems were identified.

Some events (such as the Art Show) have a written risk assessment that is reviewed each year. Other events (such as the Christingle) are verbally risk assessed and we take appropriate measures to mitigate reasonably anticipated risks.

We keep an eye on monuments in the churchyard that may be at risk of falling and regularly commission work to the trees in the churchyard to mitigate risks to the public (in August a large poplar in the corner of the churchyard was removed).

While a medieval building has some inherent risks associated with it the PCC are confident that we take reasonable precautions to respond to identifiable risks.

Revd. Michael Bigg

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Net zero

We continue to take seriously our efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of our church. Our electricity is on a “green” tariff, and most of our heating is now done through the radiant heaters in the main church.

We are still committed to putting solar panels onto the roof of the church. However, it continues to be difficult to identify contractors who are confident to work on heritage buildings. We are grateful for the support and advice of Cllr Richard Stobart from South Cambs District Council (and also Church Warden at Waterbeach) in putting something together that will attract funding and get the necessary permissions.

Revd. Michael Bigg

Flower Arrangers

Nora Rutherford and I have been very happy as always to decorate and dress the church throughout the year, including funerals and weddings. And we have had wonderful support from some very skilful and willing ladies for the major festivals. Above you will see our group having just dressed the church for Christmas 2024.

If anyone is interested in helping do let me know or Nora know.

Anne Lorimer

Church Cleaning

The church cleaning has gone well this year and many, many thanks are due to the very diligent people who do this task week in and week out.

Thank you, Holy Dusters, (as they used to be called!).

Sheila Hiley

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Administration

Electoral roll

The number of the roll at the AGM 2024 was 100. As at 31st December 2024 the number had fallen by 4 to 96. One has left the parish for work requirements.

Sadly 3 had died: Janet Barnard, Margaret (Maggie) Flatt and Gillian (Jill) Watkins.

Therefore at 31 December 2024 the Roll stood at 96.

It has since dropped to 95, as Edith George died in February 2025.

Alice Few

PCC Membership and Activity

The Parochial Church Council operates under the Church Representation Rules (2022). For 2024-25 it is made up of ex officio and elected members as detailed below:

Rector (ex officio)

Michael Bigg (inducted in September 2020)

Curate (ex officio)

Kevin Parks (appointed in July 2024)

Churchwarden (ex officio)

Bruce Hunter

Deanery Synod Reps (elected in May 2023 for 3 years)

Sheila Hiley

Terry Hoad

Licensed Lay Ministers (re-appointed at 2022 APCM for as long as they are licensed)

Christina Deacon

Dugald Wilson

Elected members

Geoff Burt (2022-2025)

Alastair Lorimer (2023-2026 – also PCC Vice Chair)

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Helen Wilson (2022-2025 – from May 2022 also Parish Safeguarding Officer) Martin Nuttall (2023-2026)

Caroline Blackmun (2024-2027)

Mary Chesterfield (2024-2027)

Martyn Johnson (co-opted by the PCC for the year 2024-25 – also PCC Treasurer)

The PCC has also appointed John Hall to be PCC Secretary.

In 2024 the PCC met on 16th January, 11th March, 12th May, 2nd July, 23rd September, and 25th November. Minutes of meetings are available via the PCC Secretary at pccsecretary@girton.church.

Standing Committee

The Standing Committee comprises the Rector, Church Wardens, Licensed Lay Ministers and Treasurer. This group meets from time to time as needed and has discretionary spending powers (to be reported to PCC at the next available meeting). It did not meet formally in 2024, but the Rector occasionally uses this forum to take informal advice.

Ministry Team

The Ministry Team comprises the Rector, Licensed Lay Ministers, licensed clergy (Marie and Kevin) and the Children and Families Minister). The group meets every fortnight to discuss the general life and business of the church (including pastoral needs) but has no formal decision making or spending powers.

Revd. Michael Bigg / John Hall

Secretarial / Pews News

The administration work of the church and parish is still distributed amongst several people. There is no church secretary who should have been a focus of all this work.

Susie Cumming continues to help us in the preparation of the weekly Pews News and other occasional copying and printing and we are very grateful to her for it.

Dugald Wilson continues to manage many of the church service rotas. It does take a serious amount of time and so it is always appreciated that any changes are told to him in good time so that the service documentation can be updated in time for the Sunday services. He is always trying to avoid overworking volunteers. If anyone does feel as though they are doing too much, and would like to reduce their workload, please tell him. Of course, there are other, non service specific, rotas managed by other people. All in all, the church seems to run pretty smoothly.

However, volunteers for any task are always welcome. People retire, and people die, but fewer people come to fill their places. As a result, the lists shrink and it puts more of a burden on the decreasing number of people, and also on Dugald who has to arrange the rotas while endeavouring not to overwork anybody. This year we have a particular shortage of people

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willing to operate the camera, or to lead intercessions. We need sidesmen, readers, intercessors, camera operators. Further, it would be helpful to have more people willing to fulfil some of the wardens’ roles required during church services.

Nigel Deacon has managed the church website, keeping it up to date. He has also managed the occasional electronic newsletters informing us of important upcoming events.

There is also a small team of dedicated and talented camera folk keeping our Sunday morning service streaming going against the whims of technology that appears occasionally to conspire against them.

Dugald Wilson

Finance

Despite the slightly gloomy predictions last year, 2024 turned out well. The general fund had receipts of £88,225 and payments of £71,636: a gross surplus of £16,589. Out of this we have transferred £3,000 to the fabric sinking fund in accordance with established practice, and £12,000 to the support of the children and families minister. This leaves a net surplus of £1,589. On top of this, about £1,076 of deposit account interest earned in 2024 will not appear in the accounts until 2025 owing to a change in payment dates.

The churchyard fund continues to be healthy, with a surplus of nearly £3,000.

The only call upon the fabric fund in 2024 was a single payment of £1,850 towards the Quinquennial repairs, but we know that there is further work to be done in 2025. The purpose of the fabric fund is to spread the cost of building repairs evenly across the years, and seems to be working well.

Our work to support children and young people has cost £18,833, with £12,000 of that coming from general PCC funds. Much of the remainder has come from grants from the Girton Town Charity, the Church Schools of Cambridge, and the Co-op Community Fund, and we are grateful to these for their support.

The church was struck by lightning in April, causing damage costing about £7,400, primarily to the electrics and the new sound system. The inevitable insurance claim went very smoothly and covered everything except the £500 policy excess.

As the year came to an end there remained uncertainty over the reordering project. Major faults in the joinery work were discovered during the contractual defects liability period, and in consequence we have withheld the final payment to the contractor. It is likely that remediation will cost more than the sum withheld and at this stage it is not known whether we will be able to recover the additional costs.

Our finances are in a healthy state, but costs will continue to rise so there remains a need for voluntary donations to increase gently in line with inflation. Our largest single expenditure item is the ministry share, and this will increase by about 4.5% in 2025, which is slightly less than the increase in clergy stipends which our contributions fund. We remain grateful to all donors, especially those who have subscribed to inflationary increases through the Parish Giving Scheme.

Martyn Johnson

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The Wider Church

Deanery Synod

The March meeting was mainly a prayer meeting but there was a report from the General Synod:

The October meeting was to do with green initiatives around the Deanery and there were many very interesting, creative and innovative ideas from parishes, demonstrating that we are taking this seriously.

Here are a few of the green initiatives in our Deanery.

The October Rural Dean’s report shows what the thinking is in the Diocese:

Rural Dean’s Report

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Deanery Treasurers’ Reports.

Sheila Hiley / Terry Hoad

Action Abroad

Payments were made in December of £3800 to Domboshawa Trust and £400 to Christian Aid.

The Art Exhibition raised an amazing £1722, so very many thanks to all who were involved. Other funds raised were £388 donations for the Nativity Exhibition, £400 for Christian Aid from the Lent Appeal and around £60 from sales of apples and apple juice by Alice Few. Further funds were from donations and Gift Aid recovery.

Thank you to all who have contributed to fundraising efforts this year.

Claire Conboy

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Appendix

Minutes of Previous APCM - 12th May 2024

(held following the 10 a.m. service)

MINUTES

Present (at both meetings): Michael Bigg, Rector, in the chair (= M.B.), and 36 parishioners.

Apologies for absence (for both meetings) were received from: Chris Barrow, Dugald and Helen Wilson, Roger and Alice Few, Jill Watkins, and Suzie Filmer.

Meeting of Parishioners

1. Apologies for absence. See above.

2. The minutes of the meeting of 14th May 2023 were approved, on the proposal of Alastair Lorimer, seconded by Charles Avery.

3. Election of Churchwardens. Bruce Hunter was re-elected as Churchwarden on the proposal of Alastair Lorimer, seconded by Anne Lorimer.

M.B. said that, as no candidate had come forward willing to be a second Churchwarden, he would seek to find deputy churchwardens to assist Bruce. He hoped that Suzie Filmer would be one of them. Bruce is willing to remain Churchwarden only for one more year, so a replacement must be found for him next year. M.B. offered prayers for Bruce, and for the finding of a new Churchwarden next year, and thanked Wendy Hunter, who steps down as Churchwarden, for her services in that position.

4. Any other business. There was none..

Annual Parochial Church Meeting

1. Apologies for absence. See above.

2. The minutes of the meeting of 14th May 2023 were approved, on the proposal of Geoff Burt, seconded by Merilyn Burt.

3. Matters arising from the minutes. There were none.

4. The electoral roll now numbers 100 people. (There were 101 a year ago: since then 3 have died, 5 have moved away, and 7 have been added.) Alice Few was thanked for her work on the roll. A completely new roll will have to be compiled next year.

5. The annual report. Dugald Wilson was thanked for his work in compiling it. It is a record, M.B. said, of many good things that had happened during the year. No questions were raised concerning it.

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6. Safeguarding. Details are given in the Annual Report. Helen Wilson, Safeguarding Officer, was thanked for her work.

7. Finance. Douglas De Lacey had asked for explanations of a number of points in the accounts. Martyn Johnson, Treasurer, went through them with the explanations, as follows:

Question (Annual Report (=AR) p. 32): Organist payments. We had more activity in 2023, surely, with Jeremy's Christmas service; and yet the payment is less than 2022. Why?

Answer: Fewer rehearsals. The children's "choir church" and the adult choir both came to an end. Jeremy's Christmas service did not cost all that much.

Question (AR p. 33): Energy costs. These have much more than doubled, and it was not a cold winter. I expected the new heating to cut costs. Could we have details please?

Answer: In a word, prices. This is only a sample, but: In mid-2022 electricity was 15.5p per kWh + 37.5p per day. In mid-2023 electricity was 37.5p per kWh + 57.1p per day. In mid-2022 gas was 2.0p per kWh + £1.20 per day. In mid-2023 gas was 8.6p per kWh + £1.95 per day.

There was also high energy use during the reordering work for drying out, though some of this does not hit until 2024 because of estimated meter readings being corrected later.

Question (AR p. 33): Purchase of equipment. I assume this doesn't include the PA/AV equipment: what does it cover?

Answer: The £340 on the general fund was purchase of a laptop to run the online services (the donated Macbook previously used having reached end of life).

Question (AR p. 37): Why is there a separate set of figures (including hire of premises and insurance) from the Reordering fund?

Answer: Because these pages are giving separate figures for each fund. The equipment on the reordering fund was half of the cost of the new chairs (the remainder will be in the 2024 accounts). The hire of premises relates to North Room bookings we had to displace to the Cotton Hall because the builders were occupying the North Room. The insurance was for the contract works policy which we had to have in place during the works.

Question (AR p. 36): Transfers'. I don't understand what this means. Please explain. (I thinktransfers' occurs elsewhere too.)

Answer: This refers to transfers between funds. Every transaction in the general ledger has a fund associated with it, as explained in my notes on page 30. Sometimes you want to move money between funds. Some transfers are not legal (e.g. moving money from a restricted fund to the general fund) but many are. The one you are looking at on page 36 is the annual transfer of £3000 from the general fund to the designated fabric fund so that it can be a sinking fund. Nothing happens in the real world but it changes the fund balance of the assets. Across the accounts as a whole, all of the "transfers" lines should add up to zero (I think you will find that they do....)

Apart from answering these questions, Martyn said that he had nothing to add to what is in the Report. Prices are rising, and it is essential to find additional income to meet this.

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Asked whether money is still set aside for solar panels, Martyn said that the money would be available if a suitable plan for installing them could be arranged. M.B. said that it is very difficult to find to find a firm willing to install solar panels on a heritage building; also, solar panels would only be efficient at times when the church had little need for electricity.

Asked about battery storage of generated electricity, Martyn said that this is not explicitly on our agenda; it would be possible, but no practicable battery would make a significant difference to the church’s electricity bills.

Summarising the financial position, M.B. said that we are fortunate to be operating with a financial surplus, unlike many churches. He thanked Martyn for his work.

8. The external examiner of the accounts. On the proposal of Martyn Johnson, seconded by Wendy Hunter, Jacquie Fisher was re-appointed.

9. Elections to the Parochial Church Council. Caroline Blackmun (nominated by Alastair and seconded by Anne Lorimer) and Mary Chesterfield (nominated by Wendy Hunter and seconded by Anne Lorimer) were elected.

M.B. expressed the meeting’s thanks to Jenny Knights, who steps down from the PCC, and offered prayers for the PCC, especially its new members, in the coming year.

10. Plans for the coming year. M.B. expressed his thanks to all the church members for their contributions to the life of the church. Apart from solar panels, the planned building work is now complete. A new Curate, Kevin Parks, is about to join us, and we are also receiving help from the Rev. Marie Lucchetta-Redmond. Caroline Blackmun will soon become an additional Lay Minister. New worshippers frequently come to St Andrew’s and are welcomed by the existing congregation. 2024 should be a time for more of what we are already doing. He urged church members to continue to pray for the work of the church; to maintain their financial contributions (he pointed out the value of the Parish Giving Scheme); and to encourage people to come to church and see what church members do for one another. PRAY – GIVE – SHARE summed up his message.

11. Any other business. There was none.

M.B. concluded the meeting with prayer.

Annual accounts

For the benefit of those not familiar with the accounting structures of the church, some explanatory notes follow:

Money is sometimes held by the PCC on behalf of some other organisation, most notably the component of statutory fees that belongs to the diocese. These transactions do not appear as income and expenditure in these accounts. Any such funds held at the end of the financial year are recorded as a liability in the balance sheet, indicating that the money held in the bank account does not belong to the PCC.

PCC funds fall into three broad categories: unrestricted, restricted and designated. Unrestricted funds can be used for any purpose the PCC sees fit. Restricted funds represent money that was given for a specific purpose, and we are legally obliged to spend it on that. Designated funds represent money that the PCC has decided to allocate to a purpose, either by formal resolution or general agreement. The introduction of a designated fund helps to

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ensure that the money is ring fenced, whilst retaining the flexibility to reallocate the funds explicitly in the future.

The funds covered in this report are:

● General: The general fund holds all money used for general purposes which is neither restricted nor designated. Most everyday transactions use this fund.

● Churchyard: These are funds intended for the maintenance of the churchyard. It has both restricted and designated components.

● Action Abroad: Money associated with Action Abroad projects. Most of this fund is restricted since it comes from targeted fundraising. Some income was designated in previous years but none in 2024.

● Fabric: This is a designated fund which represents the money that the PCC has set aside as a sinking fund for future fabric maintenance. We aim to transfer funds into it at the end of each year, and spend from it as the need arises (most likely after the quinquennial inspection).

● Legacy: This is a designated fund to hold money received as legacies. Since this is not a regular source of income, the PCC prefers not to rely on it for routine operating costs. This fund helps to keep it separate for use as the PCC decides. Legacies which have spending conditions are accounted as restricted.

● Grants: This is a restricted fund used to hold funds from miscellaneous short term grants that have been received for a specific purpose. Such grants are typically 1-off payments which are spent shortly after being received (or in some cases before), and therefore do not justify creation of a named fund of their own.

● Reordering: Money assigned to the ongoing reordering project. The restricted component represents donations specifically for the project and the designated component is for funds from other sources that the PCC has chosen to allocate to the project.

● Children: This fund is for activities relating to children and family outreach, such as Bobtails and Choir Church. Funds received specifically for these activities are restricted, and supplementary funding from other sources is designated.

For clarity, all amounts are rounded to the nearest pound. This rounding sometimes leads to small discrepancies in the column totals.

The reports that follow are:

● The receipts and payments account for each fund in turn, designated and restricted funds being shown separately. The top level breakdown of the income and expenditure is broadly intended to follow the charities’ statement of recommended practice (SORP), though there is no legal requirement for receipts and payments accounts to do so.

● The balance sheet, showing the assets and liabilities at the end of the year, with a breakdown by fund.

● A fund movement report, giving a 1-page summary of the overall change in each fund over the year.

● A statement of assets and liabilities giving a breakdown of where the funds are actually held.

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Copy of the Independent examiner’s report to the PCC

Independent examiner’s report to the PCC of St Andrews Glebe, Girton

This report on the financial statements of the Girton PCC for the year ended 31 December 2024, which are set out on pages 1 and 2, is in respect of an examination carried out in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations 2006 (“the Regulations”) and section 43 of the Charities Act 1993 (“the Act”).

Respective responsibilities of the PCC and the examiner

As members of the Girton PCC you are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements. You consider that the audit requirement of the Regulations and section 43(2) of the Act do not apply. It is my responsibility to issue this report on those financial statements in accordance with the terms of the Regulations.

Basis of this report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the General Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 43(7)(b) of the Act and to be found in the Church Guidance , 2006 edition, issued by the Finance Division of the Archbishops’ Council. That examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the PCC and a comparison of the accounts with those records. It also includes considering any unusual items or disclosures in the financial statements and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently I do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts.

Independent examiner’s statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:

(1) which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements

– to prepare financial statements, which accord with the accounting records and comply with the requirements of the Act and the Regulations

Jacquie Fisher

Ms Jacquie Fisher FCCA Oleander, 155 Wellbrook Way, Girton 13th February 2025

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Girton PCC - 1189339 Receipts and payments Selected period: 01 January 2024 to 31 December 2024

From 01 January 2024 01 January 2023
Note To 31 December 2024 31 December 2023
General - General fund (Unrestricted) Fund
Income and endowments
Donations and legacies
Collections - loose small cash £2,055 £2,410
Collections - envelopes, cheques etc £894 £1,094
Standing order donations £11,706 £14,796
Donations received via CAF £3,660 £2,680
Parish Giving Scheme income £27,613 £26,532
Donations via card payment services £2,066 £1,115
1-of small cash donations £2,649 £1,346
1-of donations £3,602 £4,279
Income from online merchants — £35
Gift Aid tax recovered direct £5,090 £2,595
Gift Aid recovered by others £6,825 £6,192
Total Donations and legacies £66,161 £63,075
Income from charitable activities
Occasional ofces - statutory PCC fees £2,330 £2,026
Occasional ofces - supplementary items £910 £830
Total Income from charitable activities £3,240 £2,856
Other trading activities
North Room/church hire - fund raising £6,049 £3,777
Parish Ofce hire - fund raising — £1,620
Sales £17 —
Fundraising events £5 £1,815
Total Other trading activities £6,071 £7,212
Investments
Bank and deposit account interest £3,641 £8,378
Income from investments £1,175 £1,157
Rent from lands or buildings £1 £405
Total Investments £4,817 £9,939
Other income
LPOW grants (VAT recovery) £810 —
Parish ofce costs recovered £141 £103
Insurance claims £6,907 —
Sundry income £78 —
Total Other income £7,936 £103
Total income and endowments £88,225 £83,185
Expenditure
Raising funds
Costs of fund raising resources £70 £32
Costs of events — £736
Total Raising funds £70 £768
Expenditure on charitable activities
Giving to other charities £242 £130
Ministry parish share £46,717 £44,908
Parish administrator £250 —
Parish Ofce costs £1,231 £882
IT-related costs £386 £288

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From 01 January 2024 01 January 2023
Note To 31 December 2024 31 December 2023
Working expenses of incumbent £473 —
Organist and choir leader payments £2,956 £3,056
Upkeep of organ £252 £180
Music-related expenses £543 £427
Service costs and consumables £2,317 £1,476
Refreshments at services/events £185 £203
Refund of minor activity expenses £124 £108
Church running - insurance £2,831 £2,864
Church running - electricity £2,151 £2,349
Church running - gas £1,277 £1,710
Church running - water £191 £198
Cleaning of church — £23
Provision of fowers £847 £803
Hire of external venues — £275
Governance costs; examination/audit fee £173 £180
Bank charges £60 £60
Church repairs of storm damage £7,407 —
Church repairs and maintenance £792 £6,831
Purchase of equipment £50 £340
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £71,456 £67,291
Other expenditure
Sundry expenditure £110 —
Total Other expenditure £110 —
Total expenditure £71,636 £68,059
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure £16,589 £15,126
Brought forward balance £69,653 £65,868
Transfers to/(from) (£15,000) (£15,000)
Gains & losses £969 £3,660
Total carried forward balance £72,211 £69,653
Churchyard - Churchyard fund (Designated) Fund
Income and endowments
Income from charitable activities
Occasional ofces - statutory PCC fees £3,652 £4,864
Occasional ofces - supplementary items £450 £540
Total Income from charitable activities £4,102 £5,404
Total income and endowments £4,102 £5,404
Expenditure
Other expenditure
Grave digging payments £480 £420
Total Other expenditure £480 £420
Total expenditure £480 £420
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure £3,622 £4,984
Brought forward balance £9,046 £4,062
Total carried forward balance £12,668 £9,046

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From 01 January 2024 01 January 2023 To 31 December 2024 31 December 2023

Note

Churchyard - Churchyard fund (Restricted) Fund

Income and endowments
Donations and legacies
Standing order donations £200 £200
Total Donations and legacies £200 £200
Investments
Income from investments £2,347 £6,377
Total Investments £2,347 £6,377
Total income and endowments £2,547 £6,577
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Upkeep of churchyard £3,212 £3,248
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £3,212 £3,248
Total expenditure £3,212 £3,248
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure (£665) £3,329
Brought forward balance £71,618 £64,244
Gains & losses £1,077 £4,045
Total carried forward balance £72,030 £71,618
on Abroad (Designated) Fund
Income and endowments
Other trading activities
Parish Ofce hire - fund raising — £180
Total Other trading activities — £180
Total income and endowments — £180
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Giving to other charities £180 £180
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £180 £180
Total expenditure £180 £180
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure (£180) —
Brought forward balance £180 £180
Total carried forward balance — £180

AA - Action Abroad (Designated) Fund

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From 01 January 2024 01 January 2023 To 31 December 2024 31 December 2023

Note

AA - Action Abroad (Restricted) Fund

Income and endowments
Donations and legacies
Donations received via CAF £260 —
1-of small cash donations — £9
1-of donations £1,080 £1,809
Gift Aid tax recovered direct £182 £128
Total Donations and legacies £1,523 £1,946
Other trading activities
Art exhibition entrance fees £487 £285
Art exhibition receipts from sales £5,025 £4,221
Total Other trading activities £5,512 £4,506
Total income and endowments £7,034 £6,452
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Giving to other charities £5,320 £1,300
Refund of minor activity expenses £47 —
Bank charges — £5
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £5,367 £1,305
Other expenditure
Art exhibition payments to artists £3,720 £3,137
Total Other expenditure £3,720 £3,137
Total expenditure £9,087 £4,442
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure (£2,052) £2,009
Brought forward balance £2,110 £100
Total carried forward balance £58 £2,110
abric sinking fund (Designated) Fund
Income and endowments
Donations and legacies
1-of donations — £2,000
Gift Aid tax recovered direct — £500
Total Donations and legacies — £2,500
Other income
LPOW grants (VAT recovery) — £597
Total Other income — £597
Total income and endowments — £3,097
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Church major works (repair) £1,850 £5,980
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £1,850 £5,980
Total expenditure £1,850 £5,980
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure (£1,850) (£2,883)

Fabric - Fabric sinking fund (Designated) Fund

35

From 01 January 2024 01 January 2023
Note To 31 December 2024 31 December 2023
Brought forward balance £11,465 £11,348
Transfers to/(from) £3,000 £3,000
Total carried forward balance £12,614 £11,465
Legacy - Legacy fund (Designated) Fund
Income and endowments
Donations and legacies
Legacies £270 —
Total Donations and legacies £270 —
Total income and endowments £270 —
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Hire of external venues — £46
Church major works (new) £6,301 £10,849
Purchase of equipment £4,586 —
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £10,887 £10,896
Total expenditure £10,887 £10,896
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure (£10,617) (£10,896)
Brought forward balance £40,013 £50,908
Total carried forward balance £29,396 £40,013
Legacy - Legacy fund (Restricted) Fund
Brought forward balance £10,000 £10,000
Total carried forward balance £10,000 £10,000
Grants - Grant funds (Restricted) Fund
Income and endowments
Other income
Grants received £2,000 £301
Total Other income £2,000 £301
Total income and endowments £2,000 £301
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Choir church — £82
Refund of minor activity expenses — £19
Church repairs and maintenance — £2,000
Total Expenditure on charitable activities — £2,101
Total expenditure — £2,101
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure £2,000 (£1,800)
Brought forward balance (£2,000) (£200)
Total carried forward balance — (£2,000)

36

From 01 January 2024 01 January 2023 To 31 December 2024 31 December 2023

Note

Reordering - Reordering fund (Designated) Fund

Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Upkeep of organ — £1,320
Church running - insurance — £288
Hire of external venues — £46
Church major works (new) — £106,891
Purchase of equipment — £4,586
Total Expenditure on charitable activities — £113,132
Total expenditure — £113,132
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure — (£113,132)
Brought forward balance — £113,132
Total carried forward balance — —
ng - Reordering fund (Restricted) Fund
Income and endowments
Donations and legacies
1-of small cash donations — £74
Gift Aid tax recovered direct — £9
Total Donations and legacies — £83
Other income
LPOW grants (VAT recovery) £2,035 £25,165
Grants received — £32,000
Total Other income £2,035 £57,165
Total income and endowments £2,035 £57,248
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Church major works (new) £1,968 £92,590
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £1,968 £92,590
Total expenditure £1,968 £92,590
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure £67 (£35,342)
Brought forward balance — £35,342
Total carried forward balance £67 —

Reordering - Reordering fund (Restricted) Fund

37

From 01 January 2024 01 January 2023 To 31 December 2024 31 December 2023

Note

Children - Children and families support (Designated) Fund

Income and endowments

Income and endowments
Donations and legacies
Donations via card payment services £746 £807
1-of small cash donations £219 £442
Gift Aid tax recovered direct £278 £242
Total Donations and legacies £1,242 £1,491
Other income
Grants received £2,612 —
Sundry income £70 £120
Total Other income £2,682 £120
Total income and endowments £3,924 £1,611
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Refund of minor activity expenses £256 £166
Miscellaneous stafng expenses £40 —
Children and families minister £14,703 £12,934
Hire of external venues £989 £812
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £15,988 £13,913
Other expenditure
Sundry expenditure — £125
Total Other expenditure — £125
Total expenditure £15,988 £14,038
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure (£12,064) (£12,427)
Brought forward balance £371 £797
Transfers to/(from) £12,000 £12,000
Total carried forward balance £307 £371

Children - Children and families support (Restricted) Fund

Income and endowments
Other income
Grants received £3,532 £4,616
Total Other income £3,532 £4,616
Total income and endowments £3,532 £4,616
Expenditure
Expenditure on charitable activities
Refund of minor activity expenses £68 £129
Children and families minister £2,777 £4,535
Hire of external venues — £68
Total Expenditure on charitable activities £2,845 £4,731
Total expenditure £2,845 £4,731
Excess of Income and endowments over Expenditure £687 (£115)
Brought forward balance £81 £196
Total carried forward balance £768 £81

38

Girton PCC - 1189339

Balance sheet (Church of England) As at: 31 December 2024

£
As at 31/12/2024		 £
As at 31/12/2023
Fixed assets
Investments
Current assets
Cash at bank and in hand
Liabilities
Creditors: Amounts falling due in one year
Net current assets less current liabilities
Total assets less current liabilities
Total net assets less liabilities
Represented by
Unrestricted
Unrestricted - General fund
Designated
Designated - Churchyard fund
Designated - Action Abroad
Designated - Fabric sinking fund
Designated - Legacy fund
Designated - Reordering fund
Designated - Children and families support
Restricted
Restricted - Churchyard fund
Restricted - Action Abroad
Restricted - Legacy fund
Restricted - Grant funds
Restricted - Reordering fund
Restricted - Children and families support
Restricted - Agency collection
Funds of the church		 £111,404
£111,404
£98,715
£98,715
—
£98,715
£210,120
£210,120
£72,211
£12,668
—
£12,614
£29,396
—
£307
£72,030
£58
£10,000
—
£67
£768
—
£210,120		 £109,359
£109,359
£105,010
£105,010
£1,832
£103,178
£212,537
£212,537
£69,653
£9,046
£180
£11,465
£40,013
—
£371
£71,618
£2,110
£10,000
(£2,000)
—
£81
—
£212,537

39

Girton PCC - 1189339

Fund movement by type Selected period: 01 January 2024 to 31 December 2024

Fund and type Fund balances Incoming Outgoing Transfers Gains and Journal Fund balances
brought forward Resources Resources Losses Entries carried forward
General
Unrestricted £69,653 £88,225 £71,636 (£15,000) £969 — £72,211
Sub-totals £69,653 £88,225 £71,636 (£15,000) £969 — £72,211
Churchyard
Designated £9,046 £4,102 £480 — — — £12,668
Restricted £71,618 £2,547 £3,212 — £1,077 — £72,030
Sub-totals £80,664 £6,649 £3,692 — £1,077 — £84,698
AA
Designated £180 — £180 — — — —
Restricted £2,110 £7,034 £9,087 — — — £58
Sub-totals £2,290 £7,034 £9,267 — — — £58
Fabric
Designated £11,465 — £1,850 £3,000 — — £12,614
Sub-totals £11,465 — £1,850 £3,000 — — £12,614
Legacy
Designated £40,013 £270 £10,887 — — — £29,396
Restricted £10,000 — — — — — £10,000
Sub-totals £50,013 £270 £10,887 — — — £39,396
Grants
Restricted (£2,000) £2,000 — — — — —
Sub-totals (£2,000) £2,000 — — — — —
Reordering
Designated — — — — — — —
Restricted — £2,035 £1,968 — — — £67
Sub-totals — £2,035 £1,968 — — — £67
Children
Designated £371 £3,924 £15,988 £12,000 — — £307
Restricted £81 £3,532 £2,845 — — — £768
Sub-totals £452 £7,456 £18,833 £12,000 — — £1,075
Totals £212,537 £113,670 £118,133 — £2,045 — £210,120

40

Girton PCC - 1189339

Statement of Assets and Liabilities (by code) As at: 31 December 2024

Class and nominal code General Designated Restricted Endowment Total Last year
Fixed assets - Investments
6431 : CBF CofE Investment Fund £31,678 — — — £31,678 £30,969
Income Shares
6432 : G002 Girton Rector & £11,608 — — — £11,608 £11,348
Churchwardens
6433 : G008 Girton Farey Trust — — £20,000 — £20,000 £20,000
6434 : G017 Girton Skinner Trust — — £22,637 — £22,637 £22,131
6435 : G009 Girton Gutsell Grave — — £25,481 — £25,481 £24,911
Trust
Total £43,286 — £68,118 — £111,404 £109,359
Current assets - Cash at bank and in hand
6501 : Bank current account £3,555 £3,577 £902 — £8,033 £8,926
6510 : CCLA (CBF) general deposit £25,363 £51,408 £13,903 — £90,674 £96,051
6590 : Cash and cheques in hand £8 — — — £8 £32
Total £28,926 £54,985 £14,805 — £98,715 £105,010
Liabilities - Agency accounts
6699 : Agency collections — — — — — £1,832
Total — — — — — £1,832
Net total assets £72,211 £54,985 £82,923 — £210,120 £212,537
Represented by
Unrestricted - General £72,211 — — — £72,211 £69,653
Designated - Churchyard — £12,668 — — £12,668 £9,046
Designated - AA — — — — — £180
Designated - Fabric — £12,614 — — £12,614 £11,465
Designated - Legacy — £29,396 — — £29,396 £40,013
Designated - Children — £307 — — £307 £371
Restricted - Churchyard — — £72,030 — £72,030 £71,618
Restricted - AA — — £58 — £58 £2,110
Restricted - Legacy — — £10,000 — £10,000 £10,000
Restricted - Grants — — — — — (£2,000)
Restricted - Reordering — — £67 — £67 —
Restricted - Children — — £768 — £768 £81
Total £72,211 £54,985 £82,923 — £210,120 £212,537

41

Registered charity no: 1189339

www.girton.church | rector@girton.church | 01223 202 145 42 Church Lane, Girton, Cambridge, CB3 0JP