## Revelation Church Manchester Report and Accounts Year ended 31 August 2023 1 Lamb's Passage, London EC1Y 8AB www.stewardship.org.uk ## **REVELATION CHURCH MANCHESTER** ## **LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023** ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE 32 Morrell Road Manchester M22 4WH GOVERNING DOCUMENT CIO Constitution dated October 2020 CHARITY REGISTRATION NUMBER 1191914 TRUSTEES RESPONSIBLE FOR Robin Cox MANAGING THE CHARITY Azzurra Caltabiano Leigh Tarver BANKERS Co-operative bank INDEPENDENT EXAMINER Jaimée Young Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB ## **INDEX** Page 1 Legal and Administrative Details Pages 2-5 Trustees' Report Page 6 Independent Examiner's Report Page 7 Receipts and Payments Account Page 8 Statement of Assets & Liabilities Page 9 Notes to the Accounts Page 1 ## Revelation Church Manchester Trustees’ Annual Report, 1st September 2022 - 31st August 2023 The year 2022/23 was the third year of operating in our mission of seeing the Kingdom of God advanced in Greater Manchester. Following on from 2021/22, we had another year of continued growth both in our congregation numbers and financially. As well as numerical growth, we’re encouraged to see our congregation strengthening in their faith. We’re seeking to be a church that makes a positive impact in Manchester, and an increased depth and maturity in our community paired with increased resources means we have greater opportunity than before to reach Manchester with the good news of Jesus. In planning the activities the Trustees have applied the guidance on public benefit issued by the Charity Commission. ## **Sunday Meetings** Our Sunday meetings continue to be the highlight of our week, with vibrant and expressive worship as well as faithful and relevant Bible teaching. We particularly value prolonged time after the service to build community and have seen more and more people seeking faith join our services and feel welcomed into the community as they explore the Christian faith. The growth we saw last year continued to an average congregation size of **125** adults and **20** under-18s. ## **Youth & Children’s Work** We continue to offer very good provision for 0-11yrs on a Sunday morning, with two age groups meeting for the whole service. Helping young children know God for themselves is a vital part of our ministry, so in their groups they enjoy Bible teaching, prayer times, craft activities and games all designed to help grow their knowledge of God. In September 2022 we launched a youth group for 11-18yr olds as part of our Sunday meeting, along with a new Youth team to serve them. There are regularly between 4-8 young people part of this group, and we’ve seen a strengthening community among the young people and the team. Our young people are clearly growing in their own relationships with God and are regularly coming to the team to ask advice and share problems they’re facing. ## **Leadership Team** We’ve always wanted the church to be led by a team. As we’ve grown and become more established, it felt the right time to establish a formal leadership team. We want to ensure the way the church is led is transparent and also ensures optimal health of both the church and those involved in leading. Over Spring 2023 we outlined our beliefs on church leadership from the Bible to the congregation and shared our intention to appoint a team of men and women to lead the church. In May 2023, a team of 4 was formally appointed with the intent of growing the team in 2024. Page 2 ## **Celebrating Diversity** One of the defining features of our community is the cultural diversity in the church. On any given Sunday in 2022/23 our congregation would be over 50% non-British nationals from around 25 different nationalities. To truly celebrate this, in March 2023 we hosted our first Nations Sunday. This was a service with songs in different languages and styles reflecting our different nations, and everyone was encouraged to come in clothes representing the nation they feel most associated with. This was followed by a big ‘bring and share’ lunch, with over 100 dishes of traditional food from many nations contributed by the congregation. This was a huge success (particularly the food!), and we plan to make it an annual event. ## **Gospel advance** Our mission is to see people grow as disciples of Jesus Christ, and we believe the Bible speaks of baptism in water as a very big part of that journey. In 2022/23 we had the privilege of baptising **8** people who have made a decision to follow Jesus, and we are believing we’ll baptise more in 2023/24! ## **Midweek development** We want to be a church that shares all of life together and helps one another in all seasons of life. In 2022/23, our midweek Home Groups continued to be the main place where relationships deepen, pastoral care is provided and there is opportunity to give new things a go. In September 2022 we also launched our Church Bible Study - a monthly midweek time for the whole church to gather and study the Bible together. It’s an opportunity to be equipped to confidently read the Bible and grow in understanding, as well as another space for relationships to strengthen. ## **Outreach** We are committed to reaching Manchester with the good news of Jesus. This year a small and informal outreach group began, which was an initiative of 8 people in the church with a passion for evangelism. They have begun to regularly go out into Manchester to share about Jesus, and already have stories to tell of good conversations about the gospel and some committing to following Jesus as they pray on the streets. We will continue to profile and grow this group in the coming year. In December 2022 we hosted our annual Carol service, inviting many who wouldn’t usually go to church through outreach in the city centre and equipping the church with flyers to invite friends and family. We welcomed over 180 people, including children, to our Carols event where we celebrated the joy of Christmas, sang familiar carols and shared festive refreshments afterwards. Page 3 ## **Staff & Volunteers** Our staff team continues to grow, giving us extra capacity to fulfil our mission. By the end of 2022/23, we have two full time paid staff and two working part time. Additionally, we had a volunteer working one day per week and one volunteer doing our OneThing discipleship year - offering two days of volunteer work to the church. ## **Generosity** We continue to partner with Barnabus, a highly respected Christian charity reaching out to the homeless in the city. In total we supported them with **£1,011** over the year. We are committed to being in relationship with other churches and we continued to support Grace Connection, our network of churches, with **£4,800** over the year. We also supported individuals in our church family with gifts of money for emergency relief. In total we gave **£6,031** to causes outside of our own charitable activities - 6% of our total expenditure. In 2021/22 our finances were bolstered by a general offering which we intended to use, in part, to give to causes in Manchester and global relief. We were able to give away less this year, but already in 2023/24 we have committed to taking an offering to serve Manchester, with over 50% of the income to be given away as we seek to bless the city. ## **Financial Review** Our finances at the end of August 2023 are very strong. All of our income comes from member donations (and subsequent Gift Aid) and we have an increasing number of donors contributing significant ongoing amounts, reducing our exposure if circumstances of individuals change. While our overall annual income actually decreased, much of the income in 2021/22 came from a one-off offering. This year, without a special offering, we saw a healthy increase in ongoing monthly donations. As an example, our regular monthly donations from March to August 2023 averaged **£9,150** , compared to an average of £6,100 from the same period in 2022. The trustees have determined that the charity should aim to hold unrestricted cash of no less than £24,000 (which equates to roughly 3 months of budgeted expenditure) so that the charity could continue to operate should income and / or expenditure vary adversely. At the year end, the charity held unrestricted cash of £50,416 and the charity is holding excess funds for the purpose of investing in future opportunities in line with our charitable purposes. Page 4 ## **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: ## Robin Cox Robin Cox (Jun 18, 2024 16:07 GMT+1) __________ Robin Cox > Date: Jun 18, 2024 Page 5 ## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT** ## **TO THE TRUSTEES OF** ## **REVELATION CHURCH MANCHESTER** I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of Revelation Church Manchester ('the charity') for the year ended 31 August 2023 on pages 7 to 9 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. Jaimée Young (Jun 19, 2024 13:20 GMT+1)Jaimée Young Jaimée Young Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage LONDON EC1Y 8AB > Date: Jun 19, 2024 Page 6 ## **REVELATION CHURCH MANCHESTER** ## **RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT** ## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023** ||||||||Unrestricted|Funds||||| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| ||||||||General|Designated||Restricted|Total|Total| ||||||||Funds||Funds|Funds|2023|2022| |||||||Notes|£||£|£|£|£| |**_Income receipts_**||||||||||||| |Donations|||||||94,605||-|-|94,605|88,271| |Gift aid receipts|||||||9,387||-|-|9,387|15,660| |Other grants|||||||181||-|-|181|16,620| |Other|||||||358||-|-|358|10| |**_Total receipts_**|||||||104,531||-|-|104,531|120,562| |**_Payments_**||||||||||||| |Payments
in
relation
to
activities undertaken directly||||charitable||2|103,249||-|-|103,249|69,519| |Grants
paid
in
relation
to
activities undertaken by others||||charitable||3|6,031||-|-|6,031|9,372| |**_Total payments_**|||||||109,280||-|-|109,280|78,891| |Net
of
receipts
/
transfers||(payments)|||before||(4,748)||-|-|(4,748)|41,671| |**Net movement in funds**|||||||(4,748)||-|-|(4,748)|41,671| |Cash funds as at|last|year|end||||55,165||-|-|55,165|13,494| |**Cash funds at this year end**||||||A|50,416||-|-|50,416|55,165| The notes on page 9 form part of these accounts. Page 7 ## **REVELATION CHURCH MANCHESTER** ## **STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES** ## **AS AT THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023** |**A**
**Cash funds**
Cash at bank with immediate access
**B**
**Other monetary assets**
Gift aid due to charity
Other debtors
**C**
**Liabilities**
**Falling due within one year:**
Pension
Fee for Independent Examination
Accrued expenses
**D**
**Assets retained for charity's own use**
Contents and equipment|General
Designated
funds
funds
£
£
50,416
-
**50,416**
**-**
12,561
-
1,181
-
**13,742**
**-**
817
-
1,080
-
54
-
**1,951**
**-**
Unrestricted Funds|Restricted
funds
£
-
**-**
-
-
**-**
-
-
-
**-**
Fund to
which asset
belongs
General|Total
2023
£
50,416
**50,416**
12,561
1,181
**13,742**
817
1,080
54
**1,951**
Value
2023
£
26,711
**26,711**|Total
2022
£| |---|---|---|---|---| |||||55,165| |||||**55,165**| |||||3,649
376| |||||**4,025**| |||||548
912
1,075| |||||**2,535**| |||||Value
2022
£| |||||23,158| |||||**23,158**| Current values have been estimated by the trustees, based on purchase price of equipment. ## **E 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 **----- Start of picture text -----**
Robin Cox Jun 18, 2024
by Robin Cox (Jun 18, 2024 16:07 GMT+1) ___________________________ date ____________
Robin Cox
**----- End of picture text -----**
The notes on page 9 form part of these accounts. Page 8 ## **REVELATION CHURCH MANCHESTER** ## **NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS** ## **FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2023** ## **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. |**2**
**Payments in relation to charitable activities undertaken directly**
Employment costs
Staff training and expenses
Venue hire
Repairs, maintenance and equipment
Sounds, visual and worship
Ministry expenses
Insurance
Legal and professional fees
Administration and support
Other costs
**3**
**Grants and gifts paid to others**
Organisations:
Grace Church Nottingham [Grace Connection]
Ukraine Appeal [run by Stewardship]
Barnabus (Manchester)
Individuals||Unrestricte|Designated
funds
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
d Funds|Restricted
Funds
£
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-|Total
2023
£
61,900
2,411
14,930
4,195
2,770
8,369
662
955
6,867
190
103,249
4,800
-
1,011
220
6,031|Total
2022
£| |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| |||||||40,023
808
10,065
3,822
3,730
4,127
419
760
5,657
108| |||||||69,519| |||||||6,184
1,000
1,960
228| |||||||9,372| ## **Transactions with related parties** No payments were made to trustees or persons related to them, except for reimbursement of expenses paid out on behalf of the charity. Page 9