## Trustee report for the period ending 31st August 2023 ## **Charity registration number: 1193816** ## **Reference and Administrative Details.** ## **Trustees:** David Brian Jones (Deacon) Terence Mason (Deacon) Rhydian James Davies Mrs Helen Daniels ## **Treasurer:** Mrs Beverly Bowditch **Interim Pastor:** David Jones **Principal address:** Bethany Baptist Church Ynyshir Road Ynyshir Porth CF39 0EL ## **Registered Name:** Bethany Baptist Church, Ynyshir ## **Bankers:** Barclays Bank. 100-101 Bute Street Treorchy CF42 6AN ## **Structure, governance and management** ## **Nature of governing document** Bethany Baptist Church, Ynyshir is governed by its constitution document. The Church received charity status as CIO from the Charity Commission on 15/3/2021 The constitution states that Bethany is a bible believing Baptist Church, faithfully preaching the Word of God and firmly rooted in Christ. Church Members and congregation meet together every Sunday for service morning and evening. The Lord’s Supper, Holy communion is observed on the first Sunday of every month. Recruitment process and qualifications of Church workers and officers are provided in the constitution. Recruitment of trustees are proposed and appointed at a Church meeting. AGM and other Church business meetings normally take place bi-annually attended by members and wider congregation. Our Church is led, after the prayerful seeking of the will of God, by the pastor, deacons and leadership team. Leadership team meetings held regularly. Income is generated by Church attendees giving tithes, free will offerings and monetary gifts of love. ## **Objectives and Activities** Bethany Baptist Church, Ynyshir has a vision to ‘see every seat filled’ and grow as bible believing Church. To preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, and to serve and help our local community, demonstrating the love of Christ. We hope that being an active presence in our locality will help and benefit our community. A good welcome is extended to all. Many visitors to our Church comment on the genuine love, compassion and friendliness felt when they attend. The church’s strategy for accomplishing and fulfilling its charitable objective focuses on the activities undertaken through its various ministries. Current ministries are:- - [Sunday worship services. - The Church meets for worship services twice every Sunday, ] at 10:30am and at 6:00pm. Services are open to all. We continue to record our services and these are available to view on social media platforms for those who cannot attend. - [Sunday school - The Church provides Sunday school each Sunday morning at 10:30am ] and all children from age 2 -16 are welcome. Currently, we have three classes run by three teachers, split by age groups and are attended by between 10 - 17 children, sometimes more. The children enjoy bible stories, singing, crafts and friendship. We have had feedback from some non Christian parents who send their children saying that they love the morality and kindness taught and encourgaged at Sunday School. All teachers are DBS checked. The children take part performing their own programme in the family services at Christmas and Easter. - [Prayer meeting and bible study - On Monday evenings the Church comes together to ] pray for all needs that have been brought by the congregation, and to study the scriptures conducted by our interim Pastor David. WhatsApp group chats were set up during 2020 to keep contact with our congregation and to pray, share concerns and provide encouragement. The group chats proved a great success and continue to this day. - [Community breakfast - On Monday mornings, our Church opens up to provide free ] breakfast, teas and coffee for all those in our local community. This is a wonderful ministry attended by all ages and people from all backgrounds. - [Squiggles - Our Church provides a free parent/guardian baby/toddlers group run by ] Church workers every Wednesday morning. Well attended for fun playtime, songs and community fellowship. - [Sisterhood - Meeting every Wednesday afternoon. Faithfully attended by ladies from our ] Church congregation and open to the wider community. Providing encouragement through devotions, pray, friendship, song and sharing. - [Thursday morning coffee morning - Attended by ladies from the congregation or wider ] community for chat, companionship and support. - [Messy Church fun time event provided every month to encourage children and their ] families who attend and to introduce them to Jesus through creativity, fun, celebration and hospitality. Each session ends with a family sit-down meal together catered for by the local chip shop. ## **Achievements and performance** We conducted a special Harvest service on 2nd October 2022 that was well attended. Attendees brought tinned and packet food items that were donated to our local food bank in Tylorstown. On Sunday November 13th 2022, our Pastor conducted the annual open air Remembrance Service at Ynyshir cenotaph in conjunction with the members of the British Legion. This is a very well attended community event with many local groups taking part to lay wreaths in remembrance of those lost in the wars Britain has been involved with. On the 18th December 2022 our Sunday school children performed their Christmas nativity programme followed by the Bethany choir proclaiming the Word of God through song. Again this was well attended and enjoyed by all. On Christmas Eve we held a community candlelit carol service. This was a particularly successful and very well attended. On Christmas Day we held our Christmas Day worship, communion and celebration service. We had an upgrade and refurbishment to our male/female and disabled toilets in the week commencing 26th February 2023. An evening service was held on Good Friday 7th April 2023 to begin our Easter weekend. On Easter Sunday 9th April, our Sunday school performed their Easter play and songs in the morning service and Challenge Valleys (a charity providing support to those living with life controlling addictions) gave a presentation in the evening Service. We hosted a tea party for King Charles’s Coronation on Sunday 7th May 2023. On the 18th May 2023 our Church hosted a food allergen course and on 23rd May 2023 our Church hosted a food hygiene course for the wider community facilitated by RCTCBC environmental services. Both courses well attended and attendees who completed the On Monday 15th May 2023, Asad, a missionary that we support from India took the service, preaching the gospel and providing an update on his work in India. ## **Our Church building is open to local organisations/groups.** Each Wednesday evening members of St John’s Ambulance hold their meetings at Bethany Baptist Church for training and other associated activities. - https:// www.sjacymru.org.uk/ Our Church building is used to host polling for Local government and general elections. Our Church actively supports our local food bank based in Tylorstown, with many of our congregation donating food and monetary gifts. Some Church members volunteer their time to work in the food bank, forging stronger links with our community. We also use donated food parcels, collected by our Church congregation, to give to those in desperate need in the Ynyshir area, as it is sometimes difficult for those most in need, to travel to the food bank in Tylorstown to collect the food parcels. This demonstrates Christian love and compassion which benefits our local community and meets our charity objective. Our Church has hosted a number of funerals conducted by our interim Pastor David. Pastoral provision and practical support - Our Pastor, his wife and deacons (and other members of our church) provide support, spiritual counsel and encouragement not only to our own church congregation but to the wider community when needed. This can be by home or hospital visitation, shopping, offers of help and support in any way that is needed and contact by telephone/text etc. Supporting Christian missions and missionaries. - Our Church supports, at present, five Christian faith based missions in UK and overseas. We as a Church pray for their work in giving the Gospel in challenging situations and we send monetary gifts - some monthly and others Bi-annually. ## **Plans for the future** Due to partnership links made through St John’s Ambulance, our Church plans to provide free of charge defibrillator courses for the wider community. This is planned for late 2023. Plans for further free food hygiene and food allergen courses are also in the pipeline. Valley Steps mental health charity, plan to hold weekly wellbeing courses over 6 weeks for the community and referrals/signposts from GP’s and other organisations. This is set for early 2024. - https://valleyssteps.org/ Challenge Valleys have plans to hold weekly support surgeries at our Church on a drop-in basis. This will be open to all who are struggling with life controlling addictions or dependencies. This will be a great asset to our community as there is a great need for this support around the locality. This support service is set to begin in early 2024. - https:// challengevalleys.org.uk/ We have a vision to make improvements to the access at the steep incline at the back of our Church. This will provide ease of access for those less able to manage the stairs to our main Church hall. Our Church is on two levels, the ground floor which houses the kitchen, office, toilets and large space used for Sunday School and some mid-week meetings. The upper floor is the main Church hall where all Sunday Services, specials meetings and funerals/weddings etc take place. This is currently accessed by a flight of stairs and a stairlift for those who need it. Access directly into the upper floor, from the elevation at the back of our Church, will be of great benefit and make it much easier for those who struggle with stairs and especially for all funerals/weddings etc. Planning and funding routes are still being investigated at present. Our interim Pastor David Jones is, and has always been, a wonderful Pastor and shepherd to our Church but wishes to move aside for a new Pastor to take our Church into the future, spreading the Good news of Jesus for the benefit of our surrounding communities. Our Church is actively seeking the will of God, by earnest prayer, to supply a full time Pastor and wife to lead and grow our Church for the future. We have been approached by a wonderful man of God who has expressed an interest in becoming our Pastor and he has a vision for our Church. We will update on this progress in our next report. With a New Pastor, our Church hopes to expand our children's ministries and start a youth ministry - as there is great need for the young people in Ynyshir and surrounding area. We also hope to provide a 4 o’clock Sunday service once a month to attract those who cannot attend mornings or evenings. These will begin in 2024. We are a small Church with a big heart for our community who faithfully serves the Lord ## **Declaration** Report signed on behalf of trustees of Bethany Baptist Church, Ynyshir Mrs Helen Daniels Mr David B Jones Bethany Baptist Church Yn}'shir Road Porth CF39 OEL Statement of Accounts For the p¢riod 1° September 2022 to 31. August 2023 Barrie Collier Arr 60 Alban) Street Ferndale. R.l.T. CF43 4SL Bethany English Baptist Church Balance Sheet For the year ended 31 August 2023 2023 2022 FIXED ASSETS Freehold Pmperty 25,0 25,000 CURRENT ASSErs Bank Cuffent account 8ank Premium account Cash 65.731 18,T69 200 59,999 t8,690 20 84, 700 78,709 CURRENTLIABILITIES AcGnJals {200) {200) NET ASSETS 78. 109,500 103,509 Represented by,. Capital Account Opening Balance Profrt & Loss a￿)unt Interest Received Capit81 int 103.509 5,991 91,535 11,891 81 109,500 103,509 Bethany Baptist Church Ynyshir ' Profit And Loss Account For the year ended 31 August 2023 2023 2022 Income Offerings & Donations 26.510 31. 142 26,510 26.510 31, 142 31.142 Gross profit Expenses Accountants fees Bibles Breakfast & Shop Church Receipts Cleaning Donations Equipment expensed Flowers & Crafts Grfts Insurance Light & Heating Messy Church Pastor/Preacher Postage & Stationery Repairs & Maintenan Sundry expenses Telephones Water Rates Xmas DecoTrtions Youth Challenge (200) (90) (1.594) (115) (975) (2,000) (383) {27) (200) (943) (1, 704) (542) (6. 185) (233) (3,430) (557) (567) (274) (300) (200) (2(￿) (1,319) (772) (2, 962) (1,240) (211) (838) (1.680) (6, 350) (166) (2, 545) (131) (588) (249) (20.519) (79,251) Net 5,991 11,891 Page1of1 CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examinerfs report on the accounts Section A Independent Examinef s Report Report to the trustees C//k:.2IA On accounts for the year ended Charity no (if any) 119 J91 Set out on pages I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (Ihe Trust.) for the year ended Responsibilities and basis of report As the charity's trustees, you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (Ihe Acr) I report in resFerl of my examination of the Trust's accounts Carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carying out my examination, I have followed all the apFlicable Directions given by the Chaiity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Ad. Independent examina￿S statement u I have completed my examination. I confimi that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination (other than that disclosed below ") vthich gives me cause to believe that in, any material respecL' I have no cOn￿mS and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should Ix drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. . Please delete the words in the brackets rfthey do not appty. Signed: ¥Lr. Date: Name: Relevant professlonal qualification(s) or body IER Oct 2018 (if any): Address: CE ¢J Section B Disclosure Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight matenal matters of GOn￿M (see CC32, Independent examination of tharity a￿Ounts. directions and guidan￿ for examiners). Give here brief details of any itsms that the examiner wishes to disclose. IER Oct 2018