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2023-12-31-accounts

The Parochial Church Council of Penny Lane St Barnabas

Annual Report For the Year Ended 31 December 2023

Penny Lane St Barnabas Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

CHARITY INFORMATION ................................................................................................... 3 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES ..................................................................................................... 4 STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT .............................................................. 4 STANDING COMMITTEE ............................................................................................................ 5 PCC .......................................................................................................................................... 5 STATEMENT OF PCC RESPONSIBILITES ....................................................................................... 6 STAFF CHANGES ....................................................................................................................... 6 ELECTORAL ROLL ...................................................................................................................... 6 BUILDINGS AND MAINTENANCE ....................................................................................... 6 REVIEW OF ACTIVITIES ...................................................................................................... 7 WORSHIP AND CREATIVE .......................................................................................................... 7 KIDS AND FAMILIES’ MINISTRY ................................................................................................. 8 SAFEGUARDING ....................................................................................................................... 8 YOUTH ..................................................................................................................................... 8 STUDENTS ................................................................................................................................ 9 SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION..................................................................................................... 10 PLANS FOR THE YEAR AHEAD .......................................................................................... 10 Sundays - a new service? ........................................................................................................ 10 Trios ...................................................................................................................................... 11 Worship and prayer ................................................................................................................ 11 FINANCIAL REVIEW ......................................................................................................... 11 INVESTMENT POLICY .............................................................................................................. 12 RESERVES ............................................................................................................................... 12 RISK ASSESSMENT .................................................................................................................. 12 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................. 12 What else? ............................................................................................................................. 12 Presence ................................................................................................................................ 12 Simplicity ............................................................................................................................... 12 Health .................................................................................................................................... 13 FINANCIAL REPORTS ....................................................................................................... 14

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Penny Lane St Barnabas Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

CHARITY INFORMATION

OPERATING NAME

Penny Lane Church

INCUMBENT

Revd Alex Rayment

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

Ajay Rajani FCIE Stewardship, 1 Lamb’s Passage, London, EC1Y 8AB

BANKERS

Barclays Bank plc LIVERPOOL SOUTH, Leicestershire, Leicester LE87 2BB

PRINCIPAL OFFICE

St Barnabas Penny Lane 1 Carsdale Road Liverpool Merseyside L18 1LZ

Charity Registration Number 1194669

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Penny Lane St Barnabas

Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

The Members of the Parochial Church Council (the 'PCC'), who are the charity's trustees for the purposes of charity law, have pleasure in presenting their report together with the financial statements for the year.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

St Barnabas Penny Lane’s PCC has the responsibility of co-operating with the Incumbent and the Leadership Team in promoting in the parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. In particular it aims to encourage the Church family towards the vision of a Church which:

01 — CREATES

All people have creativity in their bones, it is what makes us human. We want to be a place where the creative is nurtured and nourished and where art is made and displayed.

02 — HOPES

Hope is being bold enough to long for a future nothing like our present. We need to be a community that longs for the things not yet seen, prays for the shaping of things to come and longs to see heaven invade earth.

03 — BELONGS

This church will be one where any one can come and feel at home. The first Jesus-inspired communities met in homes and grew out of love and care for one another. We are longing to be a people that puts its efforts into calling everyone into belonging to a community that cares, challenges and encourages us to be more than we could be alone.

It also has maintenance responsibilities for the Church and the Church Vicarage, 1 Carsdale Road, Liverpool L18 1LZ

STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT

The charity registered with the Charity Commission on 3 June 2021 and operates under the Charities Act 2011. Prior to 3 June 2021 the charity was an excepted from the obligation to register. The governing documents for the charity are the Parochial Church Councils (Powers) Measure 1956 (as amended) and the Church Representation Rules.

Members of the PCC are either ex-officio or elected by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) in accordance with the Church Representation Rules.

Responsibility for setting policy and for determining the parameters within which the PCC should operate rests with the PCC who meet regularly to monitor the activities of the charity. Responsibility for the day to day operation of the charity has been delegated to a management team led by the incumbent.

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Penny Lane St Barnabas

Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

During the year the following served as members of the PCC:

Incumbent: Revd Alex Rayment Curate: Revd Kirsty White (appointed 27 June 2021) Revd Andrew Bailey (appointed 24 June 2023) Warden: David Lever (appointed 17 May 2021) Dom Knower (appointed 24 April 2023)

Representatives on Deanery Synod: Peter Franklin (appointed 24 April 2023) Ben Hyde (resigned 1 February 2023)

Elected Members:

Carys Anderson (appointed 17 May 2021) Dominic Knower (appointed 28 March 2022) Andres Florez (appointed 17 May 2021) Liz Kaddour (appointed 17 May 2021) Daisy Mitchell (appointed 17 May 2021) Peter Franklin (appointed 17 May 2021) Caroline Fox (resigned 24 April 2023) Catherine Rogers (appointed 24 April 2023) Jacob Vestergaard (appointed 24 April 2024) Jen Burgess (appointed 24 April 2024) Eliot Rice (resigned 14 Nov 2023) Harvey Leese (resigned 9 February 2023)

In attendance: Emily Nelson (PCC Secretary)

STANDING COMMITTEE

This is the only committee required by law.

Terms of reference

Members: Revd Alex Rayment (Vicar), David Lever (Churchwarden), Dom Knower (Churchwarden), Andres Florez (Treasurer), Emily Nelson (Operations Director)

PCC

The full PCC met six times during the year to deal with normal business. The Standing Committee met as and when necessary and their deliberations were received by the full PCC and fully discussed when appropriate.

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Penny Lane St Barnabas

Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

STATEMENT OF PCC RESPONSIBILITES

The PCC is responsible for preparing the Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Charity law requires the PCC to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of the affairs of the charity as at the balance sheet date and of its incoming resources and application of resources for the financial year. In preparing these financial statements, the PCC are required to:

  1. select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently;

  2. observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;

  3. make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

  4. state whether the applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and

  5. prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.

The PCC is responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011 and the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

STAFF CHANGES

During the year Hannah joined the team as Community Engagement Lead (formally the role of Social Transformation Coordinator), Rachel joined as Youth Pastor (Rising Generations), Laura joined as Maternity cover for Jennie as Kids and Families Pastor.

ELECTORAL ROLL

There were 88 names on the Electoral Roll in 2023.

BUILDINGS AND MAINTENANCE

2023 was a quiet year with regard to improvement works as no major repairs were needed. The main activities are noted below.

Fire Risk assessment was complete for both the Main Church and the old Vicarage.

Church Internal

No works were done in the church.

Church External

  1. Roof slates were replaced after a leak occurred during a major storm

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Penny Lane St Barnabas Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

Church Vicarage

  1. One room and the front and back entrances were re-decorated.

Outstanding Works to be Completed

  1. Rainwater Goods maintenance needed.

  2. Evidence of a leak in the tower roof to be assessed and repaired as necessary.

  3. Upgrade to the fire safety measures in the Vicarage.

Quinquennial Inspection

The next quinquennial inspection for the church building is due this year .

REVIEW OF ACTIVITIES

In planning the activities, the Trustees have applied the guidance on public benefit issued by the Charity Commission.

WORSHIP AND CREATIVE

The last year has been a great one for us in the Worship/Production team, we have grown in number, last year I said we had 20 in our team, we ended the year with 40! Which is so good to take a moment to stop and look back on what God has been doing in and through all of our amazing volunteers that serve week in and week out to help lead this church in worship.

Recently we have felt such a breakthrough in worship, there has been such a hunger to worship within the team and we have noticed this on Sundays at church! It is the most exciting thing to see God moving and we want to be even more expectant and pray even more for the spirit to move!

I felt we had coasted our expectancy for a little while but God has broken through that and we are seeing him move in such powerful ways when we worship together.

We started ‘house worship’ where we gather as worship team in peoples houses simply to worship for 1 hour with no agenda other than to pursue Jesus and give space to worship, I am excited about these times and believe worship can restore homes, families, streets, the city and further. It feels significant to do this starting in homes. Taking as many barriers and structures away so that we can put Jesus at the centre. These evenings will be a priority going forward.

Looking forward we want to keep this momentum going and grow even more in number as a team, that will be able to help resource as we look to plant a church. We aim to look wider to more city wide events and how we can get involved with what God is doing in the city of Liverpool.

We also want to keep it simple, look at what we are doing, ask the why questions and hopefully create more space in our worship, I believe that this will bring about new songs for us as a church. We are in a very unique moment here at penny lane church and it would be amazing to capture and remember how good and kind God has been to us.

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Penny Lane St Barnabas Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

KIDS AND FAMILIES’ MINISTRY

We have a wonderful year in the life of Penny Lane Kids. The first 6 months of 2023 saw Jennie take on the role of Rising Generation Pastor for Kids, with Laura taking over in July as Jennie went on maternity leave.

We’ve seen incredible growth over the past year in our Kids Ministry – both on a Sunday and in our midweek Play Café. We are averaging 40 children in our Kids Groups on a Sunday morning, which definitely stretches us, with the space available and in terms of volunteers. We are looking at options to expand the room space available and have started to rota on additional volunteers to allow us to give our Kids the best experience on a Sunday.

We have seen phenomenal growth in our midweek Play Café – going from an average of 30 adults (and a similar number of kids) to an average of 44 adults and 59 kids each week so far this year. We have seen our largest attendance ever in January, with 113 people attending. We have also seen relationships develop and deepen and more of our Play Café parents entering into church life. We were delighted to welcome some of our Play Café parents to our Christmas Carols and Nativity services in December. Play Café is a space where people feel welcomed into church community and we continually receive feedback that it is one of the friendliest toddler groups that people have attended and how welcome they are made to feel.

I loved running our Holiday Club in October Half Term. This is a great opportunity to open up the church to our local community and so many kids and families in our local area loved getting involved, learning all about the story of Joseph and having a lot of Ancient Egyptian fun in between! We also ended our Holiday Club with our Light Party. We had so much fun and over 40 of our local community and church family attended. The theme of our upcoming Holiday Club is Superheroes and we’re excited to be learning all about the ultimate Superhero: Jesus.

As always, I’m so thankful for our dedicated team of volunteers who make it possible to run Sundays as well as events like Half Term Holiday Clubs and the Light Party. We have welcomed many new members of team in the past year and are excited for what the future holds for Penny Lane Kids.

SAFEGUARDING

The PCC has complied with the duty under section 5 of the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure 2016, fully recognising its duty to have due regard to House of Bishops' guidance on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults. There were no safeguarding referrals during 2023.

Current number of DBS’s

Contact with Diocese

YOUTH

Over the past 9 months, there has been a good amount of growth in the area of youth ministry at Penny Lane Church.

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Penny Lane St Barnabas

Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

Currently we host weekly meet ups on Mondays after school, where we focus on exploring the bible in more depth. What started as an experiment in providing more space for the young people to meet and bond as a group, turned into a regular meet up full of thoughtful questions and meaningful discussions. At the start of this year, during our Thursday ‘Youth Hang-Out’, I asked the group if they would ever want to invite any of their friends to events hosted at Penny Lane. “Yes” was the unanimous answer, and by the following week they had all brought friends to our Hang-out sessions! That’s exactly what our Thursday evenings are all about: spending time together, playing games, having fun, and being comfortable enough in this part of our church community that they want their friends outside of Penny Lane to be a part of it too. Youth sessions on Sunday mornings has seen the most growth out of all the areas we work in. A highlight for me is seeing them grow in confidence and develop as a group. They’re consistently showing up for things, asking questions and developing their faith, as well as their relationships with each other and the youth team.

I constantly feel like I’m learning something new in this role, both from the youth themselves and the team that supports them. I have learnt the importance of providing consistency as well as trying new things. We have some great things planned for Penny Lane youth this year that they are already excited about. We’ve booked our first weekend away, and hopefully more of our youth will attend Focus this year. Other plans for the future of Penny Lane youth, are to run more events that take us out of the church building and get us exploring more of Liverpool. And to keep growing the youth volunteer team and providing opportunities for older youth to take up responsibility and leadership roles. Although it is exciting to see more young people continuing to get involved, I’ve noticed it is as much about getting alongside the individual as it is the whole group. It’s so exciting that the youth want to develop relationships at church. They want to be included and counted as valuable.

STUDENTS

This has been my third year leading our student community and it only gets better every year. We welcomed around 15 new students at the start of September, now making our group more than 50. They continue to bring life to our evening service, however as the church grows, they are not the majority anymore. I have always been amazed at how quickly they get stuck in to the other ministries at church, serving so well on our cafe, welcome, kids and worship teams. It also helps them experience another aspect of church life.

So far this year we have had four student meals at the start of term, helping the freshers integrate in to our already healthy student group. In November we took 30 of our students on a weekend away to quanta Christian Centre where we got to dive deeper into Gods work, have extended times of worship together and have a whole lot of fun. It really helped our student group get to know each other better. At Christmas we had a very festive party to end the term. We ate together, danced together and went home very happy for the holidays.

Our Monday night gatherings focus on three main areas of ministry - worship, a particular series we hear about, and allowing time for smaller groups to process and discuss their student life here in Liverpool. Some of the topics that we have been looking at have been relationships, a series on the book of acts, what it looks like to live a life of worship and we are about to start a series on the book of Ephesians. We have two main blocks of term left (after the February half term) both 6 weeks long and then it will be over for this academic year- can you believe it?! It has been a Joy and honour to lead this student community and I am looking forward for what’s to come.

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Penny Lane St Barnabas

Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION

Since beginning my role in March in 2024, I have been working to create relationships and firm foundations for the outreach that we have.

CAP Job club: Along with a volunteer, I am fully trained as a CAP job trainer and have an additional volunteer undertaking the training course. We are now working to advertise the course and begin in March.

Asylum seeker outreach: I have made a connection with our local accommodation providing housing for over 200 asylum seekers and are in the process of making plans to go weekly to chat to and signpost individuals. We hope to have started this on a weekly basis by the end of February. I have also had two volunteers and myself trained by a congregation member to undertake teaching of English as a second language to begin classes in April.

Prison ministry: We have began attending Chapel services sporadically to provide worship and speak with the prisoners. I am working with a relationship with the Message Trust and have a number of volunteers willing and excited to partake in an Alpha course in prisons to enable the capacity to grow.

Our community café has opened the doors to the local community providing a safe space to come and chat, play games and do jigsaws. We have had a number of people with no connection to the church coming into the church and having positive conversations.

Markets: We continue to be a host of the monthly Good Market and have also begun a relationship with a Vintage market. This has been a great way to bring locals into the building and have conversations with them. Many of which have been surprised to see a modern space and have come to carol services.

PLANS FOR THE YEAR AHEAD

Sundays - a new service?

It feels like we are in a really good place. We have recently baptised our 20th adult since opening in 2020. We had 94 guests on Alpha last year alone. Our Sunday services are growing significantly with our evening service averaging 99 adults! Our kids work on a Sunday is almost at capacity and our youth group is growing steadily with around 12 teenagers attending each Sunday. I have loved seeing people get prayed for, ministered to, engage in worship, find practical and spiritual help in our preaching and getting to know the friends you feel comfortable inviting to church.

We are approaching capacity on Sunday mornings and so that leaves us with a dilemma of two choices. 1) We stay as we are which will mean there is less room to invite people into, we will have to start to turn families with children away and because of that people will start to feel less welcome. Or 2) we start a new morning service at 9am which will create capacity for growth and give us room to grow. This will of course come with sacrifice (earlier sound checks for the band, more volunteers needed to serve across the two services and a greater general overhead expense) however, in lieu of being able to church plant this year (due to maternity leave of our church planter) I feel it is our only viable option if we want to steward the growth God is blessing us with currently.

If you have any major concerns about this or any ideas on how to make it work, please do email me ( alex.rayment@pennylanechurch.org ), I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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Penny Lane St Barnabas Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

Trios

As we grow on a Sunday, so too do our Teams and Groups. Teams and Groups have become the best ways to get to know people and find community at Penny Lane Church. The problem is, as things get larger, even in those settings we can often find ourselves a consumer of relationships, rather than a participator. We are going to rekindle, revise and resource the teaching around Trios: The concept is simple, find two other people who you can regularly check in with, pray together, read scripture and be accountable to. It’s a model stolen straight out the Wesleyan handbook and yet it is such an appropriate, achievable and challenging model for us in busy 2024 Liverpool. I am excited to see what God will do through groups of men and women who actively choose a deepening of relationships and contending for one another as God continues to move in our church.

Worship and prayer

I have been stirred, with alot of leaders across the UK, recently about the re-prioritisation of worship and prayer in all we do. We are blessed with having a stunning team of worship leaders and musicians here at Penny Lane and they lead us so faithfully and servant heartedly. We are seeing more and more moments of genuine encounter in our gatherings, and this is becoming our metric of success. We long to see healings, prophetic words, visions from God, people being ministered to in prayer during our worship times together and we are going to be teaching in to and experimenting with this over this next year. A key moment in this year will be our WEEKEND AT HOME where we have a guest worship leader and preacher with us the whole weekend to help us navigate some of this. I can not wait to gather and worship together and see what God will do in and through us during this time.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

During the year income decreased by £14,000 to £325,000, and expenditure increased by £51,000 to £338,000. As a result the PCC has reported a deficit of £13,000 (2022: a surplus of £53,000) and the PCC’s net assets decreased by this amount to £281,000. Net assets comprise fixed assets of £95,000 and net current assets (principally cash) of £186,000 of which £25,000 is restricted.

This year’s fall in income was largely due to a reduction of £48,000 in the grants we received from the Jerusalem Trust (though the good news is that one further grant for £60,000 is expected from them in 2024). Very encouraging, this reduction was largely offset by an increase of £22,000 in income from donations and related gift aid.

This year’s increase in expenditure was largely due to an increase of £36,000 in staff and related accommodation costs and by an increase of £10,000 in energy costs. We also increased our payments for the Parish Share by £10,000 (see below) but this was nearly matched by a reduction in the grants we distributed this year. The goal of the PCC is to continue to give 10% of regular and unrestricted giving for charitable giving in 2023.

For the time being the PCC continues to rely on the grant funding it receives from the Diocese and, to a lesser extent, the Jerusalem Trust. This grant funding is due to come to an end in 2025 and the goal is to become self-funding by that date.

The Parish Share paid in 2023 was £50,000. There will continue to be significant increases in the following years as we work towards being able to pay the full parish share in 2025.

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Penny Lane St Barnabas Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

INVESTMENT POLICY

The Church’s funds were held as cash and deposits at Barclays Bank plc. The Church does not invest in equity funds.

RESERVES

The PCC aims to hold unrestricted cash of no less than £90,000, which equates to about three month’s budgeted expenditure, so that it could continue to operate should income and / or expenditure vary adversely. At the year-end the PCC held unrestricted cash of £163,000 and the PCC is complying with its reserves policy.

RISK ASSESSMENT

The financial stability of the Church depends to an extent on the giving of the church family and our ability to balance this and other sources of income in line with Church expenditure. Most of our salary costs and all clergy housing and expenses are covered by a Strategic Development Fund, which will last until 2025.

CONCLUSION

What else?

It is a joy and a privilege to lead the church and I can honestly say, there’s nothing I’d rather be doing right now. As we grow and attempt to steward what the Lord is doing amongst us I have three priorities in my leadership for 2024.

Presence

I want to be following God in everything, not asking Him to catch up with my plans. I want to be preaching, leading, serving, praying and operating out of a place of God’s presence. I am becoming more and more convinced that the Church needs it and our world needs Churches who long for God’s presence more than anything else. The presence of God is both the vehicle for growth and the reason for growth. I am not interested in us exhausting ourselves for more services, groups or activities absent of the presence of God. Let’s pray for it, fast for it, contend and fight for it.

Simplicity

My favourite question to ask at the moment is ‘why?’ Again as we grow we need to become disciplined around simplicity. Our Groups model contains creative variety so that our corporate gatherings can become increasingly simplified so we know that each part plays its role in the body of Christ. We will continue to ask the ‘why’s’ in our church activity and resource the things that really seek to honour and worship God in all they do so Penny Lane Church become a house of worship in our time.

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Penny Lane St Barnabas Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2023

Health

If you look at our garden and garage you’ll see that bad things (like weeds and mould) and good things (like flowers and bees) grow. Just because something grows does not mean it is healthy. I want to make sure I can do all that is humanly possible to lead a healthy church. Spiritually, financially, organisationally, pastorally, healthy. This is complex and difficult and again it takes discipline, hard work and even harder conversations. But, we have all the resources in scripture and in the Holy Spirit to make sure that we are moving in the way of health.

There will be hard times this year, and there will also be encouragements and good news. But let us hear the words of the writer of Hebrews who says,

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Heb. 10:19-25)

Thank you for all you do, give, serve, pray and hope for. This wouldn’t happen without you.

APPROVAL

This report was approved by the PCC and signed on their behalf by:

Alex Rayment 18 March 2024 ………………………………….. ……………………………….. Alex Rayment Date Church Leader

18 March 2024

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PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

CONTENTS

Page
Independent Examiner's Report 15
Statement of Financial Activities 16
Balance Sheet 17
Notes to the Accounts 18-24
Detailed Statement of Financial Activities with Comparatives 25

Page 14

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT

TO THE MEMBERS OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS ('the Charity')

I report to the members of the PCC (who are also the charity's trustees) on my examination of the accounts of the Charity for the year ended 31 December 2023 on pages 16 to 25 following, which have been prepared on the basis of the accounting policies set out on pages 18 and 19.

Responsibilities and basis of report

As members of the PCC you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).

I report in respect of my examination of the Charity’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent examiner’s statement

Since the Charity’s gross income exceeded £250,000 your examiner must be a member of a body listed in section 145 of the 2011 Act. I confirm that I am qualified to undertake the examination because I am a Fellow of the Association of Charity Independent Examiners, which is one of the listed bodies.

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe:

  1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Charity as required by section 130 of the Act; or

  2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or

  3. the accounts do not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair' view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Ajay Rajani

Ajay Rajani FCIE Fellow of the Association of Charity Independent Examiners Stewardship 1 Lamb's Passage London EC1Y 8AB

Date: 23 April 2024

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PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

Note
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM:
Donations and legacies
3
Charitable activities
4
Other trading activities
5
Investments: bank interest
Total income and endowments
EXPENDITURE ON:
Charitable activities
6
Total expenditure
Net income/(expenditure)
Transfers between funds
13
Net movement in funds
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward
Total funds carried forward
13		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
137,110
17,263
16,147
312
170,832
130,761
130,761
40,070
1,571
41,642
214,528
256,170		 Restricted
Funds
£
154,661
-
-
-
154,661
207,344
207,344
(52,683)
(1,571)
(54,254)
79,032
24,778		 Total
Funds
2023
£
291,770
17,263
16,147
312
325,493
338,104
338,104
(12,613)
-
(12,613)
293,561
280,948		 Total
Funds
2022
£
310,913
12,151
16,147
-
339,211
286,416
286,416
52,794
-
52,794
240,766
293,560

The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year.

All income and expenditure derive from continuing operations.

The notes on pages 18 to 25 form part of these accounts.

Page 16

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

BALANCE SHEET

AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2023

Note
FIXED ASSETS
Tangible assets
8
CURRENT ASSETS
Debtors
9
Cash at bank and in hand
10
CREDITORS: Amounts falling
due within one year
11
Net current assets / (liabilities)
TOTAL NET ASSETS
FUND BALANCES
13
Unrestricted General Funds
Designated funds
Restricted Funds		 Unrestricted
Funds
£
95,188
95,188
5,105
165,047
170,152
(9,170)
160,982
256,170
225,867
30,303
256,170
-
256,170		 Restricted
Funds
£
-
-
1,831
26,077
27,908
(3,130)
24,778
24,778
-
-
-
24,778
24,778		 Total
Funds
2023
£
95,188
95,188
6,935
191,124
198,060
(12,300)
185,760
280,948
225,867
30,303
256,170
24,778
280,948		 Total
Funds
2022
£
109,632
109,632
4,237
236,096
240,333
(56,405)
183,929
293,560
184,225
30,303
214,528
79,032
293,560

The financial statements were approved by the members of the PCC and were signed on its behalf by:

Alex Rayment 18 March 2024 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------Alex Rayment - Church Leader Date: Charity number: 1194669

The notes on pages 18 to 25 form part of these accounts.

Page 17

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

1 Statutory Information

The Parochial Church Council of St Barnabas Penny Lane is a charity registered with the Charity Commission in England & Wales. The charity's registered number and principal address can be found on the Charity Information page.

2 Accounting Policies

These financial statements are prepared on a going concern basis, under the historical cost convention. The financial statements include all activities for which the PCC is legally responsible; the activities of informal gatherings of church members and groups that owe their main affiliation to another body and are excluded.

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with The Church Accounting Regulations 2006, the 'Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)' ("the Charities SORP"), with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland ("FRS 102") and with the Charities Act 2011. The charity meets the definition of a public benefit entity as set out in FRS 102.

The Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 (the '2008 Regulations') requires charities to prepare their accounts in accordance with 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice effective from 1 April 2005' but this accounting standard has since been withdrawn and has been replaced by the Charities SORP mentioned in the preceding paragraph. The charity has prepared these financial statements in accordance with the new Charities SORP; this departure from the 2008 Regulations is believed to be necessary for these financial statements to give a 'true and fair view'.

The principles adopted in the preparation of the financial statements are set out below.

a) Going concern

The PCC have assessed whether the use of the going concern basis is appropriate and have considered possible events or conditions that might cast significant doubt on the ability of the charity to continue as a going concern. The PCC have made this assessment for a period of at least one year from the date of approval of the financial statements. In particular the PCC have considered the charity's forecasts and projections and the possible implications should projected income and / or expenditure vary unexpectedly. The PCC have concluded that there is a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue to operate for the foreseeable future. The charity therefore continues to adopt the going concern basis in preparing its financial statements.

b) Income

Income (which includes planned giving, collections and other donations) is recognised in the period in which the charity becomes entitled to receipt, the amount receivable can be measured with reasonable certainty, and receipt is probable. For the most part income is generally recognised when it is received by, or on behalf of, the PCC. Income is only deferred when the charity has to fulfil conditions before becoming entitled to it or where the donor has specified that the income is to be expended in a future period.

Income from donations and legacies includes recoverable gift aid, which is recognised when the related donation is received. Gift aid that has not been recovered by the balance sheet date is included as a debtor.

The charity relies on volunteers to carry out many of its activities. However, in accordance with the SORP, the value of these services has not been included in these financial statements as they cannot be reliably measured.

Income from charitable activities represents income receivable from goods, services and facilities supplied in furtherance of the charity's charitable objects. It comprises income from church events and courses, community outreach programs, weddings and funerals and letting of facilities for community use.

Income from other trading activities represents income receivable from activities undertaken to generate funds for the charity. It comprises income from permitting the placement of telecommunications equipment on the church building.

c) Expenditure

Expenditure, including irrecoverable VAT, is recognised when it is incurred or, if earlier, when a legal or constructive obligation for a payment arises provided that it is probable that settlement will be required and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably.

Contributions in respect of the diocesan parish share are included in the Statement of Financial Activities for all amounts agreed to being payable for the financial year. Any contributions that have not been paid over by the year end are included as a creditor.

From time to time, the charity makes grants to other institutions and individuals to further its charitable objectives. Grants payable are recognised as constructive obligations arise, which is generally when the charity expresses a commitment to the recipient that can be measured reliably and then only to the extent that any conditions associated with the grant are outside of the control of the charity.

Page 18

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

c) Expenditure continued

d) Fund accounting

e) Tangible fixed assets

Movable church furnishings held by the incumbent and Churchwardens on special trust for the PCC and which require a faculty for disposal are capitalised in accordance with the policy set out below. These items are regarded as inalienable property and are listed in the church's inventory which can be inspected at any reasonable time. Inalienable property acquired prior to 2000 has not been capitalised as there is insufficient cost information available.

Items purchased or donated for the charity's own use are capitalised when the cost of purchased items, or the fair value of donated items, is more than £1,000 and the item is expected to benefit the charity over more than one accounting period. Depreciation is charged on a straight line basis so as to write down the value of each asset to its estimated residual value (if any) over its expected useful economic life. To achieve this objective the following rates of depreciation are charged:

Computers Over 3 years Furniture and equipment Over 5 to 10 years

The carrying values of tangible fixed assets are reviewed for impairment in periods when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value may not be recoverable.

f) Leased assets Leases which do not transfer substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership to the charity are classified as operating leases. Operating lease payments are recognised as an expense on a straight-line basis over the lease term.

g) Pension scheme arrangements The charity operates defined contribution pension schemes for its employees. Obligations for contributions to these schemes are recognised as an expense when the liability arises. The assets of these schemes are held separately from those of the charity in independently administered funds.

h) Taxation The charity has taken advantage of the various reliefs from taxation available to charities and no tax is payable on the charity's income. i) Financial instruments The charity's financial assets and financial liabilities all qualify as basic financial instruments, as defined by FRS102. Creditors and debtors are measured at their expected settlement value (normally the amount of cash that the charity expects to pay or receive).

j) Exemption from preparing a cashflow statement The charity has taken advantage of an exemption conferred by the Charities SORP and has not prepared a cash flow statement. k) Critical accounting estimates and areas of judgement The members of the PCC do not consider that there are any material sources of estimation or uncertainty at the balance sheet date that could result in a material adjustment to the carrying values of assets and liabilities in the next reporting period.

3 Donations and legacies

Donations of cash and similar
Gift aid recoverable
Grants receivable
Diocese: Strategic Development Fund
Diocese: for clergy accommodation
Diocese: for heating
Other grants		 2023
£
115,996
23,052
129,964
7,875
1,500
13,383
291,770		 2022
£
97,419
19,656
129,461
3,375
1,000
60,000
310,913

Page 19

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

4 Income from charitable activities

me from charitable activities
Church events, courses and ministries
Community outreach programs
Weddings and funerals
Facilities hire		 2023
£
4,596
6,263
1,306
5,099
17,263		 2022
£
3,125
6,041
985
2,000
12,151
5
6
a
b
c		 Income from other trading activities
Placement of telecommunications equipment
Charitable expenditure
Costs incurred directly on specific activities
General ministry expenses
Parish share
Staff costs
Clergy accommodation, council tax and utilities
Catering and kitchen expenses
Media and audio visual expenses
Other ministry expenses
Specific areas of ministry
Church events and courses
Community outreach programs
Student ministry expenses
Youth and children's ministry expenses
Worship ministry expenses
Grants payable (note 6c)
Property expenses:
Repairs, maintenance and cleaning
Utilities and council tax
Costs incurred on support & administration
Governance costs
Independent examiner's fee for preparing and examining the accounts
Administrative expenses
Subscriptions
Insurance
Depreciation of tangible fixed assets
Total expenditure
Grants payable
Grants for UK and overseas mission
Grants to relieve hardship
The comparatives for the previous year are as follows:
Grants for UK and overseas mission
Herald Vineyard Church
True Hope		 Institutions
£
640
1,534
2,174
Institutions
£
6,920
6,908
13,828		 2023
£
16,147
2023
£
49,998
143,714
29,004
2,719
2,314
8,561
9,137
8,753
3,603
4,537
532
4,034
266,906
9,060
29,840
38,900
305,806
3,180
1,770
4,646
6,687
16,015
32,298
338,104
Individuals
£
-
1,860
1,860
Individuals
£
-
-
-		 2022
£
16,147
2022
£
39,733
117,927
19,148
4,448
999
7,875
9,706
10,426
2,741
3,158
653
13,828
230,642
5,421
19,511
24,932
255,574
3,120
1,477
4,162
6,326
15,757
30,842
286,416
2023
£
640
3,394
4,034
2022
£
-
6,920
6,908
13,828

Page 20

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

7 Analysis of staff costs, the cost of key management personnel and trustee remuneration

The average monthly number of employees during the year was 7 (2022: 6). Most of the charity's activities are carried out by volunteers.

No staff received salaries at a rate of more than £60,000 per annum.

The charity's key management comprise the members of the PCC. Total employment benefits payable to key management for the year were as follows:

were as follows:
Employees who are also members of the PCC
Ben Hyde (employment ended February 2023)
Catherine Rodgers (employment commenced March 2023)
following amounts were payable in the previous year:
Ben Hyde, who is a member of the PCC		 Wages &
salaries
2,178
1,068
3,245
Wages &
salaries
21,848		 Employer
pension
contributions
110
-
110
Employer
pension
contributions
1,249		 2023
£
2,287
1,068
3,355
2022
£
23,097

The following amounts were payable in the previous year:

Benjamin Hyde served as a ministry co-ordinator and Catherine Rodgers served as a cleaner. They received the above payments for serving in those capacities, not for serving as members of the PCC; these payments are permitted by the charity's governing document.

Alex Rayment, Kirsty White and Andrew Baily (who are clergy members of the PCC) receive a stipend from the Diocese and so they are not employees; some of the Parish Share paid to the Diocese is used to help meet the cost of these stipends. They were provided with accommodation (which is customary for clergy) and the cost of this accommodation (and related expenses) to the PCC was £29,004 (2022: £19,148).

8 Tangible fixed assets

Tangible fixed assets
Furniture and
equipment
£
Cost
At 1 January 2023
143,882
Additions
1,571
At 31 December 2023
145,453
Accumulated depreciation
At 1 January 2023
35,992
Charge for the year
15,214
At 31 December 2023
51,206
Net book value
At 31 December 2023
94,247
At 31 December 2022
107,890		 Computers
£
3,601
-
3,601
1,859
801
2,660
941
1,742		 Total
2023
£
147,483
1,571
149,054
37,851
16,015
53,866
95,188
109,632
ors
Gift aid recoverable
Other debtors
Prepayments and accrued income		 2023
£
1,383
3,095
2,457
6,935		 2022
£
1,158
981
2,098
4,237

Page 21

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

10 Cash at Bank and in Hand

h at Bank and in Hand
Cash at bank
Payment processing accounts (e.g. Gocardless, Stripe)
Petty cash		 2023
£
187,016
4,058
50
191,124		 2022
£
235,786
260
50
236,096

11 Creditors: liabilities falling due within one year

itors: liabilities falling due within one year
Taxation and social security
Other creditors
Accruals
Deferred income		 2023
£
2,437
2,646
3,180
4,037
12,300		 2022
£
17,345
5,646
3,060
30,354
56,405

This year's deferred income comprises rental income received in advance for 2024 in respect of the placement of telecommunications equipment. The previous year's deferred income comprised a grant received in advance from the Diocese's Strategic Development Fund to help fund the PCC's activities in 2023 when it was released to income

12 Pension commitments

During the year employer’s pension contributions totalling £7,079 (2022: £5,246) were payable to defined contribution personal pension schemes. At the balance sheet date pension contributions totalling £692 (2022: £415) had not been paid over.

13 Funds

During the year the movements in the charity's funds were as follows:

Unrestricted funds
Designated church planting and reserve fund
General unrestricted funds
Restricted Funds
Music fund
Strategic Development fund
Vicar's fund
Clergy Housing fund
Heating fund
The Jerusalem Trust fund
Christmas Appeal fund
Community fund
Media fund
Aggregate of funds		 Opening
balance
2023
£
30,303
184,225
214,528
2,430
12,850
15,629
-
-
48,125
-
-
-
79,032
293,560		 Incoming
resources
2023
£
-
170,832
170,832
-
129,964
-
7,875
1,500
12,000
1,939
1,133
250
154,661
325,493		 Outgoing
resources
2023
£
-
(130,761)
(130,761)
-
(141,642)
-
(7,875)
(1,500)
(55,112)
-
(965)
(250)
(207,344)
(338,104)		 Transfers
in the year
2023
£
-
1,571
1,571
(379)
-
(1,192)
-
-
-
-
-
-
(1,571)
-		 Closing
balance
2023
£
30,303
225,867
256,170
2,050
1,171
14,437
-
-
5,013
1,939
168
-
24,778
280,948

During the year the PCC incurred capital expenditure totalling £1,571 that fell within the scope of the restrictions placed on some funds and transfers for this amount were made from restricted funds to unrestricted general funds.

Page 22

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

13 Funds continued

Analysis of net assets by fund

The assets and liabilities of the various funds were as follows:

Tangible fixed assets
Debtors
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors falling due within one year
In the previous year the movements in the charity's funds
Unrestricted funds
Designated church planting and reserve fund
General unrestricted funds
Restricted Funds
Music fund
Strategic Development fund
Vicar's fund
Youth and Children's fund
Clergy Housing fund
Heating fund
The Jerusalem Trust fund
Aggregate of funds		 General
Designated
funds
funds
£
£
95,188
-
5,105
-
134,744
30,303
(9,170)
-
225,867
30,303
were as follows:
Opening
Incoming
Outgoing
balance
resources
resources
2022
2022
2022
£
£
£
-
-
-
205,386
145,374
(136,061)
205,386
145,374
(136,061)
2,430
-
-
12,170
129,461
(128,782)
18,537
-
(2,908)
2,245
-
(2,416)
-
3,375
(3,375)
-
1,000
(1,000)
-
60,000
(11,875)
35,381
193,836
(150,356)
240,767
339,211
(286,416)
Unrestricted Funds		 Restricted
funds
£
-
1,831
26,077
(3,130)
24,778
Transfers
in the year
2022
£
30,303
(30,475)
(171)		 2023
£
95,188
6,935
191,124
(12,300)
280,948
Closing
balance
2022
£
30,303
184,225
214,528
-
-

-
171
-

-

-

171
-		 2,430
12,850
15,629
-

-
-
48,125
79,032
293,560

Analysis of net assets by fund

In the previous year, the assets and liabilities of the various funds were as follows:

Tangible fixed assets
Debtors
Cash at bank and in hand
Creditors falling due within one year		 General
Designated
funds
funds
£
£
109,632
-
3,256
-
79,628
30,303
(8,291)
-
184,225
30,303
Unrestricted Funds		 Restricted
funds
£
-
981
126,165
(48,114)
79,032		 2022
£
109,632
4,237
236,096
(56,405)
293,560

Page 23

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

13 Funds continued

Designated funds

The Church planting and reserve fund represents funds set aside by the PCC to help plant, or revitalise, other churches. This fund can also be used to help meet any out of the ordinary major expenditure (such as repairs to the church building).

Restricted funds

The Music fund was created from donations received to maintain the bells and organ in the church, to help meet choir related expenses and to help purchase music equipment

The Strategic Development fund was created from grants received from the Diocese to help develop the activities of the church. This included funding to help purchase audio visual equipment, pay staff and pay clergy expenses and pay set up and operational expenses.

The Vicar's fund was created from a grant received from the Church Revitalisation Trust to help fund specific projects and initiatives identified by the Vicar.

The Youth and Children's fund was created from a grant received from All Churches Trust to help develop the church's work with children and young people in the local community.

The Clergy Housing fund was created from a grant received from the Diocese to help meet the cost of accommodation provided to the Curate.

The Heating fund was created from a grant received from the Diocese to help meet heating costs.

The Jerusalem Trust fund was created from a grant received from this Trust to help meet the costs of the PCC's operations and projects as a resource church.

The Christmas Appeal fund was created from donations received from a special Christmas appeal made to raise funds to support local charities. Grants to two local charities were paid shortly after the year end.

The Community fund was created from grants received to help meet chaplaincy expenses and to help the local community celebrate Christmas.

The Media fund was created from a grant received to help meet the cost of media production.

14 Operating lease commitments

The charity has operating leases for manses provided to it's curates. The minimum amount payable (until the next break clause and ignoring the potential effect of future rent reviews) in respect of this lease is as follows:

Within one year
Between one and five years
Payments falling due:		 2023
£
14,825
4,250
19,075		 2022
£
4,250
-
4,250

During the year the charity was charged £16,675 (2022: £10,200) for its operating leases.

15 Transactions with related parties

During the year the charity:

a) received donations totalling £23,992 (2022: £20,032) from related parties (which includes members of the PCC, any other members of key management and anyone closely connected to them).

c) employed the wife of a member of the PCC (Alex Rayment, who is the senior minister) to provide maternity cover for the PCC's Families and Kid's Pastor and paid her employment benefits totalling £6,930 (2022: £nil).

Except for the reimbursement of expenses incurred when acting as agent for the charity, or incurred when undertaking clergy or employment duties, no expenses were paid to (or for) the members of the PCC.

Except as disclosed in note 7 'Analysis of staff costs', there have been no other transactions with related parties during the year.

Page 24

PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF PENNY LANE ST BARNABAS

DETAILED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES WITH COMPARATIVES

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

Note
INCOME AND ENDOWMENTS FROM:
Donations and legacies
3
Charitable activities
4
Other trading activities
5
Investments: bank interest
Total income and endowments
EXPENDITURE ON:
Charitable activities:
6
Total Expenditure
Net income/(expenditure)
Transfers between funds
13
Net movement in funds
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward
Total funds carried forward
13		 General
Designated
2023
2023
£
£
137,110
-

17,263
-
16,147
-
312
-
170,832
-
130,761
-
130,761
-
40,070
-
1,571
-

41,642
-
184,225
30,303
225,867
30,303
Unrestricted funds		 Restricted
2023
£
154,661
-
-

-
154,661
207,344
207,344
(52,683)
(1,571)
(54,254)
79,032
24,778		 Total
2023
£
291,770
17,263
16,147
312
325,493
338,104
338,104
(12,612)
-
(12,612)
293,560
280,948		 General
Designated
2022
2022
£
£
117,077
-
12,151
-

16,147
-
-
-
145,374
-
136,061
-
136,061
-
9,313
-
(30,475)
30,303
(21,161)
30,303
205,386
-
184,225
30,303
Unrestricted funds		 Restricted
2022
£
193,836
-
-

-

193,836
150,356
150,356
43,481
171
43,651
35,381
79,032		 Total
2022
£
310,913
12,151
16,147
-
339,211
286,416
286,416
52,793
-
52,793
240,766
293,560

Page 25