**INGAWAY CHURCH BASILDON** ## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT** ## **and** ## **UNAUDITED ACCOUNTS** ## **for the period ending 31 March 2023** Registered charity name: **Ingaway Evangelical Church** Registered charity number: **1199066** ## **BACKGROUND** The Charity was registered with the Charity Commission on 24 May 2022. This is the first Annual Report of the Trustees. ## **OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES** The object of the Church charity is to advance the Christian faith as set out in the Constitution dated 10 January 2022. The Trustees acknowledge the requirement to demonstrate clearly that the charity’s purposes or aims are for the public benefit. This report sets out how the charity has achieved this. The Trustees confirm that they have paid due regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit before deciding what activities the charity should undertake. Public benefit was primarily delivered through worship services, prayer, pastoral care, Bible study, a Coffee Club and partnership working. 1 The Trustees are extremely grateful to those who have freely and willingly given their time, energy and expertise to a range of work and activities in support of the Church’s objective. ## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE** ## Worship Services During the early months of the reporting period, arrangements to limit the spread of COVID-19 had a significant impact on Church activities. In late April 2022, the Trustees considered it necessary to close the Church for a short period. However, as time progressed, restrictions were incrementally eased in line with Government guidelines. A Risk Assessment and Action Plan were used by the Trustees to help facilitate the effective management of revised arrangements. Worship was one of the main activities for the Church in delivering a benefit to the public, and this took place every Sunday at 10.30am. It was prayer and Biblebased. The Elders developed teaching programmes on a range of Bible-based topics which acted as a focus for the choice of Bible readings, sermons and prayer throughout the year. Worship services were led in the main by Elders and, from time-to-time, by guest speakers. This arrangement provided a wide range of experience and knowledge for worshippers to draw on. All services took place in the church building, except on 24 April 2022 when the building was closed due to COVID-19. On that occasion, the service was transmitted online using ‘Zoom’ so as to enable as many people as possible to worship. Commencing in January 2023, worship services on the first Sunday of each month contained more hymns and songs and a shorter sermon. The aim was to broaden the appeal of our worship services to as wide a range of people as possible. We usually included Communion in our worship twice each month, on the second and last Sundays, although sometimes this varied, for example to accommodate a visiting speaker. In October 2022, we held a special worship service to celebrate the 60[th] anniversary of the church building in its current location. The service was combined with Harvest thanksgiving. A number of worshippers who had previously moved away, returned to the church for the celebration. 2 Other special events during the reporting period included an annual summer ‘Brunch’ service which was well attended by people who did not ordinarily come to church, and a New Year Party where people were invited to bring and share food with one another. By comparison with the previous year, attendances at Sunday worship in the church (which excludes those occasions when services were transmitted online due to COVID-19) were broadly the same at around an average of 14 adults. In the coming year, the Trustees intend to finalise the Mission and Vision Statement and use it to help encourage more members of the public to benefit from the Church’s offering. ## Bible Study Bible study took place weekly on Thursday evenings in the church and usually focused on the main Bible reading from the previous Sunday’s worship service. ## Coffee Club The Church hosts a Coffee Club on Friday mornings. The Coffee Club is managed and led by the two Deacons. A number of those who came to the Coffee Club were not regular worshippers, so it formed an important part of the Church’s outreach. ## Meetings The Trustees met on five occasions during the year, one of which was specifically for the purpose of conducting a financial review. At these meetings, a number of risk assessments were conducted, covering issues such as COVID-19, the church building, fire and health and safety. Policies were discussed, agreed and implemented on safeguarding and privacy. Arrangements were agreed to transfer the property (church building) to the newly established CIO to help streamline the charity’s governance arrangements. A firm of Solicitors was instructed to undertake the necessary work on behalf of the Trustees. To encourage the attendance of a wider demographic at worship services, it was agreed to repurpose a storage room for use by children under the supervision of adults. Plans were drawn-up with the intention of completion in 2023-24. 3 Three Church Business Meetings were held during the year. These meetings were led by the Trustees for the purpose of providing information to anyone with an interest in the life of the Church. Some of the information provided included an overview of the Church’s financial position, an update on governance arrangements, news about worship services and events, a presentation on the outcome of a church survey and plans for maintenance and improvement of the church building. Opportunities were also taken to encourage engagement with developing the Church’s Mission and Vision and other outreach activities. ## Mission and Vision Work had started on developing a Mission and Vision Statement for the Church in 2019, but progress was interrupted by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Plans were made during the reporting period to re-invigorate the work and to encourage broad engagement from members of the congregation. The outcome of the work should support our objective to advance the Christian faith for the public benefit. The Trustees intend to complete the work in 2023-24. ## Partnership Working Ingaway Church supports the work of Churches Together in Basildon (CTB). A Trustee regularly attends CTB meetings and reports back to fellow Trustees on developments. From time-to-time, the church building is used to host CTB meetings and prayer breakfasts. The charity benefited from three long-term lettings of the church building. Good relations were maintained with all three hirers. The lettings were to a Christian Church with a matching doctrine, a local Guide pack and a parent and toddler group. The Christian Church met on Sunday afternoons. Its worship services were conducted in the languages of Malayalam and English. The Trustees record their thanks for the cooperative relationship that has been established and are pleased to note the encouraging growth of that Church. The local Guide pack met on Thursday evenings during school terms and provided activities for children in the age group 10 to 14. The parent and toddler group met on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings during school terms and was led by an Ofsted-registered child minder. 4 ## Communications A website and Facebook page were maintained so as to provide the public with a broad range of information about the Church and the services it provides. Regular email communication was provided to those who requested it or who had consented to receive it. This included information about upcoming worship services, summaries of sermons and prayer requests. ## Survey The Trustees invited members of the congregation to engage in a survey aimed at gaining a greater understanding of their needs and the areas where improvements could be made. In summary, some of the resulting action included providing more content in worship services for young adults, exploring the possibility of establishing a music group, encouraging more people to play an active part in worship, and developing better connections with those who had not attended services for some time. ## **STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT** ## Governing Document Ingaway Evangelical Church (informally, Ingaway Church) is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) governed by Constitution (foundation model) dated 10 January 2022. The Charity was first registered on 24 May 2022. ## Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees The existing Trustees recruit and appoint any new or additional Trustees in accordance with the provisions set out the Constitution dated 10 January 2022. ## Organisational Structure The Trustees are responsible for managing the Church charity and its finances. The Trustees meet at least four times each year to review all aspects of the Church’s purpose and operation. Risks, including financial risks, are reviewed as part of this process. Insurable risks are subject to the Church’s insurance policy. Risks relating to contracts are reviewed before contractual agreements are 5 entered into in order to mitigate against any adverse impact on the Church’s operation or fulfilment of its purpose. ‘Church Business Meetings’ are held from time-to-time at the discretion of the Trustees for the purpose of providing information to any member of the public with an interest in the life of the Church. Typically, the Trustees may present a range of reports, including details relating to the accounts. ## **REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS** Charity name: **Ingaway Evangelical Church** Informal name: **Ingaway Church** Registered charity number: **1199066** Principal address: **55-61 Ingaway Basildon Essex SS16 5QP** Trustees: **Graham Fry** Elder and Chair **David McLean** Elder **Tracy Turner** Elder **Irene Ferguson** Deacon **Susan Fry** Deacon and Secretary ## **FINANCIAL REVIEW** The principal sources of funding during the year were from open collections at worship services, regular planned giving through the Gift Aid Scheme and income from lettings of the church building. Income from all three of these sources of funding increased by comparison with the financial statement for 2021-22. Some significant aspects of expenditure concerned maintenance of the church building, expenses of visiting speakers and Solicitor’s fees relating to the establishment of the Church Charity. Total income was just under £18,000 and there was a surplus of income over expenditure in excess of £4,000. 6 As a new charity, we are working to develop our policies and procedures. We plan to have a Reserves Policy in place during the next reporting period. There was no requirement for the accounts to audited. ## **DECLARATIONS** **The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.** **Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:** **Signature:** _Graham Fry_ **Full name: GRAHAM ROBERT FRY** **Position: TRUSTEE Date: 24 January 2024** 7 Statement of Accounts and 8alan¢e Sheet 2022123 - Ingaway Church 2022123 2021122 Income Collections and Gift Aid Open co1￿ct￿)n5 Gfft Aid Grft Aid Tax RetL Sub-lotal £ 1,590.98 £ 6,432.57 £ 1.612.09 £ 9,635.64 £ 1.289.80 £ 5.192.110 £ 1.708.60 £ 8,190.60 Oiher [k)natic￿3 Church Hire Maintenance Harvest SuFver Reser¥e ACco￿t Interest Sundry Sub.Total £ 2,733.61 £ 5,336.9) 120.(KI 10.(KI 86.28 766.20 £ 3.670.IJO 85.(Kl 1.43 184.03 £ 4.706.66 £ 8.286.79 Total £ 17,922.43 £12,897.26 Ex enditure Running Costs Water Rates Insjrance 72.xl £ 1.449.74 £ 1 432.43 £ 2,954.47 66.70 £ 1.343.30 £ 1.061 07 £ 2,471.07 s￿-TOtal Other MaIntw￿nCe Harvest Basil¢Jc¥) Chri%tian C¢xm¢il Copyright Licence Flowers Pur¢ha8e of Hoover12022- Bag81 COmmun￿n Cups Chri$lma$ Tree Poster Prinb'ng Cleanmg Refreshments vtsth.ng p￿ather E￿ente$ Donations Websrte Provpjer Church Hire Refvnd Churches Together in Basthi Sdicit(*s Fees Mtscellaneous S￿-TOtal £ 2,574.% £ 4.870.00 £ 1,200. t76.C 15. £ 1.200.00 65.75 20.00 59. 65.C¥J 3S.85 490.93 80.40 £ 1,135.C¥) £ 1,282.25 100.66 60.00 61_32 304.50 189.25 810.00 £ 1,072.110 120.65 4S.00 100.00 £ 2,960.CQ 443.9) £ 10.799.91 £ 8.948.47 Total £ 13.754.38 £11,419.54 Sufplus for 2022123 Income- ExpeThJiture £ 4,16B.06 £ 1.4TT.72 statement of Accounts and Balance Sheet 2022123 - Ingaway Church Balanc Cuffenl Account on 31nr22 £ 1CQ.00 Reserve Account on 311Y22 £ 14,768.19 Petty Cash on 3113f22 82.50 14.950.69 Current Account on 31rJr23 £ 1LKI.00 Re3erve Account on 311Y23 £ 18,536.97 Petty Cash on 3113r23 481.77 É19.118.74 2022123 Surplus £ 4,168.05