2025-12-31-accounts

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Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund

Registered Charity 1199341

Trustees’ Annual Report For the period 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025

2025

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND Registered Charity 1199341 Company Number 13651153

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Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund
Registered Charity 1199341
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Introduction ....................................................................................................................1 Trustees/Directors and Officers of the Charity serving since 1 January and throughout 2025.. ..............................................................................................................................1 Objective of the Charity and how this is met ..................................................................1 Governing Document ......................................................................................................2 Constitution and Organisational Structure......................................................................2 Public Benefit ..................................................................................................................3 Trustees’ responsibilities in relation to the financial statements ....................................3 Achievements and Outcome of Activities ........................................................................3 Charity overview ................................................................................................................. 3 Maintaining the viability of Bethesda ..................................................................................... 4 Staffing the services.................................................................................................................................... 5 Ability to meet the changing needs of the residents ................................................................................. 5 Addressing the challenges .................................................................................................... 5 Reviewing the Quality of our Service ..................................................................................... 6 Other Properties and Services .............................................................................................. 6 Brighton Independent Retirement Living ................................................................................................... 6 Harpenden Flatlets ..................................................................................................................................... 7 Studley……………… ....................................................................................................................................... 7 Ebenezer Lodge, Swavesey, Independent Retirement Living Accommodation ......................................... 7 Gospel Standard Library ............................................................................................................................. 7 Financial Review .............................................................................................................7 Summary of Financial Results for each Home for the 12 months to 31 December 2025 ............. 8 Occupancy. ................................................................................................................................................. 8 Summary of Financial Results for the Flatlets for the 12 months to 31 December 2025 ............. 9 Plans for the Future subject to the Lord’s will ................................................................9 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 10 Appendix 1: Reference and Administrative Information ........................................................ 12 Appendix 2: Reserves Policy ............................................................................................... 13 Appendix 3: Risks Management Policy ................................................................................. 14 Appendix 4: Investment Policy ........................................................................................... 15 Appendix 5: Policy Statement on paying staff ...................................................................... 16

A large print version of this document is available on request or an electronic version for those with assistive screen technology

Trustees’ Annual Report to 31 December 2025

Introduction

The Trustees (and Directors) are pleased to present their report and financial statements for the period 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025. The Trustees’ report incorporates the Directors’ report as required by Company Law.

The Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund, Company Number 13651153 (Registered Charity 1199341), was formed as a private charitable company, limited by guarantee on 29 September 2021. The process of incorporation was completed on 30 December 2022 with all the assets and liabilities transferred as a going concern from the unincorporated Charitable Trust, also known as the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund (Registered Charity 209376). 2025 has been another year of significant change including the closure of the Harpenden Home. Trustees continue to seek to discern the Lord’s will for Bethesda to ensure that the Charity continues to meet its purpose for future generations.

The Trustees would acknowledge the Lord’s gracious help during the last 12 months.

Trustees/Directors and Officers of the Charity serving since 1 January and throughout 2025

Trustees/Directors:

Mr. M.D. Ridout (Chairman) Mr. D.F. Stevens (Vice-Chairman) Dr. G. Christie (resigned 20 January 2025) Mr. S.B. Cottingham Mr. J.B. Hart Mr. P.J. Pocock Mr. R.A. Saunders Mr. J. Sayers (resigned 8 August 2025) Mr. R.W. Woodhams Officers: Mr. A.J.H. Topping (General Manager/Company Secretary) (resigned 8 October 2025) Miss. C.M. Pepler (PA to the Board) Miss S. Williamson (Registered Home Manager, Brighton) Mrs. D. Scott (Registered Home Manager, Harpenden until closure and deregulation of the Home 31 August 2025)

Objective of the Charity and how this is met

The Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund (the Charity) provides accommodation, personal care and support to elderly persons who are members of Gospel Standard Strict and Particular Baptist churches, or who regularly attend Gospel Standard chapels and who have a wide range of personal care needs including, physical infirmity, loneliness and dementia. Residents with increasing and progressive nursing requirements are provided with additional support in the Bethesda Home by community/district nurses.

The Charity makes available four types of provision: permanent residency, short stays and day care together with independent retirement living accommodation.

Bethesda provides care and support for its residents through understanding the background to their beliefs and lifestyle, which can be summarised in the following way:

In 1944 the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund was formed to provide a Christian Home for the elderly and infirm from the Gospel Standard group of Churches. The provision of this care and accommodation provided a spiritual and homely atmosphere for like-minded people.

The residents are Bible-believing Christians whose rule of life is the Gospel, and Bethesda strives to respect this in providing for their mental, spiritual and physical wellbeing.

The spiritual life of the Bethesda Home centres around:

Daily Bible-reading and prayer.
Chapel services, which can be attended in person or listened to in the Home.
Prayer meetings and hymn-singing organised in the Home.

In addition, the Home endeavours to provide an environment that reflects the preferred lifestyle of the residents.

Bethesda Homes are rooted and grounded in the churches with which the residents were formerly associated. This means that residents will often be living with lifelong friends and, in many cases, relatives. The management and staff (some of whom are also from the same background) are supported by volunteers drawn from local chapels that are within the Gospel Standard group of churches, which means residents living in Bethesda can stay in contact with the people they knew prior to moving.

The Charity achieves its purpose through providing high-quality care that meets the individual physical, mental and spiritual well-being of the residents which is delivered with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect. This is underpinned by ensuring that the Home is well governed, led and managed to provide a framework for delivering high-quality care centred on meeting the individual needs of the residents, which seeks to ensure:

The residents are safe and free from harm.
The residents, their families, staff and external agencies are confident that the Home provides a secure and caring environment.
The individual care needs of the residents are assessed, reviewed and monitored from preadmission to end of life.
Any concerns regarding the appropriateness of the care provided are identified, listened to and acted upon.
The care, treatment and support provided to the residents is delivered in a transparent and appropriate way by staff competent and confident to do so, in facilities that are adapted, as appropriate, to meet individual needs, so the health and well-being of residents is maintained and improved.
Opportunities are available for residents, and others, to provide feedback on the quality of care provided, as part of Bethesda’s commitment to service improvement.

Governing Document

The Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund is a private charitable company, limited by guarantee, registered with Companies House on 29 September 2021 and with the Charity Commission on 16 June 2022. It operates under its Memorandum and Articles of Association incorporated on 29 September 2021.

The unincorporated and incorporated charities formally merged on 24 October 2025. Supporters wishing to leave a legacy to the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund are therefore respectfully advised to stipulate the new registered charity number 1199341.

The governing document of the Charity does not afford supporters of the Charity a legal voting right in its running, as has been the case from the earliest days of Bethesda.

Constitution and Organisational Structure

The Trustees of the Charity (also called Directors), of which there must be a minimum of six and a maximum of twelve, have general control and management of the administration of the Charity and its property and funds. The Trustees are responsible for the appointment of Trustees who then become Members by virtue of their appointment as Trustees. No person other than a Trustee may

be admitted as a Member. A Trustee serves for a period of three years after which they retire. A retiring Trustee may be re-appointed for a maximum of three consecutive terms of office including their initial term. At the end of 2025 there were seven Trustees.

Supporters are invited to attend an Annual Meeting of the GSBF at which they are able to express their opinion on the following matters by means of a show of hands:

a) The appointment of new trustees
b) The reappointment of trustees standing for re-election
c) The annual report and financial statements.

The Company Secretary and PA to the Board support the Trustees in ensuring that the governance of the Charity remains in accordance with regulatory requirements.

The General Manager is responsible for ensuring that Bethesda is managed effectively and in accordance with legal and regulatory requirements and is assisted in this by the management team(s).

At the end of 2025, the position of Company Secretary/General Manager was vacant and the Trustees are considering how the duties of these roles can be fulfilled by the Charity’s resources.

Public Benefit

As a charitable organisation, Bethesda is required to demonstrate that there is an identifiable benefit to a section of the general public as a direct result of its activities in pursuit of its charitable aims. To this end the Charity's Trustees have complied with the duty in section 17 of the Charities Act 2011 having due regard to Public Benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission.

Bethesda’s charitable objects are the relief of persons in need and, in particular, elderly persons in need who are; a) sick or infirm; and b) either members of, or regularly attend, a Gospel Standard church/chapel, by alleviating their suffering or assisting with their recovery.

Trustees’ responsibilities in relation to the financial statements

Charity and Company law requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the current position of the Charity at the year end and of its income and expenditure during that year. In preparing those financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently;
make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
state whether applicable accounting standards and statements of recommended practice have been followed subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Charity will continue in operation.

The Trustees are required to keep proper accounting records which 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, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations and the provisions of the Charity’s governing documents. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Achievements and Outcome of Activities

Charity overview

The Trustees have in recent years identified the challenges facing Bethesda as:

Sustaining the distinct identity and Christian ethos of Bethesda in an age of spiritual compromise and an increasing secular society. More recently this has manifest itself in the promotion of ideologies contrary to the word of God regarding the end of life.

Sustaining the financial viability of Bethesda to ensure levels of care and support are sufficient to meet the individual needs of residents together with ensuring Bethesda’s physical resources are fit for purpose.
Responding to the changing needs of those in later life and seeking to provide accommodation and/or services that meet these needs, respect their independence and, where possible, allow them to live near their place of worship, all within the constraints of the current premises.
Recruiting staff (at all levels) who are sympathetic to the Christian ethos of Bethesda and lifestyle needs of our residents.

Maintaining the viability of Bethesda

This continues to be a pressing burden, due to the challenges of meeting the complex needs of those using Bethesda’s services, within the constraints of external and internal pressures.

Key external challenges have been identified as follows:

The national care crisis impacting on local authority budgets and availability of funds and support for social care.
Central government focus on care in the community and individuals staying in their own homes and communities.
The decline in the Gospel Standard (GS) group of churches - a shrinking potential resident base and the understandable desire of relatives for a care provision near to where they live.
Increasing staff costs and the availability of those willing to work in the care sector.
• Increasing external scrutiny to ensure that care homes are fit for purpose which, in turn, impacts on Bethesda’s running costs.
The promotion and widespread support of euthanasia - which may put increasing pressure on Christian care homes to separate from state finance and support.
The diminishing local authority financial support available for residents without means.

In addition to the external factors impacting the Charity’s ability to maintain its service, are a large range of internal factors that apply to a greater or lesser extent to the Bethesda. Key internal challenges, during this reporting year, have been identified as follows:

Limited financial resources available to sustain new development and provide working capital.
Low levels of occupancy, due to the numerical decline in the GS group of churches. This impacts on the financial sustainability of the Home with the situation being made worse when central costs are allocated.
Older buildings impacting on:
➢ Maintenance and repair costs.
➢ The ability to cope with high dependency needs (physical and mental) and/or Infection Prevention and Control (IPC).
➢ The ability to cope with residents having complex needs which might affect the ‘well-being’ of other residents and the resilience of management and staff in coping with the challenges faced.
➢ The appeal of facilities to potential residents.

Closure of the Harpenden Home

In February 2025, the decision was made to proceed with the consultation process regarding the closure of the Harpenden Home. This decision was based primarily on the financial losses being sustained by the Home (which were closely associated with the decline in occupancy), the physical state of the building and the fact that it was built for a very different set of care needs. The consultation process commenced in March 2025.

Bethesda was reported to the Charity Commission by a concerned individual in respect of the consultation process. The Charity Commission responded to the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund

by saying, “The Commission will not take forward complaints where other parties disagree with decisions made by the Trustees and those decisions have been properly made within the law and the provisions of the Charity’s governing document”. The Trustees after carefully reflecting on the statement were confident that they had complied fully with Charity Commission requirements.

The final decision to close the Harpenden Home was taken, with a heavy heart, by the Trustees on 6 May 2025. Although the Trustees had endeavoured to find and provide alternative residential accommodation for the Harpenden Home residents in the local area, in the Lord’s purposes, this “door was shut”. It is also worth noting that in the previous four years, the Charity had looked at 21 different potential properties with a view to relocating the Harpenden Home yet the way was not opened.

On 19 August 2025, it was announced with sadness that after 56 years of service to the Lord and His people, the provision at Bethesda, Harpenden had closed, with the final resident being safely resettled in the Bethesda Home at Brighton on 13 August 2025. Adrian Topping led the final morning worship at Harpenden on 13 August 2025 and concluded with hymn 631, "The Lord Himself be with you all' and Numbers 6: 24-26.

Staffing the services

There is currently a full complement of staff in the Brighton Home including bank staff who provide a buffer to accommodate fluctuating resident numbers and changing care needs.

The Trustees would take this opportunity to thank Adrian Topping (former General Manager), who after many years of loyal service, left Bethesda to take up new employment within the Christian care sector in October 2025. The Trustees would similarly thank Debbie Scott, (former Harpenden Home Manager), her management team and all the staff for their dedication and the loving care to the residents over many years. They would also thank them for their continued commitment and support during the closure of the Home that ensured the care of the residents and the residents’ safe relocation to their new surroundings. It is also encouraging that former members of Harpenden staff have continued to stay in touch with the residents.

The Trustees thank the many volunteers and members of the Home Support Group for all their labours of love in relation to the former Harpenden Home. For many, this association has been over the lifetime of the Home and no doubt has many memories; might the Lord bless each one in their ‘sacrifice’ over the years.

Ability to meet the changing needs of the residents

Over recent times, the residents who move into Bethesda are increasingly frail and live with at least two or three medical diagnoses which they are struggling to control. These include Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), heart failure, kidney failure and dementia.

As a consequence, Bethesda has invested in developing the knowledge and training of the staff to help them understand and successfully support people with these needs. There has also been investment in technology to assist management and staff in identifying, meeting and recording care needs to ensure residents’ care plans are appropriate to the individual.

Addressing the challenges

The Trustees have, in the fear of the Lord, taken a number of actions over recent years to address the situation facing the Charity, particularly the financial situation, and in seeking to provide accommodation that would be fit for purpose to meet future needs. The actions taken include:

Increasing fees to realistic levels: Following consultation, a significant one-off adjustment to residents’ fees was made in 2020 to a more sustainable level. Fees have been subsequently adjusted annually in line with inflation and to meet increases in National Living Wage and Bethesda’s National Insurance contributions.

Negotiations with local authorities to ensure full fees are paid: Since 2020, Bethesda has offered help and support to families in negotiating with the local authorities which were funding their loved ones in our Homes to ensure that full fees are paid. Where this has been the case, to date this has been successful. However, this is proving more challenging as financial strictures are placed on local authority budgets with the focus being on care in the community (i.e. for those with age-related needs to live independently in their own homes), in preference to supporting residential care.

Financial controls: Rigorous cost control measures include monthly budgeting, financial accountability and monthly reporting on performance are in place.

Stewarding of investment income: The investment policy has been recently revised and updated, and an investment platform is being used to ensure investment income is being fully realised.

Entry criteria: The exceptional entry criteria were revisited. Over the ten-year period 20142024, 10% of the entries into the Bethesda Homes were exceptional entry admissions. In the case of the Harpenden Bethesda Home the figure was 15%.

Consultation on the future structure of the service provision: In 2019 extensive consultations were undertaken to seek views on the future structure of Bethesda’s provision. Arising from this, three key factors were identified, these being:

➢ people’s desire to live near their place of worship,
➢ maintain their independence and
➢ ensure that there is an inheritance for the following generation.

These factors remain as an influence on individuals’ decisions relating to their choice of care in their old age.

Reviewing the Quality of our Service

There have been no inspections by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) during 2025 and the ratings applied in 2023 remain unchanged.

As part of Bethesda’s quality assurance and improvement strategy, the Trustees have in recent years encouraged the use of external review to provide an independent judgement on the quality of its care provision in meeting the CQC Single Assessment Framework. Bethesda has worked with SRG Ltd which has a team of individuals with experience of CQC inspections and working at management levels in the care sector.

On 11 and 12 November 2025, SRG Ltd undertook an audit of the Brighton and Hove Bethesda Home CQC Single Assessment Framework and the underlying five key question areas of Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-Led. The outcome of the audit resulted in ‘Good’ ratings for all five areas which reflects the level of care provided to the residents in the Home by the Home Manager and her staff team. The challenge is to build on the high standards of care in the Home to further improve the residents’ experience. On 13 November 2025, SRG made reference to the Brighton Home in email correspondence to the Chairman, describing it as ‘an incredibly beautiful service that has its residents in the centre of everything it does‘.

On Wednesday, 30 April 2025, the Harpenden Home received an overall rating of “Good” from the PAMMS (Provider Assessment and Market Management Solution) assessment undertaken by Hertfordshire County Council. This assessment forms part of its responsibility, as the local authority, to review, monitor and assess the quality of care, safety and contractual compliance of adult social care providers.

Other Properties and Services Brighton Independent Retirement Living

At Brighton, an independent retirement living studio flat, with its own access, was built within the footprint of the Home. The facility has been occupied since December 2025 by a former resident of the Harpenden flatlets who is able to live independently and access, for example, local healthcare

services and shops in the area. They are also able to purchase, if needed, main meals in the Home together with visiting the residents.

Harpenden Flatlets

During 2025, all three flatlets were occupied for at least part or all of the year. At the close of the year, there was only one flatlet occupied and the Trustees will continue, all the while it is needed by the occupant, to make this provision available.

The ongoing assistance of the volunteers who support those living in the flatlets and contribute towards the maintenance and repairs of the flats is acknowledged with appreciation.

Studley

The sale of the Studley Home was completed on 26 July 2024 and an associated £25,000 overage payment was received in 2025.

Ebenezer Lodge, Swavesey, Independent Retirement Living Accommodation

The start of the Ebenezer Lodge construction project (digging foundations) commenced on 8 July 2024. At the Board meeting on 13 December 2024, Trustees were informed that construction of the roof was scheduled to commence on 6 January 2025. By the end of 2025, the development was virtually complete.

The Trustees would once more record the faithfulness and mercy of the Lord in making provision at Swavesey. In 2023 the Trustees published a document “Show Me Now Thy Way” which records, with thanksgiving, the Lord’s dealings, thus far, as a testimony to the generation following. Copies of this document can be found on the Bethesda website or by contacting management@gsbf.uk. If the Lord will, it is hoped to add to this document a further record of how the Trustees have proved the reality and truth of “Jehovah Jireh” in the matters of Swavesey (and indeed in so many other ways).

The Statement of Intent that the GSBF submitted as part of the Ebenezer Lodge planning application recorded that ‘the trustees see the development as part of its charitable purpose and not as a commercial one’. At the point of completion, the total costs of the project exceeded the assessment of the market value of the property by £289,014, which for accounting purposes only is reported as an impairment loss. This resulted principally from additional costs arising from licensing issues relating to Great Crested Newts and additional/upgraded equipment to better provide for residents’ needs.

Gospel Standard Library

As previously reported, the Gospel Standard Baptist Library was built within the grounds of the Brighton and Hove Bethesda Home and the project was completed in 1980. However, there was an anomaly with this situation, in that the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund (GSBF) owned the land on which the Library stands, whereas the Gospel Standard Baptist Library Fund (GSBLF) owned the building. Although this arrangement had worked well over the years, there had never been a formal agreement regarding the occupancy of the land.

The sale of the freehold of the land on which the Library stands plus an adjoining strip of land to secure vehicular access to the building, should it ever be needed, was completed on 7 March 2025.

Financial Review

The full financial statements for the period are published in the accompanying booklet “GSBF Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2025”. The Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 December 2025 showed that the total income for the Charity for this period was £1,394,317 of which £1,166,418 (84%) was from residential care home fees. This illustrates the importance of income from the provision of residential care, as defined in the Charity’s purpose, for those in old age from Gospel Standard chapels.

A “Summary of Financial Results for each Home for the 12 months to December 2025” is provided below. This summary relates to the operation of the residential care homes and these must be viewed against the closure of the Harpenden Home during the year.

Summary of Financial Results for each Home for the 12 months to 31 December 2025

	Brighton	Harpenden	Total
	£	£	£
Residents’ fees	863,682	302,736	1,166,418
Other income (incl grants)	54,522	28,407	82,929
Total income	918,204	331,143	1,249,347
Employment and agency costs	632,424	568,080	1,200,504
Depreciation	13,996	16,609	30,605
Hardware, cleaning and laundry	7,077	7,018	14,095
Insurance	15,401	17,395	32,796
Motor and travel	3,354	1,749	5,103
Power and heating	26,099	17,758	43,857
Provisions	31,760	12,189	43,949
Registration fees	3,268	3,268	6,536
Repairs and renewals	55,944	19,235	75,179
Staff training	1,157	480	1,637
Telephone, relay and internet	2,931	3,610	6,541
Water services	7,629	7,000	14,629
Council tax	1,753	3,621	5,374
Garden expenses	111	5,025	5,136
Medical supplies	7,949	617	8,566
Personal protective equipment	3,181	798	3,979
Postage & stationery	1,069	1,479	2,548
Waste collection	5,950	3,020	8,970
Sundry expenses	6,435	11,390	17,825
Central office support costs	63,191	71,808	134,999
Other costs	22,987	13,605	36,592
Total expenditure	913,666	785,754	1,699,420
Surplus (deficit) for year	£4,538	(£454,611)	(£450,073)

As reported in previous years, the Harpenden Home, due to various circumstances, was accruing substantial deficits through primarily the proportion of staffing compared to income and the increasing cost of maintaining the building.

The overall deficit for operating the two Homes for 2025 was £450,073 of which the Harpenden Home accumulated an operating deficit of £454,611 which included £148,414 attributable to redundancy and termination payments. The Brighton Home managed to break even with a surplus of £4,538. It will also be noted in the Summary that the Central Office support costs of £134,999 are allocated to the Homes. In 2025, this was allocated as follows: Brighton £63,191 and Harpenden £71,608. The Trustees are aware of the impact of this overhead in operating the Charity and are actively working on the management of this cost.

Occupancy

As has been commented many times in the past, occupancy is key to the financial viability of the Charity. Overall occupancy for the twelve months of 2025 stood at 47% and was a very slight increase on the overall occupancy of 46.8% in 2024. Occupancy rates for the two homes were as follows:

➢ Brighton Home 59.6% occupancy level in 2025, including short stays (56.6% in 2024).

➢ Harpenden Home 30.4% occupancy level in 2025, including short stays (38.1% in 2024).

Harpenden Flatlets

At Harpenden, the three flatlets were each occupied for at least for part of the 12-month period and show a surplus of £2,569.

Summary of Financial Results for the Flatlets for the 12 months to 31 December 2025

	Harpenden	Swavesey	Total
	£	£	£
Residents fees	22,515	-	22,515
Total income	22,515	-	22,515
Cleaning, windows and waste	-	-	-
Council tax on unoccupied properties	905	(1,154)	(249)
Depreciation	4,287	-	4,287
Impairment loss	-	289,014	289,014
Garden maintenance	220	-	220
Insurance	1,265	3,519	4,784
Power and heating	3,070	5,908	8,978
Repairs and renewals	1,406	-	1,406
Central office support costs	7,061	14,123	21,184
Other costs	1,732	4,861	6,593
Total expenditure	19,946	27,257	47,203
Surplus (deficit) for the period	£2,569	(£316,271)	(£313,702)

Plans for the Future subject to the Lord’s will

Independent retirement living project

The independent retirement living project at Ebenezer Lodge, Swavesey is very near completion and it is hoped to open the facility in 2026, if the Lord will.

Future structure of the Charity

The future structure of the Charity, in terms of its service provision and accommodation, remains under continued prayerful consideration and the Trustees look to the Lord for guidance on the way forward.

Ebenezer Lodge, Swavesey

Conclusion

2025 was a very challenging year in the history of Bethesda with the closure of the Harpenden Home and leaving only one home at Brighton and Hove. (This is in comparison with Bethesda having had, at one time, seven homes in different parts of the country.)

The decision to consult on the closure of the Harpenden Home was not taken lightly and one that had been a burden to trustees over many years. Every step made was undertaken prayerfully and in the fear of the Lord, as the Trustees were not unaware of the impact that this course of action would have on residents, their families and friends, staff, and those in the locality and local churches with long associations and attachments to the Harpenden Home. At the time there were “paths we feared to tread”, yet it is when we look back, we trust we can see the sovereign overruling Hand of the Lord in proving His faithfulness and in particular His loving care and kindness to the residents (Isaiah 46:4) and the staff.

Throughout the history of Bethesda, trustees have no doubt been faced with many difficulties and, what may have seemed impossibilities at the time, yet they have proved the arms of everlasting love and mercy underneath, which will not fail. It is the Lord who will deliver (Isaiah 43:1-3) and whose will, will be done.

As we look back at 2025, might we also look up and unite in a shared concern for the Lord’s aged ones, in these perilous times and low state of the GS chapels that the Lord might continue to provide a Bethesda - “A House of Mercy” unto us who are not worthy of the least of His mercies (Genesis 32:10)

On behalf of the Trustees

M.D. Ridout, Chairman 05/06/2026

Residents, Activities

Appendix 1: Reference and Administrative Information

Name of Charity: Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund Charity Number: 1199341 Company Number: 13651153

Trustees serving during the financial year and since the year end:

(Also known as the Bethesda Fund Committee)

Company Secretary: Mr. A.J.H. Topping (resigned 8 October 2025) General Manager: Mr. A.J.H. Topping (resigned 8 October 2025) PA to the Board: Miss C.M. Pepler

Registered Office Address:

Ellis-Fermor & Negus 35 Derby Road Long Eaton Nottingham NG10 1LU Telephone: 01582 460522 Email: management@gsbf.uk

Connected Charity

The Piggott Charity is a “connected Charity” under the control of the Trustees of the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund. It exists to help Residents of the Bethesda Homes who are in financial need to pay the cost of their care. Further information can be obtained on request.

Auditors: Begbies Chartered Accountants, Unit 14 Park Barn, Evegate Business Park, Smeeth, Ashford, TN25 6SX

Bankers: Lloyds Bank plc, 60 George Street, Luton, LU1 2BB

Solicitors: Ellis-Fermor & Negus, 2 Devonshire Avenue, Beeston, Nottingham, NG9 1BS

Appendix 2: Reserves Policy

Reserves Policy

This policy has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) and the Charity Commission’s guidance on Charity reserves: building resilience.

Definition

Reserves are that part of our general-purpose funds which do not need to be spent immediately and which are not committed or designated. They are the resources we have or can make available to spend on any of our objectives once we have met our known commitments and covered any other planned expenditure. The reserves at any year end are represented by the net current assets shown in the Balance Sheet less designated funds, restricted funds and expenditure contracted for or planned.

Reasons why the charity needs reserves

The Charity has a commitment, not only to the present generation of Gospel Standard Strict Baptists, but also to a generation to come. The fees charged to our residents in the Bethesda Homes form the main income of the Charity. However, experience has shown that occupancy levels can fluctuate. A drop in occupancy levels results in a serious drain on our reserves. Although legacy income is an important source of income, it varies greatly year by year and can never be predicted. Legacy income is sometimes restricted for the benefit of one particular Home, and is not therefore available for general purposes. The Charity has no endowment funding and is therefore entirely dependent (apart from residents’ fees) upon donor funding from year to year. Apart from the usual insurances, the Charity has no protection against catastrophic or lesser but damaging events.

The level of reserves needed

The Committee considers that the Charity should endeavour to hold, as a minimum, free reserves amounting to “six months expenditure” in one year as stated in the last published Statement of Financial Activities . However, from the past history of the Charity, it is recognised that to state an absolute figure is not entirely appropriate, as from time to time, in the providence of God, major legacies and other resources have been received in times of need. The Trustees are firmly convinced that the Charity should be run on Scriptural lines, whereby they look to the Lord to provide for what they believe is His work, remembering that “the silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts” (Haggai 2.8); “ He is their strength in the time of trouble” (Psalm 37.39). The Trustees recognise that they have a responsibility for the continuing care of Bethesda’s residents.

How these reserves are to be maintained

Major property maintenance and improvement work will be planned and undertaken only as the objectives of this policy statement allow. All operational costs will be carefully monitored.

This policy will be reviewed by the Trustees at least annually, usually in January as part of the business planning process.

Free reserves at Year-end

Free reserves at 31 December 2025 were £2,122,927 which is 139% above the six months’ expenditure required to meet the reserves policy. The free reserves are calculated after deducting amounts committed under contracts for the Swavesey development anticipated to be spent in 2026 and estimated at around £130,000.

Appendix 3: Risks Management Policy

Risks Management Policy

This policy has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) and the Charity Commission’s guidance: Charities and risk management (CC 26).

General policy statement

It is the policy of the Bethesda Fund Committee that all risks associated with the Charity’s activities be minimised by the implementation of risk management and prevention systems or procedures. The Committee will ensure that all significant risks are identified, assessed and monitored.

Major risks identified

The Committee has identified the most serious risks to the Charity and recorded these in the Risks Register.

How the policy is to be maintained

Each component part of this policy is clearly delegated to either the Committee as trustees, other officers of the Charity or members of staff. The Committee adopts the principle that effective risk management is the responsibility of all levels of management and staff.

Arrangements for monitoring and reviewing this policy

This policy will be reviewed by the Trustees at least annually, usually in January, with any changes to the Risk Register notified to them quarterly.

Appendix 4: Investment Policy

Investment Policy

This policy has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) and the Charity Commission’s guidance: investing charity money: guidance for trustees (CC14).

Objectives in investing the Charity’s funds

The objectives of the Trustees are:

i) to ensure that the funds are properly protected: that is, that the capital is not put at risk and will be protected against inflation as far as is reasonably practical.

ii) to obtain the best income from those funds (consistently with the above) with which to carry out the Charity’s purposes.

Powers of investment

The Charity Commission Scheme under which the Charity operates contains no specific powers of investment. The Charity’s investments will, therefore, be governed by the Trustee Investments Act 1961.

Risk profile

The Trustees are willing only to accept investments classified as low risk.

Policy statement

The Trustees invest the charity’s funds in two principal ways. Firstly, freehold property is held to provide residential care and independent retirement living accommodation for persons in need, in particular elderly persons in need, who are sick or infirm, in accordance with the objectives of the Charity. Over the years freehold property has been shown to hold its value against inflation. Such property is maintained in a good state of repair. Secondly, surplus funds are maintained in deposit accounts with reputable banks, building societies, and common deposit funds, which may, or may not, include money-market deposits, normally in at least three different entities. From time to time the Trustees may consider investing in government stocks. The Trustees do not invest in ordinary shares of quoted companies due to the risks involved and difficulty in finding companies which maintain ethical and moral standards which are consistent with the Scriptures.

Investment advice

The Charity is currently going through a transitional period where its capital will be needed for development, and as such it is currently held in short term investments. Once decisions have been made in respect of new properties, the need for financial advice in investing any residual funds will be reviewed.

Arrangements for monitoring and reviewing this policy

This policy will be reviewed by the Trustees at least annually, usually in January as part of the business planning process. Maturing bonds will be reinvested promptly.

Appendix 5: Policy Statement on paying staff

Policy Statement on Paying Staff

How we decide how much to pay our staff

The Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund (‘The Bethesda Fund’) is committed to ensuring that staff are paid fairly in accordance with current employment legislation and in a way which ensures the Charity attracts and retains those with the right skills to have the greatest impact in delivering its charitable objectives.

In accordance with the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) we:

Disclose the number of staff in receipt of more that £60,000 and above (in bands of £10,000).
• Disclose pensions and other benefits.

The Bethesda Fund Committee (‘The Committee’) meets annually to set the pay levels for all staff.

The main responsibilities of the Committee in respect of setting pay are to:

review the level of the Bethesda Fund salaries and wages against an agreed independent market benchmarking tool and to make sure amendments are appropriate to ensure that salaries and wages remain competitive.
determine the remuneration package of the management staff.
approve the annual percentage increase in the payroll for all staff taking into account affordability and the Consumer Prices Index including Owner Occupiers’ Housing costs (CPIH) as at 31 October (issued in November) for the previous year.
approve any consolidated pay awards and staff salary increases outside of the annual review process.
determine pension arrangements and
ensure that contractual terms on termination are fair to the individual and the Charity, that poor performance is not rewarded and a duty to mitigate loss is recognised.

In determining the Bethesda Fund’s remuneration policy the Committee takes into account all factors which are deemed necessary. The appropriateness and relevance of the remuneration policy is reviewed annually ensuring the Bethesda Fund remains sensitive to the broader issues e.g. pay and employment conditions elsewhere.

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Financial Statements

for the year ended

31 December 2025

Charity number 1199341

Company number 13651153 registered in England and Wales

Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund

Company registered office address:

35 Derby Road Long Eaton Nottingham NG10 1LU

Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2025

CONTENTS
	Page
Independent Auditor’s Report …………………………………	2
Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) ………………………	6
Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) for prior period ……	7
Balance Sheet ……………………………………………………	8
Statement of Cash Flows ………………………………………	9
Notes to the Financial Statements ………………………………	10

The Annual Report for 2025, along with these financial statements, are available together from the address above.

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 31 December 2025 which comprise the statement of financial activities, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows and the notes to the financial statements, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion, the financial statements:

give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company's affairs as at 31 December 2025 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for the period then ended;
have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and
have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charity in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the Trustees' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor's report thereon. The Trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:

the information given in the Trustees' report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared, which includes the directors' report prepared for the purposes of company law, is consistent with the financial statements; and
the directors' report included within the Trustees' report has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charity and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the directors' report included within the Trustees' report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
certain disclosures of trustees' remuneration specified by law are not made; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or
the Trustees were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies' exemptions in preparing the Trustees' report and from the requirement to prepare a strategic report.

Responsibilities of Trustees

As explained more fully in the statement of Trustees' responsibilities, the Trustees, who are also the directors of the charity for the purpose of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the Trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the Trustees are responsible for assessing the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Extent to which the audit was capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud

The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect if irregularities, including fraud.

Based on our understanding of the charitable company and its industry, we considered that non-compliance with the following laws and regulations might have a material effect on the financial statements: employment regulation, health and safety regulation, anti-money laundering regulation, and non-compliance with implementation of government support schemes relating to Covid-19.

To help us identify instances of non-compliance with these laws and regulations, and in identifying and assessing the risks of material misstatement in respect to non-compliance, our procedures included, but were not limited to:

Enquiries and confirmation of management and those charged with governance as to their identification of any non- compliance with laws or regulations, or any actual or potential claims;
Inspecting correspondence, if any, with relevant licensing or regulatory authorities;
• Communicating identified laws and regulations to the engagement team and remaining alert to any indications of non-compliance throughout our audit; and

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GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 December 2025 (including Income and Expenditure Account)

Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 16,364 - Charitable activities 4 1,267,894 - Investments 5 86,678 11,660 Total 1,370,936 11,660 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 23,867 - Charitable activities: Operating expenditure 7-13 1,717,413 6,509 Impairment loss 15 289,014 - Total 2,030,294 6,509 Net income/(expenditure) (659,358) 5,151 Transfers between funds 22,23 622,058 (618,047) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 127,522 - Net movement in funds 90,222 (612,896) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 4,515,444 637,971 Total funds carried forward £4,605,666 £25,075 ----Unrestricted funds----	Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 16,364 - Charitable activities 4 1,267,894 - Investments 5 86,678 11,660 Total 1,370,936 11,660 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 23,867 - Charitable activities: Operating expenditure 7-13 1,717,413 6,509 Impairment loss 15 289,014 - Total 2,030,294 6,509 Net income/(expenditure) (659,358) 5,151 Transfers between funds 22,23 622,058 (618,047) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 127,522 - Net movement in funds 90,222 (612,896) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 4,515,444 637,971 Total funds carried forward £4,605,666 £25,075 ----Unrestricted funds----	Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 16,364 - Charitable activities 4 1,267,894 - Investments 5 86,678 11,660 Total 1,370,936 11,660 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 23,867 - Charitable activities: Operating expenditure 7-13 1,717,413 6,509 Impairment loss 15 289,014 - Total 2,030,294 6,509 Net income/(expenditure) (659,358) 5,151 Transfers between funds 22,23 622,058 (618,047) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 127,522 - Net movement in funds 90,222 (612,896) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 4,515,444 637,971 Total funds carried forward £4,605,666 £25,075 ----Unrestricted funds----	Restricted Total funds funds 2025 £ £ 5,378 21,742 4,342 1,272,236 2,001 100,339 11,721 1,394,317 - 23,867 29,849 1,753,771 - 289,014 29,849 2,066,652 (18,128) (672,335) (4,011) - - 127,522 (22,139) (544,813) 68,001 5,221,416 £45,862 £4,676,603
	1,370,936	11,660
	23,867 1,717,413 289,014	- 6,509 -
	2,030,294	6,509
		5,151 (618,047) -
	90,222	(612,896)
	4,515,444	637,971
	£4,605,666	£25,075

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Comparative figures for the prior period

Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 December 2024 (including Income and Expenditure Account)

Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 50,766 5,000 Charitable activities 4 1,363,932 - Investments 5 85,089 33,511 Grant: The Piggott Charity 6 - - Grant: Luton Ebenezer Chapel 27 61,807 - Total 1,561,594 38,511 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 22,130 - Charitable activities 7-13 1,749,074 6,330 Total 1,771,204 6,330 Net (expenditure)/income (209,610) 32,181 Transfers between funds 470,811 (482,194) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 1,381,274 - Net movement in funds 1,642,475 (450,013) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 2,872,969 1,087,984 Total funds carried forward £4,515,444 £637,971 ----Unrestricted funds----	Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 50,766 5,000 Charitable activities 4 1,363,932 - Investments 5 85,089 33,511 Grant: The Piggott Charity 6 - - Grant: Luton Ebenezer Chapel 27 61,807 - Total 1,561,594 38,511 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 22,130 - Charitable activities 7-13 1,749,074 6,330 Total 1,771,204 6,330 Net (expenditure)/income (209,610) 32,181 Transfers between funds 470,811 (482,194) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 1,381,274 - Net movement in funds 1,642,475 (450,013) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 2,872,969 1,087,984 Total funds carried forward £4,515,444 £637,971 ----Unrestricted funds----	Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 50,766 5,000 Charitable activities 4 1,363,932 - Investments 5 85,089 33,511 Grant: The Piggott Charity 6 - - Grant: Luton Ebenezer Chapel 27 61,807 - Total 1,561,594 38,511 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 22,130 - Charitable activities 7-13 1,749,074 6,330 Total 1,771,204 6,330 Net (expenditure)/income (209,610) 32,181 Transfers between funds 470,811 (482,194) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 1,381,274 - Net movement in funds 1,642,475 (450,013) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 2,872,969 1,087,984 Total funds carried forward £4,515,444 £637,971 ----Unrestricted funds----	Restricted Total funds funds 2024 £ £ 4,006 59,772 3,776 1,367,708 2,414 121,014 19,050 19,050 - 61,807 29,246 1,629,351 - 22,130 28,996 1,784,400 28,996 1,806,530 250 (177,179) 11,383 - - 1,381,274 11,633 1,204,095 56,368 4,017,321 £68,001 £5,221,416
	1,561,594	38,511
	22,130 1,749,074	- 6,330
	1,771,204	6,330
		32,181 (482,194) -
	1,642,475	(450,013)
	2,872,969	1,087,984
	£4,515,444	£637,971

CXISPfr'.I. 8-I'ANDARI) HTr.'I'IITr-.Sl)A bllND IChaJJiy nuinb¢r 1199341 Cuinparty iiuinbLr 136511531 Ilalance Sheet a$ it 31 I1Cer 2025 Nol¢ 2n25 2n24 Ixed assets: Tangible 15-17 2,3.%2,779 1,7C)9,%62 TotulfLYed 2.352.739 1.769.%62 C'urrenl #1set¥: l?ri)p¢rly lo sold l)eixoT InvilrnLTLs Calih al hank and in hond 17 18 19 3.12,110 117,IX6 I,R3? fy141 69,915 3,2h7.6X4 2,49X..%I I 1.626.727 CTttlilurs.' lullin¥ dw. withinon¢ yr 2 174,(A7 Nei ¢iirrgni tt.s.iei.% 2,323.K64 1.451.554 lo1.%.%¥. ley.I cmrrepti 1147hllirie.s 4,676,(A13 5.221.410 Tothl Nelfis$ 4,676,603 Lq321,410 'he lif the charlty: UnrrhiriilLd- (i¥ii¥rdl 4,605,(kn6 25,{175 45,N02 4,315,444 17,971 21,2.1 2122 Rc%lriLIL'd InLUmC furtd¥ '1'0¢41 chrlty fvnd$ 4,676,(3 Ll221,41fj Thcsc I'inamial la'1Cnts. hav¥ becn prad in ai¥iYdance with the 0VIsIOnS Ot. Ihe CompaniLN A¥1 2W6 applicable lo ci)mpanic4 bubjL¥I li) th¢ %mall iompani¥% regimc. Thu l'ilia1#1 SWkin¢nls W¢[¢ appVed by die Trubttts on 05100.'?0?O and signcd on Ihcir b1r by.. M. RIDnll-I', I..hairm8:

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND Statement of Cash Flows for the year ended 31 December 2025

Note
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net cash (used in) operating activities
24(a)
Cash flows from investing activities:
Interest and rents from investments
Proceeds from the sale of property, plant and equipment
Purchase of property, plant and equipment
Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities
Change in cash & cash equivalents in reporting period
Cash & cash equivalents at start of reporting period
Cash & cash equivalents at end of reporting period 24(b)

2025
2024
£
£
(493,749)
(138,243)
100,339
121,014
128,822
1,615,338
(1,243,209)
(500,444)
(1,014,048)
1,235,908
(1,507,797)
1,097,665
3,556,812
2,459,147
£2,049,015
£3,556,812

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025

1 Accounting Policies

The Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund is a private company limited by guarantee which was incorporated on 29th September 2021. It is also registered with the Charity Commission as a charity and is a public benefit entity. It was set up to take forward in a corporate structure the existing work of the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund, which was an unincorporated charity established in 1944.

(a) Basis of preparation

The Financial Statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention in accordance with the Charities Act 2011, the Companies Act 2006, the Articles of Association, and applicable United Kingdom accounting standards, FRS 102 and Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice SORP (FRS 102) (2nd edition) published by the Charity Commission in 2019.

Merger accounting on incorporation: As mentioned above, the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund was an unincorporated charity but changed its legal form by a transfer of all its assets, liabilities and undertaking to a charitable company of the same name on 30 December 2022. The purposes and beneficiary class of the charity remained unchanged, hence accounting rules required that the reconstruction of the charity be treated as a merger for accounting purposes.

Merger accounting involves aggregating the assets, liabilities and funds of the old unincorporated charity and the new charitable company, and presenting them as though they had always been part of the same reporting charity. Thus assets owned by the unincorporated charity and still owned at the current year end by the charitable company, are stated in these accounts at their original cost to the unincorporated charity (subject to normal accounting rules for depreciation or impairment as appropriate).

(b) Going concern

The Financial Statements have been prepared on a going concern basis. The trustees assess whether the use of going concern is appropriate and have identified no material uncertainties related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the ability of the charity to continue as a going concern. The trustees make this assessment in respect of a period of 12 months from the date of approval of the Financial Statements.

(c) Income

Voluntary income, including donations, Gift Aid, and chapel collections, is recognised in the period in which the income is received.

Investment income and rent is recognised on a receivable basis.

Legacies are accounted for as income either upon receipt or where the receipt of the legacy is probable. Receipt is normally probable when:

l there has been a grant of probate l the executors have established that there are sufficient assets in the estate, after settling any liabilities, to pay the legacy; and

l any conditions attached to the legacy are either within the control of the charity or have been met.

Legacies which have been notified, but are not recognised as income in the Statement of Financial Activities, are disclosed within the note ‘Donations and legacies’ with an estimate (if possible) of the amount receivable.

Fees from residents in the care homes and flatlets are accounted for in the period in which the service is provided.

Government grants are not recognised in income until there is reasonable assurance that (a) any attached conditions will be satisfied, and (b) the grants will be received. Grants are recognised using the performance model such that a grant without future performance-related conditions is recognised in income when it is receivable, and other grants are recognised when the future performance-related conditions are met. Grants received before the revenue recognition criteria are satisfied are shown as a liability.

(d) Income tax recoverable

Any income tax due to be reclaimed from HMRC on donations made under Gift Aid or refundable income tax deducted from income received net of tax, has been brought into these financial statements as a debtor.

(e) Expenditure

Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis, that is, when a liability is incurred. The charity is not registered for VAT and accordingly expenditure is shown gross of irrecoverable VAT.

Support costs are costs incurred in support of both income generation, charitable activities, and governance, as shown in the note ‘Allocation of support costs.’ These costs comprise a proportion of central office staff, information systems and internal accounting costs, and costs relating to the premises. Also included is a proportion of the management and administration costs in the Bethesda Homes and servicing of the Homes’ premises.

Governance costs are costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity which relate to the general running of the charity as distinct from those costs associated with its charitable activities. They include the cost of meeting constitutional and statutory requirements, audit fees, legal fees, and a proportion of central office costs.

(f) Pension scheme contributions

Contributions payable to the Charity’s pension scheme are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities as they become payable in accordance with the rules of the scheme. For further information see the note ‘Employee information.’

(g) Capitalisation and depreciation of tangible fixed assets

Freehold properties

Freehold properties are carried in the accounts at their original cost less depreciation and provisions for impairment where appropriate. Depreciation is provided to write down the original cost of the buildings, and the cost of later permanent additions and improvements, on a straight-line basis over a period of fifty years. No depreciation is charged on freehold land.

Equipment

Due to the large number of fixed assets owned and used by the charity, our policy is to recognise within the assets register only those assets that cost more than £1,000. Numerous items purchased at the same time costing in total more than £1,000 but each item individually costing less than £1,000 are not capitalised. This policy of depreciation applies only to assets acquired after January 1990; all equipment acquired before that date has been written off completely in previous accounting periods.

Equipment in the Homes and Flatlets costing more than £1,000 is capitalised and written off on a straight-line basis over a period of five years, and is shown in the balance sheet at cost less accumulated depreciation, the annual depreciation being charged as a running cost of the Homes and Flatlets. Equipment in the Homes and Flatlets costing less than £1,000 is not capitalised but is written off in the year of acquisition as an expense, being charged directly to the running costs of the Homes and Flatlets under ‘Repairs and renewals.’

Equipment in the Bethesda General Office at Harpenden costing more than £1,000 is capitalised and written off on a straight-line basis over a period of five years, and is shown in the balance sheet at cost less accumulated depreciation, the annual depreciation being charged as a running cost under ‘Central office costs.’

Equipment in the Bethesda General Office costing less than £1,000 is written off as an expense in the year of acquisition, being charged to ‘Central office costs’ under ‘Repairs and maintenance.’

Motor vehicles

Motor vehicles are written off at 25% per annum on a reducing balance.

(h) Transactions with trustees and related parties

No trustees received any remuneration for their services as a trustee. 5 trustees (2024: 8 trustees) were reimbursed travel, subsistence, accomodation and postage expenses totalling £2,294 (2024: £2,238). Expense reimbursements were waived by some trustees; the amounts were not material. During the year the charity purchased groceries and meals totalling £675 (2024: £nil) from a company in which one of the trustees has an interest. Besides the disclosures in these financial statements, no trustee or connected persons had any beneficial interest in any material contract, transaction or arrangement with the Charity during the period.

(i) Indemnity insurance

The charity carries a comprehensive insurance package provided by Travelers Insurance. Engineering Insurance and Inspection is provided by Allianz Insurance, Trustees Liability by AXA XL Insurance via Angel Risk Management Ltd., Group Personal Accident by Chubb Insurance, Cyber & Data Risks by Lloyd’s via CFC Underwriting Ltd, Property Insurance by Arch Insurance, and Motor Vehicle Insurance by QBE Insurance.

(j) Stocks of foods and other supplies

Stocks held at the period end have not been brought into these Financial Statements, as the amounts held are relatively insignificant.

(k) Funds

Unrestricted funds - these comprise accumulated surpluses and deficits on general funds that are available for use at the discretion of the trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity.

Designated funds - these are unrestricted funds set aside by the Trustees at their discretion from the general funds for specific purposes.

Restricted funds - these comprise funds subject to specific restrictions imposed by donors and funders.

Further details of the nature and purpose of each fund are set out in the notes to the accounts.

Surplus cash is held on a range of deposit accounts. Deposits maturing in less than one year are recognised as current investments and those that mature in more than one year from the period end are recognised as fixed investments.

2 Statement of Financial Activities

The Statement of Financial Activities includes all income, gains, expenditure and losses recognised for the reporting period. All income and expenditure derives from continuing activities.

3 Donations and legacies

Unrestricted Funds £ Collections & donations from chapels: For general purposes 5,746 For specific Homes - For assisting short-stay residents - For residents in financial need - Personal donations & subscriptions: For general purposes 2,458 For general purposes - Gift Aid 8,318 For specific Homes - For specific Homes - Gift Aid - Home collecting boxes - Total 16,522 Legacies received: Mr A Baldwin - Mrs M Brooks - Mr F Hayden - Mr D Keeling - Mrs L Prior - Income tax reclaimable (158) Total (158) Total £16,364	Restricted Funds £ - 300 1,168 810 - - 2,874 - 226	Total 2025 £ 5,746 300 1,168 810 2,458 8,318 2,874 - 226	Total 2024 £ 8,061 1,000 1,142 - 9,195 9,665 1,670 63 131
16,522	5,378	21,900	30,927
- - - - - (158)	- - - - - -	- - - - - (158)	5,000 2,355 2,003 14,487 5,000 -
(158)	-	(158)	28,845
£16,364	£5,378	£21,742	£59,772

3 Donations and legacies (continued)

The legacies below have been advised to the Charity as receivable after the period end:

Mrs M H Barker: £1,000 legacy for the benefit of the Brighton Home.

Mrs M D Hughes: the charity is a contingent beneficiary for an unknown amount. Mr L Y Morley: share in residue, amount not yet known.

Miss L M Thirkell: £2,000 legacy plus share in residue, amount not yet known.

For an explanation of when legacies are recognised as income see Note 1(c).

4 Income from charitable activities

Fees from residential care homes Fees from flatlets Staff board charges Government grant income (see Note 20) Sundry receipts	2025 2024 £ £ 1,166,418 1,311,431 22,515 30,267 17,412 13,743 59,392 - 6,499 12,267 £1,272,236 £1,367,708

5 Investment income

Interest on short-term deposits Use of bookroom	Unrestricted funds £ 98,341 (3)	Restricted funds £ 2,001 -	Total Total 2025 2024 £ £ 100,342 119,139 (3) 1,875 £100,339 £121,014
	£98,338	£2,001

The bookroom within the Bethesda General Office, Harpenden was occupied by The Gospel Standard Trust in connection with its publications activity until 30 September 2024.

6 Transactions with The Piggott Charity

Grants of £nil (2024: £19,050) were received from The Piggott Charity towards the fees of residents in financial need.

The Piggott Charity is a ‘connected charity.’ The trustees of the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund are also trustees of The Piggott Charity. However, the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund does not exercise any dominant influence over The Piggott Charity. The Piggott Charity makes grants at its own discretion to the Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund. Therefore, based on this, no consolidated accounts are prepared. For further information see notes on ‘Designated funds’ and ‘Restricted funds.’

7 Analysis of expenditure

7 Analysis of expenditure
Raising funds Charitable activities: Running costs of care homes Running costs of flatlets Future development fund Short-stay residents' fund Total	Direct costs £ -	Governance & support costs £ 23,867	Total Total 2025 2024 £ £ 23,867 22,130 1,694,547 1,703,231 47,203 53,236 6,509 3,467 5,512 24,466 1,753,771 1,784,400 £1,777,638 £1,806,530
	1,343,457 26,019 - 4,873	351,090 21,184 6,509 639
	1,374,349	379,422
	£1,374,349	£403,289

'Raising funds' is the term required by accounting rules to be used for expenditure in relation to dealing with donations, grants, legacies, subscriptions and management of investments, hence a proportion of costs are allocated under this caption.

8 Allocation of Governance and support costs

Support costs comprise costs incurred in support of both income generation, charitable activities, and governance, as shown below. These costs comprise a proportion of central office staff, information systems and internal accounting costs, and costs relating to the premises. Also included is a proportion of the management and administration costs in the Bethesda Homes and Flatlets and the servicing of the buildings.

Governance costs are those for the governance arrangements of the charity. These include audit, legal advice for trustees and costs associated with constitutional and statutory requirements, such as trustee meetings and preparing statutory accounts. Governance costs are not shown separately in the Statement of Financial Activities but are instead included as a sub-category of support costs and allocated to activities along with the other support costs. Governance costs are shown in Note 9.

Staff costs £ Raising funds 12,078 Charitable activities: Care homes 268,212 Flatlets 9,486 Future development fund 3,141 Subsidies: short-stay residents 105 Total Governance & support costs £293,022 9 Governance costs Audit fees incl disbursements Advertising and Website costs Bank charges Committee members’ expenses Printing Legal and professional costs Management and finance staff costs Administrative office, travel & other costs	Staff costs £ 12,078 268,212 9,486 3,141 105	Other costs £ 11,789 82,878 11,698 3,368 534	Total Total 2025 2024 £ £ 23,867 22,130 351,090 337,116 21,184 24,211 6,509 3,467 639 624 £403,289 £387,548 2025 2024 £ £ 13,150 12,490 28 30 600 2,392 2,294 2,238 1,449 1,331 8,662 4,361 28,465 29,993 14,258 9,568 £68,906 £62,403
	£293,022	£110,267

10 Subsidies paid for short-stay residents

During the period 6 residents coming into a Bethesda Home for a short stay obtained discounts from full fee rates funded by the Short-Stay Fund (2024: 11 residents). During the period the Short-Stay Fund was supported by 2 (2024: 2) chapel collections.

11 Assistance towards residents’ fees

Fee subsidies amounting to £14,928 (2024: £9,932) were given to residents supported by Local Authorities under the Community Care Act in cases where the maximum amount paid by the Local Authority was less than the Bethesda fee. These were funded from the Residents Support Fund to the extent of monies available (see Note 22) and the balance from General funds. During the period 8 residents were assisted in this way: 4 residents at the Brighton Home and 4 at Harpenden Home (2024: 3 residents).

During the period contributions amounting to £232,765 (2024: £400,144) were received from Local Authorities towards residents’ fees.

12 Ex gratia payments

No honoraria amounts were paid in the year (2024: £250). In addition, various small amounts (per person) were spent in the period on gifts or vouchers as appreciation to people who assist the charity in various ways. These payments did not exceed £1,149 in total (2024: £1,441). In some cases such payments, or part of the payments, have been used by the recipients to defray expenses incurred in rendering services to the charity.

13 Employee information

The average number of care home staff employed during the period, including part time workers, was 53 (2024: 71). The number of management and administration staff at the Bethesda General Office was 3 (2024: 2). Staff costs were as follows:

Wages and salaries Social security costs Pension costs Redundancy and termination payments Agency workers Cost of raising funds - support costs Costs relating to charitable activities: Care homes - direct costs Care homes - support costs Flatlets - support costs Future development fund - support costs Short-stay Fund - support costs	2025 2024 £ £ 999,896 1,147,414 99,921 84,378 26,886 29,228 148,414 - 2,319 2,433 £1,277,436 £1,263,453 12,078 12,727 984,414 969,560 268,212 267,150 9,486 11,795 3,141 2,110 105 111 £1,277,436 £1,263,453

Redundancy and termination payments above of £148,414 include statutory redundancy entitlements, payments in lieu of notice and retention payments conditional on staff remaining until their redundancy date. Termination payments are accounted for in the period in which the redundancies take effect. No unpaid amounts were outstanding at 31 December 2025 (2024: £nil).

No employee earned at a rate of £60,000 per annum or more in either period. Premiums of £1,067 (2024: £1,280) were paid into a private pension plan held by 1 officer (2024: 1 officer). Employer's premiums of £25,819 (2024: £27,948) were payable into ‘The People’s Pension’ scheme, an auto-enrolment scheme which commenced in October 2015.

Key management personnel in the year were identified as the General Manager and 2 Home Managers. The compensation for the year of these staff members amounts to £138,181 (2024: £140,176) including remuneration, termination payments and all benefits paid.

14 Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities by virtue of Part 11 Corporation Tax Act 2010.

15 Freehold land and buildings

(a) Net book value

The Trustees consider that the total open market value of the freehold land and buildings is in excess of the total net book value at which they are shown in the Balance Sheet.

(b) Note concerning the Brighton and Hove Home

The Gospel Standard Baptist Library is situated within the grounds of the Brighton & Hove Bethesda Home. The cost of the library building, which was erected in 1980 and extended in 2003, was met entirely from the funds of the library. There was previously no formal agreement with the trustees of the library and no ground rent or similar payments were received.

After obtaining professional valuations to establish market value, it was agreed that a transfer of the land on which the library building stands and some around it would be effected to the library Trustees and this sale was completed during the year, see Note 17 below.

15 Freehold land and buildings (continued)

Bethesda Homes £ 868,871 25,532 (1,000) (558,162)	Independent Living Flatlets & Apartments £ 1,386,532 1,213,305 - -	Office Premises £ 125,019 - - (125,019)	Total Total £ 2,380,422 1,238,837 (1,000) (683,181)
335,241	2,599,837	-	2,935,078
470,745 17,379 - (282,793)	112,005 4,287 289,014 -	65,794 2,484 - (68,278)	648,544 24,150 289,014 (351,071)
205,331	405,306	-	610,637
£129,910	£2,194,531	£-	£2,324,441
£398,126	£1,274,527	£59,225	£1,731,878

Freehold property cost includes land of £10,250 (2024: £93,050) which is not depreciated.

The net book value of Bethesda Flatlets includes the following for purchase of a site at Swavesey plus fees and construction costs subsequently for building new independent living apartments; no depreciation applies until the apartments are complete:

Costs incurred Impairment loss	2025 2024 £ £ 2,318,674 1,105,368 (289,014) - £2,029,660 £1,105,368

The impairment loss is calculated as the difference between (1) total costs incurred plus expected costs to complete and (2) market valuation by a chartered surveyor of the whole development including the finished apartments less estimated sale costs.

Transfers to current assets relate to the Home and Office Premises at Harpenden, held for sale at the period end (Note 17).

16 Equipment and motor vehicles

Equipment in Homes £ 217,636 4,372 (5,119) (112,535)	Equipment in Flatlets £ 14,914 - - -	Office Equipment £ 7,662 - - (5,004)	Motor Vehicles £ 40,950 - - -	Total £ 281,162 4,372 (5,119) (117,539)
104,354	14,914	2,658	40,950	162,876
207,703 5,429 (3,503) (112,535)	14,914 - - -	5,535 532 - (5,004)	15,026 6,481 - -	243,178 12,442 (3,503) (117,539)
97,094	14,914	1,063	21,507	134,578
	£-	£1,595	£19,443	£28,298
£9,933	£-	£2,127	£25,924	£37,984

17 Tangible assets and gain on sale of properties

Fixed assets: Freehold land and buildings (Note 15) Equipment and motor vehicles (Note 16) Current assets: Property to be sold: Harpenden Bethesda Home net book value Office Premises Harpenden net book value	2025 2024 £ £ 2,324,441 1,731,878 28,298 37,984 £2,352,739 £1,769,862 275,369 - 56,741 - £332,110 £-

*Gain on sale of properties:* Net sale proceeds Less net book value Gain on sale	Studley Home £ 25,000 -	Brighton GS Library £ 103,522 (1,000)	Total Total 2025 2024 £ £ 128,522 1,615,338 (1,000) (234,064) £127,522 £1,381,274
	£25,000	£102,522

The £25,000 received in 2025 for Studley Home was additional sale proceeds contingent upon successful planning permission which was obtained subsequent to the sale. The 2025 sale at Brighton was for the land upon which the Gospel Standard Library building stands. The 2024 gain on sale of properties related to Studley Home and Redhill Flats.

18 Debtors

Income tax recoverable on Gift Aid
Income tax recoverable on legacy income
Interest accrued on short-term deposits
Gospel Standard Trust - use of bookroom
Prepayments and accrued income
Residents’ fees receivable
19
Investments: short-term deposits
Current assets
CAF Charity Deposit Platform (Flagstone: various accounts)
Cambridge & Counties Bank 1 year bond
Charity Bank 1 year bond
Close Brothers 1 year bond
COIF Charities deposit fund
Harpenden Building Society 35 day notice
Redwood Bank 35 day account
United Trust Bank 6 month bond
United Trust Bank easy access account
Vernon Building Society 35 day account
Virgin Money 1 year bond

2025
2024
£
£
1,658
3,639
-
158
14,728
23,579
-
2,359
55,961
28,238
45,039
11,942
£117,386
£69,915
2025
2024
£
£
618,548
1,199,836
115,500
110,000
-
110,000
123,291
117,644
534,987
1,194,567
89,672
86,709
117,655
113,545
112,349
111,235
8,870
-
111,747
110,000
-
114,148
£1,832,619
£3,267,684

20 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

Accrued expenses Accrued holiday pay Financial services fees PAYE & NIC due to HMRC Pension premiums due Deferred government grant income Residents' fees repayable or paid in advance Trade creditors	2025 2024 £ £ 115,914 47,399 12,517 14,154 12,300 11,000 15,076 22,955 2,791 5,369 - 59,392 574 3,605 15,475 11,299 £174,647 £175,173

Government grant income shown above as deferred at the prior period end has been released in 2025 and thus recognised as income in 2025, after confirmation was received that repayment was not required. The accounting policy on government grants is detailed at Note 1(c). There was no movement on the deferred income account in the prior period.

21 Net asset analysis by fund ----Unrestricted funds---- Designated General £ £ *Fixed assets:* Tangible - 2,352,739 *Current assets:* Investments 25,075 1,761,682 Other - 665,892 *Current liabilities* - (174,647) £25,075 £4,605,666	21 Net asset analysis by fund ----Unrestricted funds---- Designated General £ £ *Fixed assets:* Tangible - 2,352,739 *Current assets:* Investments 25,075 1,761,682 Other - 665,892 *Current liabilities* - (174,647) £25,075 £4,605,666	21 Net asset analysis by fund ----Unrestricted funds---- Designated General £ £ *Fixed assets:* Tangible - 2,352,739 *Current assets:* Investments 25,075 1,761,682 Other - 665,892 *Current liabilities* - (174,647) £25,075 £4,605,666	Restricted funds £ - 45,862 - -	Total Total funds funds 2025 2024 £ £ 2,352,739 1,769,862 1,832,619 3,267,684 665,892 359,043 (174,647) (175,173) £4,676,603 £5,221,416
	£25,075	£4,605,666	£45,862

22 Restricted funds

Brighton Amenity Harpenden Amenity Residents Support Short-stay Residents	Balance 01.01.25 £ 39,536 20,745 7,077 643	Income £ 7,255 2,347 934 1,185	Expenditure £ (1,245) (23,092) - (5,512)	Net Balance transfers 31.12.25 £ £ - 45,546 - - (8,011) - 4,000 316 (£4,011) £45,862
	£68,001	£11,721	(£29,849)

Restricted funds are to be used only for the purpose for which the funds were given. For the named Bethesda Homes listed above, the expenditure allocated to these funds is therefore for those specific Homes.

The Residents Support Fund arose principally from grants received from the Piggott Charity (see Note 6 above) which are restricted for payment of Bethesda's fees for residents in financial need. The transfers out of the fund of £8,011 shown above are for fee subsidies given in the year (Note 11).

The Short-stay Residents Fund is supported by chapel collections and is used to assist people coming into the Bethesda Homes for short stays. The Short-stay fund income was insufficient to cover the support given to short-stay residents and the fund required the transfer of £4,000 from General funds to it.

Income includes interest received on unexpended balances. See Note 1(k) for more information on Restricted funds.

23 Designated funds

Future Development Miss K E Aston dec'd	Balance 01.01.25 £ 613,763 24,208	Income £ 10,793 867	Expenditure £ (6,509) -	Transfers Balance to capital 31.12.25 £ £ (618,047) - - 25,075 (£618,047) £25,075
	£637,971	£11,660	(£6,509)

The Future Development Fund was designated for capital investment into new and existing buildings. Expenditure includes an allocation for support costs (see Note 8 for further details on support costs). Transfers to capital above represent a portion of the costs of the Swavesey development incurred in the year, which were charged to this fund.

Part of a legacy received in 2009 from Miss K E Aston deceased was placed into a Designated Fund for Brighton Bethesda Home.

Income includes interest received on unexpended balances. See Note 1(k) for more information on Designated funds.

24 Notes to Statement of Cash Flows (a) Reconciliation of net (expenditure) to net cash (used in) operating activities

Net (expenditure) for the period (as per
the statement of financial activities)
Adjustments for:
Depreciation charges
Loss on disposal of equipment
Impairment loss on freehold property
Interest and rents from investments
(Increase) decrease in debtors
(Decrease) increase in creditors
Net cash (used in) operating activities
(b)
Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
Cash at bank and in hand
Cash on deposit (current asset investments)

2025
2024
£
£
(672,335)
(177,179)
36,592
40,081
1,316
-
289,014
-
(100,339)
(121,014)
(47,471)
107,353
(526)
12,516
(£493,749)
(£138,243)
216,396
289,128
1,832,619
3,267,684
£2,049,015
£3,556,812

25 Commitments under operating leases

The total future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases are as follows:

Amounts due: Within 1 year Between 1 and 5 years	2025 2024 £ £ 2,195 4,445 1,911 2,345 £4,106 £6,790

26 Commitments for expenditure

Independent living apartments were in process of construction at the charity's Swavesey development during 2025. The contract with the builders and for related services is expected to involve further expenditure after the year end of approximately £130,000.

27 Funds from Chapel sale proceeds Luton Ebenezer chapel: Grant by trustees following sale of chapel	2025 2024 £ £ - 61,807 £- £61,807

END OF NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Financial Statements

for the year ended

31 December 2025

Charity number 1199341

Company number 13651153 registered in England and Wales

Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund

Company registered office address:

35 Derby Road Long Eaton Nottingham NG10 1LU

Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2025

CONTENTS
	Page
Independent Auditor’s Report …………………………………	2
Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) ………………………	6
Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) for prior period ……	7
Balance Sheet ……………………………………………………	8
Statement of Cash Flows ………………………………………	9
Notes to the Financial Statements ………………………………	10

The Annual Report for 2025, along with these financial statements, are available together from the address above.

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Opinion

In our opinion, the financial statements:

give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company's affairs as at 31 December 2025 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for the period then ended;
have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and
have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

Basis for opinion

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the Trustees' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

Other information

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of our audit:

the information given in the Trustees' report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared, which includes the directors' report prepared for the purposes of company law, is consistent with the financial statements; and
the directors' report included within the Trustees' report has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
certain disclosures of trustees' remuneration specified by law are not made; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or
the Trustees were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies' exemptions in preparing the Trustees' report and from the requirement to prepare a strategic report.

Responsibilities of Trustees

Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Extent to which the audit was capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud

The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.

Enquiries and confirmation of management and those charged with governance as to their identification of any non- compliance with laws or regulations, or any actual or potential claims;
Inspecting correspondence, if any, with relevant licensing or regulatory authorities;
• Communicating identified laws and regulations to the engagement team and remaining alert to any indications of non-compliance throughout our audit; and

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 December 2025 (including Income and Expenditure Account)

Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 16,364 - Charitable activities 4 1,267,894 - Investments 5 86,678 11,660 Total 1,370,936 11,660 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 23,867 - Charitable activities: Operating expenditure 7-13 1,717,413 6,509 Impairment loss 15 289,014 - Total 2,030,294 6,509 Net income/(expenditure) (659,358) 5,151 Transfers between funds 22,23 622,058 (618,047) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 127,522 - Net movement in funds 90,222 (612,896) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 4,515,444 637,971 Total funds carried forward £4,605,666 £25,075 ----Unrestricted funds----	Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 16,364 - Charitable activities 4 1,267,894 - Investments 5 86,678 11,660 Total 1,370,936 11,660 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 23,867 - Charitable activities: Operating expenditure 7-13 1,717,413 6,509 Impairment loss 15 289,014 - Total 2,030,294 6,509 Net income/(expenditure) (659,358) 5,151 Transfers between funds 22,23 622,058 (618,047) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 127,522 - Net movement in funds 90,222 (612,896) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 4,515,444 637,971 Total funds carried forward £4,605,666 £25,075 ----Unrestricted funds----	Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 16,364 - Charitable activities 4 1,267,894 - Investments 5 86,678 11,660 Total 1,370,936 11,660 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 23,867 - Charitable activities: Operating expenditure 7-13 1,717,413 6,509 Impairment loss 15 289,014 - Total 2,030,294 6,509 Net income/(expenditure) (659,358) 5,151 Transfers between funds 22,23 622,058 (618,047) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 127,522 - Net movement in funds 90,222 (612,896) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 4,515,444 637,971 Total funds carried forward £4,605,666 £25,075 ----Unrestricted funds----	Restricted Total funds funds 2025 £ £ 5,378 21,742 4,342 1,272,236 2,001 100,339 11,721 1,394,317 - 23,867 29,849 1,753,771 - 289,014 29,849 2,066,652 (18,128) (672,335) (4,011) - - 127,522 (22,139) (544,813) 68,001 5,221,416 £45,862 £4,676,603
	1,370,936	11,660
	23,867 1,717,413 289,014	- 6,509 -
	2,030,294	6,509
		5,151 (618,047) -
	90,222	(612,896)
	4,515,444	637,971
	£4,605,666	£25,075

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Comparative figures for the prior period

Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 December 2024 (including Income and Expenditure Account)

Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 50,766 5,000 Charitable activities 4 1,363,932 - Investments 5 85,089 33,511 Grant: The Piggott Charity 6 - - Grant: Luton Ebenezer Chapel 27 61,807 - Total 1,561,594 38,511 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 22,130 - Charitable activities 7-13 1,749,074 6,330 Total 1,771,204 6,330 Net (expenditure)/income (209,610) 32,181 Transfers between funds 470,811 (482,194) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 1,381,274 - Net movement in funds 1,642,475 (450,013) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 2,872,969 1,087,984 Total funds carried forward £4,515,444 £637,971 ----Unrestricted funds----	Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 50,766 5,000 Charitable activities 4 1,363,932 - Investments 5 85,089 33,511 Grant: The Piggott Charity 6 - - Grant: Luton Ebenezer Chapel 27 61,807 - Total 1,561,594 38,511 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 22,130 - Charitable activities 7-13 1,749,074 6,330 Total 1,771,204 6,330 Net (expenditure)/income (209,610) 32,181 Transfers between funds 470,811 (482,194) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 1,381,274 - Net movement in funds 1,642,475 (450,013) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 2,872,969 1,087,984 Total funds carried forward £4,515,444 £637,971 ----Unrestricted funds----	Note General Designated £ £ Income and endowments from: Donations and legacies 3 50,766 5,000 Charitable activities 4 1,363,932 - Investments 5 85,089 33,511 Grant: The Piggott Charity 6 - - Grant: Luton Ebenezer Chapel 27 61,807 - Total 1,561,594 38,511 Expenditure on: Raising funds 7-8 22,130 - Charitable activities 7-13 1,749,074 6,330 Total 1,771,204 6,330 Net (expenditure)/income (209,610) 32,181 Transfers between funds 470,811 (482,194) Other recognised gains: Gain on sale of properties 17 1,381,274 - Net movement in funds 1,642,475 (450,013) Reconciliation of funds: Total funds brought forward 2,872,969 1,087,984 Total funds carried forward £4,515,444 £637,971 ----Unrestricted funds----	Restricted Total funds funds 2024 £ £ 4,006 59,772 3,776 1,367,708 2,414 121,014 19,050 19,050 - 61,807 29,246 1,629,351 - 22,130 28,996 1,784,400 28,996 1,806,530 250 (177,179) 11,383 - - 1,381,274 11,633 1,204,095 56,368 4,017,321 £68,001 £5,221,416
	1,561,594	38,511
	22,130 1,749,074	- 6,330
	1,771,204	6,330
		32,181 (482,194) -
	1,642,475	(450,013)
	2,872,969	1,087,984
	£4,515,444	£637,971

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND Statement of Cash Flows for the year ended 31 December 2025

2025
2024
£
£
(493,749)
(138,243)
100,339
121,014
128,822
1,615,338
(1,243,209)
(500,444)
(1,014,048)
1,235,908
(1,507,797)
1,097,665
3,556,812
2,459,147
£2,049,015
£3,556,812

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025

1 Accounting Policies

(a) Basis of preparation

(b) Going concern

(c) Income

Voluntary income, including donations, Gift Aid, and chapel collections, is recognised in the period in which the income is received.

Investment income and rent is recognised on a receivable basis.

Legacies are accounted for as income either upon receipt or where the receipt of the legacy is probable. Receipt is normally probable when:

l there has been a grant of probate l the executors have established that there are sufficient assets in the estate, after settling any liabilities, to pay the legacy; and

l any conditions attached to the legacy are either within the control of the charity or have been met.

Fees from residents in the care homes and flatlets are accounted for in the period in which the service is provided.

(d) Income tax recoverable

(e) Expenditure

Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis, that is, when a liability is incurred. The charity is not registered for VAT and accordingly expenditure is shown gross of irrecoverable VAT.

(f) Pension scheme contributions

(g) Capitalisation and depreciation of tangible fixed assets

Freehold properties

Equipment

Motor vehicles

Motor vehicles are written off at 25% per annum on a reducing balance.

(h) Transactions with trustees and related parties

No trustees received any remuneration for their services as a trustee. 5 trustees (2024: 8 trustees) were reimbursed travel, subsistence, accomodation and postage expenses totalling £2,294 (2024: £2,238). Expense reimbursements were waived by some trustees; the amounts were not material. During the year the charity purchased groceries and meals totalling £675 (2024: £nil) from a company in which one of the trustees has an interest. Besides the disclosures in these financial statements, no trustee or connected persons had any beneficial interest in any material contract, transaction or arrangement with the Charity during the period.

(i) Indemnity insurance

The charity carries a comprehensive insurance package provided by Travelers Insurance. Engineering Insurance and Inspection is provided by Allianz Insurance, Trustees Liability by AXA XL Insurance via Angel Risk Management Ltd., Group Personal Accident by Chubb Insurance, Cyber & Data Risks by Lloyd’s via CFC Underwriting Ltd, Property Insurance by Arch Insurance, and Motor Vehicle Insurance by QBE Insurance.

(j) Stocks of foods and other supplies

Stocks held at the period end have not been brought into these Financial Statements, as the amounts held are relatively insignificant.

(k) Funds

Designated funds - these are unrestricted funds set aside by the Trustees at their discretion from the general funds for specific purposes.

Restricted funds - these comprise funds subject to specific restrictions imposed by donors and funders.

Further details of the nature and purpose of each fund are set out in the notes to the accounts.

2 Statement of Financial Activities

The Statement of Financial Activities includes all income, gains, expenditure and losses recognised for the reporting period. All income and expenditure derives from continuing activities.

3 Donations and legacies

Unrestricted Funds £ Collections & donations from chapels: For general purposes 5,746 For specific Homes - For assisting short-stay residents - For residents in financial need - Personal donations & subscriptions: For general purposes 2,458 For general purposes - Gift Aid 8,318 For specific Homes - For specific Homes - Gift Aid - Home collecting boxes - Total 16,522 Legacies received: Mr A Baldwin - Mrs M Brooks - Mr F Hayden - Mr D Keeling - Mrs L Prior - Income tax reclaimable (158) Total (158) Total £16,364	Restricted Funds £ - 300 1,168 810 - - 2,874 - 226	Total 2025 £ 5,746 300 1,168 810 2,458 8,318 2,874 - 226	Total 2024 £ 8,061 1,000 1,142 - 9,195 9,665 1,670 63 131
16,522	5,378	21,900	30,927
- - - - - (158)	- - - - - -	- - - - - (158)	5,000 2,355 2,003 14,487 5,000 -
(158)	-	(158)	28,845
£16,364	£5,378	£21,742	£59,772

3 Donations and legacies (continued)

The legacies below have been advised to the Charity as receivable after the period end:

Mrs M H Barker: £1,000 legacy for the benefit of the Brighton Home.

Mrs M D Hughes: the charity is a contingent beneficiary for an unknown amount. Mr L Y Morley: share in residue, amount not yet known.

Miss L M Thirkell: £2,000 legacy plus share in residue, amount not yet known.

For an explanation of when legacies are recognised as income see Note 1(c).

4 Income from charitable activities

Fees from residential care homes Fees from flatlets Staff board charges Government grant income (see Note 20) Sundry receipts	2025 2024 £ £ 1,166,418 1,311,431 22,515 30,267 17,412 13,743 59,392 - 6,499 12,267 £1,272,236 £1,367,708

5 Investment income

Interest on short-term deposits Use of bookroom	Unrestricted funds £ 98,341 (3)	Restricted funds £ 2,001 -	Total Total 2025 2024 £ £ 100,342 119,139 (3) 1,875 £100,339 £121,014
	£98,338	£2,001

The bookroom within the Bethesda General Office, Harpenden was occupied by The Gospel Standard Trust in connection with its publications activity until 30 September 2024.

6 Transactions with The Piggott Charity

Grants of £nil (2024: £19,050) were received from The Piggott Charity towards the fees of residents in financial need.

7 Analysis of expenditure

7 Analysis of expenditure
Raising funds Charitable activities: Running costs of care homes Running costs of flatlets Future development fund Short-stay residents' fund Total	Direct costs £ -	Governance & support costs £ 23,867	Total Total 2025 2024 £ £ 23,867 22,130 1,694,547 1,703,231 47,203 53,236 6,509 3,467 5,512 24,466 1,753,771 1,784,400 £1,777,638 £1,806,530
	1,343,457 26,019 - 4,873	351,090 21,184 6,509 639
	1,374,349	379,422
	£1,374,349	£403,289

8 Allocation of Governance and support costs

Staff costs £ Raising funds 12,078 Charitable activities: Care homes 268,212 Flatlets 9,486 Future development fund 3,141 Subsidies: short-stay residents 105 Total Governance & support costs £293,022 9 Governance costs Audit fees incl disbursements Advertising and Website costs Bank charges Committee members’ expenses Printing Legal and professional costs Management and finance staff costs Administrative office, travel & other costs	Staff costs £ 12,078 268,212 9,486 3,141 105	Other costs £ 11,789 82,878 11,698 3,368 534	Total Total 2025 2024 £ £ 23,867 22,130 351,090 337,116 21,184 24,211 6,509 3,467 639 624 £403,289 £387,548 2025 2024 £ £ 13,150 12,490 28 30 600 2,392 2,294 2,238 1,449 1,331 8,662 4,361 28,465 29,993 14,258 9,568 £68,906 £62,403
	£293,022	£110,267

10 Subsidies paid for short-stay residents

11 Assistance towards residents’ fees

During the period contributions amounting to £232,765 (2024: £400,144) were received from Local Authorities towards residents’ fees.

12 Ex gratia payments

13 Employee information

Wages and salaries Social security costs Pension costs Redundancy and termination payments Agency workers Cost of raising funds - support costs Costs relating to charitable activities: Care homes - direct costs Care homes - support costs Flatlets - support costs Future development fund - support costs Short-stay Fund - support costs	2025 2024 £ £ 999,896 1,147,414 99,921 84,378 26,886 29,228 148,414 - 2,319 2,433 £1,277,436 £1,263,453 12,078 12,727 984,414 969,560 268,212 267,150 9,486 11,795 3,141 2,110 105 111 £1,277,436 £1,263,453

14 Taxation

The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities by virtue of Part 11 Corporation Tax Act 2010.

15 Freehold land and buildings

(a) Net book value

The Trustees consider that the total open market value of the freehold land and buildings is in excess of the total net book value at which they are shown in the Balance Sheet.

(b) Note concerning the Brighton and Hove Home

15 Freehold land and buildings (continued)

Bethesda Homes £ 868,871 25,532 (1,000) (558,162)	Independent Living Flatlets & Apartments £ 1,386,532 1,213,305 - -	Office Premises £ 125,019 - - (125,019)	Total Total £ 2,380,422 1,238,837 (1,000) (683,181)
335,241	2,599,837	-	2,935,078
470,745 17,379 - (282,793)	112,005 4,287 289,014 -	65,794 2,484 - (68,278)	648,544 24,150 289,014 (351,071)
205,331	405,306	-	610,637
£129,910	£2,194,531	£-	£2,324,441
£398,126	£1,274,527	£59,225	£1,731,878

Freehold property cost includes land of £10,250 (2024: £93,050) which is not depreciated.

Costs incurred Impairment loss	2025 2024 £ £ 2,318,674 1,105,368 (289,014) - £2,029,660 £1,105,368

Transfers to current assets relate to the Home and Office Premises at Harpenden, held for sale at the period end (Note 17).

16 Equipment and motor vehicles

Equipment in Homes £ 217,636 4,372 (5,119) (112,535)	Equipment in Flatlets £ 14,914 - - -	Office Equipment £ 7,662 - - (5,004)	Motor Vehicles £ 40,950 - - -	Total £ 281,162 4,372 (5,119) (117,539)
104,354	14,914	2,658	40,950	162,876
207,703 5,429 (3,503) (112,535)	14,914 - - -	5,535 532 - (5,004)	15,026 6,481 - -	243,178 12,442 (3,503) (117,539)
97,094	14,914	1,063	21,507	134,578
	£-	£1,595	£19,443	£28,298
£9,933	£-	£2,127	£25,924	£37,984

17 Tangible assets and gain on sale of properties

Fixed assets: Freehold land and buildings (Note 15) Equipment and motor vehicles (Note 16) Current assets: Property to be sold: Harpenden Bethesda Home net book value Office Premises Harpenden net book value	2025 2024 £ £ 2,324,441 1,731,878 28,298 37,984 £2,352,739 £1,769,862 275,369 - 56,741 - £332,110 £-

*Gain on sale of properties:* Net sale proceeds Less net book value Gain on sale	Studley Home £ 25,000 -	Brighton GS Library £ 103,522 (1,000)	Total Total 2025 2024 £ £ 128,522 1,615,338 (1,000) (234,064) £127,522 £1,381,274
	£25,000	£102,522

18 Debtors

20 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

Accrued expenses Accrued holiday pay Financial services fees PAYE & NIC due to HMRC Pension premiums due Deferred government grant income Residents' fees repayable or paid in advance Trade creditors	2025 2024 £ £ 115,914 47,399 12,517 14,154 12,300 11,000 15,076 22,955 2,791 5,369 - 59,392 574 3,605 15,475 11,299 £174,647 £175,173

21 Net asset analysis by fund ----Unrestricted funds---- Designated General £ £ *Fixed assets:* Tangible - 2,352,739 *Current assets:* Investments 25,075 1,761,682 Other - 665,892 *Current liabilities* - (174,647) £25,075 £4,605,666	21 Net asset analysis by fund ----Unrestricted funds---- Designated General £ £ *Fixed assets:* Tangible - 2,352,739 *Current assets:* Investments 25,075 1,761,682 Other - 665,892 *Current liabilities* - (174,647) £25,075 £4,605,666	21 Net asset analysis by fund ----Unrestricted funds---- Designated General £ £ *Fixed assets:* Tangible - 2,352,739 *Current assets:* Investments 25,075 1,761,682 Other - 665,892 *Current liabilities* - (174,647) £25,075 £4,605,666	Restricted funds £ - 45,862 - -	Total Total funds funds 2025 2024 £ £ 2,352,739 1,769,862 1,832,619 3,267,684 665,892 359,043 (174,647) (175,173) £4,676,603 £5,221,416
	£25,075	£4,605,666	£45,862

22 Restricted funds

Brighton Amenity Harpenden Amenity Residents Support Short-stay Residents	Balance 01.01.25 £ 39,536 20,745 7,077 643	Income £ 7,255 2,347 934 1,185	Expenditure £ (1,245) (23,092) - (5,512)	Net Balance transfers 31.12.25 £ £ - 45,546 - - (8,011) - 4,000 316 (£4,011) £45,862
	£68,001	£11,721	(£29,849)

Income includes interest received on unexpended balances. See Note 1(k) for more information on Restricted funds.

23 Designated funds

Future Development Miss K E Aston dec'd	Balance 01.01.25 £ 613,763 24,208	Income £ 10,793 867	Expenditure £ (6,509) -	Transfers Balance to capital 31.12.25 £ £ (618,047) - - 25,075 (£618,047) £25,075
	£637,971	£11,660	(£6,509)

Part of a legacy received in 2009 from Miss K E Aston deceased was placed into a Designated Fund for Brighton Bethesda Home.

Income includes interest received on unexpended balances. See Note 1(k) for more information on Designated funds.

24 Notes to Statement of Cash Flows (a) Reconciliation of net (expenditure) to net cash (used in) operating activities

25 Commitments under operating leases

The total future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases are as follows:

Amounts due: Within 1 year Between 1 and 5 years	2025 2024 £ £ 2,195 4,445 1,911 2,345 £4,106 £6,790

26 Commitments for expenditure

27 Funds from Chapel sale proceeds Luton Ebenezer chapel: Grant by trustees following sale of chapel	2025 2024 £ £ - 61,807 £- £61,807

Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund

Contents

Trustees’ Annual Report to 31 December 2025

Introduction

Trustees/Directors and Officers of the Charity serving since 1 January and throughout 2025

Trustees/Directors:

Objective of the Charity and how this is met

Governing Document

Constitution and Organisational Structure

Public Benefit

Trustees’ responsibilities in relation to the financial statements

Achievements and Outcome of Activities

Charity overview

Maintaining the viability of Bethesda

Staffing the services

Ability to meet the changing needs of the residents

Addressing the challenges

Reviewing the Quality of our Service

Other Properties and Services Brighton Independent Retirement Living

Harpenden Flatlets

Studley

Ebenezer Lodge, Swavesey, Independent Retirement Living Accommodation

Gospel Standard Library

Financial Review

Summary of Financial Results for each Home for the 12 months to 31 December 2025

Occupancy

Harpenden Flatlets

Summary of Financial Results for the Flatlets for the 12 months to 31 December 2025

Plans for the Future subject to the Lord’s will

Independent retirement living project

Future structure of the Charity

Ebenezer Lodge, Swavesey

Conclusion

Appendix 1: Reference and Administrative Information

Trustees serving during the financial year and since the year end:

Registered Office Address:

Connected Charity

Appendix 2: Reserves Policy

Reserves Policy

Definition

Reasons why the charity needs reserves

The level of reserves needed

How these reserves are to be maintained

Free reserves at Year-end

Appendix 3: Risks Management Policy

Risks Management Policy

General policy statement

Major risks identified

How the policy is to be maintained

Arrangements for monitoring and reviewing this policy

Appendix 4: Investment Policy

Investment Policy

Objectives in investing the Charity’s funds

Powers of investment

Risk profile

Policy statement

Investment advice

Arrangements for monitoring and reviewing this policy

Appendix 5: Policy Statement on paying staff

Policy Statement on Paying Staff

How we decide how much to pay our staff

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Financial Statements

Gospel Standard Bethesda Fund

Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2025

CONTENTS

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Opinion

Basis for opinion

Conclusions relating to going concern

Other information

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

Responsibilities of Trustees

Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

Extent to which the audit was capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 December 2025 (including Income and Expenditure Account)

GOSPEL STANDARD BETHESDA FUND

Comparative figures for the prior period