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2024-12-31-accounts

ST BRANDON’S PARISH CHURCH, BRANCEPETH

ANNUAL REPORT (INCLUDING ACCOUNTS) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2024

Priest-in-Charge: Revd Canon Anna Brooker (to 20 October 2024)

Lay Chair: Mike Higton

Banks:

The Co-operative Bank PLC

PO Box 101 1 Balloon Street Manchester M60 4EP

&

CCLA One Angel Lane London EC4R 3AB

Background

St Brandon’s Parochial Church Council (PCC) has the responsibility of co-operating with the incumbent (Revd Canon Anna Brooker, to 20 October 2024) in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. The PCC also has responsibility for maintaining the churchyard.

Reference and Administrative Details

Members of PCC are either ex-officio, elected by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM), or coopted by the PCC, in accordance with the Church Representation Rules. During the year the following served as members of the PCC:

Ex-officio

Priest-in-charge: Revd Canon Anna Brooker, Chair (until 20.10.24) Associate Minister: Revd Alison Hobbs Reader: Geoff Moore Churchwarden: Carol Beeby Churchwarden: David Eltringham (until 7.9.24) Churchwarden (and Lay Chair): Mike Higton (from 8.9.24) Deanery Synod Representative: Caroline Middleditch (until 2.2.24) Deanery Synod Representative: Peter Bailey (from 28.4.24) Deanery Synod Representative: Jane Stout (from 28.4.24)

Elected membership (up to 9 members)

Janette Foxe (elected 2020, 2023) Mike Higton, Treasurer, co-opted (until 7.9.24) Tom Hobbs (until 28.4.24) Kenneth Howe (elected 2022) Catrin Morgan (elected 2023) Sue Morgan (co-opted 2018; elected 2019, 2022) Colin Waterman, Secretary (elected 2023)

Objectives and Activities

The statement of purpose for St Brandon’s is:

The primary activities revolve around the provision of specific opportunities for encounter between God and people, especially services for worship, celebration and recollection in which God is encountered and received in sacrament and word, including:

Within regular services there needs to be an opportunity for all ages to encounter and receive from God.

Other activities which flow from this, and which also directly support the statement of purpose, are as follows:

In addition, the church has developed vocational activities through provision for:

Structure, Governance and Management

Committees

The PCC operates through several committees and teams, the most significant of which are:

Standing Committee

This is the only committee required by law. It has the power to transact the business of the PCC between its meetings, subject to any decision given by the PCC.

Fabric & Finance Committee

This was formed in 2018 to take over the role of the former Fabric Committee and to incorporate oversight of the church’s financial affairs. Its terms of reference were last reviewed in March 2025.

Worship Team

This team handles practical matters relating to the worship of the church, covering both the regular Sunday services and various additional services at festivals, and keeping in touch with the Messy Church team. Its terms of reference were last reviewed in March 2025.

Admin Team

This team was formed in 2009 to deal with communications and daily running of the church, including church hire, the monthly newsletter delivered to every household in the parish, the website and, more recently, social media. Its terms of reference were last reviewed in March 2025.

Risk management

The PCC is responsible for the management of the risks faced by St Brandon’s Church. Risks are identified and controls established throughout the year. A formal review of the risk and management processes is undertaken on an annual basis.

The key controls used include:

Through the risk management processes established for St Brandon’s Church, the PCC is satisfied that all major risks have been identified and have been adequately mitigated where necessary. It is recognised, however, that this can provide only reasonable assurance that major risks have been adequately managed.

Financial policies

The PCC has a policy of holding between four- and six-months’ running costs in unrestricted reserves, which at present equates to around £22,000 to £33,000. This is sufficient to meet the day-to-day needs of the organisation and to ensure financial stability, whilst not retaining excessive funds that should be used towards the purpose of the organisation.

The PCC holds four restricted funds:

Grant-making policy

Each year the PCC makes grants of up to 10% of unrestricted income to a small number of selected charitable bodies whose aims are in accordance with St Brandon’s stated objectives, and especially the objective ‘To reach out to local, national and international concerns with prayer and practical help’. The list of charities supported is reviewed by the PCC each year. The PCC does not accept applications for grants from individuals or organisations.

Authorisation limits

The treasurer is authorised to make all routine/expected payments in relation to existing church activities. The treasurer is also authorised to make payments of up to £250 on unexpected expenditure, where that expenditure clearly arises from the ordinary pursuit of existing church activities. The Fabric & Finance Committee is authorised to agree expenditure up to £500 on matters relating to the routine upkeep of the

building and churchyard. Any proposed expenditure above these limits is agreed in advance by PCC or (in an emergency) by Standing Committee. Where necessary, such agreement may be sought by circulation.

Safeguarding

St Brandon’s PCC has adopted the Church of England and Diocese of Durham policies regarding safeguarding and has put in place safeguarding policies and procedures consistent with these. All members of the church involved in work with children and vulnerable adults have undertaken diocesan training to the required level. All members of the church involved in work with children and vulnerable adults have appropriate and up-to-date DBS checks. A safeguarding checklist is completed annually and submitted to Standing Committee and the PCC. Policy and procedure is followed in the event of any safeguarding concerns that arise, and such concerns are reported to the PCC and shared appropriately with the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser. The PCC follows Safer Recruitment and People Management processes, in line with Church of England requirements, for all the church’s volunteers and teams.

Data protection

St Brandon’s PCC follows a Data Protection Policy, published on the church website, along with a Data Privacy Notice. These are reviewed annually.

The Proceedings of the PCC and Mission and Ministry of the Church in 2024

PCC

The PCC met six times in 2024 to discuss and support all the activities mentioned below. All meetings were well attended, and a summer social was held at the Rectory. Throughout the year the work of the various committees and groups reporting back to PCC was discussed. Information was received from Admin Team, the Climate Action Group, Fabric & Finance Committee, the Partnership for Missional Church group, the Parish Safeguarding Officer, Worship Team, and the leaders of Messy Church, Sunday School and Youth Club. We are grateful to all who work in these areas for the time they give to the church’s mission, ministry and maintenance.

The Electoral Roll was last revised in 2019. The number on the Roll in April 2024 was 97.

2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Electoral Roll 111 96 99 99 99 96 97

Worship

Throughout the year, the church provided services of worship and prayer. Service leadership and preaching were shared between the Priest-in-Charge, the Associate Minister, the Reader, the Revd Fiona Eltringham, the Revd Jane Grieve, Dr Hester Higton, Prof Mike Higton, the Revd Sue Hope, placement ordinands and occasional visiting preachers. This worship was supported by teams of sidespeople and sacristans, whose input is much appreciated.

Alongside the normal Sunday morning services (a small number of which were non-eucharistic Services of the Word), we enjoyed an Ash Wednesday service; a Palm Sunday procession from the crossroads, led by a local donkey; contemplative eucharists on the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week; a Maundy Thursday service with foot-washing; several Good Friday and Easter services, including the Dawn Vigil; an Ascension Day service; an Evensong with St John’s College Choir; a service to mark the first anniversary of the Israel / Palestine conflict; an All Souls’ Day service; a Remembrance service with two-minutes’ silence; and a new liturgy for the Christmas Eve Midnight service.

Morning Prayer was shared daily, Monday to Friday, both in-person and via Zoom, including prayers for the parish, diocese, mission partners and individual needs. An online service of evening prayer was provided fortnightly until the summer. A midday eucharist was provided most weekdays in the Castle Chapel, under the auspices of the Community of the Well. Home communion services were provided as requested.

The livestreaming of services continued on Sunday mornings and for some seasonal services, much valued by a handful of regulars and other online visitors, but increasing pressures on members of the Tech Team led to the frequency of streaming being reduced in the autumn. We are grateful to the Tech Team for their work on this.

Regular services (excluding holidays and special occasions) typically attracted between 40 and 45 adults and around 3 children and young people, with a handful of others joining online or watching the recording later. Messy Church attracted between 6 and 15 adults, and between 10 and 18 children. Attendance at major festivals was higher. For example, 74 people attended worship at services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Regular services 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Adults 49 50 50 50 45 46 47 45
Children 5 5 4 4 2 4 6 3

PCC and Worship Team regularly reviewed all aspects of our worship. We are grateful to many people ‘behind the scenes’ who contributed to church life through the year: the Flower Guild, the cleaning teams and those who open and close the church each day. St Brandon’s remained open to visitors every day, with comments left which show the real impact of the peace and beauty of the building.

Prayer and pastoral care

Alongside all the prayer involved in the services described above, the Prayer and Pastoral Team

Throughout the year, visitors left prayer requests in the Neville Chapel, which were noted and echoed at Morning Prayer each Thursday.

Those recently bereaved were invited to the All Souls service, and baptism and wedding contacts were invited to other suitable church services and events.

Occasional offices

As a Church of England parish church, we are available to our parishioners and members for baptisms, weddings and funerals, and we try to ensure that those who come for a service of celebration or at a time of sadness have a positive experience of church.

In 2024:

2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Baptsms 10 8 9 7 3 1 9 4 7 3
Weddings 6 7 4 4 1 0 2 1 2 1
Funerals 5 6 4 2 3 0 2 3 3 8

Partnership for Missional Church

During 2024, the Diocesan Enabling Team (ET) led the PMC core group through Phase 2 (Experimenting) and Phase 3 (Focusing) of the PMC process. The core group focused its attention on building closer relationships with the wider community. In June 2024, the core group met with representatives of the various village groups. One key recommendation was that the St Brandon’s newsletter should be expanded to become a Parish Newsletter, to encompass the activities of the village as a whole. St Brandon’s was also invited to participate in the Village Hall Centenary Exhibition in November, which provided an opportunity to advertise church activities.

The involvement of the ET ceased at the end of 2024, but the PMC project will continue to seek God’s preferred and promised future for our church. A final Cluster meeting in December was held at St Brandon’s and attended by participating churches, both past and present.

Children, young people and families

Sunday School continued to share the Good News with children ‘old enough to enjoy a story’, using drama and craft activities, led by one male and one female leader each week. Two children attended regularly, with numbers increasing on baptism weeks. Sunday School ran throughout the year, with short breaks over the school holidays.

Messy Church met monthly and remained a significant part of St Brandon’s worshipping community. The Messy Church team provided activities in the Castle grounds at the Craft Fair in July, and in November in the church itself due to the weather. On both occasions the activities attracted a steady flow of children and adults.

All-age services were provided on Good Friday morning, Easter Day, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

In 2024 Youth Club followed its usual pattern meeting fortnightly in the Village Hall. In addition to the usual club nights (with activities ranging from games in the upper hall, to craftwork and quizzes downstairs), the summer BBQ was held in the Castle grounds.

Music

There was no Music Coordinator in post during the year, but in practice Anna Brooker held that role and, with Anna’s departure, Hester Higton took on the role of choosing hymns. The lion’s share of accompaniment fell upon the shoulders of the organist, Richard Hird, with support from the deputy organist, James Morgan; James also accompanied Hester when both led the music during the Eucharist. Worship was also enhanced with music from the Brancepeth Community Choir and the St Brandon’s Consort.

DUSCR (Durham University Society of Change Ringers) continued to provide regular ringing for services during term time. In total, 30 quarter peals and 3 peals were rung, including those by the regular Tuesday evening band. Bell maintenance was carried out, including replacement of two ropes. James Morgan continued to act as Tower Captain.

Deanery and Ecumenical relationships

Deanery Synod representatives attended meetings whenever possible, as did the licensed clergy, bringing reports to the PCC, providing an important link between the parish and the wider structures of the Church.

St Brandon’s is part of DH7 Churches Together, and some members attend their meetings.

St Brandon’s continued to contribute regularly via the yellow bin in church to the Food Bank run by Durham Christian Partnership. On Mothering Sunday, gifts were brought for the Durham Women’s Refuge. Christmas gifts were again collected for distribution by the Salvation Army in Langley Moor. We are grateful to those who organise these collections on our behalf.

Building and churchyard

The Fabric & Finance Committee has continued to meet quarterly. Follow-up on the 2023 Quinquennial Report involved some routine maintenance and early planning for a project to remove the old boiler house. The committee also coordinated grass cutting and churchyard tidy-up events, along with regular maintenance and various minor repairs undertaken in the year.

Events

2024 was a busy year for events, with the church being hired on 13 occasions, raising a total of £3,474. Some hirers were old friends making a welcome return, whilst others were new to St Brandon’s. Bookings were managed with grace and efficiency by Janette Foxe, aided by a team of volunteers to move chairs and welcome visitors. Events included diocesan and national training events, quiet days, a range of concerts and visits offered to Castle tour groups, with several new hirers this year.

Finances

Following the stewardship campaign at the end of 2023, the church’s financial position was somewhat improved. The new Payaz contactless payment unit, installed at the end of 2023, also continued to work well, with only occasional outages, bringing in a new stream of donations. The overall position nevertheless remained challenging, and in the autumn the Fabric & Finance Committee once again recommended to PCC that, to remain within the church’s reserves policy, the full amount of Parish Share requested by the diocese could not be pledged for 2025.

Vickie Jackson took over from Mike Higton as treasurer in the autumn.

The approved annual accounts follow.

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Dated: 11 May 2025

Approved by St Brandon's Parochial Church Council and signed on its behalf by:

Mike Higton (Lay Chair)

Vickie Jackson (Treasurer)

Independent examiner's report to the PCC of St Brandon's Church, Brancepeth I report to members of the PCC on my examination of the accounts of the PCC of St Brandon's, Bran￿peth for the year ended 31 De￿mber 2023. Responsibilities and basis of report As members of the PCC you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 ('the Act.). I report in respect of my examination of the PCC'S accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the CharÈty Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. Independent examinerfs ststsment I have completed my examinats'on. I confimi that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect: 1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act., or 2. the accounts do not accord with those records: or I have no COn￿mS and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Signed: Name: J fJY4L_, Address: i Lck- v c.h Date:

Brancepeth Parochial Church Council Balance Sheet

As at: 31 December 2024

As at 31/12/2023
£
As at 31/12/2024
£
Current assets
Cash at bank and in hand
Represented by
Unrestricted
Unrestricted – General Fund
Restricted
Restricted – Appeal + HLF Project
Restricted – Charitable collections
Restricted – Tower fund
Funds of the Church		 35,759
40,712
28,952
33,670
3,785
3,785
301
104
2,718
3155
35,759
40,712

Please note that figures are rounded down to the nearest pound, and so may not sum to the exact totals given.

Brancepeth Parochial Church Council Receipts and Payments Account

For the period from 01 January 2024 to 31 December 2024

Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
(HLF +
Appeal)
Restricted
(Charitable
donations)
Restricted
(Tower fund)		 Total funds Prior year
total funds
Receipts
Regular giving
33,756
35
Loose plate collections
3,445
212
All other giving
3,283
838
Gift Aid recovered
10,434
Grants
5,074
Fundraising activities
390
Interest
975
Weddings and funerals
2,914
Trading activities
Cards and booklets
489
Church hire
3,377
Newsletter
178
Membership fees
31
Other		 33,791
3,657
4,121
10,434
5,074
390
975
2,914
489
3,377
178
31		 32,057
3,548
5,572
8,414
21,861
351
3,860
367
2,659
131
83
28
Total receipts
64,346
247
838		 65,431 78,932
Payments
Cost of fundraising activities
201
Charitable giving
4,132
443
Diocesan parish share
31,500
Salaries, wages and honoraria
1,515
Clergy and staff expenses
861
Mission and evangelism costs
General
678
Children and Youth
149
Messy Church
165
Church running costs
Insurance
4,744
Audit
30
Phone & broadband
863
Organ tuning
1,167
Church maintenance
298
400
Cleaning
689
Security
2,649
Worship
1,315
Catering
61
Upkeep of churchyard
579
Safeguarding
38		 201
4,575
31,500
1515
861
678
149
165
4,744
30
863
1,167
698
689
2,649
1,315
61
579
38		 633
5,110
36,200
1,358
834
598
493
183
4,385
675
533
1,382
650
2,995
2,340
48
947
19
Church utility bills
Electricity
1,494
Gas
4,170
Newsletter
1,786
Stonework project
Quinquennial inspection
Other
549		 1,494
4,170
1,786
549		 1,632
4,096
1,309
6,135
1320
63
Total expenditure
59,633
443
400		 60,476 73,937
Excess of receipts over
payments
4,713
-196
438		 4, 955 4,994
Reconciliation of funds
All assets at 01 Jan 2024
28,952
3,785
301
2,718
All assets at 31 Dec 2024
33,670
3,785
104
3,155
Change
4,713
0
–196
437		 35,759
40,712
4,955

Please note that figures are rounded down to the nearest pound, and so may not sum to the exact totals given.