## **ST ANDREW’S LEP, BENTON** 

## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** 

## **Introduction** 

The trustees present their annual report and financial statements of the charity for year ended 31 August 2024. The trustees have adopted the provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP 2015), “Accounting and Reporting by Charities”, in preparing the annual report and financial statements of the charity. 

## **Charity Name** 

St Andrew’s LEP, Benton. 

## **Charity Number 1205615** 

Registered by the Charity Commission for England and Wales on 7 November 2023. 

## **Trustees** 

Rev H White Mrs M J Burchell Mrs E F Fellows Mrs N Henderson Mr K A Jones – Treasurer Mr P H Martin Mr T A Oliver Miss M E Simpson Miss G E Smith Mr A N Thomas - Secretary Mrs S Thomas 

## **Reference and Administrative details** 

The church building and registered office is situated at Station Road, Benton, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE12 8AW. 

St Andrew’s LEP, Benton is a single congregation Local Ecumenical Partnership (LEP), created by the merger of Benton Methodist Church and Christ Church United Reformed Church in May 2003. 

The charity is also known as St Andrew’s Church (Methodist and United Reformed LEP), Benton; and St Andrew’s Church, Benton. 

## **Structure, Governance and Management** 

The model constitution for a single congregational LEP agreed by the Methodist and United Reformed Churches at a national level, in line with the requirements of charity law, has been adopted by St Andrew’s Church as its governing document. This was approved by the sponsoring body of North East Churches Acting Together. 

St Andrew’s LEP, Benton is part of the Newcastle Central and East Methodist Circuit and of the Northern Synod of the United Reformed Church. 

Trustees are elected, or re-elected, at the Annual Congregational Meeting and serve for a period of three years. A chair, secretary and treasurer must be elected by the trustees from within their own number. The trustees are required to meet at least twice a year and such meetings fulfil the functions of the Methodist Church Council and the Elders’ meeting in the case of the United Reformed Church. 

The trustees are responsible for the overall governance of the Charity in accordance with the guidance published by the Charity Commission. The trustees are also legally responsible for the running of the church and must comply with the requirements of the parent denominations covering safeguarding, property management and accounting records. 

Page 1 



## **ST ANDREW’S LEP, BENTON** 

## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** 

## **Objectives and Activities** 

The purpose of the Charity is to advance the Christian faith in our local communities in accordance with the principles and practices of the Methodist and United Reformed Churches. The trustees have had regard to the guidance issued by the Charity Commission on public benefit and, in particular, the guidelines on charities for the advancement of religion. 

To further and achieve its purpose, the Charity will engage in a range of activities, either on its own or with others, including (but not restricted to): 

- a) the celebration of public worship; 

- b) the teaching of the Christian faith; 

- c) mission and evangelism; 

- d) pastoral work, including visiting the sick and the bereaved; 

e) the provision of facilities with a Christian ethos for the local communities, including (but not restricted to) the elderly, the young and other groups with particular needs; and 

- f) the support of other charities in the UK and overseas. 

## **Volunteers** 

We would like to thank all our volunteers who work so hard to ensure that we can carry on with our activities for the benefit of our members, our adherents and our local communities. We also thank everyone who helps to create an inclusive, warm and friendly environment when we meet together. Working together enables us all to live out our Christian faith in a way that will have a positive impact on the lives of others, as we actively seek to show the unity of the people of Jesus Christ through the way we bring together two Christian traditions. 

## **Achievements and Performance** 

## _**Worship and Prayer**_ 

We have continued to be blessed with a rich and varied worship experience over this last year with worship leaders provided by the Methodist and URC churches. 

Worship at St Andrew’s takes place at 10.30 am every Sunday. All-age worship takes place on the first Sunday of each month and Helen has developed an atmosphere where discussion and interaction with the congregation are natural and enhance the Worship. Communion services take place on the third Sunday of each month, and we distribute the elements to the seated congregation during worship. 

The length of the services is about one hour and usually includes five hymns. We have been delighted to welcome many new friends to share worship with us. We have been blessed with excellent worship leaders who have each shared their thoughts and experiences. They regularly comment on the warm welcome they receive from our congregation. 

In addition to the indoor worship, we are keen to keep alive the uncertainty and excitement of worshipping outside the church on special occasions. 

We have organised and taken part in two services designated as ‘Own Arrangement’ by the Circuit. These services have involved our own members sharing their unique journeys of faith and leading our prayers and have proved to be moving and powerful witness that the congregation is keen to develop in the future. 

Page 2 



## **ST ANDREW’S LEP, BENTON** 

## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** 

## **Achievements and Performance (continued)** 

## _**Pastoral Care**_ 

Apart from the ongoing work of our minister Helen, the church has a team of eleven volunteer pastoral carers who each take responsibility to help and keep in touch with several of our people on a regular basis. The pastoral carers, Cradle Roll secretary and one Sunday School representative meet with the minister, one vestry steward and the pastoral secretary as a committee at least twice a year to review the pastoral needs and ensure that the close families of all church members, frequent worshippers (adherents) and children in recent contact with the church are included in the care coverage. 

There is also a group of church members who seek to pray on a weekly basis for people or situations that would benefit from prayerful interventions. Those involved also share any news that helps to direct the prayers of the group or to direct the prayers of others connected to the church. 

Other volunteers deliver flowers each week on behalf of the church when we become aware of someone being unwell or in need of support, and sometimes to celebrate a happy event. Many support each other by offering care in less organised ways, which might involve gifts, cards, food, a phone call or providing transport when needed. 

## _**Junior Church**_ 

Junior Church has been led by church volunteers with the regular assistance of church members and the occasional support of parents. The number of children attending Junior Church continues to fluctuate and there is a wide age range. 

The children who attend Junior Church engage in craft activities and games linked to the Old and New Testaments. At Pentecost we read the passage from the children’s bible and thought about different countries and the languages spoken around the world. Given the range of age and abilities it can be difficult to produce resources that are suitable for all children, but everyone enjoyed blowing bubbles, making paper aeroplanes and flying a miniature kite to demonstrate the Holy Spirit moving as the breath of God. 

## _**Cradle Roll**_ 

Currently we keep in touch with 4 families who have children on the Cradle Roll and 3 families whose children have had infant thanksgiving and blessing services. They all receive the church magazine, and the Cradle Roll secretary visits each home with a card for the child’s birthday and a general invitation to quarterly Messy Church or weekly Junior Church until they pass their fifth birthday without any response. The temporary Cradle Roll secretary has unfortunately not been able to do more than that. During the past year our minister Helen officiated at one infant thanksgiving and blessing service, after visiting the families involved to talk about the significance of both baptism and “thanksgiving and blessing” services. 

## _**Church Membership and Attendance**_ 

At the Pastoral Committee meeting on 11.09.25 the membership numbers were calculated to be 93, variously described as Methodist, United Reformed or joint members (those who entered membership after the LEP was formed). Whilst some of our members are now unable to attend church services, we do enjoy welcoming other regular churchgoers or visitors each week. We are normally blessed to have a congregation of 60-70 attenders at Sunday morning services. 

## _**Church Magazine – “Tidings”**_ 

We are blessed to have a dedicated editor who puts together a church magazine on 10 occasions each year covering the whole year. The magazine has been a part of church life since the 1950s and is appreciated by many inside and outside the church far and wide. It is an excellent way to communicate news about the church, community and other worthy topics to church members, adherents, and many others in the community or wider afield. The magazine content features a message from the minister, a diary of church activities, church news and looking forward or back at church-related events in the neighbourhood and worldwide. It also covers current events at home or abroad that may be of interest from a Christian or community perspective. 168 copies of the October 2025 magazine were sent out via email, and 65 printed copies were supplied and delivered where needed. 

Page 3 



**ST ANDREW’S LEP, BENTON** 

## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** 

## **Achievements and Performance (continued)** 

## _**Community Outreach**_ 

## 1. Messy Church: 

Messy Church takes place once a quarter on a Sunday afternoon from 3pm to 4.30pm. where a wide variety of people, members and non-members, take part in a varied mix of experiments, crafts, and games. Our minister, Helen, then leads a short time of praise involving song, stories and prayer before food and refreshments round off the adventure! The Messy Church planning is part of the agenda of the Outreach group. A theme is identified and then developed by the team members who draw on their individual experiences and talents and lead specific activities. 

## 2. Weekday Fellowship: 

This takes place on the first Thursday of every month. Church regulars, often joined by others, meet for inspired and uplifting ‘Fellowship and Worship’. Refreshments are provided and the minister normally presides and leads the music, prayers and teaching. 

## 3. 4[th] Newcastle Girls’ Brigade: 

The group regularly meet in the church each week, is continuing to grow in number and is run by trained volunteer leaders. This year they have also welcomed a new helper who in time will be encouraged to undertake independent leadership training. 

All volunteers love working with the girls and young women and seeing them make new friends, learn new skills, achieve, have fun, and learn more about Jesus week by week. Each age group follows its own appropriate themed programme materials, and its members work towards badges to reward and celebrate their achievements. The programme includes a variety of subjects but there will be a new challenge for leaders this year with a national change in badgework. 

Activities include sleepovers, outings, special church services, award nights and camps. The group has just returned from camp where twelve of the girls, along with their leaders, adventured to Hexham on the train for a 3-day 2-night camp which included a tour of Hexham Abbey and creative activities like pottery painting. The girls all got amazing feedback for their attitude and behaviour during the train journeys, and the leaders were very proud of them. 

Many more activities are in planning stages for the next academic year. 

## 4. Forest Hall Carpet Bowls Club: 

The club meet each week in the church hall where the equipment is stored. The club is open to anyone who wants to play the game, with a good mix of church members and locals from the community – 3 new players have joined this last year. This provides the opportunity to meet others in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere and enjoy some good social contact, fun and competition. 

## 5. Special services: 

## a) Advent and Christmas: 

Church members joined with people from St Bartholomew’s parish church and others to sing carols outside the shops at Forest Hall and raise funds for Christian Aid. During the singing, gifts of knitted angels were handed out to the local community.  At the 'Carols Around The Tree' event, held outside the shops in West Moor, a large number of children and adults from various denominations and local organisations came along to sing Christmas songs.  They were accompanied by a band of musicians and had a visit from Santa; by a collection funds were raised for St. Oswald's Hospice. Almost every chair in the church was occupied for the Christmas Eve afternoon service, and hot drinks and mince pies were offered afterwards. It was good to see friends back specially for Christmas and to welcome people worshipping with us for the first time.  On Christmas morning most carols were sung to the organ but two were accompanied by Christmas visitors playing a saxophone and a piano. 

Page 4 



## **ST ANDREW’S LEP, BENTON** 

## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** 

## **Achievements and Performance (continued)** 

## _**Community Outreach (continued)**_ 

5. Special services (continued): 

   - b) Lent and Easter: 

On Maundy Thursday, Holy Communion was led by Rev'd Helen White.  After a short service on Good Friday, we joined with members from St. Bartholomew's to process from Benton to Forest Hall where a cross was erected followed by an open-air act of worship.  On Easter morning Holy Communion was celebrated and the outdoor cross at St. Andrew's was decorated with flowers. 

## c) Harvest Festival 

Our colourful Harvest Festival had a large display of both fresh produce and tinned groceries.  But alongside the 'plentiful harvest' we enjoy, the display also depicted the poverty that others endure.   These gifts were delivered to the food bank at 'Walking With' in Wallsend and greatly appreciated as the shelves were almost empty. Financial donations were also sent to the charities All We Can and Commitment for Life 

## d) Services at Ashfield Court Care Home 

After a request from staff and residents, services, led by Rev Susan Richardson, have been held in the care home once a month. These services are well supported by members of the church family who sit among the residents, get to know them and encourage them to take part in the singing. This is a really important part of the church's mission and ministry and the number of residents coming along just keeps on growing, thanks in no small part to Debbie, the activities co-ordinator. We have people there who are Roman Catholic, one lady who went to St Johns’ parish church, Killingworth and people who have no specific church background but enjoy the hymns / readings /prayers they learnt at school. Susan writes, “I am so grateful for the lovely folk who turn up month after month to support. Their presence really makes a difference.” 

## 6. Local Charitable Causes: 

- The ‘Gift Service’ in December went to Foundation Futures, a local charity which supports struggling families in the Pottery Bank and Byker areas of Newcastle. 

- We also support ‘Walking With’ in North Tyneside’ with regular donations of everyday goods and also the items brought to the Harvest festival service. This organisation supports asylum seekers and other refugees who reside in North Tyneside and within our local community. 

## 7. Special Events: 

- In January about 40 people participated in the church party, which involved quizzes and team games for all ages and a faith tea. 

- In May we hosted an afternoon tea party for guests of Re-Engage, a charity which supports older folk who are socially isolated. We were asked if we could host not only the guests and the volunteer drivers, but also all the volunteers who host a tea party in their own homes throughout the year. The charity organisers were very grateful for our generosity and efforts to make this an extra special tea party event. 

## 8. Coffee Mornings: 

Coffee mornings are combined with fundraising. The following Charities have been supported this year: 

- PCDC (Practical Compassion for Destitute Children in Palestine) received £306 in November 2024 

- • Marie Curie received £150 in March 2025 

- RNLI (Cullercoats Lifeboat Station) received £410 from the August coffee mornings. 

Page 5 



## **ST ANDREW’S LEP, BENTON** 

## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** 

## **Achievements and Performance (continued)** 

## _**External Community Groups**_ 

The premises are also used by external groups and some have been carrying out their activities in the church for many years and are well known in the local communities. The activities include children’s dancing classes, Tai-chi, Pilates, a singing group, a youth ensemble, an orchestra, and the local WI. These groups provide many benefits to the local community as well as income for the church. Other local families or groups also book space for children’s parties or formal meetings from time to time. One church hall is now used as a Polling Station for local and national elections. 

The Newcastle Upon Tyne District office of the Methodist Church is also based in the building and provides a quarterly gift towards the church building overheads. The district is comprised of 12 circuits and encompasses the northern part of County Durham, Tyne and Wear, all of Northumberland and part of the Scottish Borders. 

## _**Charitable Donations**_ 

We support the connexional funds of the Methodist Church in Britain. The money donated supports the funds for Presbyters and Deacons, Property, Mission in Britain, World Mission and Lay Training. Donations also support the funds for URC Stipendiary Ministers, Commitment for Life, All We Can, Action for Children, the Leaders of Worship and Preachers Trust, Methodist Homes and housing funds for URC and Methodist retired ministers. 

The church supports several other UK charities regularly that operate locally or globally. Some help vulnerable children, young people or families and others seek to relieve poverty or suffering caused by inequality or injustice. Some are supported each year and others are supported when disasters occur and emergency appeals are launched. 

This year money was sent to support causes through Action for Children, PCDC, Methodist Homes, Christian Aid and the British Red Cross. Money was also used to support an appeal for the ongoing Gaza crisis. 

Church donations are, either made from the church CARE Fund, which represents 2% of all offerings and related Gift Aid, or by special collections during the year. In total we donated £3,935 this year. 

## _**Governance and Planning**_ 

The Trustees continue to meet three times each year to discuss church business with the focus on governance, compliance, safeguarding, finance, and any significant property issues. The delegated Property and Finance Committee continue to meet at least every two months throughout the year to discuss day to day property matters and finances. Congregational meetings are also held every four months to allow everyone from the congregation an opportunity to discuss church matters at first hand and receive reports from the Trustees or others about the life of the church. The church also extends an open invitation to join the Outreach Group, which meets on a regular basis, to consider how to reach out into the local community and celebrate special events in accordance with our Christian ethos and values. 

## _**The Church Building Complex**_ 

The building complex covers a large worship area and two large halls on the ground floor, which are all interconnected, with several side rooms and two kitchens. The upper level covers a smaller area with two rooms used as offices and one room set aside for general activities. A dedicated team of volunteers look after the routine maintenance of the building and routine cleaning is done by an outside cleaning firm. 

A total of £19,239 was paid out for repairs and maintenance, which included all statutory safety checks required during the year. This was significantly lower than the cost of major repairs last year and is likely to be more in line with future expenditure. See also p7 Financial Review paragraph 4. This included a payment of £2124 for work on the drains that took place during the previous financial year but was paid in October. 

Page 6 



## **ST ANDREW’S LEP, BENTON** 

## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** 

## **Financial Review** 

Unfortunately, offerings decreased by approximately 4% in 2024-2025, following the trend of the previous year. Gift Aid continues to provide substantial extra income, and several new people have enabled us to take advantage of this source of income. The figures do not include unclaimed Gift Aid from May onwards. 

The offerings and Gift Aid of £62,499 accounted for 70% of church income. Lettings income of £19,827 is close to last year’s figure and represents 22% of church income. This equates approximately to the cost of repairs and maintenance. We have benefitted again from decent interest rates providing income of £2,056. Our reliance on these three factors is more obvious this year as significant grants in the previous year skewed the percentages. 

Overall, the church had a deficit of £22,240 in 2025 following a deficit of £12,982 in 2024. 

Circuit Assessment contributions stayed at £56,000 and accounted for 89% of overall offerings (from 81% in 2024) and 63% of total receipts. We have introduced a new heating control system which cost £4,034 but should go some way to countering the increased energy costs as well as correcting some safety concerns. £1,560 was used to provide the new blinds in the Liddell Hall and again this should be a worthwhile expenditure as it will support events and make Lettings more desirable if screens are being used. These purchases will hopefully conclude the major expenditure incurred in the last couple of years. £2124 was paid out this financial year for work done on the drains in 2023-2024. 

## **Reserves Policy** 

## _**General Funds**_ 

The Trustees aim to hold in reserve sufficient funds to cover six months of projected expenditure; partly as working capital and partly to cover committed expenditure if income is severely disrupted, or to cover unexpected major property repairs. In terms of unrestricted general funds available at the year end, the balance of £54,876 equates to 58% of the expenditure for year ended 31/8/2025. There are no designated funds at the year end. 

## _**Restricted Funds**_ 

The CARE Fund balance of £450 represents money from donors to support regular giving to specific charities and special collections for disasters or emergencies where the church exercises its discretion to raise funds. The church also supports the fund by transferring 2% of offerings and related Gift Aid to cover connexional giving and other gifts. The money is not held in reserve and will be donated to charitable causes as determined by the church congregation and trustees within the next year. We are currently trialling a 50% ‘match funding’ policy to utilise the CARE Fund. 

The Flower Fund balance of £477 represents money from donors to be spent on flowers for church services. The money is not held in reserve and will be spent as and when required on church flowers within the next year. 

The church does not hold any Endowment Funds. 

## **The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.** 

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees by the chair: 

Name Reverend Helen White Signature Date 25[th] September 2025 

Page 7 



|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025**|||||||
||||||||
|**RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT**|||||||
||||||||
|||**Unrestricted **|**Designated**|**Restricted**|**Total**|**Total**|
||**Notes**|**funds**|**funds**|**funds**|**31/08/2025**|**31/08/2024**|
|**RECEIPTS**|||||||
|Offerings and Tax recovered||62,499|-|30|62,529|68,834|
|Bank and CFB interest&Investment Income||2,056|-|-|2,056|2,800|
|Lettings||19,827|-|-|19,827|19,814|
|Other receipts||4,772|-|2,590|7,362|22,566|
|**Total Receipts**|**4**|**89,154**|**-**|**2,620**|**91,774**|**114,014**|
||||||||
|**PAYMENTS**|||||||
|Circuit Assessment or Share||56,000|-|-|56,000|56,000|
|Donations||-|-|3,065|3,065|6,822|
|Repairs and Maintenance||19,239|-|-|19,239|45,672|
|Utilities(Insurance,water charges,heat&light)||16,558|-|-|16,558|15,113|
|Other Payments||2,305|-|400|2,705|3,389|
|**Total Payments**|**5**|**94,102**|**-**|**3,465**|**97,567**|**126,995**|
||||||||
|**NET RECEIPTS / PAYMENTS**||**4,948**<br>**-**|**-**|**845**<br>**-**|**5,793**<br>**-**|**12,981**<br>**-**|
||||||||
|Balance brought forward 1 September||61,750|-|687|62,436|75,418|
|Transfers_(to CARE Fund)_||1,085<br>-|-|1,085|-|-|
|**Balances carried forward 31 August**||**55,717**|**-**|**926**|**56,643**|**62,437**|
||||||||
|**STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AT 31 AUGUST 2025**|||||||
||||||||
|||**Unrestricted **|**Designated**|**Restricted**|**Total**|**Total**|
|**MONETARY ASSETS**||**funds**|**funds**|**funds**|**31/08/2025**|**31/08/2024**|
||||||||
|Barclays Current Account||6,150|-|926|7,076|5,768|
|Cash in Hand||158|-|-|158|82|
|**_Central Finance Board Accounts:_**|||||||
|General Deposit Account||48,568|-|-|48,568|56,587|
|BuildingDeposit Account||-|-|-|-|-|
|**_Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes:_**|||||||
|Model Trust Bequests - Trust 11470||-|-|-|-|-|
|**Total Monetary Assets**||**54,876**|**-**|**926**|**55,803**|**62,436**|
||||||||
|**ASSETS FOR CHURCH PURPOSES**|||Land&Buildings||4,506,513|4,375,246|
||||Contents||204,272|198,322|
|**Total Assets for Church Purposes**|||||**4,710,785**|**4,573,568**|
||||||||
|**_There are no other monetary or investment assets to report_**|||||||
||||||||
|**Liabilities(External Organisations)**||_-_|_-_|-|-|**1,000**|
||||||||
|**FOR INFORMATION ONLY: MONEY RECEIVED AND PASSED ON TO EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS**|||||||
|Balance brought forward 1 September||-|-|-|-|1,000|
|Donations received for external organisations||-|-|165|165|1,483|
|Donationspassed to external organisations||-|-|165<br>-|165<br>-|2,483<br>-|
|**Balance still to bepaid at 31 August**||-|-|-|-|**-**|



|**Balances carried forward 31 August**||**55,717**|**-**|||**926**||**56,643**||**62,437**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||||||||||||
|**STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AT 31**||||||**AUGUST 2025**|||||
||||||||||||
|||**Unrestricted **|**Designated**|||**Restricted**||**Total**||**Total**|
|**MONETARY ASSETS**||**funds**|**funds**|||**funds**||**31/08/2025**||**31/08/2024**|
||||||||||||
|Barclays Current Account||6,150|-|||926||7,076||5,768|
|Cash in Hand||158|-|||-||158||82|
|**_Central Finance Board Accounts:_**|||||||||||
|General Deposit Account||48,568|-|||-||48,568||56,587|
|BuildingDeposit Account||-|-|||-||-||-|
|**_Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes:_**|||||||||||
|Model Trust Bequests - Trust 11470||-|-|||-||-||-|
|**Total Monetary Assets**||**54,876**|**-**|||**926**||**55,803**||**62,436**|
||||||||||||
|**ASSETS FOR CHURCH PURPOSES**|||Land&Buildings|||||4,506,513||4,375,246|
||||Contents|||||204,272||198,322|
|**Total Assets for Church Purposes**||||||||**4,710,785**||**4,573,568**|
||||||||||||
|**_There are no other monetary or investment assets to report_**|||||||||||
||||||||||||
|**Liabilities(External Organisations)**||_-_|_-_|||-||-||**1,000**|
||||||||||||
|**FOR INFORMATION ONLY: MONEY RECEIVED AND PASSED ON**||||**TO EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS**|||||||
|Balance brought forward 1 September||-|-|||-||-||1,000|
|Donations received for external organisations||-|-|||165||165||1,483|
|Donationspassed to external organisations||-|-||-|165<br>|-|165|-|2,483<br>|
|**Balance still to bepaid at 31 August**||-|-|||-||-||**-**|



Page 8 



|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025**|||||||
||||||||
|**NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS**|||||||
||||||||
|**1. ACOUNTING POLICIES**|||||||
|The Financial Statements have beenprepared in accordance with the Charities Act 2011,Section 133 usingthe|||||||
|receipts andpayments basis and in accordance with the Methodist Churchguidelines.|||||||
||||||||
|**2. TRUSTEE PAYMENTS**|||||||
|There were nopayments made to or on behalf of the trustees.|||||||
||||||||
|**3. INVESTMENTS**|||||||
|There are no endowments or investments upon which to report.|||||||
||||||||
|**4. ANALYSIS OF RECEIPTS**|||||||
|||**Unrestricted **|**Designated**|**Restricted**|**Total**|**Total**|
|**Detailed Receipts**|**Notes**|**funds**|**funds**|**funds**|**31/08/2025**|**31/08/2024**|
|SundayCollections - Loose Cash|1|5,715|-|30|5,745|5,528|
|Cheques|1|1,695|-|-|1,695|370|
|SundayCollections - Envelope Scheme|1|1,445|-|-|1,445|1,780|
|Bank StandingOrders|1|45,645|-|-|45,645|46,980|
|Bank Direct Credits|1|1,672|-|-|1,672|2,320|
|Gift Aid - Tax Recovered|2|6,327|-|-|6,327|11,856|
|**Offerings and Tax Recovered - Totals**||**62,499**|**-**|**30**|**62,529**|**68,834**|
|General Fund - CFB Deposit Account||2,056|-|-|2,056|2,312|
|BuildingFund - CFB Deposit Account||-|-|-|-|83|
|Bequest Fund - TMCP Trust Account||-|-|-|-|405|
|**TMCP& CFB Interest - Totals**||**2,056**|**-**|**-**|**2,056**|**2,800**|
|Newcastle Methodist District Office||7,925|-|-|7,925|3,800|
|Internal Organisations|3|1,765|-|-|1,765|1,990|
|External Groups|4|14,262|-|-|14,262|14,024|
|**Lettings - Totals**||**23,952**|**-**|**-**|**23,952**|**19,814**|
|Grants||-|-|-|-|13,059|
|Insurance Claims&Refunds||-|-|-|-|2,896|
|Legacies,Bequests&Gifts||-|-|-|-|1,000|
|URC Northern Synod||240|-|-|240|140|
|General Receipts&Donations|5|407|-|368|774|676|
|Flower Fund Donations||-|-|530|530|598|
|Special Collections,Donations&Fundraisers||-|-|82|82|1,387|
|Christian Aid Appeals||-|-|407|407|1,560|
|Other Charitable Appeals||-|-|1,203|1,203|1,250|
|**Other Receipts - Totals**||**647**|**-**|**2,590**|**3,236**|**22,566**|
||||||||
|**Receipts Grand Totals**||**89,154**|**-**|**2,620**|**91,774**|**114,014**|
||||||||
|**Notes regarding receipts are:**|||||||
|1. Offerings have stayed close to the level of thepreviousyear when allowingfor note 2.|||||||
|2. Gift Aid claims for Mayonwards not included due to aproblem with transferingdetails to HMRC.|||||||
|3. This covers the donations from 4th Newcastle Girls' Brigade and Forest Hall Carpet Bowls Club.|||||||
|4. The money generated from Lettings is an integralpart of maintainingthe financial stabilityof the church.|||||||
|5. This mainlycovers collections donated from special services,such as funerals or baptisms.|||||||



Page 9 



Page 10

|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025**|||||||
||||||||
|**NOTES TO THE**||**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS(continued)**|||||
||||||||
|**5. ANALYSIS OF PAYMENTS**|||||||
|||**Unrestricted **|**Designated**|**Restricted**|**Total**|**Total**|
|**Detailed Payments**|**Notes**|**funds**|**funds**|**funds**|**31/08/2025**|**31/08/2024**|
|**Circuit Assessment or Share - Totals**||**56,000**|**-**|**-**|**56,000**|**56,000**|
|Methodist&URC Connexional Funds|1|-|-|1,200|1,200|1,133|
|Methodist&URC Annual Pledges|1|-|-|-|-|200|
|Action for Children||-|-|405|405|700|
|All We Can - Methodist Relief and Development||-|-|100|100|300|
|Commitment for Life - URC Trust||-|-|100|100|300|
|MHA - Methodist Homes||-|-|290|290|250|
|Local Charitable Causes|2|-|-|-|-|450|
|Christian Aid Appeals|3|-|-|800|800|1,800|
|Disasters EmergencyCommittee Appeals||-|-|-|-|-|
|Other National Charitable Appeals|3|-|-|170|170|1,689|
|**Donations - Totals**||**-**|**-**|**3,065**|**3,065**|**6,822**|
|CleaningContractors||3,626|-|-|3,626|3,456|
|Garden Maintenance||300|-|-|300|285|
|BuildingComplex Repairs&Renewals|4|6,389|-|-|6,389|29,347|
|Electrical Systems Checks,Repairs&Re|<br>4|1,628|-|-|1,628|3,287|
|Fire&LightningSystems Checks&Repa|4|544|-|-|544|1,379|
|HeatingSystem Checks&Repairs|4|4,334|-|-|4,334|1,220|
|Lift Insurance,Servicing& Repairs||485||-|485|564|
|Equipment Repairs&Renewals|4|-|-|-|-|3,646|
|Furnishings Repairs&Renewals|4|1,780|-|-|1,780|2,145|
|Toilet,Cleaning &Sundrysupplies&repairs||153|-|-|153|343|
|**Repairs and Maintenance - Totals**||**19,239**|**-**|**-**|**19,239**|**45,672**|
|Insurance||4,117|-|-|4,117|4,539|
|Gas|5|9,126|-|-|9,126|6,618|
|Electricity|5|2,952|-|-|2,952|2,719|
|Water|6|363|-|-|363|1,237|
|**Utilities - Totals**||**16,558**|**-**|**-**|**16,558**|**15,113**|
|Bequest Fund - TMCP Administration Charge||-|-|-|-|45|
|Flower Fund Expenditure||-|-|400|400|407|
|Copyright Licences||510|-|-|510|483|
|Website costs||415|-|-|415|313|
|Telephone&Broadband||98|-|-|98|-|
|Printing,Postage,Stationery &Hymnbooks||666|-|-|666|920|
|Preacher,Steward&Organist Fees&Expenses||480|-|-|480|249|
|Communion supplies||-|-|-|-|64|
|Outreach(Re-Engage tea,messy/junior church)||86|-|-|86|161|
|Sundries(gifts,buffets,first aid& prayer books)||50|-|-|50|747|
|**Other Payments - Totals**||**2,305**|**-**|**400**|**2,705**|**3,389**|
||||||||
|**Payments Grand Totals**||**94,102**|**-**|**3,465**|**97,567**|**126,996**|
||||||||
|**Notes regarding payments are:**|||||||
|1. Includes Methodist&URC funds: Ministers;Mission;Property;Training;LWPT&retired ministers housin|||||||
|2. Cullercoats RNLI(collection in August on nextyear's accounts). WalkingWith: non-monetary gifts.|||||||
|3. Includes appeals for the Middle East crisis,includingGaza.|||||||
|4. Fewer major works thisyear. Main costs are for a new heatingcontrol system and blinds.|||||||
|5. New energycontracts will commence in January2026. Gasprices were significantlyincreased thisyear.|||||||
|6. Water was in credit for much of theyear so this is unlikelyto reflect future costs.|||||||



1. Includes Methodist & URC funds: Ministers; Mission; Property; Training; LWPT & retired ministers housing 2. Cullercoats RNLI (collection in August on next year's accounts). Walking With: non-monetary gifts. 

~~Page 11~~ 



||**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**|**ST ANDREW'S LEP, BENTON**||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR YEAR ENDED 31**|||||**AUGUST 2025**||||
||||||||||
|**NOTES TO THE**||**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS(continued)**|||||||
||||||||||
|**6. SUMMARY OF FUND MOVEMENT FOR THE YEAR**|||||||||
||**Notes**|**01/09/2024**|**Receipts**||**Payments**||**Transfers**|**31/08/2025**|
|**Unrestricted**|||||||||
|General Fund|1|61,749|106,154||111,102|-|1,085<br>|55,716|
|**Designated**|||||||||
|||-|-||-||-|-|
|**Restricted**|||||||||
|||-|-||-||-|-|
|||-|-||-||-|-|
|CARE Fund|2|340|2,090||3,065||1,085|450|
|Flower Fund||346|530||400||-|477|
|||-|-||-||-|-|
||||||||||
|**Totals**||**62,436**|**108,774**||**114,567**||**-**|**56,643**|



|**Totals**<br>**62,436**<br>**108,774**|**114,567**||**-**|**56,643**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||||||
|**Notes regarding funds and fund movement are:**|||||
|1. Unrestricted funds maybe used bythe church trustees for anyordinarychurchpurpose.|||||
|2. The CARE Fund represents moneyfrom donors to support regulargivingto|||specific charities and||
|special collections for disasters or emergencies where the church exercises its discretion to raise funds.|||||
|The church supports the fund bytransferring2%of unrestricted offerings and|||related Gift Aid to the fund.||
|CARE Fund will 'match fund' collections for Charities at a level of 50%.|||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
||||||
|**7.SUMMARY OF INTERNAL ORGANISATIONS REPORTING TO THE TRUSTEES**|||||
||||||
|_Thegross income of the church, including the receipts below, does not exceed the Accruals_|||_threshold._||
|_The funds below are Restricted._|||||
|**01/09/2024**<br>**Receipts**|**Payments**|**Adjustment**||**31/08/2025**|
|Forest Hall Carpet Bowls Club<br>337<br>1,600|1,557||-|380|
|4th Newcastle Girls' Brigade<br>4,482<br>4,443|4,748||-|4,177|
||||||
|**Totals**<br>**4,819**<br>**6,043**|**6,305**||**-**|**4,557**|



|**Totals**||**4,819**|**6,043**||**6,305**|**-**|**4,557**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||||||||
|||||||||
|**8. MONEY RECEIVED AND PASSED ON TO EXTERNAL ORGANISATIONS**||||||||
|||||||||
|_For information only. Money not included in receipts andpayments account -_|||||_held in Barclays current acc_|||
|||**01/09/2024**|**Receipts**||**Payments**|**31/08/2025**||
|Action for Children||-|405||405|-||
|PCDC||-|350||350|-||
|Methodist Homes||-|290||290|-||
|Christian Aid||-|800||800|-||
|British Red Cross||-|520||520|-||
|RNLI Cullercoats Station|1|-|410||410|-||
|||||||||
|**Totals**||-|2,775||2,775|-||



1. Money collected in August coffee mornings - will show in 2025-2026 accounts _There may be minor discrepancies in the totals if the pence are not being shown_ 

~~Page 12~~ 



## **ST ANDREW’S LEP, BENTON** 

## **TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 AUGUST 2025** 

## **DECLARATIONS** 

I confirm that these Receipt and Payment based accounts for the year to 31 August 2025 (pages 8 to 11) have been prepared from the records of the Church and that they include all funds under the control of the Church trustees. 

Keith Jones – Treasurer 

Signed Date **25/09/2025** 

I confirm that the annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 August 2025 were presented to the meeting of the Church trustees held on 25 September 2025 and were approved by the trustees. 

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees by the chair, Rev Helen White 


## Date **25/09/2025** 

## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT** 

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the charity St Andrew’s LEP, Benton (“the Trust”) for the year ended 31 August 2025 set out in pages 8 to 11. 

## **Responsibilities and basis of report** 

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

## **Independent Examiner’s Statement** 

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination (other than that disclosed below*) which give me cause to believe that in, any material respect: 

- the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Act; or 

- the accounts do not accord with the accounting records. 

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

Signed Date **23/10/2025** 

## Name: Keith Gilfillan 

Relevant professional qualification(s) or body (if any): Justice of the Peace 

Address: 75 Newlands Avenue, Melton Park, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne. NE3 5PY 

Page 13