Charity regislratiofi fiumber- L206546 HOPE CHURCH ROTHERHAM TRUSTEES, REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE PERIOD 15 JANUARY 2024 TO 31 MARCH 2025 Hope Church Rotherham Contents Page Trustee5' Report Independent Exèminer's Report statement ol Flnanclal Actlv1tles Statement of Flnanclal Positlon Notes to the Finantlal Statements 10-16 Hope Church Rotherham Trustees. Report For the Period 15 January 2024 to 31 March 2025 The trustees present their report and the finaneial statements for the period ended 31 March 2025. Objectlves and Actlvities Alms and Objertives The charitable objects or the Church are: 111 To advance the Christièn faith in accordance with the st4tem¢nts of fundamental truths of the AOG in such parts of the United Klngdom or the world as the church councll tlme to tlme rnay think flt. lil) To relleve 51ckness and flnanclal hardship and to promote and preserve good health by the provlslon of funds, goods or services of any klnd Includlng thrctugh the provlslon of counselling and support in such part of th¢ United Kingdom or the world as the Church Council from time to tlme think fit, Ilill Advallce educatlon suth ways and In such parts of the United Kingdom or the world ès thÈ Church Couneil from time to tlme may thlnk fit. Slgnlflc•nt Actlvltle$ We Intend that all our actlvltles alms are In Ilne wlth God'5 wlll fgr His Church ?c¢ording to the 5crlpture5, whlch Include$ lovlng all people, Introduclng them to Jesus Chr15t, and equlpplng them to have a beneflclally transforrnln9 Impact In thelr communltles and beyond. Our Purpo$e: To brlng glory to God the Father. Our VlslonE To mako dlsciples of Jesu5 Chrlst who are maklng dlsclples, Our Value•: Hostlng God'B Pres8neé- We belleve In bolng open to God the Holy Spldt, by Ilstenlng and recelvln9 frorn HIM whlch wlll result In transformatlon. Operatlng In Falth, We belleve In stepplng out In falth and bravely ftsllewlrtg 1é5us, seelng thlngs anew from God s perspectlve. Purposefully Sharfng Jesus. We belSeve In Intentlonally sharlng the Good News of Jesus In word5 and actlons wlth ovoryone. Expresslng God's love in our church fam11y. We belleve in being a church communlty in which each person knows they have unlque and vltal pjrt to play, as they us¢ thelr glfts to encouroge and help each other grow. We arè sts thankful to all of the people wh¢ have supported Hope Church and Its projects sn a voluntary or Ilnanclal capacity. The value of the vcluntaer efforts Is Snvaluable. V)rlous prtsjects 3nd programrnes run throughout the week at Hope Church Includlng the fdlowlng., Sunday Mornlng Famlly Worshlp - The servlces are Ilvely and engaging for all ages and run from 10..30am 12..30pm. Comp11mentary refreshments are served afterwèrds. The average weekly attendance on Sundays has contlnued to average 180 adults and children and the number of people In church membershSp for the perlod covered was 118 adults. Prc-servlce prayer takes place every Sunday from 9.. 30am each week, encouraging people to come and engage in purposeful prayer ffor Ihe meeting and turrent needs of Ihe church, communlty and beyond. Hope Klds - Thls Ss Sunday mornlng Junlor church. Chlldren from the age¥ of 3-1 l are welcome tg attend. It runs alongside the maln Sunday servlce and offers opportunlty for the chlldren to hear 8ible sttsries and participate in songs, game5 and crats. All Hope Kld5 volunteers are DBS checked and follDW Hcpe Church Rotherham'5 5afEguordin9 policy and procadures. NuTnbers attendlng Hope Kids have ctsntlnued to steadily rise over the past year wlth an average of 30 children attendlng each week. Htspe ACOfnS Hope Acorns is the parent and toddler group which meets each Monday durlng temi knme between 10..ODarn-12pm. The first V151t Is free and then a nomlnal fee of £2 Is requlred to attend. Durlng the tSme, the chlldren have the opportunlty to partlclpate ln muslc and movement, storytlme, Indlvidual playtlme, craft, snack time wlth the inclusion of a baby sensory group for O-IS. Hope Acorns is open to everyone Irtsm the church and local communlty. It's great to see parents from the local cotnmunity engaging in these sessions wlth thelr chlldren. The department Is also worklng In partnershlp wlth pre-school agencles across the borough. Amplify Youth Club Thls Is open to all youth who are senlor school age. Weekly actlvltles Include worshlp, Blble studles, topical discussions, games, quiiies and tuck shop. The group join other youth groups in periDdlc regional evertts, taklng place acros5 Rotherhaffl and Sheffleld. Soclal Dutlngs Include the annual weekend away which takès place In September of each year. Ampllfy youth meer each Frld8y from 6.'30pm- 8.'OOpm. Hopa Oaks - Thls Is a rnonthly 9atherlAg ol peop5e aged 60+. This work is dlrected and managed by one of the churth elder5. People are welcome from all walks of Ilfe. The group meet on the last Wednesday of every month. Attendee5 can expect to participate in worship and the study of the Word along with sharlng life and testlmonies. In addltion, extsrnal 5pe6ker5 are occaslonally invited to the group. A cooked meal usually follows and thls is all funded by the voluntary monetary contributions collected at the m2eting. Periodlc outings and Social event5 also take place at Hope Oaks. A holiday to Scarberough is planned for July 2025. 39 people are currently registered with Hope Oaks. ..CONTINUED Page I Hope Church Rotherham Trustees. Report (continued) For the Period 15 January 2024 to 31 March 2025 Slgnificant A¢tlvltles- ¢r+ntinued Worshlp Team - The worshlp team which conslsts of two di5ciple5hlp groups meet weekly for rehearsals and dlsclpleshlp. rhere a￿ currently 23 rnembers In the team. The team serve In a varled fdnge of roles covering muslc, rnedia and creative arts. part of the ongolng worship tralnlng, member5 from the team along with teams from other churches in the area and beyond have been atlending 'Heart & Skill,. Thi5 is a worshSp dlscipleship course taksng place over several Saturdays dvrlng Ihe year. rhe course Includes times of wor$hlp along with insplratlon teaching and speciallsed tuition. This course is diretted by the overseer of WDrshlp (also the pastDr of pastoral earel and has input from guest5 and 5pecia15st tutors. Other activities whlch the worship team have introdutsd thls year has Includad multi-cultural worshlp evenings, social event and development of skills on new Instruments. Dlsclpleship Groups There are currently eight disaple5hlp groups that meet weekly around the region {other than the last week of the month when corporate prayer & worshlp rakes place at the church on the last Tuesday). The aim of the omups Is to gllher together for fellDw5hlp, prayer and study of the word. The theme is often followlng on from the Sunday message but also may include pre-prepared malerial 5peclfically degi9ned for srnall groups. Social events also take place wlthln the groups from tlme to time, partlcuSady durlng summer and Chrlstrnas. The dSsEipleshlp groups are designed to be the first port of tall for pastoral care should any Issue arlse. The delegation of pastoral care Is designated to the dlsclpleshlp gmup leader who will then manage the matter wlthln the group Itself. Should It be a more urgent or serlous matter, the dlsclpleshlp group leader wlll escalate It to the Pastor of pastoral care, who wlll rhen put the approprlate meèsures in place. There are plans to launch two new groups In the perlod 2025-2026. Ourlng thls report5ng period all gmups have been trained on the funttlonality of the Churchsulte App enabllng members to keep up to speed wlth all thlngs happenSng In churth life. Pastorjl Care- ￿0pe church endeavou15 tD contlnually care for the people who choose to come under Its coverlng. The rsl stage of care Is through the engagement of a Iccal dlsclple5hlp 9roup. The leadershlp nf the church passlonately belleve In flndlng a place to belong In one of these small communltlos of the church famlly. However, the team recognlse that not everybody wlll deslre to be a part ol a Small group for whatever rea50n. In thls 5nstance pastorèl care would come from a central team should a rnatier arlse, Visitation of the 51ck, the glvlng ol gifts, lor varlou5 occasions includlng slckness, bereavement, and speclal cel¢bration5 - telephone calls and In person meetlng5 - vla an iqppolntment System are all expresslons ol pastoral care at Hope Church. During the year pastoral care has developed well and 15 In a strong posltlon. A team Is now establlshed wlth deflned rDles and reportlng systems In line wlth current GDPR guidttline5. Pollcles havE been put In place for visit5 and glfts. The Bereavernent Journey soven week journey helping people nav5gate grl@f was delivered once again this year. There were 10 partlclpants In total who benefltted from this course. There Is another course planned lor 202512026. Ongolng tralnlng wlth some of the pastoral care team Is planned to take place In the comlng year so that there wlll be multlple lacllltators of the bereavement Journey. Hope Ml$slons - Hope Church has a stron9 emph8s5s on mlssion be it local, n8tlon81 or Int¢rnatlonal. In October the church holds an annual missions conference. Thi5 Is deslgned tD educate and raise awareness of the current neods at home and abroad. In October 2024 the church h05ted Open Door5 who shared about the persecuted church and hosted a secret hurch event which was well attended. The missions, team also Inform the church rnembers through monthly short lalks on unreached people gmups. Hope Church currently st4pports the followln9 oryanlsations wlth pt7yer and m¢nthly nnanclal donatlong.. One by One World of Worth HAS Missions ack to Jerusalem UK Gospel Mlnlstrles Tvrkana Well Prolect - Nalrobl Kenya Venco Nakov - Macedonia Local Communlty Fund Rotherharn Foodbank Turkana Well - 'Living wat•r' Project Durfing thls last financial year, Hope church Roth¢rhom has provlded the funds donated from the huge generosity ol Its members to slnk a borehole In Turkana (Nairobil. Approximately £25k was raised and we are pleased to report that the project is complete and has come in on budget. This will now provide frosh wal'er to a region whlch is 50 dry and arld. The provlslon of thls facllSty wlll potentially create a townshlp In the region. purely due to the fact of fresh water being readily availab12. There will be a commlssionlng seThice in May 202S wh8re two of our church members will be travelllng to Nairobl to attÈnd this event. Men of frlope - The men's mlnlstry of Hope church includes sodal and more formal actlvltles. In the last year, the men of hope have enjoyel varfous events rnnglng from breakfasts, teaching and dlscu55ion events and snooker compeLltlons. Wom*n of Hope - The wornen s rninistry of Hope church meet several times per year. The gatheAngs conslst of cofFee mornlngs, craft events along wlth more formal gatherlng5. In May 2024, the Women of Mope mlnistry held a Conference, 'Pursuit', with guest speaker Helen You5af. There We￿ 86 atrendees represented fmm a number of churches locally and rurther afield. There are a number Df coffee mornings and aciivity based events planned for 2025-2026. Re$ource Team - This team meet regularly to discuss and look at implementlng resources to help and equip the church. Welcorne bags and first steps Ilterature are amon9 the Item5 sourced and produced by this team. Training & Development- Hope church have benefitted from hosting a range of courses to help people explor¢ the Chr¢stlan falth and also learn and grow as a follower of Christ. Courses offered Induded: ..CONTINueD Pa9e 2 Hope Church Rotherham Trustees. Report (contlnued) For the Period 15 January 2024 to 31 March 2025 Sl9nlflcant Actlvltles- contlnued Hope.. Engage Alpha (18 attendees) • Hope.. Engage- Church Membership - (27 new members) Hope.. Equip - The 8ereavernent Journey IIQ attendees) Hope.. Eouip - Exploring Spiritual Gifts147 attendees) Hope.. Equip - Exploring Evangelism {15 attendees) Hope.. Equip The 8iblo Book Club (12 attendees per rnonthl Hope.. Equip - LeadÈrship Tralning IAII depèrtment leader51 lope.. Equip - Departmental Training Various Topic5 - 4 Grgups 140 attendees) Qulet Retreat tlme-120 attendees) The courses wlll be repeated perlodlcally and new courses will be introduced moving forward, Ev•nts - The Church has held or attended a number of Èvents over the year. These included.. Hope Church Volunteer'thank you, evenlng Thi5 Wa5 a free event held at the Hollday Inn RDtherham whlch Included slt down meal and barn dance. Everyone appreclated the evenlng. {80 attendees} Spring HaNe5t - Skegne5s {21 attendee5) Amplify youth weekend away at Cloverley Hall Shropshlre. • TradltSonal Chrfstmas carol servlce Rotherham Foodbank- Rotherham foodbank contlnues to serve the local communlty throuoh the distdbutlon of food parcels based on a referral bèsls from recognlsed agencles. When cllents come to slte there Is also an opportunlty for them to be 5ignp05ted to other 5ervlce5 such as debt advice, health care, and other relevant agencSes, Ro¢herham foodbank currently serve5 between 60-80 cllents per week. Thls year has seen Ihe Introduclion of a working Partnership with the cit17ens Advice Bureau and Chri5tiJns Agoin$t Povcrty. This ycar has seen the Introductlon of the 'Good News, team whlch ollers pastoral support, prayer and Inforrnatlon relatlng to the Chrlstlan falth. Chrlstlanfy Agalnst Poverty The debt rellef centre rnanager Is employed two days per week, worklng wlth and managlng 4 number of volunteer befrlendèrs. The céntré managÈr also works alongslde Rotherham F¢odtsank, givlng advlce and help durfng Lhe foodbanks openlng hours. In add1tion to thls, home vlsits are conducttd each wtek wlth accornpanylng befrlenders, to asslst those In debt by worklng as advocates, consolidatlng debts to monthly manaoeable payments wlth their creditors. ￿Udget.ln9 plans are also complled with the cllents as part of the 5èrvlce. Hope Church Is In partnershlp wlth Chrlstlans Agalnst poverty and pay a monthly fee In accordance wlth the agreement. Schools Work- Hope church has been speclflcally worklng wlth two local schools In Rotherham, undertaklng assemb118S. KE educatlon, hollday clubs and afterschoDI clubs. The partnershlp wlth the scho¢ls has Increased and srrength@nod over the years, The contract and fundlng for the HAF summer ¢lubs hys been In tonlunrtion with Rotherharn Metropolltan Borough Council. Evangellsm Team - The evangellsm team rneat in Rotherharn town eentre on the flrst Saturday. The tèam handout Iiteralure and crdft5 whllst havlng Informal chats wlth the public of Rotherharn explorlng falth questlons. Publlc Beneflt The tru5t¢es have glven careful consideratign to the Charlly Commlsslon's general guldance on publlc benellt. From Hope Centre, the church ond prolECts are better able to beneflt the whDle publlc of Rotherham. The I'rustees are happy that Hope Church mrjre than meet the public benefit requlrements as lald out1n the slgnlflcbnt actlvitles sectlon of thls report. The trusteas confirm that ihey have complled wlth the req(Jlrements of Sectlon 17 of the Charltles Act 2011 to have due regard to the Charlty Comm15sion's guidance on publlc benefit. Additional Note Local Partnershlps The Church Is afflliated wlth AssemblSes of God and takes part In area-wlde events such as local hub and area meetlngs along with special events, such as training days and the AOG notional conference. There is also a Rotherham wlde minister's Int2rdenominètlDnal Ivnch once per month that the senior pastor attend5. The church ha5 a150 been adopted as an offirlal partner wlth two local schools to support thelr RE currlculums and speclal assemblles. The church was cgmmissioned once agoin to deliver a project last year which Included runnlng a two week holiday school club In one local school. The theme for th15 year wa5 on the Blbllcal story of Davld and Golialh. Actlvltles also Included glant inflatables, breakdance workshops, 8 mlni play performènce, songs wlth actions and outdoor water play, Rotherh¥m Borough Metropolitan Council provlded funding for this project which was moniiored and assessed upon completion. Other partners In the project Included'Early Help. and the Oepartment for Education,. Page 3 Hope Church Rotherham Trustees. Report (continued) For the Period 15 January 2024 to 31 March 2025 Flnancial Revlew Flnanclal Positlon The Church's fiThanclal records are updated on a regular basss. All the normal secure ctsuntino and banklng Pro￿dureS are followeo. Hope Church have several bank accounts at two bank5. Each account relate5 to a partlcular purpose. Over th15 last year the financlal policies hève been revlewed ènd new policies and controls have been developed to mitigate any areas of rlsk. In accordance wlth the governlng 50RP a Statement of Flnanclal Actlvlty ha5 been produced. Also tènglble assets a recorded In a Balan￿ Sheet and deprecioled where approprlate on a 5tralght-Ilne basis over 4 years. Reserve5 Pollcy The reserves pollcy Is to have a Sum ser aslde that wlll cover three months payments of salaryi rent and Insurance. The trustees are pleased to repDrt that thls has now been achieved and 15 currently in reserve for thi5 purpose. Additlonal Not• cio On the Isth january 2024 Hope church formally reglstered wlth the Charltle5 Commlsslon as a Chadtable Incorporoted Organisation. On the 3 1 Morch 2024 Hope Church Charlty 1069689 transferred it5 Jsset5 to thls new Chatlly 1206546. The charlty 1069669 wlll remaln open for the loreseegble to collect le9aey donatlons whlch wlll be transferred to the nèw ¢harlty on a quarterly bas15. Rlgk management The truste¢5 recogn15È the need for effectlve managtment of the key rlsks faced by the charfty. The types ol rlsks the chariLy faces arc periodlcally Identlfiod revlewed and priorltlseé In temis of potentlal ImpaLt and Ilkelihotrd of occurrence. The approprtateness Jnd adequacy of Internal controls and Identifl£atlDn of any further actlons required to mltlgate key risks Identlfled are alsts part of the overall r15k management process. structur?. Governancè and Management Go¥eMlng Document Hopc Church Rotherham (hereafter refcrtd to as the Church) Is afflllated to the E4rSt15h A55ernblles ol Gtsd IAOG), and Is CQn5tituted a5 a trust Using the model deed negotiated centrally by thc AOG for It5 churche5. Thls wos adopted on 20th September 2023 and recognlses the greater role of the Church in soclal actlon. The Church is organlsed under the Senlor Pastor, Paul Morri5, along with the team of elders. The church and It's leadershlp engage wlth AOG local and national events throughout the year. Trust*e Selectlon Methods The Church artively seeks new Trustees. Considerations for fvture candldates to be Church Trustee5 are based around thelr experllse and vision and values when it ¢Dmes to serving Ihe house at Hope Church Rotherharn. Addltlonal Note The Trustees are responslble for decidlng pollcy anij ensuririg Ihat it is implemented. They tneet al least flve knmes a year as full board, and they have establlshed a number of commlttees whlch they attend throughout the year. D2y to day managernent is delegated to the Senlor Pastor, Paul Morrls, alongside the se￿tarY/treasurer, Matthew Key. They are responsible for carrylng out the declslons of trustees and for working Wlth the Chatity's professional advlsors. other than as noted below, the trustees give of thelr tlme freety and do not receive any pay, emoluments or olher finan¢lal beneflt. Whll$t the trustees are not paid for their time they can claim Èxpenses, details of whlch are disclosed In the Ecounts. Detalls gf other ￿MuneratIon paid to Paul Morri5 as Senlor Pastor and 35 permlttecl by the charity constitutlon are glven In the notes to the accounts. .CONTINUED Page 4 Hope Church Rotherham Trustees. Report (continued) For the Period 15 January 2024 to 31 March 2025 Addltlonal Note - continued In planning our aetivities for the year the trustees have read arid had regard tD the Charity Co¥nmlsslon's guidance on pub15c benefit. Reference and Administrativ• D*talls Trustees H Lambert lappolftted 15101120241 Mr P Morrls (appointed 15101120241 Mr P Shaw (appointed 15/OLI20241 Mr B EastWODd lappolnted 15101120241 Mr A Harris (appointed 15101120241 Other Personnel Matthew Key - Secretary and Treasurer Charlty Number 1206546 Prlnclpal Addres5 Offlce 12, Bi£space Bowbridge C105e, Brodrnarsh 8u51ne55 Park Rotherham S60 IBY fndependent Examlner Chrlstopher Wilters Nuvo Accountancy Limited Ch)rtÈTed Certlfled Accounrants Flrst Floor, Sterllng House Oytrams Wharr Llttlc Eaton Derby DE21 SEL pag2 5 Hope Church Rotherham Trustees, Report (continued) For the Period 15 January 2024 to 31 March 2025 other Informatlon Average Number of full-tlme employee equlvalents In the year Thls indudes.. Trvo full-tirne & slx part-tirne staff Senior Pastor Full-tlme Assoclato Pastor Part-tlme Finance & Administration manager- Full-time Community Pastor- Part-tirne Pastor of Pastoral Care Part-time Training & Development Pastor Part-vme Foodbank A¢mlnlstralor xl - Part-tlme CAP Debt Centre Manager- Part-tirne Statoment of Trust•**' R•sponslb115tle$ The trustee$ are responsible for preparlng the Trustees, Report and the financial statement5 In accordance wlth appllcable law and Unlted Klngdom Accountlng Standards Iunited Kingdom Generally Accepted Accountlng Practlcel. The law applicable to charlties In England and Wale5 requlres the trustees to prepare flnancial statement5 for each flnanclal year whlch glve a true and falr view of the $￿te of affalrs of the charity and of the Incorning resources and appllcaUon of resources of the charlty for that period. fn preparing the financial 51aternenrs the trustees are requlred to.. select sultable accountlng pollcles and then apply them conslstenily • obser