The Parochial Church Council Of The
Ecclesiastical Parish Of St Peter & St Paul,
Great Bowden, In The Diocese of
Leicestershire
Trustees Annual Report and Accounts
for the year ended 31 December 2025

The Paroehlal Church Councll Of The Eccleslastlcal Parlsh Of St.Peter & St Paul,
Great Bowden, In Thè Dlocese of Leicestershire
Annual report for the year ending 310ecember 2025
The Trustees of The Parochial Church Council Of The Ecclesiastscal Parish Of St Peter & St Paul,
Great Bowden, In The Diocese Of Leicestershire Ithe "PCC") present their report and the
fi'nancial statements of the parish for the year ended 31" December 2025.
Adrnlnlstratlve Informatlon
The Parish of St Peter & St Paul, Great Bowden consists of the St Peter & St Paul Church,
situated in Great Bowden, Market HarboroLsgh. The parish is part of the Harborough Anglican
Team in the Deanery of Gartree and the Diocese of Leicester. The Charity Registration Number
is 1212693.
Correspondence with regard to the business of the parish is welcomed and should be
addressed to..
Mrs Margaret Powell
The Secretary ofthe PCC
61 Great Bowden Road
Market Harborou8h
Leicestershire LE16 7DF
The following persons have served as members of the PCC during the year endin8 31,
Decernber 2025 and to date.
Ex Officio members
Elected Members
Rev Hilary (Hilsl
Corcoran
Mr P Crowe
Vicar, Chair
Mrs M Powell
PCC Secretary
Church Warden
Prof M Lund
Ms C 5ilcott
Church Warden
Mr Sjones
Mr K Wilson
Treasurer
MrA Smith
Mr L Webb
Deanery Synod Rep
Deanery Synod Rep
Resigned 1815125
Mrs CTreanor
Mr P Rhodes
Mr D Storey
Appointed 1815125
Appointed 1815125
Dr Q Appleton
Ms J Mason
Mr A Trotter
Mrs H Trotter
Resigned 1815125
Resigned 1815125
Resigned 1815/25
Ms M Reinhard
Mrs I Wilson
Page I

The Independent Examiner is Mr Adrian Bentley A.C.A. of Edward Thomas Peirson & Sons, 21
The Point, Rockingham Road, Market Harborough, Leicestershire LE16 7NU.
The affairs of the church are managèd by the Parochial Church Council IPCCI comprising
elected representatives of the laity and representatives of the laity elected to the Deanery
Synod, co-opted members and ex-offi'cio members Iclergy, readers, wardens and officers).
Thi5 Council has delegated some of its responsibilitie5 for the day-to-day business of the
church to the Standing Committee ISCI. The Standing Committee consists of the Vicar, Church
Wardens, PCC Secretary and Church Treasurer. Together the PCC and SC are responsible for
the organisats'on of worship, ministry and mission with the parish community and for the care,
maintenance and development of its buildings, all subject to the PCC retaining linancial
responsibility.
The Church buildin8, Churchyard and Vicarage are vested in the name of the Leicester
Diocesan Board of Finance as custodian trustees for the parish. The church hall is vested in
the name of the PCC.
Strurture, governance and management
The role of the PCC is that of an accountable executive body with the responsibility to review
and regulate the affairs of the parish. It is supported in this role by the SC. A Building
Committee deals with all building matters. A Safeguarding representative oversees all
safegLJarding in conjunction with the vicar, reports'ng to each PCC meeting. All PCC members
are safely recruited. as are all volunteers involved in any area of ministry within the church,
partr'cularly those involving children, young people and vulnerable adults.
The method of appointment of PCC members is set out in the Church Representation Rules.
All Church attendees are encouraged to register on the Electoral Roll and stand for election to
the PCC.
Reverend Hillary IHi1s1 Corcoran is the part-time vicar of the Parish, and also part-time Team
Vicar with the Harborough Anglican Team.
Aim and purposes
The primary object of the PCC is the promotion of the Gospel our Lord jesus Christ according
to the doctrines and practices of the Church of England. The PCC are required, as stated in
the Parochial Church Councils IPowers1 Measure 1956, to cooperate with the incumbent in
promoting in the parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and
ecumenical.
Objectives and activities
The PCC is committed to enablin8 as many people as possible to worship at our church and to
become part of the parish community. We strive to be welcoming, accessible and inclusive,
enabling everyone. whatever their background. to experience the love of God. The main
acts'vits'es that have been adopted to achieve these objecrives are the provision of regular
Page 2

worship services, provision of pastoral care for people living in the parish as well as the
organisation of and participats'on in community events. The church is open during worship
service5 and the grounds are open to the public to always provide space for private reflection
and remembrance.
The PCC members have complied with the duty in Section 4 of the Charities Act to have due
regard to the public benefi.t guidance published by the Charity Commission. The Parish has
adopted Promoting a Safer Church, the Church of England's Safeguarding Policy for children,
young people and adults.
Church Attendance
A range of different services are provided, each aimed at different congregatr'ons, as detailed
below..
Servlce
No.
Avg. Attendance
Child 15 1 Adult 70
Child 7 1 Adult 55
Child 51 Adult 10 I
20
Child I/Adult 51
41 Chlld 261 Adult 21
io
Child 4 1 Adult 54
Adult 9
Child 3 1 Adult 170
Child 4 1 Adult 90
Child 511 Adult 150
8aptlsm
Café Church
Faith Explorers
Holy Communlon
Messy Church
Servlce of the Word
Soul Space ify41": kJg'.Y.-:-
Funeral
Weddln8-
Xmas Special
Easter Speclal
School Services
li
Child 641 Adult 66
Adult 33
Review of the Year
rhe church continues to provide a strong witness to Jesus within the Great Bowden
community. We are viewed positively within the wider community, often participating in
community activities. We rnaintain a strong connection with great Bowden Academy, our
local church school. This involves conversations Wlth the other families by our church
families, 2 church members acting as governors on the school board lin addition to the
Vicar) and a weekly Open the Book assembly with the children.
The church was utilised in 91 different services during the year. Whilst we saw 3 small
growth in new attendees. we also lost some dear members to death. The cafe style church
conts.nues to be a popular service, especially with local families where we are seekin8 some
growth in those attending. A strong steady core of members forms the regular community at
Holy Communion, though this does tend to skew towards those who are 60 plus. Our
Page 3

worship director departed in the year and has yet to be replaced. Our choir remain5 a strong
component of our church worship.
A Monday evening Bible and discussion group has proven very successful.
Our new congregation, Faith Explorers has struggled to grow numbers and finding the right
time slot seems to be critical.
The PCC met regularly throughout the year to oversee our activities.
A Quinquennial inspection was conducted on our church building in 2024. Whilst no major
items were identr.fied for attention, several items were raised that do require work which
have been actioned and are in the process of being dealt with.
Financial Review
Like many smaller village churches, finance continue5 to be a challenge to provide for all the
activits'es that we have underway. We continue to work with the Parish Giving Scheme to
develop our regular giving, as well as undertaking a number of fundraising activikn.es during
the year to raise additr.onal funds.
Aside from the quarterly contribution made to the diocese, energy bills continue to represent
a substantial portion of our ongoing costs. Where possible we applied for grants to assist,
including the Listed Places of Worship Grants scheme and we remain grateful to the Market
Harborough & Bowden Charity (which covers maintenance costs to the fabric of the listed
church building.)
Total income for the year amounted to £104,229 of which £101,074 had no restrictions on
how they were to be spent and of the remainder £1,211 was designated unrestricted and
£1,944 was restricted. This consisted of £81,455 voluntary donations and other operating
receipts, £7,692 from one-off grants, £14,442 f rom renting of our church hall and £640 bank
interest. Overall income was down by Il% on 2024.
Total expenditure for the year amounted to £97,658, of which £40,008 was the contribution
to the diocesan parish share. Other major expenses were utility bills £9,981, Harborough
Anglican Team Expenses £6796, insurance £6496, maintenance £10,068 and Church Hall
expenses of £8,631. It is always concerning to see how much of our income is spent on the
building and wider team/diocese commitments, £81,980, leaving just £15,678 being ath.vely
used for the core ministry of the church. Allowing for the purchase of the Sound System last
year, expenses were stt'll down 14% on last year which indicates careful spending in line with
the reduced income.
The Church Hall provided a small Surplus of Income over Expenditure of around £5000,
allowing for insurance. Whilst this is great, it is also noted that there are a number of areas
of maintenance outstandin8 on the building and so it's future remains under review.
Page 4

Reserves
Unrestricted general funds.. The PCC policy is to retain a minimum £25,000 expenditure as
"free" reserveg, to meet future shortFalls in income or unexpected expense for the Church,
and an amount of £5,000 is kept likewise for the Church Hall. The balance on 31 December
20251£30.0001 represents sufficient funds to meet this requirement, however given that a
defi'cit is forecast for 2026, these sums will need to be reviewed.
De51gnated Funds- The following funds are maintained for specific designated purposes=
Church Hall
Funds to be used specially in relats'on to £7,500
the Church Hall, overseen by the PCC
A buffer fund for use within Me55y £362.12
Church, overseen by the PCC
A Sum that is to be used specially with £200
ministry with youn8 people, overseen
by the PCC
Funds now derestricted by donors for £2,000
Use within worship, overseen by the
pcc
A sum that is to be used specifically £126.25
within the music area, overseen by the
Music Director
Formed primarily from legacies that £63,212.91
have been received less transfers to
maintain general reserves. The PCC
oversees the use of this fund for
expenses.
Messy Church
Youth
Plantsng
Music
Legacv
Vicar Wellbeing
A sum that the vicar us able to use for £453.53
their personal well being
Restricted Funds:
Youth
A sum donated for teenage youth work, £1,146
overseen by the PCC
Used for the Monday night study group £440.97
to study and explore the faith. Pays for
Materials, foods, etc. Administered by
Christine & Hils
Fund5 materials for the Open the Book £141.58
ministry in schools. Administered bv
Helen Foreman
This comprises other small funds not
yet spent a5 follows..
Monies raised for specific causes not
yet spent/paid over, namely Bird Boxes £25.70
Faith Exploration
Open The Book
Other
Page 5

Faith Explorers
Balance of 2024 Faith Explorers grant
£145.46
Approval
This report was approved by the PCC on 22 March 2026 and Signed on their behalf by=
c4
Rev H Corcoran
MrP
rowe
Ms C Silcott
Page 6

Indepi'iidLitht £iaDJincr'% KewTt to tbE TT115tL'eS 1)f
Tbe Purochlal Church Co¥neil ofThe E£cle5iA%tl¢al Pllrish Of St Peter & St Paul.
Ciregt B0￿di￿n. ITr Th¢ Dlotese Of Lei¢esiorsbirc
I repori lo th¢ charily tru&lL'L'S on my ¢xatninalion vf Ihe aLCVUlllS uf lh¢ ¥hgTily for the yLar LndLyJ 3151 t)ec¢mbcr
Re5pon5ibilitit5 and bAs1s of report
As the Lhariiv's IfLlSteeg, the members of rhc PCC are responsiblc fvr th¢ pr¢pHTaliDD uf thL aLLvuni& in accordaiicc
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acroiiniiii¥ rL'Lords WLre kepi In respeci ol. Ihl charilv 85 reqiiir¢d by seLlioii 130 of Ilie Aci. or
the JciOIUll¥ du noi aicord willi 1hts￿e records.. or
Ihi aicoiiiits dv nLTrI Loniply with th¥ applicdble reqiiiM'niLiiis con¢¢rniii¥ the lomi and Lonieni of acLOUI)t¥
sei oui iii lh¢ C'haritie￿ (Accounis and RL'purts1 Re¥uliiiions )n(IX oiher Ihan any i¢quir¢Tn¥nl Ihai Ilje acLoulllS
give a 'lnie anJ fdir Yitw. Ivhich 1$ Dol u mailer considLr¢d d5 Part olan iDdcpcndLni exainiijalion.
ha￿e iio COnL￿niS and havL ¢ume *L TOSS no oili¥r maiicrs in conncLiion wilh Iht ¢xqmiiiRIiuTJ tLTr ￿'hICh aiieniion
sjioiild bL' dTaM'ii in Iliis report in order 10 ¢nabl¢ 3 proper undirs18ndiiig of Ili¢ a¢¢ounts lu b¢ re8Lhed.
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Dated
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oil bih
Edwar
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CliarlerLd Aiiouniaiiis
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R￿kin￿baM Road
Markel HEirbtsroiigh
L¢i¢5. LE16 7NU
PaBe 7

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