CHURCH HOUSES CHARITY Registered Charity no 254252 incorporating as subsidiaries
Maria Cook’s Charity, Caroline Welton’s Charity and Portion of the Church Estate, all operating under the working title
maria cook trust
REPORT OF TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR 2023
Trustees
Revd Daniel Thompson ex officio as Rector of St Leonard’s Church Mrs Gillian Haughey ex officio as Churchwarden of St Leonard’s Church (till end of August 2023) Mrs Jennifer Lockwood ex officio as Deputy Churchwarden of St Leonard’s Church
Bankers
Lloyds Bank, Thame
Investment Managers
CCLA Investment Management Ltd, Senator House, 85 Queen Victoria St, London, EC4V 4ET
Solicitors
Blake Morgan, Seacourt Tower, West Way, Oxford, OX2 0FB
Address
The Trust has no offices but may be contacted via the Rector, Revd Daniel Thompson, at 10 Prospect Place, Watlington, OX49 5LX.
Objectives
In essence, to provide funds for the maintenance and repair and improvement of the fabric and fitments of St Leonard’s Church and churchyard.
Finance
At the beginning of the year, the Trust has two principal assets:
-
a parcel of land to the south of St Leonard’s Church, which remained after the sale in 2018, was let to the PCC of St Leonard’s Church for use as a private carpark for a monthly rental of £20. This land remains in the ownership of the Trust and as previously, no value is assigned to it.
-
cash invested with CCLA to the value of £518,957.92 on 31 December 2022, invested in accumulation units, that in lieu of paying a regular dividend, automatically reinvest all income from the assets underlying the units and thereby contribute to the increase the value of the units.
-
In addition, the Trust had a cash balance at Lloyds Bank of £37,132.70 on 31 December 2022.
Activity
The remainder of the land has continued to be used as parking for the church and some open space. As anticipated, the application for a footpath (No 36) through the site has been granted, along the diverted route as agreed with Oxfordshire County Council.
During 2023, a major project to renovate /repair the North Aisle roof, with additional replacement of the drainage system, was carried out, costing £74,558.17 excluding VAT. The PCC was reimbursed to this amount as the expenditure met the objectives of the Trust and was approved by the Trustees. Final payments will be paid in 2024.
In addition, a project to develop the room at the bottom of the Church Tower, was explored (in accordance with the conditions of the legacy left by the Williamson family) – the costs involved of £12,380 were met equally by the Trust and the Williamson family from the £28,000 legacy invested in Maria Cook funds.
Additional essential repairs and maintenance were carried out on the church during the year and consequently the PCC was reimbursed £5877.51 to meet the expenditure (less VAT) under that heading.
The Trust continued to receive £240 per year from the PCC for the area used as a carpark for church use. The investments with CCLA performed well and produced a healthy dividend. despite the sale of some units.
Accounts: A summary of the Trust’s financial activity in 2023 is shown below.
MARIA COOK TRUST
ACCOUNTS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2023 SUMMARY FOR ANNUAL REPORT
| Balance Sheet as at the Year End Assets land investments cash Liabilites liabilites Net Assets Represented by: cash and investments at beginning of year net growth in investments total income for the year total expenditure for the year cash and investments at end of year Income & Expenditure Account for Year Income sale of CCLA shares current licence re carpark Refund from PCC Expenditure – Roof Repair Architect Fees Contractor (CEL) fees Diocesan Advisory fees Expenditure – Tower Room Project Archibald Shaw Investgaton costs Architects' fees Archaeologist fees adjustment Expenditure - maintenance and repairs sundry items inc. Insurance, servicing of equipment, etc Kitchen costs from 2021 |
£ £ 60,000.00 240 0 |
2023 £ 0.00 521,983.59 4,557.02 |
|---|---|---|
| 526,540.61 0.00 |
||
| 526,540.61 | ||
| 556,090.62 3,025.67 60,240.00 (92,815.68) |
||
| 526,540.61 | ||
| 2023 £ 60,240.00 (74,558.17) (12,380.00) (5,877.51) 0 |
||
| (4,877.17) (69,681.00) 0 |
||
| (556.00) (3,714.00) (7,000.00) (1,110.00) |
||
| (92,815.68) |
Total Expenditure
(31,776.98) (32,575.68) (9,711.36)
Surplus for the Year
CHURCH HOUSES CHARITY Registered Charity no 254252 incorporating as subsidiaries
Maria Cook’s Charity, Caroline Welton’s Charity and Portion of the Church Estate, all operating under the working title
maria cook trust
REPORT OF TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR 2023
Trustees
Revd Daniel Thompson ex officio as Rector of St Leonard’s Church Mrs Gillian Haughey ex officio as Churchwarden of St Leonard’s Church (till end of August 2023) Mrs Jennifer Lockwood ex officio as Deputy Churchwarden of St Leonard’s Church
Bankers
Lloyds Bank, Thame
Investment Managers
CCLA Investment Management Ltd, Senator House, 85 Queen Victoria St, London, EC4V 4ET
Solicitors
Blake Morgan, Seacourt Tower, West Way, Oxford, OX2 0FB
Address
The Trust has no offices but may be contacted via the Rector, Revd Daniel Thompson, at 10 Prospect Place, Watlington, OX49 5LX.
Objectives
In essence, to provide funds for the maintenance and repair and improvement of the fabric and fitments of St Leonard’s Church and churchyard.
Finance
At the beginning of the year, the Trust has two principal assets:
-
a parcel of land to the south of St Leonard’s Church, which remained after the sale in 2018, was let to the PCC of St Leonard’s Church for use as a private carpark for a monthly rental of £20. This land remains in the ownership of the Trust and as previously, no value is assigned to it.
-
cash invested with CCLA to the value of £518,957.92 on 31 December 2022, invested in accumulation units, that in lieu of paying a regular dividend, automatically reinvest all income from the assets underlying the units and thereby contribute to the increase the value of the units.
-
In addition, the Trust had a cash balance at Lloyds Bank of £37,132.70 on 31 December 2022.
Activity
The remainder of the land has continued to be used as parking for the church and some open space. As anticipated, the application for a footpath (No 36) through the site has been granted, along the diverted route as agreed with Oxfordshire County Council.
During 2023, a major project to renovate /repair the North Aisle roof, with additional replacement of the drainage system, was carried out, costing £74,558.17 excluding VAT. The PCC was reimbursed to this amount as the expenditure met the objectives of the Trust and was approved by the Trustees. Final payments will be paid in 2024.
In addition, a project to develop the room at the bottom of the Church Tower, was explored (in accordance with the conditions of the legacy left by the Williamson family) – the costs involved of £12,380 were met equally by the Trust and the Williamson family from the £28,000 legacy invested in Maria Cook funds.
Additional essential repairs and maintenance were carried out on the church during the year and consequently the PCC was reimbursed £5877.51 to meet the expenditure (less VAT) under that heading.
The Trust continued to receive £240 per year from the PCC for the area used as a carpark for church use. The investments with CCLA performed well and produced a healthy dividend. despite the sale of some units.
Accounts: A summary of the Trust’s financial activity in 2023 is shown below.
MARIA COOK TRUST
ACCOUNTS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2023 SUMMARY FOR ANNUAL REPORT
| Balance Sheet as at the Year End Assets land investments cash Liabilites liabilites Net Assets Represented by: cash and investments at beginning of year net growth in investments total income for the year total expenditure for the year cash and investments at end of year Income & Expenditure Account for Year Income sale of CCLA shares current licence re carpark Refund from PCC Expenditure – Roof Repair Architect Fees Contractor (CEL) fees Diocesan Advisory fees Expenditure – Tower Room Project Archibald Shaw Investgaton costs Architects' fees Archaeologist fees adjustment Expenditure - maintenance and repairs sundry items inc. Insurance, servicing of equipment, etc Kitchen costs from 2021 |
£ £ 60,000.00 240 0 |
2023 £ 0.00 521,983.59 4,557.02 |
|---|---|---|
| 526,540.61 0.00 |
||
| 526,540.61 | ||
| 556,090.62 3,025.67 60,240.00 (92,815.68) |
||
| 526,540.61 | ||
| 2023 £ 60,240.00 (74,558.17) (12,380.00) (5,877.51) 0 |
||
| (4,877.17) (69,681.00) 0 |
||
| (556.00) (3,714.00) (7,000.00) (1,110.00) |
||
| (92,815.68) |
Total Expenditure
(31,776.98) (32,575.68) (9,711.36)
Surplus for the Year
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT
TO THE TRUSTEES OF MARIA COOK TRUST 2023
I report to the members on my examination of the accounts of Maria Cook Trust, for the year ended 31[st] December 2023
Responsibilities and basis of report
As trustees of Maria Cook trust, you are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (“the Act”).
I report in respect of my examination of the Trustees 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 which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:
-
the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or
-
the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
-
the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the relevant Charities regulations other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.
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.
Denise Allnut Address 4 Cuxham Road Watlington Oxon OX49 5JW
Date 12[th] July 2024