# **The Trustees' Report and Accounts of New Life Church Letchworth Trust Charity no 299705** 

**For the period 6[th] April 2020 to 5[th] April 2021** 



**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## **TABLE OF CONTENTS** 

|**1.**|**CHARITABLE PURPOSES ....................................................................................................................... 3**|
|---|---|
|1.1|OBJECTS ANDPURPOSES OFCHARITY. ....................................................................................................... 3|
|1.2|PUBLIC BENEFIT STATEMENT...................................................................................................................... 3|
|**2.**|**LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATION DETAILS. ....................................................................................... 4**|
|**3.**|**STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES ........................................................................................ 5**|
|3.1|MONEY ONHAND....................................................................................................................................... 5|
|3.2|INCOME...................................................................................................................................................... 5|
|3.3|EXPENDITURE............................................................................................................................................. 6|
|**4.**|**NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS .................................................................................................................. 7**|
|4.1|EXPLANATION OFEXPENDITUREHEADINGS.............................................................................................. 7|
|4.2|BASIS OFPREPARATION............................................................................................................................. 7|
|4.3|INCOME RESOURCES................................................................................................................................... 7|
|4.4|FUNDS........................................................................................................................................................ 7|
|4.5|TANGIBLEASSETS...................................................................................................................................... 8|
|4.6|CONTINGENTLIABILITIES.......................................................................................................................... 8|
|4.7|COMMITMENTS FORCAPITALEXPENDITURE.............................................................................................. 8|
|4.8|GUARANTEES ANDSECURITIES.................................................................................................................. 8|
|**5.**|**TRUST POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ................................................................................................ 9**|
|5.1|RESERVESPOLICY...................................................................................................................................... 9|
|5.2|STAFFDISCIPLINARY ANDGRIEVANCEPROCEDURE.................................................................................. 9|
|5.3|SAFEGUARDINGPOLICY............................................................................................................................. 9|
|5.4|GENERALDATAPROTECTIONREGULATIONS- POLICIES........................................................................... 9|
|**6.**|**TRUSTEES' REPORT 2020-21 ................................................................................................................ 10**|
|**7.**|**INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES ...................................................... 12**|



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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## **1. Charitable Purposes** 

## _**1.1 Objects and Purposes of Charity.**_ 

The objects of the charity, as stated in its declarations of trust are: 

- The advancement of the Christian Faith in accordance with the doctrines set out in the declaration of trust and the worship of God in Hertfordshire and elsewhere by any means whatsoever including the preaching and proclamation of the Christian gospel and the teaching of Christian doctrine and principles and the pastoral care of Christian people and the printing and distribution of the bible and Christian literature. 

- The relief of persons who are in conditions of need, hardship or distress or who are aged or sick. 

- The advancement of education on the basis of Christian principles and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing the provisions of such education in any educational establishment and if the trustees so decide the provision of one or more charitable education establishments for the general education of children or adults on the basis of such Christian principle. 

## _**1.2 Public benefit statement**_ 

The charity trustees have due regard to the guidance on public benefit published by the commission in exercising their powers and duties. 

Please also see the guidance below: 

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_dat a/file/588307/PB3_Reporting.pdf 

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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## **2. Legal and Administration Details.** 

**Charity Number** 299705 **Governing Instrument** Declaration of Trust 6 April 1988 Memorandum of Resolution 19 April 1988 **Trustees** Michael Foster (Chairman) John King Joel Tarbutton Sarah Carlson **Method of Selection** New trustees are appointed by the existing trustees working in partnership with the Elders. **Elders** Joel Tarbutton Richard Nevard **Principal Address** 47 Shott Lane Letchworth SG6 1SD www.nlcletchworth.co.uk **Bank** Lloyds 1 Bancroft Hitchin SG5 1JG **Solicitor** Pearcelegal 2 The Square Solihull West Midlands B91 3RB **Insurance Broker** Jelf (Part of Marsh Commercial) 31 Priestgate Peterborough PE1 1JL 

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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## **3. Statement of Financial Activities** 

## _**3.1 Money on Hand**_ 

Money on hand at 5th April 2020 

|Unrestricted Funds||£ 53,123|
|---|---|---|
|Designated Building Fund||£ 60,000|
|Restricted Funds||£  2,825|
|||________|
||Total|£115,948|
|Money on hand at 5thApril 2021|||
|Unrestricted Funds||£ 47,788|
|Designated Building Fund||£ 70,000|
|Restricted Funds||£     2,427|
|||________|
||Total|£120,215|



Note - £10,000 of unrestricted fund was transferred to the Designated Building Fund during 2020/21 

## _**3.2 Income**_ 

|**_3.2_**<br>**_Income_**|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Unrestricted**<br>**funds**|**Restricted**<br>**funds**|**Total funds**|**Last year**|
||to the nearest<br>£|<br>to the nearest<br>£|to the nearest<br>£|to the nearest<br>£|
|**Receipts**|||||
|Tithes|78,639|-|**78,639**|**85,426**|
|Offerings|102|6,523|**6,625**|**7,033**|
|Grants|-|900|**900**|**4,265**|
|Gift Aid|16,768|1,000|**17,768**|**16,803**|
|Interest|30|-|<br>**30**|**45**|
|Contra Payments|536|-|**536**|**3,600**|
|**Total**|**96,075**|**8,423**|**104,498**|**117,172**|



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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## _**3.3 Expenditure**_ 

||**Unrestricted**<br>**funds**|**Restricted**<br>**funds**|**Total**<br>**funds**|**Last year**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Payments**|**to the nearest**<br>**£**|<br>**to the nearest**<br>**£**|**to the**<br>**nearest £**|**to the nearest £**|
|Employment costs|57,938|1,809|**59,747**|58,793|
|Leadership network<br>support|10,920|-|**10,920**|11,160|
|Ministry, church<br>services & events|8,044|-|**8,044**|13,039|
|Offerings, gifts and<br>projects|3,304|8,012|**11,315**|5,465|
|Premises|4,882|-|**4,882**|15,300|
|Administration|£5,322|-|**5,322**|3,169|
|**Total expenditure**|**90,410**|**9,821**|**100,231**|**106,926**|



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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## **4. Notes to the Accounts** 

## _**4.1 Explanation of Expenditure Headings**_ 

|Classification|Description|
|---|---|
|||
|Employment costs|This covers gross salaries, Employers National<br>Insurance and Pension contributions.|
|Leadership network support|Support given to Global Horizons (Registered Charity<br>1070770) and Alan Scotland to provide support to<br>churches and Christian ministry in the UK and overseas<br>and from 2020/21 to the Further Faster Network<br>(registered charity 1186278) to provide coaching,<br>content and connection for leaders who want to grow<br>their church byreachingunchurchedpeople.|
|Ministry, church services & events|Ministers and elder expenses, honorarium/expenses to<br>visiting speakers, expenses for the provision of Church<br>services including for children and online. Money for<br>ticketed events relating to the costs of providing those<br>events.|
|Offerings, gifts and projects|Support for people experiencing hardship locally,<br>nationally or internationally, small gifts for students<br>and other congregations. Support for restricted projects<br>such as SOZO,|
|Premises|The hire of Howard Hall and Letchworth Free Church<br>Hall for church meetings. Also costs relating to the<br>repair, maintenances and improvement of these<br>buildings to meet NLC’s needs. Exploratory work<br>relatingto thepurchase of aproperty.|
|Administration|Includes IT equipment, software costs, telephone,<br>postage, stationery, insurance, copyright licenses, bank<br>&other financial charges,compliance and legal fees.|



## _**4.2 Basis of Preparation**_ 

The annual income of the Trust has been less than £250,000 and therefore income and expenditure accounts have been submitted. They have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) Accounting and Reporting by Charities, October 2005. 

## _**4.3 Income resources**_ 

During this accounting period income was largely the donations of church members. There were no legacies, gifts in kind or donated facilities. No amounts are included in the financial statements for services donated by volunteers. 

## _**4.4**_ 

## _**Funds**_ 

The bulk of the Trust’s funds were unrestricted funds that were available for use at the discretion of the Trustees. There were some restricted funds arising from donations given for particular purposes. Any costs associated with administering these restricted funds were funded from unrestricted funds. 

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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## _**4.5 Tangible Assets**_ 

The Trust’s assets fall into three categories:- 

## Property 

The Trust has a small charge on a house owned by a church leader. The total value of the charge is approximately £69,000. 

## Assets 

These assets are capitalised where their initial value exceeds £5,000 and their use exceeds one year. Depreciation has been based on a linear depreciation over four years. The estimated depreciated value of assets at the end of the financial year was nil. 

## Recoverable Tax 

The recoverable tax on unrestricted donations made in the accounting period is estimated to be in the order of £13,500. 

## _**4.6 Contingent Liabilities**_ 

There were no contingent liabilities at 5[th] April 2021 

## _**4.7**_ 

## _**Commitments for Capital Expenditure**_ 

At 5[th] April 2021 there were no contracts for capital expenditure or capital expenditure authorised by the trustees for which contracts have not been placed. 

## _**4.8 Guarantees and Securities**_ 

During the course of the accounting period the Trust has not given any guarantees or received a loan secured on any of its assets. 

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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## **5. Trust Policies and Procedures** 

## _**5.1 Reserves Policy**_ 

The trustees believe that a minimum unrestricted reserve is required to effectively administer New Life Church Letchworth. The minimum reserve is required for the following reasons:- 

- To ensure that all bills and payments are paid promptly 

- To allow for short term fluctuations in income 

- To ensure that New Life Church Letchworth can respond financially to unforeseen needs that may arise locally, nationally or internationally. 

- To ensure that contractual (mostly employment related) and moral commitments are maintained. 

The trustees considered the Church’s reserves policy and in particular the uncertainty arising from the pandemic and the wider economy and the possible impact on both the Church’s income and the need for its work. As a result the trustees have decided to increase the minimum reserve of £30,000 to £40,000 and to link the reserves required to the running costs of the Church. The trustees believe that a reserve of between 3-6 months running costs (£25,700 - £51,500 this year) is sufficient to meet the above objectives. 

In recognition of the Church’s need for larger premises for its Sunday Service and weekly meetings and activities the Trustees have a designated building fund of £70,000 and transferred £10,000 from unrestricted reserves to this fund during the year. 

At the end of the accounting period the unrestricted reserves stood at £47,788, within the revised reserves policy. These reserves will be drawn on to cover the planned expenditure for the next year. 

## _**5.2 Staff Disciplinary and Grievance Procedure**_ 

The Trust has a staff disciplinary and grievance procedure. 

## _**5.3 Safeguarding Policy**_ 

The Trust has used the services of _thirtyone:eight_ (previously called Churches Child Protection Advisory Service) to provide guidance. DBS checks on staff & volunteers who work with children are undertaken. The Trust has a Safeguarding Policy in place covering children, young people and vulnerable adults. 

## _**5.4 General Data Protection Regulations - Policies**_ 

The Trust has a number of policies relating to the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). These include:- 

- Privacy/Data Protection Policy 

- Employment Policy 

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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## **6. Trustees' Report 2020-21** 

Throughout the reporting period New Life Church Letchworth Trust (the Trust) has continued to administer New Life Church Letchworth (the Church). The Trust employed three part-time (0.8, 0.4 and 0.2) staff. The Trust has also continued to support several charitable trusts and Christian workers including Alan Scotland who has provided oversight into the Church for many years. The Charitable Trusts supported during 2020-21 with regular monthly donations have included:- 

- Global Horizons 

- Transforming Lives for Good 

- Christian Initiative to Schools in Letchworth & District 

Additionally the Trust has supported the Rekai Tangwena Children’s Home in Nyanga (Mangondoza Township), Zimbabwe. The Children’s Home is linked to Holy Cross Church in Nyanga. A regular sponsorship scheme has been administered to provide regular and committed assistance with food, clothing & education for around 18 children. This funding has been channelled through the charity SOZO (Support of Zimbabwe’s Orphans). 

Other donations and support has been given to:- 

- Mission workers in the UK and overseas 

- Letchworth Foodbank 

In recent years the Church has been partnering with the charity Transforming Lives for Good (TLG). TLG has trained volunteers to go into local schools to provide personal mentoring and guidance. Several members of the Church have committed to the programme. The Church has worked with two schools in Letchworth and coaches are committed to giving an hour per week over the academic year to work with individual students. The Trust employed a part time family & community pastor. Part of this role is to further the work of TLG in the local area. Last year the Trust received a grant from the Letchworth 

Heritage Foundation to run a TLG Make Lunch programme, and we are grateful for an additional small grant to support the running of this programme. Make Lunch enables and equips churches to provide free, hot and healthy meals to children and families that could otherwise go hungry. 

The Church has continued to use Letchworth Free Church (LFC) Hall and the North Herts District Council owned Howard Hall for its Sunday service, various meetings and activities throughout the week. We have been grateful to LFC for hosting us and have been able to continue invest our funds and resources in making improvements to the Hall for our mutual benefit. The Church has continued to work, particularly in prayer and outreach, with other local churches in and around Letchworth. 

The Trustees have recognised the need for larger and more suitable premises for its Sunday service and other meetings and activities for the community. In the longer term this may well require the purchase or building of suitable premises. A designated fund has been allocated for this. Because of the ongoing restrictions brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic it was necessary to again suspend Sunday meetings and other gatherings. Throughout the reporting year the Church has continued to invest in and improve our use of on-line applications and communications. 

The Trustees have set up a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) to administer the Church. Due to delays in accessing a new business bank account during the pandemic  the transition to the CIO continues. 

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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

The donations received by the Trust are almost entirely through the giving of people within the Church. Though as may be expected with much of the year affected by the pandemic regular unrestricted donations have reduced from the previous year. Unrestricted expenditure has also reduced over the same period due to savings the church was able to make on renting premises. The net effect being that the Church remains in a relatively strong financial position of the Trust . Our reserves are important for the Church particularly during the ongoing  of uncertainty from COVID-19 and the economy. The trustees will continue to regularly review income and expenditure and ensure that resources are expended effectively in furthering the aims of the Trust. 

I declare, in my capacity as Chairman of Trustees, that:- 

- The trustees have approved the report above; and 

- Have authorised me to sign it on their behalf 

Signed 


Date:  15/12/21 

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**New Life Church Letchworth Trust Annual Accounts 2020-2021** 

## **7. Independent Examiner’s Report to the Trustees** 

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of New Life Church Letchworth Trust (Charity number 299705) for the year ended 5 April 2021, which are set out on pages 1 to 11 of this report. 

As the charity trustees of the Trust, 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 Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination, I have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. 

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: 

- 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 order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. 

**Si** gned          Magdalena Shotter 

|Name:|Magdalena Shotter of<br>ATSAccounting &TaxSolutions Ltd|
|---|---|
|Profession|Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants<br>of England andWales(FCA)|
|Address|6 Corfield Close<br>Finchampstead<br>Wokingham, Berkshire<br>RG40 4PA|
|Date|1 January2022|



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