AI¥NUAL REPORT- ST. JOIIN THE FI,.1GELIST SLOAry STREET LURGAN for the i ear endin(¥ 31. December 2023 Charits, lumber )L JC 10122) TRUSTEES Trustees are members of the Select Vestry" and are elected / re-elected each year at the Annual Gencral Vesty meeting. GOVERNING DOcU1ENT AND CONSTITUTION OF THE CHARITY Chapter I I l of the Constitution of the Church of Ireland ooverns Parishes and Parochial Organisation. The Select Vesty members are the Charity Ttee5. AppoIKfMENT OF SELFCT VESTRY All members of the ChurLh of Ireland V¥ho contribute to the Parish in a recordable manner, are over the age of18 and are either resident within the Parish or liv¢ cIse,here but have bcen accustomed rnembers ol" th¢ cone(sation for at least three months: Indy" register as members of the General Vestry of the Parish allowing them to attend and vote at meetintrs of the GeneraI Vestry and to stand for election to the Select Vestry. The General Vestry meets once a year and the Select Vesty is elected as part of this General Vesty mcetino The Select Vesty will hold their positions for a period ot" one ycar. Select Vestry members may be re-elected annually and there is no limil on the number of tern]s which may be served. STRUCTURE The Select Vesty is responsible for the day to day management of the Parish. The Select Vestry consists of the serving clergy, the Churchwardens, the Glebew'ardens and not more than twelve other members elected at the Gcneral Vestry Meetino Vestry- Meetings are chaired by the ReLtor and members are responsible for making decisions on matters of oeneral concern and importance to the parish as well as how parish funds are to be used. Vesty meetings are held on a monthly basis and special meetings may be convened at any time by the Chairperson or the Churchwardens. PURPOSE The charitable purpose of the Church of Ireland is the advancement of reli(yion. The principal function of St. John the Evangelist is to support the advancement of the Christian religion by promoting, through the work of the Parish, the whole mission of the Church. CORPORATE WORSIItp St. .Tohn's Parish is a vibrant and welcomtng church family of different ages and backgrounds seeking to build faith and community in Lurgan. Our weekly s¢rvice at I lam has children's programmes for both pre-school and primary Liyed children. We are consistently seeing about 60 peoplc gather for worship each week. We also started a new monthly mid-week praise and prayer evening called Bchold. CHILDRF,N AIW FAMILIES During the year we different activities and programmes for children and l-amÈlies both on Sundays and durlng the wcck. ActivÈties during the year include: Community Family F-un Day event on St. Patrick's Day Messy Easter for families on Good Frida! Holiday Bible Club for children 24th 28 July 'Play-It-By-Ear' nativity shows for local Primary Schools Tots & Co. toddler group on Thursday MOlS Kids Club for PrimaTV School aged children on Friday evenings Kingdom Kids and Little Church during Sunday servÈcc
P.4RISH GROUPS -e proNide programmes to ¢ncourage members in their faith and give opportuniti¢s for social connection. These include Coffee and Crafts. Connect GTOUPS, and Men's FELLA-sbip. Our Mother, s L nion closed in December in order to llke space for a new group to bcttcr meet the needs of women inside and outside the churclL MISSIONS AI¥D EVANGELISM In January this year we employed a part-time Family" Outreach Worker to develop our spiritual and practical outreach into the community amongst children and their families. Her rolc has significantly increased our presence in the communitiT and enabled us to start several new progrdmmes such as Tots & Co., Kids c.lub and LÈttlc Church. We also a bi-weekly drop-in called the HUB. Thi.% new role has also enabled us to expand our compassion ministy through more personal face-to-face contact and support. In addition to this, we give away IOO/o of our annual giving to various chariti¢s at local, tional and global level. FINANCES The Finances are managed by the Trcasurer who reports back to the Trustees at monthly Vestry Meetings. Security and safcguarding of all monies is important to the Trustees. All money is recorde(L counted and banked under dual control. I'he Financial Statement for the year ended 31" December 2023 was accepted by the Select V¢stry. PUBLIC BENEFIT Charity Trustees have complied with their duties in line with the Commission's Public Benefit Statutory Guidance. Regular worship and reaching out into the community as well as other activities and fundraising have been carried through ihe year to fulffl our statement of Public Benefit. Public worship is open to all and our halls are used by a re, external groups on a regular basis. MITIGATION OF HARM It is the policy ol. the Church of Ireland to set standards for the welfare of all children sharin(T in its niinisty with a view to protecting them from physical, sexual and emotional hann. The Select Vestry adheres to the guidelines a Safe Guarding Trust Panel is in place. All those who come into contact with the children who attend the various organisations have attended Safeguardin(F Trust training and are subjcct to Child Protection checks. Responsibility under Health and Safety legislation is taken seriously and measures are in place for the protection of ihose using the halls. Regular risk assessments are carrled out and regular reports made to the Vesty by the Hcalth & Safety Officers. STATEMENT OF TRUSTEES RESPONSIBILITIES The Trustees are responsible for preparing the -Jrustee s Report and Ihe financial siatements in accordance with appliLablc law and regulations. The law applicable to charities in Northern Ireland with income of less than £250,000 requires the Trustees to prepare a Statement of Receipts and Payments and a Statement of Assets and Liabilities for each fmancial ycar. Trusleets are also responsible for kccpino accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Parish, s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the assets and liabilities of the Parish. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of thc Parish and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prcvcntion and detection of fraud and other irregularities. SIGNED ON BEHALF OF THE TRUSTEES TRUSTEE I TRUST