Belfast Soutb NetTrvork Company Trustees, Report The trustees, who are directors for the purposes of company law, present the annual report log¢th¢r with th¢ financial statements of the charitable company for the year ended 31 December 2023. Trustees And officers The trustees and officers serving during the year and since the year end were as follows: Trustees.. Ms E M Sillery Dr l R T&ylor Mr S Alford Mr l Moffitt Reverend E Hyland Mrs S Kerr Mr A Kerr Chairperson: Secretary: Reverend E Hy]d Mr l Moffitt Treasurer: Dr l R Taylor Struetur¢? Kovernance And m&n4g¢menl ature ofgL7vernlng document The CoMpY is governed by the Memorandum And Articles of Association. Orgftnlsailonul struclure I'he chority was incory)orated on 3 June 2010 under the Companies Act 2006. being a company limited by 8uar4ntee not having & share capital, The company is recogniscd as a charity wlth HM Revenue & Custom8 under re8i8t'ration number XT29315 And with the Charily Commission for Northern Ireland under rLglStration number NIC101506, The iompany is managed by & Board of Directors. Thrce of the Directors are elected fis Honorary Office Bellr¢rs, these being Chairpcrson, Secretary and Honorary I'rea5urer. The rolc of the trustees is to ensure that Belf08t South Network Company is effectively govemed, to enyure that the charity complies with all relevant legislation, its Memorandum And Articles of Association and the requirements of good practice. and to en3ur¢ that the charity works to agrecd Strategic and op¢rational plan8. P&ge 2
Belfast South Network Company Trusteesl Report Objective5 activities Objecls and alms The Agape Centre is opcrated by the B¢lfa5t South Network Company. The Centre's mission is to- Create opportunities for partner3 and the local community to work togelh¢r to foster greater understanding and interaction between different cultural, ethnic, religious And so¢ial groups; Provide opportunities for cross-community partnership networking to enable colluboration and resource sharing Amon8 the statutory, voluntary and community sector5. gnd Provide accommodation and services to a multiplicity of user8. including ethnic minorities, parents, young people and childrcn, the elderly and disadvantsged groups. The intention is to build on emer8in8 relAtionships and to foster new ones, with the idea of inrr¢asing 8ocial cohesion. Th¢ Chlty,8 main asset is its thr¢e-storey pMISeS - the A8apL Centre which is Sltuatcd in a densely populated area on thL Lisburn Road, BelfHs1 Rnd which is used for a mixture of Activities which Seek to &¢hieve the charity's objectives. Page 3
Belfast Soutb Network Company Trustees, Report Objecrlvesj Strateg1 and actlvltles Objectlve I: To provide and maintaln bulldlngs to be used for places of worshlp or for carrying out or furthering the other objectlves of the eompany The primary bLnofit which flow8 from thi8 purpose is the advancement of religion. namely Christianity and particUl'1Y Methodism, within the South Belfast area. This benefit is sho1) through the regular attendance of people at a Sunday service of worship. Thig service has also been available online via Youtubc to members of thc congregation, the wider circuit of Methodist Churches and further afield. Pastoral clusters continue to offer support to all membcrs of the congregation whether they are able lo attend weekly services or not. This is one of many ways the congregation seeks to provide outre8ch. There is an annual "Living With Loss" servicc for th05¢ who hav¢ been recently bereaved. The varied pro8r8mme of &¢tivities, which are widely advertised and open to both members and non-membcrs of the congregation, includes a weekly drop-in session, & very &¢tive ladies, group, Bible Study, Public Theology seminarsllcctur¢g/workshopy, book club and Friday evening meal. Other Christian Groups such as th¢ Telu8u christi Community, Women'5 World Day of Prayer and Spectrum a150 used the worship centre. An interdenominational Ccnlering prayer group meets weekly. Our "Thinking Aloud" series of online dis¢u53ions on theology and ethics in the public square ¢onlinued with an online joint Series with the congregation from Dun Laoghaire Methodist church. A serie5 on "Faith Seeking UnderstAndin8" ran on Sunday evenings. We join with other south Belfast churches, in o small number of shored events, particularly in th¢ period of Lent, The Methodist Church in Irel8nd used the Agape Centre for various meetings throughout the yeur. Page 4
Belfast South Network Company Trustees, Report Obj¢c¢ive 2: To advance edue#tlon? promote healtb And well-belng and to provide fAeilities In the inter¢sts of soclal welfare for recreation and letsure-time occupation wlth the object of Improving the eonditions of life of th¢ community, The Agape Centre hosts statutory and community bodies providing public 8eryi¢es including Belfast Heath & Social Care Trust Cornmunity ment Health Team. the AA and South Belfast Youth Football League (SB YFL) who are &ll based at the Centre. With mor¢ proactive use of social media, including the d¢velopment of the Centre's web51te, usage of th¢ Agape Centre by community, voluntary and commercial groups with a wide variely of interests continues to grow, A numbcr of Housin8 Management Groups and R¢$idcnts' Associations use our premises for regul and annual meetin85 while local businesses and charitable organisations such as thc Stroke Association, Alzhcimer's, Women's Aid, Ad<)ption IJK, Carers Support Services and f4mily mediation make use of our f1]ItieS for off-sitc meetings and training courses. Both through Centre Aclivitics and the associated church, we contributed extensivcly to both local and wider dcvelopmL'nt proje¢ts. We collccted re8ularly for StorehDus¢, a.gsisting those in Belfust requirin8 emergLncy food and acting as a referral point. We also contributed to the annulll Christian Aid collection. Support for 8lobal dcvelopmcnt wa5 al80 provided through substanli&l ¢hur¢h contribuliony, Ol. particular note 18 the "Save A Heart" chmrity (established by a member of the congregation) which has b¢cn delivering and supporting heart surgery in Nigeria. The Centre is used by various groups impactcd by Bret Cancer, to meet socially und to partake in activiliLS such a Pilates and is used by variou5 agcncies &5 a safe place for contact groups (i.e. Supervised meetings between parents and children who live apart). Forward South Partnership hosted & Community Flealth D&y for10¢41 residents. The chur¢h continues to offer a free meal on a Friday evening dLSl8ncd to assist those who arc Struggling finunLi&lly but also to provide E4 mecting place for those who live alone. In response to the rising Cost of living crises the church continued to run a wcekly wurn] space. Page 5
Belfast South Network Company Trustees, Report Objective 3: To encourage? promote And foster greater mutual nderstandIng and better commuDIty reRatlons by Interaction between different raciAI, ethnie, cultural 50clal Eroup5. BSNC has an Open-Door policy, welcoming anyone in for friendship. a chat and refreshments. The Centre 18 U venue for events organised by the Church and other agencies such as Belfast Four Corners Cross-community Festival, fostering the advancem¢nt of humlln rights, reconciliation, the promotion of religiou8 and ra¢i&l hamiony, equality and diversity. We continue to host Spectrum, providing intcr-denominational worship for the LGBT community, family and friends. The Peace Players use th¢ premises to bring teenagers from diverse communities togcther to promote understanding. The A8apc Centre actively seeks to or8ani5e events which will bring togcther representatives from as many different backgrounds ay possible. The local Muslim community used the Centr¢ for mcctin8s of the first Islamic scout troop in Northern Ireland includin8 an cvening meal during Ramadan. Mennaids a support group for parents of children going through gender change also meets in the centre. Trartslink used the Lentre to consult with the lo¢&1 community on changes to the local Adelaid¢ trttin h< while Belfast City Council uscd the ccntre as the vcnue to consult with various A8encies in South Belfast. The department of C'ommunities also used the Centre as the venue lor Focus Groups. Objectlve 4: To help young peoplej e5peclAlly but not excluslvely through lelsure Ilme aetlvltle5 $0 AJ to develop thelr 8plrltual J phyileAI And mental eAPAcltles thAt tbty MAY grow to full mAtIlTIty llldlylduals and responjlble members of soclety. The ¢entre is not only th¢ headquarters of the SB YFL but a150 serves 88 a venue for Tae Kwon Do, Irish dance lasses and similar ¢venLy for children and young pLoplL. Progrumm¢s promotlng education have included AQE tuition. The Suzuki mcthod, lls5i5tin8 the development of young children, iy promoted in a weekly event. Objectlve S: To provldc and promote tho provlsloll of fAellltles for recreatloll oth¢r lelsure tlme occupatlons. The Agape Centre hosts a variety of programmes. as illustrated under earlier objectives, thot provide an opportunity for thc public in South Belfast to dcvelop their l¢isure lime intcrests. We host Pilates classes, Slimming World groups, Irish DancinB and Tae Kwon Do. In conjunction with Age NI Fonvard South Partnership the Church r&n various activities on a Thursday morning for the elderly within the local community. Objectlve 6: To preserve ind safeguard the health of all penons who 8re or are In dAnger of be¢oKnlllg addlcted to or depelldent Upoll drugs of Any d¢scriptioll. alcobol, solvellts or oth¢r addictive substances. The promotion of health flows from this purpose and thc Ccntre has provided a range of activities to meet thi3 objective including Alcoholics An(Trnymous (currently usin8 nine sessions per week), a fLlrtnightly Aware meetin8 (8 Depression self- help support group) and Making 2nds Count (a monthly secondary cancer group). The Agape Centre is uscd by organisations. su¢h the Stroke Aysociation, Contact Group and Women's Aid, to provide meetin8 places for weekly or monthly groups, one-off events addressing relevant issues. A programme for young men in danger of becoming involved in criminality was run by the department for early intervention and 3afe8uardin8 BEISCT. Page 6
Belfast South Network Company Trustees, Report Public benejll The operation of the Agape Centre contributes to the attainment of the Belfast South Network Company's objectives as laid out above. In ternis of meeting e&¢h of the objectives listed above, the details included therein give a flavour of the activities which the public in south Belfast can participate in as a result of the dev¢lopmenc of the Agape Cenlre. Although the individual activities are only listed under one obje¢tive, many of them h&ve overlapping rcsults. addressing more than one area. The trustees confirni that they have complicd with the requirements of the Charities Act to have due regard to the public benefit guidance issued by the Charity Commission. Flnan¢lal review The Statement of Financial Activities is set out on pa8e 12 of the accounts. Total inc(Ime has incre&8ed Irom £63,619 in 2022 to £76,815 in 2023, bul has not yet relurncd to the pre-covid 2019 figure of £86,100. Total expenditure has also decreased fn)m £131,046 in 2022 to £115,641 in 2023. The charity hus therefore generated M negativc financial outcome for the period with a net deLrease in funds of £38.826, made up of an incrLase in unrestriced funds of £3,620 and a d¢¢rcose in endowments of £42.446, with this latter figure accounting for annual depreciation on the property. Ptsllcy on reserves As at 31 December 2023 the Charity held unre5tri¢t¢d current reserves which had not been de8ign&ted for a purtlcular purpos¢ of £43.154, a de¥rease of £7,650 on 2022. This amount is in excess of six months running costs excluding d¢preciation. Expenditure on rcplaccmcnt LED light titlin8y in 2023 and solar pEe13 in 2022 has reduced our unrLstrictcd funds but put the building on a morc sustainablc footing in the li8hi of increa8in8 energy costs. The Board continues to work to maintain our target level of unrestricted reserves. FlnanclAI Instruments Objectlves andpollcles Thc charity's activiti¢5 expose it to a number of financi&l risk3 including credit ri3k, cash flow risk und liquidity risk. The USL of financial derivatives 15 8ovcmed by the charity's policies approved by the board of trustees, which provide WTitlcn principles on the use nf financial derivatives to man&8¢ these risks. The charity doc5 not use derivative financial instruments for speculative purpos¢s. Credlt rlsk The charity's principal financial ass¢ts are bank balances and c&8h, trade and other re¢eivubles, and investments, lTh¢ charity's credit risk 15 primarily attributable to its trade receivables. The amounts presented in the balance sheet are net of allowances for doubtful receivables. An allowance for impairnient is made where there is an identified loss event which, based on previous experience, is evidence of a reduction in the recoverability of the cash flows. The credit risk on liquid funds and derivative financial instruments is lirnited because the counterparties are banks with high Lredit-ratings 855igned by international ¢r¢dit-raling agencies. The charity has no significant concentration of credit risk, with exposure spread over a laT8e Thumber of counterparties and customers. Page 7
Belfast South Network Company Trustee5' Report Llquidlty risk In order to maintain liquidity to ensure that sufficient funds &re available for ongoing operations pnd future developments, the charity uses a mixture of long-tem and short-temi debt finan¢e. Further dctails regarding liquidity risk can be found in the Staiement of accounting policies in the financial statements. Sm411 comp&nles provlslon statement This report has been prepared in occordance with the small companies regime under the Companies Act 2006. The Rnnual report was approved by the trustees of the charity on 26 September 2024 and signed on its behalf by: Dr l R I"aylor Treurer and Trustee Revcrend E Flyland Chairperson and Truslee Page 8