2025-12-31-annual-report

St Colmanell’s Church of Ireland

References and administrative details

Charity Name: St Colmanell’s Church of Ireland Charity Registration Number: NIC103119 Contact Address: 42 Church Street Ahoghill Ballymena Co Antrim BT42 2PA

Trustees

Dr Thomas Moody Mr George Coulter Mr Nigel McNeill Mrs Elaine McDonald Mr William Armstrong Mrs Anne Kee Mrs Rosemary Frayne Mr Alvin Donaghy Mr Philip Thomson Mr Stephen McCallion Mr William Shaw Mrs Anita McNeill Mrs Donna Ashcroft

Mrs Sonia McAllister Mr Bernard Frayne Mr Niall Campbell Rev Dennis Christie

The following trustees resigned during the year :-

Mr Raymond Rainey

Mrs Heather Rainey Mrs Eileen Shaw

Principal Office-bearers

Clergy Church Secretary Church Treasurer Church Warden - Clergy Church Warden - People

Rev Dennis Christie Mr Alvin Donaghy Mr William Armstrong Mrs Sonia McAllister Mr William Shaw

Independent Examiner

Steven Potter FCA Potter Finnegan Limited Chartered Accountants 27-28 The Courtyard Business Park 190 Galgorm Road Ballymena Co Antrim BT42 1HL

Bankers

Danske Bank Business Plus PO Box 183 Donegall Square West Belfast BT1 6JS

3

Trustees’ Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2025

The trustees present the annual report and accounts for the St Colmanell’s Church of Ireland for the year ended 31 December 2025.

Objectives and Activities

The charitable purpose of the Church of Ireland is the advancement of Christianity.

The principal function of St Colmanell’s is to support the advancement of the Christian religion by promoting the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. Being open to and engaging with society as a whole and offering support for those needing help are fundamental to the practical delivery of the benefits of Christianity. As a result of activity in the pursuit of the advancement of the Christian religion, St Colmanell’s has custody of property and of records, materials and artefacts of significance to the cultural and religious heritage and maintenance of which is undertaken by the select vestry of St Colmanell’s.

Achievements, Performance & Public Benefit

The church has achieved its objectives by the holding of regular religious services and also holding various youth and other activities for the benefit of the local community. The church holds regular public worship services on Sundays and worship services on Wednesdays and on other occasions associated with Christian festivals throughout the year.

Calendar year 2025 continued on from 2024 with normal based worship on a Sunday. ”Normal” services consisted of Sunday morning prayer worship with the fourth Sunday of the month being an all-age service with a more relaxed format. An evening service was also conducted once a month. Sunday morning attendance ranged from 80 to 130 attendees. Sunday School and Youth Fellowship were fully functioning on a Sunday morning.

Outside of the worship services, the church is normally engaged in several outreach programmes into the local community, through organisations such as the Knitting Club, the local accordion band and Ladies in Faith Together (LIFT). Church members continue to engage in outreach programmes by sending cards and/or newssheets at Easter and Christmas. The Church continued to engage with the local community by organising successful outreach activities such as the Summer Fete, the Easter Tea and provided financial support to those in need through the compassion fund. The Church also arranged a number of successful fundraising events through the year including a tractor run, a quiz night, a Christmas Party and a very successful Remembrance Exhibition. A team from the Church took part in the Belfast Marathon relay which raised money for the building fund.

Overseas support for the Diocese of Ibba in South Sudan continued with a substantial donation and, in collaboration with Portglenone Parish, the Church hosted a visit from the Bishop of Ibba Diocese. This has served to strengthen existing links with our African friends and continues into 2026 with financial support for the clergy of the Diocese.

The Parish has given careful consideration to the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland’s guidance on public benefit to ensure that the actives entered into during the year have helped to achieve the Parish’s objectives and activities, as well as providing public benefit.

Financial Review

The trustees consider that the unrestricted funds of the church have sufficient resources and assets available which are adequate to fulfil their obligations. A detailed analysis of parish income and expenditure is set out in the notes to the financial statements.

General giving has been reviewed by the Trustees, and it is recognised that whilst the level of giving as a free will offering has remained steady at approximately £5,600 per month, it has not kept pace with inflation and the general increases in the cost of goods and services. Income to general funds during 2025 was enhanced by the receipt of a generous legacy. However, freewill offering by envelope and by standing order remains the main source of income to the general account.

4

Trustees’ Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2025 (continued)

Expenditure during 2025 increased considerably mainly as a result of the aforementioned increased costs of goods and services. The replacement of essential IT equipment in the Church building also required significant capital spend.

In the second quarter of 2025, a concerted effort was made to encourage increased giving to the building fund, this resulted in a number of one-off donations, an increase to existing standing order amounts and a number of new standing orders. Income to the building fund from standing orders has increased from an average of £1,200 per month from January to June, to an average of over £2,500 per month from July to December 2025.

Envelope contributions to the building fund also saw a modest increase. In addition, £300,000 which had been transferred to an account with a more favourable interest rate, was returned to the building fund account with approximately £14,000 of interest. Overall, the building fund was significantly boosted by the combination of these activities.

There was minimal expenditure of £1,320 from the building fund account, this was for professional services provided during the year.

During 2025, the Parish achieved their target of distributing at least 10% of free will offering to Charitable causes across the local and wider community. Distribution to charitable causes will continue at the same level in 2026.

The trustees allocate income specifically designated for building projects to a buildings fund. This is held to provide funds for future building projects as the need arises. Funds are currently being accumulated to assist with the intended future construction of a new Parish Centre. Full planning approval has been granted for the new Parish Centre and enabling works have been completed.

The project to build the new Parish Centre took on a greater urgency during 2025. The inflationary increase in the cost of materials and professional services have resulted in a need to review the plans to explore all options with affordability being the primary consideration. In order to demonstrate stewardship and governance, a sub-committee was formed to focus on the Parish Centre Project and report back to the trustees.

In December 2025 a tender process was initiated for the building of the new Parish Centre. A number of contractors submitted competitive applications. The select vestry are in the process of choosing the preferred contractor. Work is planned to commence during 2026 with completion by end December 2026.

It should be noted as the buildings fund is not a wholly restricted fund, it has been agreed that, if required, funds can be moved to support all costs of the church.

Going Concern

The trustees have reviewed the budgets for the year ahead and are satisfied that there are adequate funds in place to ensure that the Parish can continue its activities and the financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025 can be signed off as a going concern.

Structure, Governance and Management

Governing Document and Constitution of the Charity

Chapter III of the Constitution of the Church of Ireland governs Parishes and Parochial Organisation. The Select Vestry members are the Charity Trustees.

Recruitment and Appointment of Select Vestry

All members of the Church of Ireland who are over the age of 18 and are either resident within the parish or live elsewhere but have been accustomed members of the congregation for at least three months, may register as members of the general vestry of the parish. This allows them to attend and vote at meetings of the general vestry and to stand for

5

Trustees’ Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2025 (continued)

election to the select vestry. Meetings of the general vestry are held at least once a year. The Select Vestry is elected as part of this General Vestry meeting. The Select Vestry will hold their positions for a period of one year. Select Vestry members may be re-elected annually and there is no limit on the number of terms which may be served.

Pay and remuneration

The stipend of the Incumbent of the Parish is paid directly by the Parish in accordance with figures approved by the General Synod of the Church of Ireland.

Organisational Structure

The select vestry is responsible for the day to day management of the parish. The select vestry consists of the member of the clergy serving in the parish, any curate assistant (“the curate”), the churchwardens, the glebe wardens and generally not more than twelve other members of the general vestry elected at the General Vestry.

The select vestry is chaired by the incumbent or other member of the clergy officiating in the parish. Select vestry members are responsible for making decisions on matters of general concern and importance to the parish including deciding how parish funds are to be applied.

The select vestry meets at times fixed by the members or by the diocesan synod. Special meetings may be convened at any time by the chairperson or the churchwardens. In 2025 the Select Vestry had 9 face to face meetings and an Easter Vestry. The average attendance was more than 75%. There were also a number of ad hoc meetings of the select vestry where urgent decisions were required.

Statement of Trustees' Responsibilities

The trustees are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.

The law applicable to charities in the Northern Ireland requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law the trustees have prepared the financial statements in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Practice in the United Kingdom (accounting standards issued by the Financial Reporting Council in the UK , including Charities SORP (FRS 102) “ Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) “and promulgated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in the United Kingdom and United Kingdom Law) Under that law the trustees must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of the affairs of the charity and of the statement of financial activities of the charity for that period.

In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:

• select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently

• make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent

• state whether the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with applicable Accounting Standards and identify the standards in question, subject to any material departures being disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and

• prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Parish will continue as a going concern.

The trustees are responsible for keeping accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Parish’s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Parish and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008, the Charity (Accounts and Reports) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015 and the provision of the Constitution of the Church of Ireland. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Parish and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

6

Trustees’ Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2025 (continued)

Statement as to disclosure to our Examiners

In so far as the trustees are aware at the timing of approving our trustees’ annual report:

• there is no relevant information of which the Independent Examiner is unaware; and

• the trustees have taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant information and to establish that the charity’s Independent Examiner is aware of that information.

Independent Examiners

The independent examiner, Steven Potter, has indicated his willingness to continue in office, and a resolution concerning his reappointment will be proposed at the Annual Easter Vestry Meeting.

Signed on behalf of the Trustees -

7