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← Dunmurry Presbyterian Church

2024-12-31-annual-report

DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland

DUNMURRY Presbyterian Church a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland

Trustees Annual Report and Financial Statements

for the year ended 31 December 2024 including a Balance Sheet as of that date.

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

Dunmurry Presbyterian congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland at 214 Kingsway Dunmurry BT17 9EH

Registered Charity in Northern Ireland (NIC104518).

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

The Trustees present their Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2024 including a Balance Sheet as at that date.

CHARITY TRUSTEES

The Charity Trustees who served during the year or who were trustees at the date of this report were

Mrs Valerie Harkness Mr Alexander McMullan Mr William Harkness Mrs Joan McMullan Rev Billy Abwa(Moderator) Mr Brian Milligan Mrs Marlene Jones Dr John White Mrs Elizabeth Keenan Mr Karl Greer Mrs Kerrie Greer Ms Adwoa Aninkora Mrs Ruth Young Rev Gilbert Young

PRINCIPAL OFFICE BEARERS

Minister Clerk of Session Chair of Church Committee Church Secretary Treasurer

Rev Bill Abwa Mrs Valerie Harkness Dr John White. Mrs Kerrie Greer Mrs Denise King

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland

DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT CONTINUED

INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS

Mr William Finlay.

5 Edenvale Park

Dunmurry BT17 0EJ

Dr John White 51 Clogher Road Lisburn BT27 5PQ

BANKERS Ulster Bank Andersonstown Dunmurry

SOLICITORS Johnsons

50-55 Wellington Place Belfast BT1 6GF

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)

STRUCTURE AND MANAGEMENT

The Kirk Session

The charity trustees of the congregation are the members of its Kirk Session. Under the congregation’s governing document, The Code, the book of the constitution and government of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, the Kirk Session seeks to watch over and promote the spiritual interest of the congregation and of persons not connected with any congregation who are within its bounds. It ensures pastoral care is in place in the congregation and seeks to further the contribution of the Church to Christian witness and service in the local community. The Kirk Session has delegated to its Congregational Committee the temporal affairs of the congregation including administering all funds and property belonging to the congregation. Members of the Kirk Session are ex-officio members of the Congregational Committee.

The Kirk Session consists of the ordained minister and the ruling elders of the congregations. All members are entitled to propose, speak and exercise equal votes at meetings, except that the Moderator, the minister in active duty in the congregation, has no deliberative but only a casting vote.

Stated meetings of the Kirk session are held at Dunmurry, approximately 10 times a year. To be chosen for the office of the eldership in the congregation a person must be a voting member and a regular attendant on its ordinances. The selection of those proposed to be called to the office can be either by the congregation or by the Kirk Session. Members are elected if they obtain two-thirds of those who vote.

Presbytery

Under the Presbyterian Church in Ireland form of governance the corporate oversight of a congregation is the responsibility of a Presbytery which superintends generally the spiritual and temporal affairs of the congregations assigned to it by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. Presbyterian Church has been assigned to the South Belfast Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. The membership of the Presbytery consists mainly of the active ministers of congregations assigned to it by the General Assembly, minsters who have retired from active duty and an elder appointed by the Kirk Session of each congregation.

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)

The General Assembly

The General Assembly is the supreme court of the Church, representing in one body the whole Church and acting as its supreme legislative, administration and judicial authority, in dealing with all matters brought before it. The General Assembly is normally constituted in June for worship and to conduct its business. At the end of business it is dissolved. The membership of the General Assembly consists mainly of the active ministers of each congregation, retired minsters and a representative elder appointed by the Kirk Session of each congregation.

DESCRIPTION AND PURPOSE

Dunmurry Presbyterian Church is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. The Presbyterian Church in Ireland, as a Reformed Church within the wider body of Christ, is grounded in the Scriptures, and exists to love and honour God through faith in His Son and by the power of His Spirit, and to enable her members to play their part in fulfilling God’s mission to our world.

MISSION AND VISION STATEMENT

The congregation’s mission purpose is encompassed in its Mission Statement: We believe that Jesus has called us to be a friendly Church open to all; to be a Church where everyone feels welcome and part of a family, centred on Jesus as Lord; to be his witnesses and servants, both in our neighbourhood and wherever we may be sent; to have love and compassion and concern for all throughout the world.

The church was founded in 1856 and has continued to be a real witness to the surrounding district and further afield. The 150[th] Anniversary of its foundation culminated in the opening a new Church Complex in the heart of the Village.

Due to the changing demography of Dunmurry Village sitting on the edge of West Belfast we feel that in our move to the central part of the community, we had the perfect opportunity to work with other Christian Faiths within our area. The formation of Dunmurry Churches Together has enabled us to explore together our own Church and others and to engage in a way quite fitting to our Lord’s command.

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)

The congregation aims to live out its Mission and Vision as a family of God’s people by being:

ACTIVITIES AND OBJECTIVES

The congregation meets for worship every Sunday and visitors are welcome to join. The Sacrament of the Lords Supper is observed on six occasions during the year and all those who have been baptised and who have made a profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ are admitted to the Lord’s Supper. The congregation holds regular Prayer meetings and has a wide range of organisations including

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

Worship and prayer

The congregation meets for worship each Sunday at 11am. During the week many of the organisations provide an opportunity for members to meet together for fellowship. We have installed the technology to enable those who wish, to meet for worship online. We continue to provide an online link for our Services.

As well as our regular services during the year we acknowledged God’s gift of new life at Sacraments of Baptism, gave thanks for faithful services and sought to comfort those who had been bereaved during the year.

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)

Mission and outreach

The congregation supports the United Appeal for Mission which is a central fund of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. This fund enables congregations to support the wider mission of the denomination and to do mission and outreach on denominational basis beyond what the congregation could do on its own. The United Appeal Fund provides financial support for mission personnel at home and overseas, assists congregations with the deployment of locally based staff, enables church planting, provides grant support for the upkeep of church premises, assist with the running costs of Union Theological College, the Church’s training college for ministry students, and financially supports congregation in the areas of worship, discipleship, global mission, outreach, leadership and pastoral care.

Presbytery

The congregation was represented at the regular meetings of Presbytery of South Belfast by our minister along with an appointed elder. This provides an important link between the congregations and the wider structures of the church.

General Assembly: held in the last week of June.

Property

We are fortunate to be in a situation of a relatively new build and so no major repair work has been carried out to the Church Buildings during 2024. However, there was some work done to the manse to ensure it was kept in good order and to make it safer for the residents. Our heating boiler has been giving trouble and this may lead to major expenditure next year. We continue to build up a reserve Maintenance and Repair Fund by Envelopes provided for that sole purpose

Organisations

A wide and varied range of organisations and activities are offered (as noted earlier and detailed on the Church Website). All organisations provide individual reports each year and are included in the Church Annual reports.

Volunteers

The Trustees wish to acknowledge their deep appreciation of those who give freely of their time by serving on committees and helping with organisations and other church activities. We record the current total of those who help in so many ways as approx. 50.

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)

PUBLIC BENEFIT STATEMENT

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland meets the public benefit requirement by providing benefit to its members and the general public by making known the Christian Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ through the advancement of religion.

The direct benefits which flow from the purposes of the Church include the gaining of an understanding in Christian beliefs as set out in the Bible and in the Church’s subordinate standards (the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Shorter and Larger Catechisms) leading to spiritual and moral development and opportunities for response to Bible teaching. In turn, this framework leads to practical expressions of Christian beliefs and standards in the local community such as through the care of those in need (including the sick, disabled and bereaved).

Generally the above benefits are delivered locally by congregations and their members, or are facilitated through presbyteries or are organised and delivered centrally. Local delivery is facilitated by central resources in almost all cases. Public access is made known through the use of noticeboards, printed material, press advertisement, websites, and social media or in other ways.

The benefits are demonstrated through regular evaluation of the services and informal and ad-hoc feedback from members, their families, and members of the public.

The purpose does not lead to harm. The only private benefit flowing from our purpose is related to Ministers, Missionaries, Deaconesses, Irish Mission workers and Lay Agents who receive benefits as a result of their holding office or employment. However, this is incidental and necessary in order to further our charitable purpose. There are no other private benefits. The beneficiaries of this purpose are members, their families, other individuals that the Presbyterian Church in Ireland is in direct and indirect contact with, the community in which pastoral services are provided and other communities throughout Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, and worldwide which benefit from our engagement with and support for both Christian and other secular organisations, charities and individual members of the public.

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland

The Kirk Session has had regard to the Charity Commissions public benefit requirement statutory guidance.

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)

FINANCIAL REVIEW

The congregation’s main source of income is members’ contributions through the Weekly Freewill Offering. There were 118 families who contributed during the year donating a total of £64,000.

Total Income of the congregation during the year was: Please see attached spread sheet detailing all sources of income Extracted from Annual Report

RESPONSIBILITIES IN RESPECT OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The Trustees are responsible for preparing the Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice.

The Trustees are required to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the congregations and the financial activities for that year. In preparing the financial statements the Trustees are required to:

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the funds transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the congregations and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Statement of Recommended Practice “Accounting and Reporting by Charities (1 January 2015)”. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the congregation and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

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DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

a Congregation of The Presbyterian Church In Ireland THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND

ANNUAL REPORT

For the year ended 31 December 2024

GOING CONCERN

The activities of the congregation are dependent on ongoing contributions from its members. The Trustees are of the opinion that the congregation has sufficient resources at the date of approval of these financial statements to meet commitments which will arise in the year from the date of signing this report and, subject to the continuing support from members, to fund on an ongoing basis the congregation’s current activities and other financial commitments. We record also the generosity of Members in their financial support through Gift Aid.

RESERVES POLICY

The Trustees have considered the level of unrestricted reserves that it is appropriate to hold taking account of current and ongoing commitments. It is the policy of the Trustees to hold at least 3 month’s normal expenditure. At the year-end unrestricted reserves were £89000 and are sufficient to meet the policy. The Trustees however, consider it prudent to hold reserves at this level as the funding of its present activities is dependent of the ongoing financial support of members.

RISK REVIEW

A review of major risks has been undertaken by the Trustees and systems and procedures implemented to manage identified risks. The principal risks are in relation to the likelihood of reputational damage and financial risks associated with the expectation of ongoing financial support from members. These risks are mitigated by the Trustees, and the Congregational Committee, regularly monitoring the various activities of the congregation at stated meetings and by encouraging members in their regular giving.

Valerie A Harkness

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