## **Hillsborough Presbyterian Church a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland** **Trustees Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2022** ## **Registered with the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland NIC105135** 1 ## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT** The Trustees present their Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2022 including a Balance Sheet as at that date. ## **REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS** Hillsborough Congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland 49 Lisburn Street, HILLSBOROUGH, BT26 6AB Registered Charity in Northern Ireland NIC105135 ## **CHARITY TRUSTEES** The Charity Trustees who served during the year or who were trustees at the date of this report were: Rev Dr Allen Sleith Mr Derek McClelland Mrs Elizabeth Arthur Miss Joyce McKee Mr Maurice Arthur Mrs Olive McKibbin Mrs Christine Bell Mr Carson McMullan Mrs Ann Davey Mr Cecil Murphy Mrs Grace Davin Mr Edward Poots Mrs Helen Dunlop Mrs Barbara Reid Mr William Dunlop Miss Lyndsey Shields Mr Michael Francey Mr David Surgenor Mrs Denise Henry Mr Michael Warnock Mr Jon Henry Mr David Workman 2 ## **PRINCIPAL OFFICE BEARERS** Minister Rev Dr Allen Sleith Clerk of Session Miss Joyce McKee Treasurer Mr Carl Thompson (Acting) **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER: Adrian Hall & Co Chartered Accountants 1[st] Floor, 100 Main Street, BANGOR, BT20 4AG** **BANKERS: Danske Bank 62-66 Bow Street Lisburn BT28 1YS** **SOLICITORS: WG Maginess & Son 68 Bow Street, LISBURN, BT28 1AL** 3 ## **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 growth 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 congregation. All members are entitled to propose, speak and exercise equal votes at meetings, except the Moderator, the minister in active duty in the congregation, who has no deliberative but only a casting vote. Stated meetings of the Kirk Session are held bi-monthly each year or as appropriate. To be chosen for the office of the eldership in the congregation a person must be a voting member and a regular attender at its ordinances. The selection of those proposed to be called to the office of eldership is undertaken by the Kirk Session. - (i) On two successive Sundays the congregation shall be informed that an election of ruling elders is to take place and voting members invited to propose, in writing, for the consideration of the Session, any member or members qualified for the office. - (ii) The Session having considered the proposals received and having obtained the consent of those approved, shall list the names of those to be presented to the congregation. ## **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. Hillsborough Presbyterian Church has been assigned to the Dromore 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, ministers who have retired from active duty and an elder appointed by the Kirk Session of each congregation. 4 ## **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 during the first week 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** Hillsborough 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. ## The congregation’s mission statement is: _“We believe in God. We accept the uniqueness of the revelation of God by Jesus Christ. We rejoice in the present power of the Holy Spirit. We acknowledge our understanding of God is imperfect; our picture of Jesus is blurred; our response to the Holy Spirit is inadequate. But our goal is to present each person mature in Christ, able to express and enjoy God.”_ The congregation aims to live out its Mission Statement as a family of God’s people by: - Providing worship opportunities; - Developing the faith of its members; - Recognising young people as a vital part of today’s church and seeking to facilitate their faith journey; - Ministering to the ill, the dying and the bereaved and others in need of pastoral care; - Offering a variety of organisations for the social, physical and spiritual development of members; - Reaching out to non-members with the love of Christ; - Exercising an influence on the life of the community through the involvement of members in its economic, business, educational, political, sporting and social life. 5 ## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)** ## **ACTIVITIES AND OBJECTIVES** Hillsborough Presbyterian Church supports a wide range of organisations providing spiritual, social and recreational activities within the congregation and the wider community. In 2022, we responded to specific identified needs within our community through the development of four new initiatives ie a Parent and Toddler Group; a Men’s Group; a Gardening Club and the provision of a Warm Bank/warm space. We were also able to produce a one-off Christmas event using our outdoor space and to reinstate Christmas Cracker, an event designed to support the carers of adults with learning disabilities. At the heart of our activities is Sunday morning worship, and 2022 completed our return to inperson worship. However, for a small but important number of members, the experience of COVID has fundamentally affected their confidence in attending worship and Church activities, and they remain restricted in their engagement with the Church. To respond to the needs of this group, we continue to “live stream” our services and have also restarted the practice of distributing CD recordings of the services to house-bound members of the congregation. As a church we believe that our children and young people are a significant part of the church family. Our specific provision for children and young people on Sunday mornings consists of “Flare”, an innovative and interactive programme for all our young people. Young people of year 8 to year 14 age groups met both virtually and in person on Sunday evenings for fun, friendship and faith development in “Ignite” and “Flame”. There is also a large GB and BB Company which are open to all local children whether they have other connections with the church or not. In October 2022, Spark Youth Club commenced. Spark meets every Friday night during school term and has wekly attendances of 60 or more children. The appointment of a new full-time Youth Development Worker in September 2022 has greatly enhanced these activities. During the summer of 2022, a week-long Holiday Bible Club for P1 to P7 children was organised by volunteer Youth Leaders. Young people also took part in a broader community initiative called “Love for Lisburn” which focused on providing a service to our local community. |**CONGREGATIONAL ORGANISATIONS**|| |---|---| |Spark Youth Club|Boys’ Brigade| |Girls’ Brigade|Adult Study Group| |Parent and Toddlers|Men’s Group| |Badminton Club|Choir| |HelpingHands KnittingGroup|Indoor BowlingClub| |Evergreens|Presbyterian Women| |Flame|HappyStitchers| |Ignite|Hillsborough Outreach Support Team| |Prayer Chain|Prayer Time| |Flare|SoupLunches| |PoetryCircle|GardeningClub| 6 ## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)** ## **ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE** ## **Worship and prayer** The congregation meets for worship each Sunday morning at 10.30am and in the evenings for special seasonal services such as Harvest Celebration, a service to mark Maunday Thursday, or the induction of our new Youth Development Worker. We continue to use a twin track approach with both Church-based and on-line services being provided We held Communion Services 4 times in the year on 9 January, 8 May, 4 September and 6 November. We also celebrated Harvest and Remembrance Day. During the Harvest period the Church supported the Lisburn Foodbank and the response from the congregation was excellent, with the items of foodstuff and monetary donations gratefully received. We continue to support the Food Bank through weekly donations. We constantly strive to make worship as relevant as possible to all age groups and through it to deepen everyone’s faith. We recognise the need to maintain the difficult balance between traditional and contemporary items of praise but feel it is essential that the congregation should be able to fully take part in singing praise. During the autumn the Adult Study Group met again in person. As well as our regular services during the year we acknowledged God’s gift of new life at six Sacraments of Baptism, and we conducted seven marriage services. We continued to give thanks for faithful service and sought to comfort those who had been bereaved during the year. On 31[st] December 2022 there were 455 communicant members and 450 families connected with the congregation. ## **Pastoral care** Members of Kirk Session are assigned districts or localities and are tasked with maintaining oversight of the pastoral needs of members of the congregation living in that area. Services continue to be live streamed and are also available on You Tube Members who could not attend, or access on-line services continued to be provided with a CD of the Sunday Service. HOST (Hillsborough Outreach Support Team) aims to be responsive to situations of need within the congregation, local community and wider afield. HOST members responded positively to requests from the congregation and the local community, e.g., shopping, lifts to essential hospital appointments, etc. HOST also organised an on-line ‘Christmas Cracker’ event to provide support for adults with learning disabilities and their carers. HOST also lead the congregational response to the situation in Ukraine, offering practical and financial support to refugees from the conflict on behalf of the congregation. 7 ## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)** ## **Mental Health Week:** In 2021, we successfully applied for funding from the Public Health Agency which allowed us to develop a range of activities to support positive mental health among our members. We built on the success of this programme in 2022 and ran a further week-long programme to support and enhance the mental health and wellbeing of participants. ## **Mission and outreach** Our modern facilities have enabled the congregation to implement its congregational mission plan which focuses on three interlinked areas: 1. Equipping ourselves for mission; 2. Serving God in our congregation and families; 3. Serving God in the community and beyond. The congregation supports the United Appeal for Mission (£14,007) 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 a 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, assists with the running costs of Union Theological College, (the Church’s training college for ministry students) and financially supports congregations in the areas of worship, discipleship, global mission, outreach, leadership and pastoral care. 8 ## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)** ## **Presbytery** In 2022, the Presbytery of Dromore held several in-person meetings. The congregation was represented at these by our minister and a representative elder. This continues to provide an important link between the congregation and the wider structures of the Church. ## **General Assembly** In June 2022, the General Assembly met in person. Hillsborough Presbyterian Church was represented by the Minister and one member of Kirk Session. ## **Property** The Church Property Sub-committee met in person through 2022 and continues to implement a programme of maintenance and repair of Church premises. In addition, in 2022, Trustees, through a small sub-group, successfully applied for funding to transform an area of waste ground into a community garden. This work began in 2022 and is scheduled for completion in 2023. ## **Organisations** The complete range of organisations at Hillsborough is included on the Church website and in an information leaflet which is distributed to all members. ## **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. The Trustees also wish to acknowledge the commitment of all leaders and helpers involved in the leadership of the full range of activities which the church offers. 9 ## **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. The Kirk Session has had regard to the Charity Commissions public benefit requirement statutory guidance. ## **TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont’d)** 10 ## **FINANCIAL REVIEW** The congregation’s main source of income comes from members’ contributions through the Weekly Freewill Offering. There were 293 contributing families during the year (284 in 2021) donating a total including Gift Aid of £157,899 compared to £155,233 in the previous year. Total income of the congregation was £314,783 compared to £271,609 for 2021. Total Expenditure of the congregation during the year was £340,530 compared to £280,053 for 2021. ## **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: - select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently - make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent - prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Funds will continue in operation. 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. 11 ## **THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND ANNUAL REPORT** ## **For the year ended 31 December 2022** ## **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. ## **RESERVES POLICY** The Trustees have considered the level of unrestricted reserves which it is appropriate to hold taking account of current and ongoing commitments. It is the policy of the Trustees to hold at least 3 months’ normal expenditure. At the end of the year unrestricted reserves were £35,000. (Funds held in capital Reserve were to be invested in the PCI General Investment Fund. A decision on making this investment was deferred by the finance committee due to the uncertainty created in the financial markets by Brexit) ## **RISK REVIEW** _(provide a summary of the Trustees’ assessment of principal risks)_ A review of major risks is regularly 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 finances of the congregation at stated meetings and by encouraging members in their regular giving. We have clear policies such as Health and Safety and Taking Care which are regularly updated. One member of Kirk Session also acts as the Designated Person for Child Protection within the congregation. During the lockdown periods resulting from COVID, when the Trustees and Congregational Committee could not meet in person, the Standing Committee forwarded to Session and Committee members a monthly financial analysis of the Church’s expenditure and income. In-person meetings resumed as soon as it was assessed as safe to do so. Approved by the Kirk Session at a meeting on 12[th] September 2023 and signed on its behalf by: Rev Dr Allen Sleith 12 September 2023 Joyce McKee 12 September 2023 12