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← Trinity Ahoghill Congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland

2025-12-31-annual-report

TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND

Trustees Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2025

Registered Charity in Northern Ireland (NIC105289)

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TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND

Trustees Annual Report

The Trustees present their Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2025 including a Statement of Assets and Liabilities as at that date.

Reference and Administrative details

Trinity Ahoghill congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Church St, Ahoghill, BT42 2PA

Registered Charity in Northern Ireland (NIC105289)

CHARITY TRUSTEES

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

Mr James Dickey Mr Michael Mearns

Mr Richard Logan Rev Andrew Frazer Mr Alistair Hamill Mr Richard Wright Mr George Knowles Mr Hubert Scullion Mr Alistair Kerr Mr Bertie Bell Mr Daniel McCloy Mr John Wright Mr Samuel Black Mr William Steele Mr John Glass

Elder Emeritus

The following held the post of Elder Emeritus, although they do not serve as trustees for Charity Commission purposes:

Mr Nath Dickey

Principal Office Bearers

Minister Clerk of Session Treasurer

Rev Andrew Frazer Mr George Knowles Mr Tom Lindsay

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

Mrs Elizabeth Blake 17 Whinsands Close Fulwood Preston PR2 9AP

BANKERS

Danske Bank 1 Broadway Ballymena BT43 7PE

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TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (Continued)

Structure and Management

The Kirk Session

The charity trustees of the congregation are the members of the 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 congregation. 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 least four times in each year.

To be chosen for the office of the eldership in the congregation a person must be a voting member and a regular attendant at its ordinances. The selection of those proposed to be called to the office can be by the congregation or by the Kirk Session Members and are elected it 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. Trinity Church Ahoghill congregation of the Presbyterian Church has been assigned to the Ballymena 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 the congregation.

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TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (Continued)

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 in each congregation, retired ministers and a representative elder appointed by the Kirk Session of each congregation.

DESCRIPTION AND PURPOSE

The charitable purpose of the congregation is the advancement of religion.

Trinity Ahoghill congregation of the 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 par in fulfilling God’s mission to our world.

The congregation’s mission statement is as follows:

That by the grace of God, to help people of all ages become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ. Our vision is, by the grace of God, to be inclusive, welcoming community of Christ’s people of all ages, which:

The congregation aims to live out its Mission and Vision as a family of God’s people by being: - A Covenant Community: where our relationships are rooted in the promises of God living faithfully toward him and toward one another

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TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (Continued)

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 several occasions during the year and all those who have been baptised and who made a profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ are admitted to the Lord’s Supper. The congregation holds regular bible study meetings and has a wide range of organisations including:

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

Worship and Prayer

The congregation normally meets for worship each Sunday at 10.30am and 6.15pm every third Sunday in rotation with Brookside and First Ahoghill. During the week the Mid-week Prayer and Bible Study provides an opportunity for members to meet together for fellowship, to study the scriptures and for a time of prayer. There are a number of prayer groups who meet every week.

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TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (Continued)

As well as our regular services during the year we acknowledge God’s gift of new life at Sacraments of Baptism, we conducted marriage services and sought to comfort those who have been bereaved during the year.

At 31 December 2025 there were 151 communicant members and 189 families connected with the congregation. The average weekly attendance at morning worship is 134.

Pastoral Care

Members of the congregation who are unable to attend Church due sickness or age are visited on a regular basis by the minister and elders or a member of the Pastoral Care Team. They can also get a CD recording of any service and can also watch the services online.

Mission and Outreach

At a local level the congregation helped support a number of groups and charities with prayer support and financially as detailed in the Financial Accounts.

The congregation supports the United Appeal for Mission which is a central fund of the Presbyterian Church In Ireland. The 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 development 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.

The congregation also contributes to the denominations annual Tear Fund Appeal, Sunday School project and other special appeals.

Presbytery

The congregation was represented at the regular meetings of Presbytery by our vacancy convenor and / or one of the elders. This provides an important link between the congregations and the wider structures of the church.

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TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (Continued)

General Assembly

The vacancy convenor (at June 2025) and one of our elders were nominated to attend the meeting of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland held in Assembly Buildings, Belfast, in June.

Property

There was no significant expenditure on property during the year.

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.

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, social media and 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.

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TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (Continued)

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 received 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 to regard to the Charity Commissions Public benefit requirement statutory guidance.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

The congregation’s main source of income is members’ contributions through the Weekly Freewill Offering and loose collections (including Gift Aid). In 2025, 149 contributors donated a total of £98,974. (2024: 156 contributors donated £100,036)

Total income of the congregation in 2025 was £182,330 compared to £174,914 in 2024.

Total expenditure in 2025 was £146,009 compared to £131,275 in 2024.

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TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (Continued)

The Trustees are responsible for preparing the annual report and the financial statements of the congregation in accordance with applicable law and generally accepted accounting practice.

As the congregations total income does not exceed £250,000, the Trustees have elected under Section 64(3) of the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008 to prepare a receipts and payments account and a statement of assets and liabilities.

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the congregation’s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time its financial position. 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.

Approved by the Kirk Session on 24[th] March 2026 and signed on its behalf by:

Name: Rev Andrew Frazer Name: Mr George Knowles Date: 24/03/2026 Date: 24/03/2026

Signature: A Frazer Signature: G Knowles

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INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF TRINITY AHOGHILL CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND

I report on the accounts of the Trust for the year ended 31 December 2025, which are set out on pages 11 to 17.

Respective responsibilities of charity trustees and examiner

As the charity’s trustees you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008.

It is my responsibility to:

Basis of Independent Examiners Report

I have examined your charity accounts as required under section 65 of the Charities Act and my examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland under section 65(9)(b) of the Charities Act.

My examination included a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also included consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as charity trustees concerning any such matters.

My role is to state whether any material matters have come to my attention giving me cause to believe:

  1. That accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 63 of the Charities Act

  2. That the accounts do not accord with those accounting records

  3. That the accounts do not comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Act

  4. That there is further information needed for a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached

Independent Examiners statement

I have completed my examination and have no concerns in respect of the matters (1) to (4) listed above and, in connection with the following the Directors of the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, I have found no matters that require drawing to your attention.

Mrs Elizabeth Blake

E Blake Date: 11/03/2026

17 Whinsands Close Fulwood Preston PR2 9AP

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