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FIRST CASTLEDERG CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYfERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND
TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT
The Trustees present their Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31
December 2023 including a Statement of Assets and Liabilities as at that date.
REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DEfAILS
First Castlederg congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland
18 Ganietagh Road, Castlederg, Co Tyrone, BT817QA
Registered Charity in Northern Ireland (NIC105659}
CHARITY TRUSTEES
The Charity Trustees who served during the year or who were trustees at the date of this
report were:
Mr James Emery
Mr Robert Rutledge
Mr James Young
Mr Milton Porter
Mr David Young
Miss Lavinia Nelson
Mr Drew Nelson
Mr Gareth Sproule
PRINCIPAL OFFICE BEARERS
Minister:
Clerk of Session:
Treasurer:
Convenor Rev Bobby Orr
Mr Robert C. Rutledge
Mrs Helen Lowry
INDEPENDENT EXAMINER
Kathryn Mitchell {for Watson & Colhoun)
Unit B15 Omagh Enterprise Centre, Great Northern Road, Omagh, Co Tyrone, BT78 SLU
BANKERS
Ulster Bank
29 Abercorn Square, Strabane, Co Tyrone, BT82 8AL
Danske Bank
South Business Centre, 45-48 High Street, Portadown, Co Armagh, BT62 IL8
SOLICITORS
Thomas Elliott & Son
c/0 A F Colhoun & Co, 41 Dublin Road, Omagh, Co Tyrone, BT78 IHE

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FIRST CASTLEDERG CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYfERIAN 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 ministers in active duty in the congregation, has no deliberative but only
a casting Vote.
Stated meetings of the Kirk Session are held four 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. First Castlederg congregation of the Presbyterian Church has
been assigned to the Omagh 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 the congregation.

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FIRST CASTLEDERG CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYfERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND
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 e5der appointed by the Kirk
Session of each congregation.
DESCRIPTION AND PURPOSE
The charitable purpose of the congregation is the advancement of religion.
First Castlederg 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 part in
fulfilling God's mission to our world.
The congregations mission purposes is:
'Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ so that whether I come
and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit,
with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel.
Philippions 1.. 27
The congregation aims to live out its Mission and Vision as a family of God's people by:
Conducting ourselves in a manner that is worthy and commending of the gospel by the
quality of our lives.
Living out the gospel in church and in the community.
In Christ's strength and power we can live for Him {i.e. Why should people believe the
gospel if they cannot see Christ in us?)
Making our prayers more united and maintain that unity.
Focusing on health, not on growth as our issue is not how to become bigger. We do not
say to a child by this time next yearyou have to be this height or in five years you have to
be so big. Rather we say we will look after you, provide you with food, care and exercise.
If the body is healthy, it will grow and become mature.

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FIRST CASTLEDERG CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYfERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND
TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont'd)
DESCRIPTION AND PURPOSE (cont'd)
So our mission plan is to identify issues in our congregation which have contributed to its
health, remind ourselves of them, and seek to put them into practice, in strivin8 to forward
the message of the Gospel. We will also want to take time to SWOT by looking at our
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
AcrivrriES AND OBJECTIVES
The congregation meets for worship every Sunday and visitors are welcome to join. The
Sacrament of the Lord's Supper is observed twice 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 bible study meetings once a month and has a wide
range of organisations which meet over the winter months including:
Sunday School
Presbyterian Women
Bowling Club
Gir15' Brigade
Boys, Brigade
ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE
Wor5hlp and prayer
The congregation normally meets for worship each Sunday at 12 noon. During the month the
Bible Study provides an opportunity for members to meet together for fellowship, to study
the scriptures and for a time of prayer.
As well as our re8ular services during the year we acknowledged God's 8ift of new life at 5
Sacraments of Baptism, we conducted 3 marriage services and gave thanks for faithful
services and sOU8ht to comfort those who had been bereaved during the year.
At 31 December 2023 there were 412 communicant members and 160 families connected
with the congregations. The average weekly attendance at morning worship is 84.

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FIRST CASTLEDERG CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYfERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND
TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont'd)
Mlsslon 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 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
premise5, assist with the running costs of Union Theological College, the Church's training
colle8e for ministry students, and financially supports con8re8ation in the areas of worship,
discipleship, global mission, outreach, leadership and pastoral care.
The congregation holds an annual collection for missionaries. It supports a local Scripture
Union worker. Locally the church outreaches through fundraising and hold a summer bible
club for those of primary school age- none of which were able to happen again this year.
Presbytery
The congregation was represented at the regular meetings of Presbytery by our minister and
/ or one of the elders. This provides an important link between the congregations and the
wider structures of the church.
General Assemblv
The minister and one of our elders were nominated to attend the meetin8 of the General
Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland held in Assembly Buildings, Belfast, in October.
Property
The new church hall is doing very well.
Organlsatlons
Sunda
School
The Sunday school which consists of 43 pupils and 9 teachers meets on a weekly basis. The
children support the Sunday School Project and also a project in Zomba. The Christmas party
is well attended.

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FIRST CASTLEDERG CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYfERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND
TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont'd)
Organisations (cont'd)
Presb
terian Women
Presbyterian Women meet monthly. They do a variety of activities around the theme for the
year. They are out and about for other events and enjoy supporting others.
Bowlin
Club
The Bowling Club meets on a weekly basis and is also attended by those from the wider
community.
Girls, Bri
ade
The Girls, Brigade meets on a weekly basis.
Bo
Bri
ade
The Boys, Brigade meets weekly. Each of the annual events add that extra touch, with an
enrolment sen4ice, an inspection and display.
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.

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FIRST CASTLEDERG CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYfERIAN CHURCH IN IRELAND
TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont'd)
PUBLIC BENEFIT STATEMENT
The preSb￿erlan 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.

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FIRST CASTLEDERG CONGREGATION OF THE PRESBYfERIAN 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 136 contributors during the year (2022: 136) donating a total of
£41,117 (2022: £43,754).
Total income of the congregation during the year was £129,324 compared to £133,987 in the
previous year.
Total expenditure decreased from £95,566 to £87,971.
STATEMENT OF TRUSTEE RESPONSIBILITIES
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 congregation's 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
payment 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 at a meeting on and signed on its behalf bv:
Mr Robert Rutledge
Mr David Young
Date:
Date: 121ofilJ£)IL