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2023-12-31-annual-report

BCM INTERNATIONAL NI

DIRECTORS' REPORT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

The directors present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note to the financial statements and comply with the charity's Memorandum and Articles of Association, the Companies Act 2006 and "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) (effective 1 January 2019)".

Objectives and activities

The principle objectives of the charity are to advance and promote in Northern Ireland and elsewhere the Christian Faith in accordance with the statement of doctrine set out in the Second Schedule of the Company's Memorandum and Articles of Association and include;

The charity carries out residential events which enable it to teach the Word of God to children, young people and adults throughout the year. It provides opportunities for believers who ascribe to the values and principles of BCM International NI to volunteer with us. It provides training for its volunteers and for local bible believing churches who work with children and young people. It also provides residential facilities for local bible believing churches and other groups of believers in order that they may be taught the Word of God.

BCM International NI relies heavily on the commitment and support of its vast number of volunteers across Northern Ireland who faithfully pray, serve on camps, run and maintain Mullartown House and for the general running of the charity. The time given by volunteers, without which we simply could not achieve what we do, is to be celebrated. The Directors are very grateful to the hundreds of volunteers who have helped over the last year. We give thanks to God for each volunteer and their service.

The directors have paid due regard to guidance issued by the Charity Commission in deciding what activities the charity should undertake.

Achievements and performance

The directors believe they have been successful in achieving the objectives of the charity throughout the year by the operation of the following core activities. Through these activities, children, young people and adults were reached with the Gospel and Christians established in their faith.

Summer Camps

During July and August eight 6-day residential camps were hosted by Mullartown House, Annalong. There were 4 children’s camps, 1 pre-teen camp, 1 junior teens camp, 1 senior teens camp and 1 family week with a total of 570 campers attending and 250 volunteers. One of the children’s camps is targeted towards disadvantaged young people from the Belfast area, a number of whom are referred by Social Services.

We ran an additional 4-day residential summer camp at Rostrevor Youth Centre for teens; 18 campers and 10 volunteers were involved.

Each camp is run by a Programme Director who with their team of leaders work hard to ensure that the young people have an enjoyable physical, mental and spiritual experience while at camp.

BCM INTERNATIONAL NI

DIRECTORS' REPORT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

BCM Residential Weekends

In 2023 Mullartown House hosted 2 weekend reunions from the summer camps – Senior Teens and Family Camp. There were also 2 City Kids’ residential weekends and 3 City Teens’ residential weekends, primarily attracting children and young people from inner city areas of Belfast. In addition, we had a Summer Camp Volunteer Training Weekend and a Ladies’ weekend, both run by BCM NI at Mullartown House.

Supporting local churches

Residential weekends: Our property in Annalong hosts weekends for church-based groups and school and university Christian Unions, enabling us to serve the local Bible believing Church. In 2023, 28 different residential groups used our facilities, meaning we welcomed over 1200 visitors to Mullartown House over the course of the year. These visitors were served by around 100 volunteers.

The BCM Centre in Lisburn hosts 4 parachurch groups for Bible studies and prayer meetings and has been able to continue to do this throughout 2023.

Bible Clubs

These clubs are held during term time and enable us to reach children and encourage them to pursue a deeper relationship with God.

Bible Clubs ran weekly during term-time in Stoneyford, Ballygowan and Lisburn, attracting 10-15 children each week in each area.

We also ran shorter spells of Bible Clubs in various areas of Belfast during term-time: 8 clubs in the Markets area, 11 in Turf Lodge, 4 in Moyard, 5 in Twinbrook, 6 in Rose Street, 6 in Willowbank, and 3 in Hannahstown.

2 discipleship groups for teenagers ran weekly at Mullartown House with an average attendance of 75 teens per week, a third group ran monthly in Lisburn with an average attendance of 35 teens. An additional bible study group for senior teens met weekly (Jan-June) and then fortnightly (Sept-Dec) in the BCM Centre during termtime.

Summer Outreach:

Hello Life seeks to reach into the local communities through different forms of outreach including Bible Clubs, visitation, practical help and family fun days. There were 5 teams in June, July and August, each made up of an average of 10-12 volunteers; in Lurgan, Lisburn, Downpatrick, Belfast and Ballinderry. 4 of the teams were residential. For several of the volunteers this was the first time they had participated in this type of outreach.

During the Hello Life weeks 63 individual bible clubs took place, mostly as part of 3-day, 4-day or 5-day series in various housing estates, with attendance ranging from 8 children to over 30 children.

Other activities: A number of other activities were held throughout the year to reach children, young people and adults with the gospel and to encourage them in their faith. These included the missionaries and interns speaking in schools on over 30 occasions, and in other settings on at least 30 further occasions. We also ran a 4-week mentoring programme for some of our summer volunteers.

Training

Volunteers are at the core of BCM NI’s ministry and training sessions are offered to equip them in serving effectively with us. All of our volunteers receive Child Protection, Health and Safety and Data Protection training.

Camp volunteers attended a training weekend in April 2023, receiving relevant training on various aspects of camp ministry. Hello Life volunteers attended a training day in May 2023 looking at how to reach out most effectively into various communities.

BCM INTERNATIONAL NI

DIRECTORS' REPORT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

Ministry Development

Esteban Pineda, from the US, joined us in September 2022 as an intern for a year, staying with us until September 2023.

In Summer 2023 we had 2 American students complete part of their Bible College internship with BCM NI: Rachel McMahon and Mary Ellen Schomer.

Full time missionaries

Jason & Gemma Hill continue to manage the facility at Mullartown House and the annual programme. They also direct the BCM programme of camps and weekends.

In 2023 BCM NI advertised, and subsequently appointed, a new missionary, Jason Nicholl, to the role of Assistant Camp Director. Jason assists the Hills with the ministry of Mullartown House.

Nate Heater continues in his role as Development and Support Officer, overseeing the development of Hello Life and discipleship, and supporting existing ministries.

Miriam Reimer served in administration and maintenance, both at Mullartown and at the BCM Centre, until October 2023.

Judith Rogers continues in her role as CEO with the aim of supporting the BCM NI Board in their governance responsibilities, and the missionaries in their ministry.

Admin volunteers

Julie Larmour, along with Elizabeth Spence and Avril McGrath, helped Miriam to keep the administration up-todate, especially during the summer months.

Property

Mullartown House and BCM Centre: Most of our activities are centred in these two properties. During 2023 the Family Block kitchen was replaced, painting carried out, a trampoline installed, renovations to the Dining Room carried out, new carpet laid, among other maintenance tasks. We submitted a planning application to replace the cottage at Mullartown with a similar dwelling, and are awaiting its approval.

Links with BCM International

We maintained links with the wider BCM International body through membership of the UK Anchor Trust and attendance at the European Conference in Poland in October. We also had a visit from the outgoing and incoming BCM US Presidents in September.

Financial review

The results for the period are as set out on pages 7 to 18. The charity returned net incoming resources of £8,717 (2022 - £143,804) of which there were unrestricted net incoming resources of £12,650 (2022 - £56,818) and restricted net outgoing resources of £3,933 (2022 - net incoming resources £86,986). At 31 December 2023, the level of unrestricted reserves held was £1,047,762 (2022 - £1,035,112).

It is the policy of the charity that unrestricted funds which have not been designated for a specific use should be maintained at a level equivalent to between three and six month’s expenditure. The directors consider that reserves at this level will ensure that, in the event of a significant drop in funding, they will be able to continue the charity’s current activities while consideration is given to ways in which additional funds may be raised. This level of reserves has been maintained throughout the year.

The directors have assessed the major risks to which the charity is exposed, and are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate exposure to the major risks.

BCM INTERNATIONAL NI

DIRECTORS' REPORT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

Structure, governance and management

BCM International NI is a company limited by guarantee, the liability of the members is limited to £1, and it is governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association.

BCM International NI is part of the wider BCM International network. Bible Centered Ministries is a global nondenominational ministry dedicated to Reaching Children and Developing Churches worldwide. BCM has more than 700 missionaries serving in 50 countries across five continents as well as Pacific and Caribbean islands.

BCM International NI is registered as a Charity with The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland (NIC 105856).

The directors who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were: Mr G Connor (Deceased 2 August 2024) Mrs J Girvan Mr K Parker Mrs M Dundas Mrs A McGrath Mrs J Larmour Mr A Shanks (Resigned 22 May 2024)

New directors are appointed by the members of the charity at the annual general meeting.

All directors are required to participate in training e.g. Good Governance course organised by NICVA. Directors are regularly updated on legislation that impacts upon the running of a charitable organisation e.g. recent changes in legislation introduced by the Charities Commission.

BCM International NI is managed by a voluntary board of directors who are responsible for the management of the charity. The board of directors comprises at least 6 directors who meet bi-monthly to oversee the management of the charity. The board of directors conduct regular reviews of the charity's strategic plan, with policies and procedures reviewed and updated on an ongoing basis.

The day to day management of Mullartown House is delegated to Mr Jason and Mrs Gemma Hill.

This report has been prepared in accordance with the provision applicable to companies entitled to the small companies exemption.

The directors' report was approved by the Board of Directors.

Mrs J Larmour

Director Dated: 19 September 2024