2025-12-31-annual-report

• KELLSWATER REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

The Trustees present their Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2025.

REFERENCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

Kellswater Reformed Presbyterian Church 21 Grove Road Shankbridge, Ballymena, BT42 3DP

Registered Charity in Northern ireland (NIC106381)

CHARITY TRUSTEES

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

Rev John Coates Mr John O'Neill Mr Robert McMullan

PRINCIPAL OFFICE BEARERS

Minister Rev John Coates Clerk of Session John O'Neill Treasurer Mark McCrum

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER

John Finnegan Potter Finnegan Limited Unit 27-28 The Courtyard Business Park 190 Galgorm Road Ballymena BT42 LHL

BANKERS

Danske Bank 1-2 Broadway Ballymena BT43 7PE :

SOLICITORS Thomas Taggart 27 Church Street Ballymoney BT53 6HS

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KELLSWATER REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT

STRUCTURE AND MANAGEMENT

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Kirk Session

The charity trustees of the congregations are the members of the Session. Under the congregation’s governing document (The Code, The Book of Government and Order of the RPCI) the Session seeks to watch over and promote the spiritual interest of the congregation, ensure pastoral care is in place in the congregation and seeks to further the contribution of the church to the Christian witness and service in the local community.

The Session has delegated to the Board of Deacons the temporal affairs of the congregation including administering all funds and property belonging to the congregation. Members of the Session are ex-officio members of the Board of Deacons. The Session consists of the ordained minister (the teaching elder) and the ruling elders of the congregation. All members are entitled to propose, speak and exercise equal votes at a church business meeting. The Session holds stated meetings as required,

Men in full membership of the congregation and in agreement with the church’s Doctrinal Testimony can be chosen for the office of ruting elder and elected by the those in full membership of the congregation.

Presbytery

Under the RPCi Code, the oversight of a congregation is the responsibility of a Presbytery which consists of ministers of congregations in a defined district, a ruling elder commissioned from each Session, ministers without a church, and retired ministers. Kellswater congregation is part of the Northern Presbytery of the RPCi.

Synod

This is the supreme court of the RPCI and has authority over all the Presbyteries, Sessions and congregations. It consists of all ministers and one ruling elder commissioned by each congregation.

DESCRIPTION AND PURPOSE

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

ACTIVITIES AND OBJECTIVES

The congregation meets for worship twice every Sabbath at which all visitors are welcome to participate. The Sacrament of "the Lord’s Supper is observed four times each year and open to members who meet the biblical requirements of the denomination and to members in good standing of other evangelical churches. The congregation hold a mid-weekly meeting to study the Bible and pray for a whole range of personal, church, national and international matters.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE

Worship and Prayer

The congregation meets for worship each Sabbath at 12noon and 6.30pm. During the week the Bible study provides opportunities to meet together for fellowship, to study the Scriptures and have a time of prayer. A Sabbath school continued throughout the year with 5 children. A women’s fellowship meeting continued on a bi-monthly basis with around 12 ladies in attendance with several visitors joining the group on each occasion. At 31 December 2025 there were 29 communicant members and 25 families connected with the congregation.

Pastoral Care

Members of the congregation unable to attend worship due to sickness or age are visited where appropriate or contacted by telephone on a regular basis by the minister and elders.

Mission

The congregation financially contributes to the wider mission activities of the RPC! and also other missionary/humanitarian endeavours throughout the world including work in Eastern Europe and China. The church sponsors the education and spiritual needs of a child in Burkina Faso through a missionary organisation. The church also has a partnership with European Mission Fellowship — a church planting initiative in Lisbon, Portugal.

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KELLSWATER REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont'd)

PUBLIC BENEFIT STATEMENT

Presbytery and Synod

The congregation was represented at meetings of the Presbytery and Synod by the minister and a ruling elder.

The RPCt meets the public benefit requirements by:

• e — The provision of churches as places of worship,

• ¢ Public access to worship of a devotional nature,

• — Provision of a moral/ethical framework based on biblical principles

• ¢ Opportunities for social interaction among members/adherents and with the general public,

• — Encouragement to live, participate and contribute to the community life based on Christian principles.

These benefits are demonstrated in that the congregation provides a place for meeting and worship - these are open to the ’ wider public.

Other benefits are seen in the lives of the people conforming more and more to the highest ethical and moral standards in accordance with the Christian faith.

Benefits can be further demonstrated through our missionary and outreach work and through the training of students for the Christian ministry at our Reformed Theological College. One of our members was enrolled during the year.

There will be no harm as a result of the work of the congregation.

The weekly worship services and Bible study are open to members, adherents and other members of the public who may wish to attend, and invitations are distributed locally to that end.

Only those who meet the membership requirements of the denomination may participate in the observance of the Lord’s Supper.

Outreach work is conducted in the neighbourhood of the church e.g., gospel tract distribution, invitation to special interest meetings in the Ballymena area. The congregation maintains a church website with access to sermon recordings and a host of other theological, historical and devotional aids.

The only private benefit within the context of the work of the congregation is the personal deeper understanding and experience gained by those involved in promoting the aims of the Christian faith and of the denomination.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

The congregation’s main source of income is members’ contributions through the weekly Freewill Offering. There were 22 contributors during the year (22 in 2024) donating a total of £35,925 (2023: £35,275)

Total income of the congregation during the year was £79,687 compared to £76,951 in the previous year.

Total expenditure increased from £68,565 to £81,109.

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KELLSWATER REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

TRUSTEES ANNUAL REPORT (cont'd)

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 on behalf of the Kirk Session on 23 March 2026 and signed by

Rev John Coates

John O'Neill

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