The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Ireland Coleraine Preparative Meeting Annual Report and Account for the year ended 31[st] December 2023 Coleraine Preparative Meeting Trustees as at 31[st] December 2023 Terence Brown – chair Lynn Finnegan Valerie Morgan Registered address 52 Union Street, Coleraine BT52 1QB Charity Number NI 107093 Bankers Danske Bank, The Diamond, Coleraine Trustees Report for the year ended December 31[st] 2023 Introduction Thia report has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015 and in line with the guidance provided by the Charities Commission for Northern Ireland ## Constitution and Governance The religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Ireland, Coleraine Preparative Meeting is governed by its governing document which was agreed by the Preparative Meeting in March 2018. The Meeting was registered as a charity by the Charity Commission NI in May 2018 The Trustees, of whom there should not be less than 2, are appointed by the Annual GFeneral Meeting. They are appointed for a period of up to 3 years and they are eligible for reappointment fot a further 2 terms. Trustees who served during the year ended 31[st] December 2023 were, Terence Brown, Lynn Finnegan and Valerie Morgan The Trustees are responsible for the policies, activities and assets of the Meeting. No Trustees receives any remuneration for their service and the charity has no employees. The Trustees have a data protection policy and a child protection policy and these are reviewed annually ## Purposes of the Charity Coleraine Preparative Meeting was established by Lisburn Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends in Ireland. It is primarily a Meeting for Worship that practices in accordance with the principles of the Religious Society of Friends , also known as Quakers. We are based in a Meeting House at 52 Union Street in Coleraine. The property is owned by Lisburn Monthly Meeting. As well as the Meeting Room where we meet for worship on Sundays we a kitchen, a toilet and one further room. These rooms comprise the ground floor of an early 20[th] century terrace house. The two floors above area self-contained flat which is leased to a tenant. The purpose of our charity as set out in our governing document, is the advancement of the general religious principles of the Society of Friends by the following means, in so far as they are exclusively charitable - Strengthening the Christian understanding and religious development of the Quakers Meeting in our area - Contributing financially and practically to the relief of suffering at home and abroad - Providing pastoral care for individual members and Attenders including assistance to those in need Report of activities for 2023 Coleraine Meeting remains a small meeting but we have grown in numbers over the year and now average 15 -17 Friends attending. Our numbers have been boosted by the steadfast attendance of several Attenders who take an active part in the life and worship of the Coleraine Meeting. We value the intermittent attendance of members form other Meetings who regularly visit the North Coast. We were pleased when a members and her young family returned to reside in the area, the presence of children is warmly welcomed. We have welcomed 2 new Members to our Meeting and we also have new Attenders. This growth is positive for our Meeting. Throughout the year our elder has continued to send regular thoughtful email epistles to all Coleraine Friendssome in Germany and others nearer home in Waterford. We hope that this has maintained a strong connection with Coleraine Friends so that they may feel part of our Quaker community even though they may not attend Meeting for Worship. Thes epistles from our elder stimulate valuable comment and reflection. A Member has reintroduced the Newsletter which Friends contribute to. This is an interesting source of communication. In addition we hold monthly discussions after Meeting for Worship, topics discussed oncluded, the Bible, concepts of God, Meeting for Worship, War in Europe and refugees in Northern Ireland. We also undertook a spiritual review which was supported by a Friend from South Belfast Meeting. We had our customary shared meal five times this year with an additional shared meal in World Quaker Day and we held our usual seasonal celebration in December. We have also met socially in the homes of Friends several times during the year. In July a number of Friends enjoyed an outing to visit a garden in Upperlands. Our tenants in the upstairs flat wish to remain for another year and welcomed a baby daughter in July The garden at the rear of the Meeting House has been fenced. There is parking space available. Financial Review Our financial statement for the period 1[st] January 2023 to 31[st] December 2023 is attached to this report. This shows that we had a balance of 4150.12 in our account at the beginning of the year and a balance of 5703.53 at the end of the year All financial requirements regarding charitable status continue to be fulfilled. We have maintained our financial contribution of £100 annually to Bishop Street Meeting. This year we made our usual contribution to Quaker Service we have also supported Friiends Hillsborough and two Friends Meeting Houses in England who are carrying out repairs. This year has been active socially and spiritually we have ensured that all our listed duties have been attended to and we look forward to 2024 with hope and thankfulness Agreed by the General Meeting on 29 January 2024 Valerie Morgan Clerk and Trustee