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REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER — SC001447
ST JOHN'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH PITTENWEEM — BISHOP LOW TRUST FUND: PITTENWEEM
ALSO KNOWN AS BISHOP LOW'S TRUST
ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30TH SEPTEMBER 2025
BISHOP LOW'S TRUST
CHARITY REFERENCE NUMBER — SC001447
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INDEPENDENT EXAMINER
BANKERS Virgin Money 7/8 High Street Dundee DDI ISS
PRINCIPAL OFFICE 31 Beacon Court Craw's Nest Court Anstruther Fife KY10 3FP
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2025 | Structure and Governance The governing document is a Trust Deed, being the 1854 Will of[the][late][Bishop][Low.] Trustee recruitment and appointment The Bishop and Dean of the Diocese of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane are trustees ex Officio, as is the Priest-in-Charge ofSt John the Evangelist Episcopal Church, Pittenweem with St | Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church, Elie. The lay trustees are recruited from the congregations. Administrative Structure Thevolunteersaffairs fromof thetheTrustcongregationsare managedforby whosethe Trusteestime freelywithgiventhe assistancethe Trusteesin practicalare mostmattersgrateful.of No | staff are employed. Charitable Objectives and Activities Charitable purpose To provide support for the ministry of St John the Evangelist, Pittenweem in its engagement with | the wider community of the East Neuk of Fife; or, in the event of the church ceasing to exist, to such other church providing ministry in the area served by St John's; or, in the event that no such church exists, to the Diocese in its provision ofministry within the Diocese. For the conservation, maintenance, renewal and improvement of St Fillan's Cave, the Great House, | the Gatehouse and their environs belonging to the Trust, and their fixtures, fittings and furnishings | belonging to the Trust. To provide the Trust's properties for use by the community of east Fife. | Summary of the main activities in relation to these objects | St Fillan's Cave is used for occasional worship and special events. It is open to the public on payment ofa nominal fee. The Great House is in use as the Rectory. The house has been made available by the Trustees for this purpose free of charge. The two churches served by the Priest-inCharge contribute to its maintenance under the terms of a Memorandum of Agreement between the Trustees and the Vestries ofSt John the Evangelist, Pittemweem and St Michael and All Angels, Elie. Part of the Trust’s grounds, namely the area adjacent to the public road behind St John’s has | been developed as a Quiet Garden for public use. The Gatehouse is in very occasional use; it requires extensive repair and restoration to conserve it and allow it to be fully utilised. Summary of main achievements of the charity during the financial year Greater use was made of St Fillan's Cave for worship and for welcoming visiting groups of pilgrims. Cave visitor numbers grew substantially, in part attracted by a higher media profile. During the East Neuk Festival the Cave provided the venue for a well-received musical installation | and during the Pittenweem Arts Festival it was made available to the community library for its popular “Tales from the Cave’ production for children. Also, during the Arts Festival both the Gatehouse and the Great House undercroft were let to visiting artists. The Great House garden and the Gatehouse were once again used by St John's for a most successful Summer Fayre and to welcome pilgrims visiting St Fillan’s Cave and the Sacred Quarter of Pittenweem. Work began on a} major programme of repairs to the Great House starting with the replacement of the roof covering | and repointing of the west elevation facing Cove Wynd. Further work will be staged over the coming years as resources allow.
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Financial Review
All Trust reserves are held in unrestricted funds. The reserves represent the funds arising from past operations. During the year, £76,500 being the net proceeds from the sale of investments, was transferred to the ewevenie areannt ta fiind the Great Unnee warke Thie raduced the invectment nartfolio to the minimim Lim Pe Pee CALLA CW EUEEUE LEI SIRE PIWUOW VHUIND. 2LLAD PCULUDLUE LILI LELVRE OLLI PYLUVilY CAP LELN LABRDLEL aaa the Trustees consider prudent. They are confident that the remaining reserves, together with regular income from the Cave and artist lets, are sufficient to cover the costs of the Trust for the next year. The revenue account recorded a surplus of £65,257 for the year compared with £30,395 in the previous year.
Declaration
lhe trustees declare that they have approved the trustees' report on pages 3 and 4 above.
Signed on behalfof the trustees
| ‘ Chair oftrustees
2 March 2026
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INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2025
| report on the accounts of the charity for the year ended 30 September 2025 which are set out on pages 6 to 8
Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner
The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the terms of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and Charitics Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006. The charity trustecs consider that the audit requirement of Regulation 10(1) (d) of the Accounts Regulations does not apply. It is my responsibility to examine the accounts as required under section 44(1) (c) of the Act and to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.
Basis of independent examiner's statement
My examination is carried out in accordance with Regulation 11 of the 2006 Accounts Regulations. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeks explanations from the trustees concerning such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently, | do not express an audit opinion on the view given by the accounts.
Independent examiner's statement
In the course of my examination, no matter has come to my attention
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which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements: - to keep accounting records in accordance with Section 44(1) (a) of the 2005 Act and Regulation 4 of the 2006 Accounts Regulations, and
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to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with Regulation 9 of the 2006 Accounts Regulations
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have not been met, or
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to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached
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BISHOP LOW'S TRUST
RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT - YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2025
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|2025|2024|
|Receipts|£|3|
|Donations|(Note|1)|2,914|1,118|
|Receipts|from|fund-raising|activities|15,220|4,420|
|Income|from|financial|investments|1,544|3,170|
|Rents|from|land|and|buildings|(Note|2)|1,350|1,200|
|insurance|settiement|902|-|
|Gross|receipts|from|other|activities|(Note|3)|-|1,597|
|Receipts|from|sale|of investments|76,666|40,088|
|Total|receipts|98.596|51,593|
|Payments|
|Expenses|for|fundraising|activitics|883|604|
|Property|expenses|(Note|4)|24,689|20,205|
|Legal &|professional|fees|(Note|5)|Viae|389|
|Sundries|||:|
|Total|payments|ga.539|21,198|
|Surplus|for year|65,257|30,395|
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BISHOP LOW'S TRUST
STATEMENT OF BALANCES AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2025
| Dansk healenerd AJOAEAEN BPCREAR |
a7ii~ ae US he? |
WAIA ee US he |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opening balances | £53,443 | £23,048 | ||
| Surplus for year | £65,257 | £30,395 | ||
| Closing balances | £118,700 | £53,443 | ||
| Investments (Note 6) | ||||
| Rank Valineat 20 Santembher 20974 AyAVUUN Yee OL YY We Piwslilivsl eS hee TV |
£Q1 6A a Uie/\'T |
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| Sale of investments | £78,503 | |||
| Book value at 30 September 2025 | £ | 2,861] | ||
| Market Value | £ | 3,065 | £ 79.802 | |
| Property and other assets (Note | 7) | Current | value | |
| The fleeat Unane)er Piiw SGIeell bIVUSL |
IT NON Ji 2VYUY |
176 AON YI IJ.eVVUY |
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| The Gatehouse | 50,000 | 50,000 | ||
| St Fillan's Cave |
50 | 50 | ||
| Bishop Low's Library | 100 | 100 | ||
| Portrait of Bishop Low |
100 | 100 | ||
| Domain name | __ 27 |
__— 27 |
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| Total | 425,277 | 425,277 |
Signed on behalt of the trustees
Date of approval 2 March 2026
lreasurei
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| BISHOP LOW'STRUST | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| NOTESTOACCOUNTS FORYEAR ENDED 30SEPTEMBER | 2025 | ||
| i DONATIONS | 2025 | 2024 | |
| Cave | 2,894 | 1,098 | |
| Gatehouse | 20 | 20 | |
| 2 RENTAL INCOME | |||
| Pittenweem Arts Festival lets | 1,350 | 1,200 | |
| 3 OTHER RECEIPTS | |||
| St John's and St Michael's contributions | |||
| to Rectory expenses | - | 89 | |
| Electricity refund | - | 1,508 | |
| 1,597 | |||
| 4 PROPERTY EXPENSES | |||
| Great House maintenance | 18,121 | 6,912 | |
Great House electricity & gas |
- | 1,112 | |
| Great House Council Tax | - | 926 | |
| Cave and Gatehouse maintenance | 1,841 | 2,666 | |
| Cave and Gatehouse electricity | 1,373 | 2,793 | |
| Garden and grounds maintenance | - | 187 | |
| Insurance | 3.354 | 5.609 | |
| 24.689 | 20.205 | ||
| 5 PROFESSIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE FEES |
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| Scottish Lime Centre Report | 2025 3,032 |
2024 - |
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| Consulting architect | 3,544 | - | |
| Great House works preliminaries | |||
H&S consultant |
100 | ||
| Fire Risk Assessment | 624 | ||
| Planning consent | 286 | ||
| 1,010 | - | ||
| SEC UTP transaction fees | 166 | - | |
| L152 |
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6 INVESTMENTS
The trust's investment portfolio is managed by The Scottish Episcopal Church Unit Trust Pool, ref. SA46/48P009,21 Grosvenor Crescent, Edinburgh EH12 5EE.
7 PROPERTY
Both the Great House and the Gatehouse were revalued on an open market basis at 30 September 2018. Bishop Low's Library and Portrait are on long term loan to the University of St Andrews.
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