he 2021 parish accounts have recently been completed and show a loss of £8.4k on General Funds. Expenditure on maintenance of buildings has been particularly high this year, the main items being (i) replacement of the flat roof on the Guild Room kitchen/toilet block following the discovery of wet rot in the supporting timbers (ii) electrical works required following an inspection in January including rewiring of the church and works in the hall and (iii) refurbishment of the presbytery including complete re-carpetting and replacement of some old furniture / furnishings.
Income was affected by a number of factors including a lack of hall rental income in the first quarter of the year due to Covid restrictions and a reduction in Alive in Faith income as funds from the first phase have now all been received. These reductions were however offset by receipt of a grant from the LD Rope charity to supplement parish resources and accrual of Giftaid tax rebate receivable but not yet claimed for the tax year commencing April 2021, the first year that this adjustment has been made to the accounts.
We have been fortunate to receive donations for a new church noticeboard and purchase of a new monstrance during the year and we are also grateful for donations received towards the cost of our new Parish Room - now known as the Garden Room - which together with a contribution from Alive in Faith income has allowed it's completion without impacting on general parish funds.
Looking forward to the year ahead, aside from continued maintenance of the church and presbytery, our main focus needs to be on the church hall which has suffered badly from lack of investment over the years, the income having been used to supplement general parish resources rather than improvements to the hall.
We have now reached the stage where we need to invest in the hall in order to ensure continuation of the valuable income stream which it provides as well as maintaining it as a usable parish facility.
A summary of the accounts can also be downloaded here.
Should you have any queries on the accounts that you would like answered, please speak to a member of the Finance Committee, send an email to the finance team or use the contact form on this site and select Finance to submit your question.
