to report part 1 to report part 2 pdf file of full reports
St James's Church, Birstwith Financial Statement for the year ended 31st December 2004
These accounts of the PCC have been prepared in accordance with the Church Accounting Regulations 1997 using the Receipts and Payments basis.
The Accounts
The general Church funds are held in three accounts. A Giro account is used for most ordinary transactions such as the deposit of collections and the payment of bills. A National Westminster account deals primarily with planned giving, standing orders and the payment of the Parish Share. Money that is not required immediately is deposited in a Church Of England Central Board of Finance (CBF) account and drawn on when necessary.
Page 1 of the Accounts deals with monies coming into these accounts and page 2 with payments from them. Funds in these accounts are interchangeable and should be viewed as a whole.
Money received by the Church that can be used for any purpose is known as unrestricted income. That raised or donated for a particular purpose, for example a charity, is known as restricted income and cannot be used for any other purpose than that for which it was raised. These monies are required by the Charities Act 1993 to be shown separately in the accounts.
Page 3 lists our other unrestricted accounts.
Page 4 details the Church's Restricted Funds. The CBF funds are legacies and donations administered on our behalf by the Ripon and Leeds Diocesan Office and invested in Church of England Investment Funds.
The Marshall bequest is a legacy left to us to maintain part of the Churchyard. The interest is paid into a deposit account to pay for a gardener.
Page 5 lists our Assets and Liabilities and Page 6 has some notes to the accounts.
2004 has not been an easy one financially but we have managed to pay our share to the Diocese in full and we have ended the year with a deficit of £1800. We were facing a very serious shortfall in the autumn which is why we launched an appeal to' Save our Church' and this resulted in some very generous 'one off' donations as well as an increase in the number of Gift Aid donors and donations. This, together with the magnificent 'Race Night' helped to reduce the anticipated deficit. I would like to thank all those who have been involved in fund raising events throughout the year. Without them and everyone's support our financial situation would be much worse. What has also been pleasing to see over the year is the increase in Gift Aided donations and giving in collections. As you can see from the accounts this resulted in a considerable increase in the Tax reclaim we have received and makes a significant difference to our financial situation. One other pleasing thing to report is the increase in the value of our investments.
At the beginning of the year the church hall was redecorated and the floor renovated and the kitchen refurbished. This was funded by an 'Awards for All 'lottery grant as well as a donation from the Luncheon Club. The choir vestry was also redecorated by church members who generously gave their time and donated the materials. Neither of these projects would have been possible without grants and voluntary labour.
Later in the year we received a donation of £1500 from Inspired Movies Film Company for allowing them to film the outside of the church.
The Incorporated Church Building Society closed a fund they held on our behalf as it was no longer economical to administer and we received a cheque from them for £675. This money can only be used for repair of the church.
Unfortunately the boiler came to the end of its life this year and thank to generous donations and grants from RLDBF and the Harrogate Churches Repair Fund we raised over £2000 towards its replacement. The rest of the cost was withdrawn from church funds.
The loss of the playgroup has had a marked effect on church hall income but we now have an art class three mornings a week and the PCC will be looking at the use of the hall as a matter of urgency this year.
On the payments side we have managed to keep our Church running costs within budget; the major increases being that of the rise in insurance premium and Diocesan share. We also welcomed Sarah Warnes to the post of organist which had been vacant since Roy Bradshaw's retirement.
Our Diocesan share for 2005 is £31088 which means that our expected deficit, without fundraising, will be £10,400.We do not expect to be able to make up this shortfall by fundraising alone which is why it is imperative for us to continue with our stewardship campaign . It is up to all of us to ensure that St James's Church survives.
Pam Wilson, Treasurer
At the beginning of the year the General Fund Account had a balance of £24186
Our unrestricted receipts were £43260
Our unrestricted payments were £44049
Resulting in a deficit of -£789
We had restricted receipts of £6549
Our restricted payments were £1340
Giving a surplus of restricted income of +£5209
We also had extraordinary payments of £8013 -£8013
Thereby leaving a balance of General Funds available to the PCC of £20,591