TREASURERS’ NEWSLETTER – FEBRUARY 2015 Dear Colleague, This is first newsletter for 2015 bulging with information to bring you up to date on a number of accounting and other financial related matters. New website The new Diocesan website was launched just before Christmas. Please take a look at it at http://www.bathandwells.org.uk The layout has changed, but the original content for Treasurers is still there. Downloads are now at the bottom of each page. We are aware that some of the links within downloads have not been working and have now corrected them. If you come across a link that does not work, please do not just sigh and move on- please let us know, so we can get it corrected. If there is a form or guidance which you would like to be on the website, please let us know and we will try and put it on. Richard Illidge (
[email protected] ) will be happy to help.
ANNUAL ACCOUNTS, REPORTS and FINANCE RETURNS Annual Report and Accounts and Return of Parish Finance Whilst all PCCs are charities, those with an income under £100,000 per year are “excepted” from Charity Commission registration. If your PCC total income exceeds £100,000 you are required to register with the Charity Commission (see below). However it is a legal requirement under Section 9 (4) of the Church Representation Rules for the PCC to supply copies of its Annual Report and Accounts to the Diocesan Board of Finance within 28 days of the APCM. The Annual Report and Accounts must include a signed Independent Examiner’s report. Your APCM must be held by 30th April, so you need to send these in to the Old Deanery by the end of May. Each year you are also asked to complete the Archbishops’ Council’s Annual Return of Parish Finance. This is used by the Church of England to compile statistical analysis of parish finances across the dioceses. 2014 Accounts and 2015 APCM Enclosed with this newsletter is the Archbishops’ Council’s Annual Return of Parish Finance 2014 including notes, together with a simple “aide memoire” checklist which will help you follow the correct procedures and submit everything required. We hope this will save you time and will avoid the need for us to chase missing paperwork. Please return your Annual Report and Accounts, Finance Return and completed checklist for the attention of Richard Illidge, Finance Department, Bath & Wells DBF, Old Deanery, Wells, Somerset, BA5 2UG. They can also be e-mailed to him at
[email protected]. If you pass them on via anyone else (including at the Archdeacon’s visitation) please place them in an envelope addressed to Richard.
Alternatively the Annual Return of Parish Finance can be completed online. A user name and password is required for online access can be obtained by contacting Richard Illidge on 01749 685125 or by email
[email protected] 2013 Accounts The vast majority of parishes have now sent us copies of their 2013 Annual Report and Accounts and Finance Return. If you have not yet done so, would you send them immediately to Richard at the address above? You can check whether we have received your submissions of accounts and returns due at the bottom of the following diocesan website page: http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/finance-forms-guidelines/ Charity Commission Registration If the PCC total income exceeds £100,000 in any year, the PCC has a legal obligation to register with the Charity Commission. Total income includes all restricted funds (including capital grants). Where your income exceeds the limit temporarily in ONE year, you can apply to the Charity Commission for exemption from registration. There is very useful guidance at http://www.parishresources.org.uk/pccs/registration/ which will assist you to register. The process for PCC registration is relatively straightforward. There is also a sample letter requesting permission not to register due to an exceptional one-off reason. If you are already registered you must file your 2014 annual return and accounts by 31 October 2015. The Charity Commission are starting to clamp down on defaulting charities. Independent Examination All PCC Accounts must be independently examined before the APCM . More details can be found at http://www.parishresources.org.uk/resources-for-treasurers/accounting-and-reporting/independentexamination/. The independent examiner is required to sign a report in the format prescribed and this report must be attached to the accounts submitted to the APCM and sent to us. We are aware that some parishes struggle to find an independent examiner and we are exploring how we can help you. Have you considered any of the following?
Treasurers of nearby parishes could to agree to undertake the examination for each other. The advantage of this is that they will understand the idiosyncrasies of church accounting. A member of your own church can act as independent examiner, as long as they or their close relatives are not involved in the PCC, subcommittees or any other financial matters related to the church. This might suit a busy business person who cannot offer their time on a more regular basis, but is willing to commit time once a year. If you cannot identify an independent examiner willing to assist your PCC please contact us as we are aware of one or two people who may be able to assist ( but they may charge for this service) The Association of Independent Examiners (www.acie.org.uk) have a membership directory.
For most small parishes using receipts and payments, the Independent Examiner does not need formal qualifications and the examination does not take more than half a day ( or a couple of evenings).We are considering offering some training for Independent Examiners in the summer. Would you or someone you know be willing to be trained and help your parish or another local parish in this necessary task? Please contact Chris Gould by email
[email protected] to register your interest.
OTHER FORMS AND RETURNS Survey Form 2015 – Parish Share 2016 The 2015 Annual Survey form, together with the guidance notes and a letter from the Bishop have been sent to your churchwarden. This year we will also be emailing the forms. Copies of the letter and guidance booklet can be downloaded at http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/parish-share/ Your 2016 share will be based on the declaration made. The information we are asking to be provided has been changed, so please do read the guidance carefully. The deadline for returning forms is 30th April 2015 Statistics for Mission 2014 This return was sent to your Churchwarden back in September and should have been returned by now (deadline 31 January). If your church copy has been mislaid, you can download the return, accompanying memo and notes at: http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/finance-forms-guidelines (scroll to the bottom of the page). The return may be completed manually, signed and returned to Richard Illidge in Finance as soon as possible, with a copy retained for your records. Alternatively, it can be completed on-line using a link on the same page.
DIOCESAN INFORMATION Parish Share We are pleased to report that collection rates for 2014 are above the position at the same time last year. Over 450 parishes have paid in full and we anticipate a collection rate better than last year (98.2%) In order that the DBF accounts can be finalised, any remaining 2014 share payments must reach us by 28 February, unless you have already notified us of an alternative payment schedule. Any shortfall on parish share should be disclosed in your accounts. If you anticipate a problem meeting the 2015 parish share request in full, please do alert us at the earliest opportunity. In many cases we are able to assist in some way, but we can’t help if we don’t know about it! Parochial Fees 2015 Any outstanding 2014 fees are now overdue. Please forward your fee return and payment as soon as possible to Sally Westlake. The table of 2015 parochial fees are available on the diocesan website at: http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/parochial-fees/ These statutory fees apply to services carried out during 2015. Please note that it is not within the rights of a PCC to agree to hold to a 2015 level of fees if a deposit is paid in 2015 for a 2016 service. Please contact Sally Westlake (
[email protected]) should you have any questions on parochial fees.
Diocesan recommended mileage rates In recognition of the steep fall in fuel prices over the last few months, the Diocesan optional (taxable) 52p mileage rate has been withdrawn with effect from 1 February 2015. The remaining recommended mileage rates from Archbishop’s Council are 45p (full) or 25p (running costs only). Both of these are taxfree allowances. PCCs have discretion to set their own rates but any rate above 45p is taxable. Please see the Treasurers’ Handbook for further details regarding payment of expenses
SUPPORT FOR TREASURERS Cashbook and Training Days The Treasurer’s Cashbook is a sophisticated spreadsheet application developed by Gloucester Diocese, which simplifies the recording of PCC using receipts and payments or accruals accounting. Cashbook details are available at: http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/for-treasurers/ We welcomed over 20 Treasurers to our Cashbook Training Day at the Old Deanery last week. In addition to the session topics, there were opportunities to talk to fellow Treasurers and some of the Finance team. Another Cashbook training day (using the newest version 5) is planned to be held in Taunton, towards the end of February. If you would be interested in attending please either e-mail Chris at
[email protected] or contact him by phone on 01749 685136, as soon as possible. Resources for Treasurers We recommend that every Treasurer should have the following references to-hand: Treasurers’ Handbook – this can be downloaded from http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/for-treasurers/
PCC Accountability – guidelines for accounts preparation https://www.churchofengland.org/clergy-office-holders/pcc-information/pcc-accountability.aspx
ACAT Handbook (membership required) http://www.acat.uk.com/
New Treasurers If you are a new Treasurer, it is highly recommended that you read through the Handbook. It contains much of the information you need, including a handover checklist, which should ensure that all the steps needed to handover to you have been completed. Course notes from the last New Treasurers’ Training Day held in September 2014 and the Cashbook training day can be accessed at http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/fortreasurers/ A further Training Day for New Treasurers will be held in September 2015. More details will follow, but you can register your interest with Chris now. New SORP 2015 Charites (including PCC’s of all sizes) will be required to prepare their year-end statutory accounts under a new Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) with effect from 1 January 2015. The first full set of your Church’s accounts that will need to comply with this will be those for the year ending 31 December 2015, i.e. those that you’ll produce in early 2016. Those 2015 accounts will require also 2014 comparative numbers in the new format, though this does not change the format of the accounts that you will produce for the year ending 31 December 2014. We will provide more guidance in due course, as soon as it is available so that you will be able to make any necessary changes to your 2014 categories and figures.
Parish Buying Have you taken a look at the Parish Buying Scheme? As well as savings on utility bills through their “Energy Basket” (see below), you can buy with confidence from approved suppliers to the Church of England - saving you time and money. Parish Buying includes a range of competitive national deals including office supplies, church supplies, software and photocopying plus helpful buying guides to aid your stewardship. Visit www.parishbuying.org.uk; email:
[email protected]; or call: 0800 368 0887 Utility Costs Review For the past six years the Diocese has been working in partnership with Charity Funding Solutions (CFS) to provide a cost-free utility advice and benchmarking service for our parish treasurers and clergy.) Parish Buying has an Energy Basket, negotiating a group price each year for electricity and gas .http://www.parishbuying.org.uk/categories/energy/energy-basket.html They also have negotiated bulk prices for heating oil. Further information on these (free) services can be found at http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/for-treasurers/treasurers-faqs/
CASH MANAGEMENT SCHEME Full details of the Nat West scheme are in the Treasurers’ handbook. If your church is not already a member and you would like to join, please email Imogen Taylor
[email protected] for guidance on opening an account. Although current net interest rates are quite low (0.4%) this is paid on all balances in your current account, which saves the loss of interest incurred in moving funds to deposit accounts, and saves you the time micro-managing your cash balances. Also, you will not be charged any account fees or other bank charges , and changing signatories is a very simple process. PCC Change of Signatories For those PCCs within the Diocesan Nat West Cash Management Scheme, please use the form at http://www.bathandwells.org.uk/supporting-parishes/finances/finance-forms-guidelines/ to amend the signatories on the current account. Please note that: No ID is required The full account name, exactly as detailed on the statement, must be entered The confirmation at Section 6 must be signed by 2 existing signatories (even if being removed), irrespective of their positions. Once completed, the form should be sent to: Scotland CST, 2nd Floor, Drummond House, 1 Redheughs Avenue, Edinburgh EH12 9JN. If the Treasurer is changing and the statements are to be sent to anew address, this should be requested by separate letter signed in accordance with the Mandate (usually 2 signatories). If you have any questions, please contact the Corporate Service Team at Nat West on 0845 3020621. Bank Closures Although a few Nat West branches have closed, if you have been affected, it should still be possible for you to take advantage of the Cash Management Scheme using your local post office. The main differences from bank pay-in are Cash and cheques have to be paid in separately. There is a limit of £250 coin deposits The clearing cycle takes one extra day, so cash is cleared on day 2 and cheques on day 4
Online Banking Nat West has had a number of issues in providing an online banking service to charities, who require dual authority for online payments (which is the recommended practice for charities and PCCs) .We have been advised this service may be ready in June 2015. We will let you know as soon as we have further information.
STEWARDSHIP NEWS A separate Stewardship Newsletter has been supplied with this mailing. It includes information on the following areas of interest: Resourcing Parishes: Clinics and Conversation, PCC Visits and general advice Gift Aid and Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme (GASDS) Crowdfunding Further Advice on Charity Commission registration Prayers for the ministry of Treasurers and Planned Giving Promoters at the start of a New Year
FINANCE TEAM Imogen Taylor joined the Diocese as Head of Finance in October 2014. Previously she lived in Worcester and, more recently, Cheshire- she is enjoying living in a county with a coast-line! Imogen’s background is in charitable organisations, but she has also served as PCC Treasurer, Deanery Treasurer, PCC Independent Examiner and Parish Giving Link, so she has a little insight into the valuable work you do. We are looking forward to welcoming back Jessica Cook who is returning (part-time) in April following her maternity leave. At that point other members of the Team will be reverting to their original roles and we will be recruiting a part-time accounts assistant to assist Jessica. All these changes will be updated on the website For the contact details of the Finance Team at the Old Deanery, please refer to the finance section of the website We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the time and skills you are giving for the furtherance of God’s Kingdom in your parish. Please do contact one of the Finance Team, if you have queries or need assistance with your work and we will try and direct you to the right resource to help you.
With kind regards, Imogen Taylor, Chris Gould, Sally Westlake, Juliette Hill, Richard Illidge and Hannah Goodwin DBF Finance Team 4 February 2015
