Church Centre Report 2025 made to the Annual Meeting 19th November
St Andrew’s Church Centre, now in its 24th year of operation, provides a friendly and supportive service for a wide range of users in our community. The past year has seen strong use of the Centre, operating six days a week.
New clients joining the Church Centre include Show Choir, Desert Penguins – Junior Chess club, Little Music stars – toddler music and a book club.
Trojan Speakers, public speaking classes, have been with us 14 years, and we celebrate long-standing clients including Examberry and Mind.
Rental and hiring incomes continue to improve and the Centre has been able to increase its subvention to the church. Income for the year until end June 2025 was £212,302, expenditure £203,735. (For the previous year, the figures were income £195,985, expenditure £193,686).
We are satisfied that the financial position of the charity will enable us to meet its commitments.
The Church and Centre have been the scene of many works of maintenance and improvement, organised by our Centre Manager Maureen Vincent.
- New flooring to Johnston Memorial Hall
- The Johnston Memorial Hall was surveyed for asbestos and RAAC and no problems were found
- Asbestos was removed from ground floor boiler room and a new outside door installed
- Concussive taps installed in all toilets
- Lighting upgraded to LED in the Church sanctuary, St Aidan’s Hall, reception, Johnston Lounge & Memorial Hall
- New reception furniture
- Curtain track replaced in Johnston Memorial Hall
- 5 year Electrical test undertaken
- Security alarm upgraded
The grounds continue to benefit from the energy of the new pocket allotment team led by Carol Jackson and church work parties led by John Jackson.
I would like to express my thanks to the full-time staff of the Centre led so ably by Maureen Vincent, who has completed her twentieth year with the Centre. She has been assisted throughout the year by Sam Keen, now in the third year of her role as Centre Assistant, and we want to thank them both for their friendly and welcoming presence.
We are grateful to the members of the management committee including our new Treasurer, John Mitchell, and committee members Georgina Akuoko and Peter Skerratt. We remember with thanks all the service offered to Church and Centre by the Revd Sue McCoan, now retired. Thanks are also due to our outgoing Treasurer, Robert McLeod, who continues to help and advise us in many ways. Also, to Paul Hibbins, who examined our accounts.
Am grateful to our new Trustees, Eunice Nortey and Neville Raschid, who join John Mitchell, Peter Skerratt and myself on the Church Centre Trust. You can find our annual reporting to the Charity Commission and other information on the Charity Commission website under charity number 1072110.
https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en
On behalf of the Trust, I thank everyone who has contributed to the running of the Church Centre over the past year and we look forward to the challenges of 2026.
Peter Knowles
Chairman – Church Centre Trust & Centre Management Committee
19 November 2025
