The trustees present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in note 1 to the financial statements and comply with the charity's governing document, the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) and "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102)" (effective 1 January 2019).
The aim of the Charity as set out in its Constitution is the interlocking union and instruction of its believers according to the New Apostolic confession of faith.
The Charity fulfils its objects by promoting and teaching the New Apostolic Church faith, which is encapsulated in the Ten Articles of Faith. This work is carried out in unity with the worldwide promotion and teaching of the New Apostolic faith under the oversight of the Chief Apostle and the New Apostolic Church International.
The Charity seeks to support the spiritual care of members and guests and to care for sustained attendance and the overall participation of its members at the divine services and other events as well as to manage the donations and freewill offerings received.
Spiritual activities
The strategy of the Charity is to foster spiritual fellowship and the development of faith amongst its members. The activities of the charity are centred on the divine services which are conducted in church buildings owned by the Charity as well as in hired premises.
The divine services are open to the public who can participate in them and benefit from the spiritual fellowship and faith of the members. The divine services are complemented by pastoral visits by ministers, and a range of activities including Sunday School, Religious Instruction and Confirmation lessons, as well as activities for children, young people and seniors. Music forms an important of our worship and enhances the divine service experience. The Church website www.nacukie.org and a variety of church publications, provide members and guests with information on the Church.
Digital platforms used to stream church services and other events remain an important aspect of the church activities and provide a connection to those who prefer to participate online or who otherwise have difficulty attending in person.
Public Benefit
The Trustees have complied with their duty to have regard to the Charity Commission’s public benefit guidance when exercising relevant powers or duties. One of the core objects of the charity is to advance the Christian faith in accordance with the worldwide teachings of the New Apostolic faith in the United Kingdom and Ireland (and any other places); based on Matthew chapter 28 "to teach all nations". This is carried out locally by inviting guests, arranging special events, publishing church publications and informing via the website. Members are encouraged to invite others to participate in the activities of the charity.
All church services and other platforms are open to the public. Membership of the charity is open to any adult who wishes to join a congregation. Minors may also join subject to applicable law. Membership of the charity is diverse with many different cultures and social strands represented in the charity. The charity is associated with New Apostolic Church International which has some 9 million registered members worldwide (see https://nak.org/en/church/factsfigures).
Where possible, church properties have notice boards advising the times of services and other local information. Details are also provided on the website. Many church properties provide for disabled access and hearing loops are installed in most church buildings. The activities of the Charity are spread across various locations in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Where costs are charged to members for publications and other services, the costs are reasonable, and publications are available at affordable cost. There are no charges for becoming a member of the Charity or for performing ministrations, for example, weddings, baptisms or funerals.
Sustainability
A pilot group in the Manchester congregation has been established under the motto ‘Caring for the Creation’ to inform and educate members on sustainability. This has already had some success, and it is planned to roll out this out to other congregations and the youth groups.
Volunteers
The charity is run almost exclusively by volunteer ministers and members in the UK and Ireland who fulfil their ministerial responsibilities in an honorary capacity. The activities that complement the divine services are supported by members and attendees of all ages in their voluntary capacity. Nearly all the income is derived from the donations and freewill offerings of attendees.
The trustees are immensely grateful to our volunteer ministers, teachers and workers who each contribute their time and energy out of love for God and their neighbour.
The result for the year shows a net operational loss of £11,506. This is then adjusted for the net gain on investments in the period resulting in a net surplus of £24,828.
The legal and professional fees in 2023, which are higher than normal, include costs to correct the title on one of the properties. This issue was successfully resolved in June 2024 and legal fees going forward are expected to be significantly lower. The trustees are however, continuing the legal process to complete the registration of the charity in Ireland and Isle of Man.
Reserves policy
Our reserves policy is to maintain funds to cover operational running costs for 6 to 9 months. Approximately £200,000 of the reserves was used in 2023 to make improvements to the buildings in the property portfolio.
Principal funding sources
A high proportion of the income of the Charity was derived directly from donations and freewill offerings from church members and used to meet the operating costs of the Charity, including the provision of church services and other activities, as well as the maintenance and improvements to the Charity's properties, management and administration costs.
Investment policy and objectives
The main investment vehicle remains the NAK Special Fund. It is the view of the trustees this offers the best overall return on investment, and that the investment strategy is in line with the church beliefs. The currency exchange risk was identified as an issue, however the cost of hedging against this was deemed to not be financially viable. The trustees will continue to monitor the fund performance.
Additional funds are invested in Barclays Treasury Fixed Term Deposits which provides security combined with good accessibility.
FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS
The core objectives of the Charity are to support the spiritual care of members and guests. The Charity will aim to achieve these objectives by implementing the strategies and activities, backed by the extensive use of volunteers, described earlier in this report. The Charity is aware that external factors, including the political and economic environment, both in overseas countries where the New Apostolic Church is established and, in the UK, or Ireland, may impact on its ability to achieve its core objectives.
Estate Management
The estate is managed by the trustees, supported by the Charity Administrator. A main contractor has been appointed and an annual plan and budget is in place for ongoing maintenance and renovations as deemed necessary by the trustees. A monthly report is provided to the trustees to track the work done and works planned against the allocated budget.
Insurances - Property and fellowship at rented locations
A full review and update takes place annually and the trustees are satisfied that there is sufficient cover of property and contents insurance.
The Charity is a company limited by guarantee not having a share capital formed under the Companies Act 2006.
The trustees, who are also the directors for the purpose of company law, and who served during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were:
Recruitment and appointment of new Trustees Directors
The Declaration of Trust makes provision for the District Apostle to appoint new trustees by executing a deed. The District Apostle will consult the other trustees before an appointment is made, and the deed of appointment will then be approved by all trustees.
Publications
The Charity purchases literature and teaching materials that support the promotion of the New Apostolic Faith which are mostly published by Verlag Friedrich Bischoff GmbH by commission of the New Apostolic Church International. The literature and teaching materials are purchased by the Charity on a commercial basis which allows for the fact that the literature and teaching materials are available to a number of English-speaking countries including the UK and Ireland.
Risk management
To mitigate against the risk of management override, the trustees are provided with a detailed monthly financial report which includes the income and individual line-item of expenditure within the given month as well as for the year to date. The monthly report provides information on the bank positions and the fund performance month on month. Any spend outside of the agreed annual budget requires approval from the trustees as per the quorum set out in the Charity’s governing document.
The proportion of cash offerings continues to reduce with 81% donated online. In 2023 the local congregations were provided with QR codes to enable mobile payment. A rigorous and long-standing policy and process is in place to mitigate the risks associated with cash offerings.
To manage the risk of property valuation the trustees monitor the spend on each property and intend to implement a property asset register in 2024 to track property-related costs against the residual values of each property.
DBS checks for all active volunteers are regularly reviewed in accordance with the charity’s safeguarding policy. The trustees continue to apply their skills as outlined in the skills audit and work closely with their professional Advisors in terms of legal and accounting procedures.
A new volunteer Head of Safeguarding was recruited in 2024, and she takes on responsibility for policy, structure and training of safeguarding within the Charity, reporting to the trustees.
In addition to the above the trustees have a risk register which is reviewed and updated annually.
Organisational structure
The organisational structure relating to the religious activities of the Charity is centred on congregations and missions, which are located mainly in the UK, and are each led by a rector. The congregations are grouped into a number of geographical districts which are each led by a District Leader The District Leaders are led by an Apostle, assisted by a Bishop, and they have responsibility for the religious activities carried out by the Charity in the UK & Ireland An Apostle reports to the District Apostle and the District Apostle reports to the Chief Apostle (who is the Supreme President of the New Apostolic Church worldwide). The organisational structure relating to the business affairs of the Charity, which includes all legal, regulatory, financial, property and administrative matters is led by the trustees. and their appointed advisors. The day-to-day administration and financial matters of the Charity are carried out by an administrator who is directly supported by the Apostle who is also a Trustee. The Church administrator has been fully trained as our internal qualified Health & Safety officer.
Induction and training of new trustees
Once new trustees have been formally appointed, they are asked to sign a declaration of eligibility/willingness to act and invited to read Charity Commission guides CC3 and ‘Managing faith charities as trustees. They immediately have the opportunity to engage with issues and decisions with which the trustees become involved. This provides new trustees with peer group support enabling them to support the work of the existing trustees soon after their formal appointment.
Wider network
The Charity's religious activities are carried out in unity with the worldwide promotion and teaching of the New Apostolic faith under the oversight of the Chief Apostle and the New Apostolic Church International. The Charity's legal, regulatory, financial, property and administrative matters are directed by the trustees having regard to professional advice and what is in the best interests of the Charity.
The trustees' report was approved by the Board of Trustees.
The trustees, who are also the directors of New Apostolic Church UK for the purpose of company law, are responsible for preparing the Trustees' Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company Law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charity and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that year.
In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
- observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP;
- make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
- state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.
The trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended). They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of New Apostolic Church UK (the ‘charity’) for the year ended 31 December 2023 which comprise the statement of financial activities, the balance sheet, the statement of cash flows and the notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion, the financial statements:
Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor's responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charity in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
Other information
The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor's report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) require us to report to you if, in our opinion:
the information given in the financial statements is inconsistent in any material respect with the trustees' report; or
sufficient and proper accounting records have not been kept; or
the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records; or
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.
As explained more fully in the statement of trustees' responsibilities, the trustees, who are also the directors of the charity for the purpose of company law, are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
We have been appointed as auditor under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 and section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and report in accordance with the Acts and relevant regulations made or having effect thereunder.
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor's report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. The objectives of our audit are to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding compliance with laws and regulations that have a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, to perform audit procedures to help identify instances of non-compliance with other laws and regulations that may have a material effect on the financial statements, and to respond appropriately to identified or suspected non-compliance with laws and regulations identified during the audit.
In relation to fraud, the objectives of our audit are to identify and assess the risk of material misstatement of the financial statements due to fraud, to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the assessed risks of material misstatements due to fraud through designing and implementing appropriate responses and to respond appropriately to fraud or suspected fraud identified during the audit.
However it is the primary responsibility of management, with the oversight of those charged with governance, to ensure that the entity’s operations are conducted in accordance with the provisions of laws and regulations and for the prevention and detection of fraud.
In identifying and assessing the risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud, the audit engagement team made enquiries of management, and those charged with governance, regarding the procedures relating to identifying, evaluating and complying with;
laws and regulations and whether they were aware of any instances of non-compliance;
detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected or alleged fraud;
the internal controls established to mitigate risks related to fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations;
As a result of these procedures we consider the most significant laws and regulations that have a direct impact on the financial statements are FRS 102, General Data Protection Regulations, Companies Act, Charities Act 2011, Charities and Trustees Investment (Scotland) Act, Charities Statement of Recommended Practice and employment law and regulations. We performed audit procedures to detect non-compliance, which may have a material impact on the financial statements. These included reviewing financial statement disclosures and evaluating advice received from external advisors. There were no significant laws and regulations we deemed as having an indirect impact on the financial statements.
The audit engagement team identified the risk of management override of controls as the area where the financial statements were most susceptible to material misstatement due to fraud. Audit procedures performed included but were not limited to testing manual journal entries and other adjustments and evaluating the rationale in relation to any significant, unusual transactions and transactions entered into outside of the normal course of business.
As a portion of income is cash donations, this was also highlighted as an area of high risk for fraud and not being recorded in the accounts. Audit procedures performed included but were not limited to observing count procedures and substantive and analytical testing of income recording systems.
Valuation of property has also been included as a significant risk. Audit work undertaken to confirm that properties were valued correctly in the accounts and are not impaired included, but was not limited too, obtaining and reviewing any recent valuations carried out for the properties, discussing with the trustees their view on the value of each property, reviewing and comparing insurance values for each property and obtaining market statistics on property values for each area.
A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: https://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor's report.
Other matters
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: https://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor's report.
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the charity’s trustees, as a body, in accordance with part 4 of the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 and regulation 10 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charity's trustees those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor's report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charity and the charity’s trustees as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
The statement of financial activities includes all gains and losses recognised in the year. All income and expenditure derive from continuing activities.
New Apostolic Church UK is a private company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is 19 Southwell Park Road, Camberley, Surrey, GU15 3PU.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the charity's memorandum and articles of association, the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) and "Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effective 1 January 2019)". The charity is a Public Benefit Entity as defined by FRS 102.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the charity. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £.
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention, modified to include the revaluation of listed investments to market value at the year end. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.
At the time of approving the financial statements, the trustees have a reasonable expectation that the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the trustees continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.
Unrestricted funds can be used in accordance with the charitable objectives at the discretion of the trustees.
Designated funds are unrestricted funds earmarked by the trustees for particular purposes.
Restricted funds are donations which the donor has specified are to be solely used for particular areas of the charity's work or for a specific purpose.
Further explanation of the nature and purpose of each fund is included in the notes to the financial statements.
Items of income are recognised and included in the accounts when all of the following criteria are met:
- The Charitable Company has entitlement to the funds
- Any performance conditions attached to the items of income have been met or are fully within the control of the charity.
- There is sufficient certainty that receipt of the income is considered probable; and
- The amount can be measured reliably.
For legacies, entitlement is taken as the earlier of:
- the date on which the charity is aware that probate has been granted;
- the estate has been finalised and notification has been made by the executor(s) to the Charity that a distribution will be made
- when distribution is received from the estate.
Receipt of a legacy, in whole or in part, is only considered probable when the amount can be measured reliably and the charity has been notified of the executor's intention to make a distribution. Where legacies have been notified to the charity, or the charity is aware of the granting of probate, and the criteria for income recognition have not been met, then the legacy is treated as a contingent asset and disclosed if material.
Interest receivable
Interest on funds held on deposit or dividend income from investments is included when receivable and the amount can be measured realisable by the charity, this is normally upon notification by the relevant organisation.
Other income
Other income consists of insurance proceeds and is recognised in the accounts when there is a reasonable certainty it will be received.
Liabilities are recognised as expenditure as soon as there is a legal or constructive obligation committing the charity to that expenditure, it is probable that a transfer of economic benefits will be required in settlement and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is accounted for on an accruals basis. Expenditure is classified under the following activity headings:
Charitable activities - includes the costs of carrying out the charitable objects in promoting and teaching the New Apostolic faith and their associated support costs as well as costs incurred in supporting Youth Away days. No support costs are allocated to this activity.
Support costs are those functions that assist the work of the charity but do not directly undertake charitable activities. Support costs include back office costs, finance, personnel, payroll and governance costs. These costs have all been allocated to the main charitable activity of promoting and teaching the New Apostolic Faith.
Depreciation is provided at the following annual rates in order to write off the cost less estimated residual value of each asset over its estimated useful life.
The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the statement of financial activities.
Only items over £5,000 will be capitalised. In the main this will be items such as new Altars, Organs and new furniture.
Fixed asset investments are a form of basic financial instrument and are initially recognised at their transaction value and subsequently measured at their fair value as at the balance sheet date using the quoted market value at the balance sheet date.
At each reporting end date, the charity reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any).
The trust only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at the carrying value plus accrued interest less repayments.
Debtors
Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid.
Cash at bank and in hand
Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid deposit accounts with a short maturity date of three months or less from the opening of the account.
Creditors and provisions
Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation arising from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount.
Financial liabilities are derecognised when the charity’s contractual obligations expire or are discharged or cancelled.
The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.
The costs of short term employee benefits are recognised as a liability and an expense.
The cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee's services are received.
Pensions
The charitable company operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions payable to the charitable company's pension scheme are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities in the period to which they relate.
Rentals paid under operating leases are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities on a straight line basis over the period of the lease.
Transactions in currencies other than pounds sterling are recorded at the rates of exchange prevailing at the dates of the transactions. At each reporting end date, monetary assets and liabilities that are denominated in foreign currencies are retranslated at the rates prevailing on the reporting end date. Gains and losses arising on translation in the period are included in profit or loss.
Legal status
The Charitable Company is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. in the event of the charitable company being wound up, the liability in respect of the guarantee is limited to £1 per member of the charitable company.
In the application of the charity’s accounting policies, the trustees are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.
The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.
The key judgements and estimates made in preparing the accounts are the valuation of freehold property. The residual value has been estimated to be more than the buildings original cost and therefore no depreciation has been charged on this basis.
The trustees have made a judgement on whether each property is impaired, where such a judgement has been made this has been explained in the notes to the accounts
Hire of plant and machinery
Rent of halls for services
Rates and water for services
Light and heat for services
Church music expenses
Materials
Repairs and maintenance
Travel and subsistence
District events
Rates and water
Insurance
Telephone
Postage and stationery
Church publications
Sundries
Bank Charges
Licences
Other assurance services
Legal and Professional fees
One trustee was reimbursed a total of £251 (2022: £275) for travelling expenses.
None of the trustees received remuneration for their role as trustee. One of the trustees David Middleton received remuneration during the year of £65,925 (2022: £72,379) for his role as a Bishop of The New Apostolic Church UK. Payment is made in accordance with the charity's Articles of Association. David Middleton retired as a Trustee in January 2024.
The average monthly number of employees during the year was:
The staff costs above represent the total remuneration paid to key management personnel of the charity.
The charity is exempt from taxation on its activities because all its income is applied for charitable purposes.
The historical cost of the investments at the year end was £1,662,887 (2022: £1,626,553).
The total Investments above are held in 1 fund, which is held outside the UK.
The charity operates a defined contribution pension scheme for all qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the charity in an independently administered fund.
These are unrestricted funds which are material to the charity's activities.
The fixed fund represents the funds necessarily set aside for the charity's occupation of the land and buildings plus fixtures and fittings within those properties. This fund includes the impairment in value of two of the churches of £264,402.
The Investment fund represents the funds that are held in HI GKR Fonds. The Investment fund includes an investment revaluation reserve of £122,746 (2022: £289,872).
The property improvement fund represents funds set aside to fund architect and other professional fees to investigate the re-development of existing properties.
The cyclical maintenance fund represents funds set aside for a fixed maintenance plan and ongoing contracts for supply of services. This includes PAT testing, legionella, fire extinguisher checks, boiler servicing and similar.
The restricted funds of the charity comprise the unexpended balances of donations and grants held on trust subject to specific conditions by donors as to how they may be used.
German Church support costs - donations were received during the year from the Parent Church to support the charitable activities of the Church and to assist with meeting certain costs.
At the reporting end date the charity had outstanding commitments for future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases, which fall due as follows:
During the year purchases of £234,141 (2022: £212,773) were made from CSC UK Limited, a related company due to both of the directors of CSC UK Limited being related to a trustee. The amounts paid were on normal business terms.
Neuapostolische Kirche Norddeutschland have registered a charge over 48 Warwick Gardens, Kensington W14 8PP against loans to be provided in the future for potential property development projects.
In common with many businesses of our size and nature we use our auditor to assist with the preparation of the financial statements.