March 2019 PCC Meeting Report

The St Nicolas Church PCC met on Tuesday, 19thMarch.  Outcomes included the following:

  1. PCC Away Day: The PCC are going to have a whole day meeting now scheduled for Saturday, 6thJuly to review our Mission Action Plan and establish our priorities for the future.
  2. South Side Appeal: The Roof and Rainwater goods work will be completed by Easter (within our current level of funds) and the work on restoring the wall will be considered when further funds are available (less urgent once the wall is protected from water running down it).Fund raising will continue.
  3. Preparation for the APCM: The Annual Report is being prepared, new joint Church Wardens have been identified and PCC members who are to be re-elected are completing the paperwork.
  4. Installation of phoneline/Broadband: Approval from the Diocese is being sought to install a line into St Nicolas Church. Funding from a member of the congregation has been secured for three years.  Initially, it will be used for a contactless card reader and the church office computer and it has the potential to be used for showing online material on screen.
  5. Parish Giving Scheme: Nearly twenty people have already transferred their giving to this scheme and the PCC is committed to encouraging more church members to do the same. In addition, we are submitting an article for the Hitchin and Taplow Society newsletter about church finances and seeking other ways (like talking with local residents at events, at our school, at the Village Hall and perhaps at the shopping centre and distributing leaflets) to encourage the wider community to help us.
  6. Summer Fete: Our school has scheduled a fete for 29thJune and we need someone to represent the church in the planning process. Nicki Jeffries will support any volunteer(s) and attend the next meeting about the fete to establish agreements with the school about timings, division of takings, etc. We have identified stalls to which we can commit.
  7. Fabric Committee: It was agreed to establish a Fabric/Buildings Committee to administer all maintenance and improvement work on St Nicolas Church. It will be chaired by a Church Warden and include volunteers who can help with maintenance and hopefully someone with construction expertise.
  8. World Day of Prayer: St Nicolas Church will host next year’s global service on behalf of all the churches in Burnham and Taplow.More information later in the year.
  9. Safeguarding: The Vicar and Safeguarding Officer are attending a course in April
  10. Matters from Deanery Synod: Our involvement in training opportunities related to both safeguarding and first aid were considered.
  11. Electoral Roll: The new Electoral Roll is complete and has been a useful updating exercise. There are a few additions which will make the roll number around 80.
  12. Approval of Accounts: In preparation for the APCM, the treasurer took the PCC through the accounts which show a worrying deficit of nearly £12K. The treasurer is investigating whether any long term restricted funds may help us balance the books and the meeting discussed different contactless readers to improve ad hoc contributions.