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1999 results We are pleased to be able to report a year of very good investment returns in 1999. With assets achieving a 22.7% total return, we outperformed our benchmark by 1.5%. The market value of our assets stood at £4,400m total and in 1999 we contributed £156.1m towards our support for the Church's ministry. Financial context But it is important to remember that our income does not and never could meet more than a relatively small share of the Church's overall running costs. In 1999 these were in the order of £760 million and the £156.1 million we provided represents little more than 20% of that total. To spend more would be to fund today's Church at the expense of tomorrow's. The lion's share of the Church's running costs is provided by parishioners. This includes the major new commitment taken on by parishes in the shape of funding clergy pensions earned after 1998. "Closing the gap" Close followers of our fortunes will know that last year, despite good investment performance, our spending commitments slightly outstripped our assets. This is still broadly the case, the gap arising from the Government's withdrawal of tax credits on dividends. Until we have closed that final gap we cannot, in all prudence, increase our present overall financial support in real terms. This makes it all the more important that we try to get the best possible value out of the money we can spend. What does our support for the Church mean to you? We target the greater part of the funds we provide for parish ministry towards those dioceses where financial need is greatest. And our payments towards the pensions of retired clergy - who often continue to minister in parishes - and towards the costs of bishops and cathedral staff, benefit parishes in all dioceses. In 1999 we provided: £20.6m parish ministry support, of which £15.1m was targeted to support parish ministry in areas of greatest need; £3.5m for bishops' stipends; £5.7m for cathedral clergy stipends and grants towards staff salaries; £86.9m towards existing clergy pension liabilities (ie the bulk of this cost); £17.3m to ease the impact of the new (parish/diocesan) pensions contributions scheme; £11.8m for bishops' stipends, housing, staff and other working costs; £10.3m towards other costs including church buildings, other church bodies and administration - the last down 30% in the last decade. Forward look We nonetheless aim to look for ways of increasing our support for ministry in areas of need and opportunity in the years ahead. Such support has always been a vital part of our mission to serve the Church and in 1999 we reaffirmed our key objective as: to increase the sustainable amount of our support for parish ministry in areas of need and opportunity, subject to the constraints upon us. During the coming year we will work with the Archbishops' Council to explore the options that, with the wider Church's assent, might be available to us. Our hope is that this work will help us ensure that our future financial support is targeted as effectively as possible towards those parts of the Church where it is most needed. Copies of full report and
summary available from the Corporate Affairs Office, Church Commissioners,
1 Millbank, London SWIP 3JZ e―mail: commissioners.enquiry@c-of-e.org.uk |
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page last updated 27 AUGUST 2000 |
