Posted Thursday 10 June 2010 | 8:05am
Before presenting Motion 2 – that Synod accept the Annual Report and Accounts of the General Synod for the financial year ended 31 December 2009 – Convener of the Standing Committee Professor Patricia Peattie advised Synod that the missives had been concluded on the sale of St Serfs Care Home and that it had now been transferred to the new owners Fergus and Jenny Thain.
Professor Peattie paid tribute to Ian Stewart – retiring convener of the Administration Board and member of Standing Committee, saying “Ian had been a significant and constructive contributor to the work of the Standing Committee and given generously of his time and expertise.”
In turning to the Budget and Quota Professor Peattie said that long term solutions rather than short term fixes were required to reap the full benefits that the church needs and suggested that this presents a fantastic opportunity to re-think priorities and use a zero based budgeting approach. After explaining the key purposes of Quota (to support the mission and ministry of the church through pump priming new initiatives; to fund the governance of the church and general administration of the General Synod Office to manage risk effectively; to redistribute resources against identified need) Professor Peattie advised that it is recommended that Quota be increased by 3% to £602,929.
Professor Peattie concluded that it is anticipated that the Mission & Ministry Board, through its work it is currently undertaking on the development of a whole church mission and ministry strategy, will be able to identify a clearer framework within which funding decisions at provincial level can be made to support the furtherance of the church’s call to mission in Scotland and beyond yet living within its financial resources
