On the 2nd July 70 Members, Trustees and guests met for the London Conference which included the 13th Annual General Meeting.

as Trustee, many of them as secretary. The Chairman also welcomed James Dunlop and Robert Scott-Biggs to the board of Trustees and Trevor James & Pauline Montague back as re-elected members.

The first of our key note speakers was Gareth Morgan a senior leader from Everyday Champions Church, Newark.  

The speaker before lunch was Andrew Rainsford, the Stewardship Advisor for the Diocese of Bath & Wells.  His innovative approach to raising funds was not only thought provoking but very practical.

Paul Hewitt a solicitor that specialises in Contentious Trust and Estates was the final speaker of the day.  As with all things legal it is very easy to get things wrong. Paul highlighted some of the more common pitfalls regarding wills and legacies and then gave hints on how to avoid them.

He spoke of his vision of starting a church in Newark that would meet the challenges of the 21st century. Since 2000 he has taken an empty shell of a warehouse in the middle of an industrial estate and changed into a vibrant, energetic and successful church. During the week the building is used for a variety of

activities,  a crèche, a cafe, a conference centre and many one-off  activities. The  vision  has  not stopped there but continues with plans for an academy to be built next door to the Church, these plans are well under way. You can see a video clip of Gareth’s keynote address to conference by clicking here

During the meeting, the Chairman, Cyril Wood, on behalf of all members of ACAT took the opportunity to wish Ron Norey a happy retirement and to thank him for his work writing and developing the handbook and for 12 years

The day concluded with a longer than usual Members Question time.  Topics discussed included, on-line banking, demise of cheques, Member’s Area on ACAT website, Insurance cover when others use Church premises, to name but a few.