St Peter’s residents question spend on their parish rectory
MORE than £40,000 has been spent on work to the St Peter’s Rectory in just 12 months, it has emerged.
Parishioners have been challenging the expenditure.
Questions were asked at this week’s parish meeting about the large amount of spending that has taken place under the management of the parish church warden, before the property was transferred to the constables.
Following the introduction of the Parochial Ecclesiastical Rates Review Committee recommendations last June, the control of the rectory passed to the constables. But during the changeover period there is concern about how revenue from the rectory has been spent.
The rectory had been rented out for two years following extensive work and at the start of 2017 there was more than £53,000 in the rectory account. But then the rectory was vacated and prepared for new rector the Rev. Adrian Datta.
By the end of 2017 there was just £9,000 left in the account. All that money had also since been spent.
Parishioner Stephen Fell asked questions about how more than £16,000 had been spent on the building’s electrics.
Outgoing people’s warden Winston Pipet said the work was necessary and the money had come out of rents, but Mr Fell said he felt it was a misappropriation of funds.
‘That’s parish money and to spend that money you need ratepayers to agree,’ he said.
West deputy Shane Langlois, who used to sit on Perrc, said while the changeover from church to parish took place on 22 June there was a transitional period.
‘The rental income went to the church and the church wanted to spend the money on the rectory and I believe they were entitled to do that,’ he said.
He added that money from before June did not need to be transferred, but parishioner and douzenier Gloria Dudley-Owen said she felt morally that money should have gone to the parish.
Mr Datta said when the rectory was vacated last year it was in a very poor state, with electrical problems and black mould on the walls. But then it was revealed by Mr Pipet that the outgoing tenants had received their deposit back as no one had been aware of the problems.
Around £9,000 was spent redecorating the building, but that was just on material costs as an individual had done the work for free.
As a thank-you, money from the rectory account was used to buy the individual a £554 oven. More than £300 from the account was also used to give the decorator satellite television and a television licence.
‘It was a gift to them as a token of our appreciation,’ Mr Datta said.
Ratepayer Roger Perrot said the parish had been aware of the rectory account and so parishioners should have been aware money was going in and out. ‘I think this is a terrible introduction for our rector – facing lots of critical questions,’ he said.
Under the Perrc changes, Maison de la Cure will also come under responsibility of the constables.
St Peter’s dean of the douzaine Martin Ozanne said, going forward, the rectory and Maison de la Cure would come under a parish property sub-committee to manage and maintain them.
