Here are the reports for the year ended December 2023 used for the APCM 2024.
| Registered Charity No 1172631
“Connecting with Jesus, with each other, with the community” |
Gleneagles Anglican Church, Wellingborough
Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting
held on Sunday 21 May 2023
Present: Rev Dawn Airey (Chair) & Chris Airey +1; Amanda Allen; Pauline Ball; Gordon & Jane Bell; Jackie Brooks-Cheesman +1; Valerie Brown; Fiona Clarke; Greg & Helen Cracknell; Bob Cutler; Marion Darker; David & Helen Downey; Bruno & Suzanna Duarte +3; Matt & Heidi Ellson; Suzy Follows +2; Ruth Gilbert; Chris & Steph Gledhill; Elizabeth Holbrook; Dan Hulland; Stephen Lomax; Carol Maycock; Alan Palmer; Alice Pettifer; Chris Pettifer; Sandi Rance; Anya Rezanova; Rob & Maria Seaman; Colin & Sue Suter; David & Lis Wells; Ludolff & Ruth Wium +2; Jean Woods.
| The Chair opened the meeting with prayer and welcoming everyone. She thanked God for everyone who had served the church over the last year. | |
| Meeting of Parishioners and Annual Parochial Church Meeting | |
| 1 | Fiona Clarke was appointed as Clerk to the meeting. |
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Apologies: John Gilyead; Mel Hartung.
Elections Dawn advised the congregation of the current ruling for elections, which is that, if there are the same number of applications for each post as there are available positions, then there is no need for a vote and the applicants are automatically appointed. Both Helen and David had been proposed and seconded previously and were automatically appointed. Election of Churchwardens The Chair thanked Elizabeth and David for all they’ve done over the past year, particularly regarding the new church building of All Saints Church, Great Harrowden. Dawn gave Elizabeth a present for all her help and support over the last six years. · Elizabeth has served the maximum number of terms (6) so had to step down this year. However, she has agreed to be Assistant Churchwarden. · David Wells was elected to continue as Churchwarden. · Helen Cracknell was elected as the second Churchwarden. She is stepping down from being PCC Treasurer. |
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Minutes of last APCM dated 22/05/2022.
The minutes from the last APCM were agreed by the majority at the meeting, however, some had not been at the APCM in 2022. Dawn will sign and file them. Deanery Synod · Heidi Ellson is continuing as Deanery Synod rep. The current term ends 31/06/2023 but under the rules she can be re-elected for a further three-year term. · Helen Cracknell has stepped down from her role as Deanery Synod rep this year, having taken on the role of Churchwarden. · No reps were appointed at the meeting but there is one vacancy. Dawn asked anyone interested in this role to contact her for completion of the appropriate application paperwork.
Election of PCC Members PCC members can serve up to three years. None of the existing PCC members have served three years and they have agreed to continue for another year. However, Jackie Bello has moved away from the Parish and has, therefore, stepped down from the PCC leaving three lay vacancies, filled by: – · Melanie Hartung · Alan Palmer · Elizabeth Holbrook Each of these had already been proposed and seconded and were automatically appointed. |
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| 7 | Safeguarding
The duties are split as follows: · John Gilyead is responsible for DBS, training, and safeguarding. · Amanda Allen (Parish Administrator) is responsible for Safer Recruiting. If someone moves into a role Amanda collates their applications, references, etc. |
| 8 | Finance Report
· No Questions were forthcoming regarding the Finance Report. · Dawn encouraged giving regularly. · Lis Wells is taking over as Treasurer as Helen is stepping down. |
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Vicar’s Report –
Dawn reminded everyone that we are the body of the church, and each have roles to play. She said that people have lost sight of God’s supernatural presence and that in 2022 we needed courage to go forward. 2022 was a year of two halves with the second half being more hopeful as we learn to live with a new normal, and to rebuild the church community by: · Glenvale Park Community days · Weekly church at Glenvale Care Home · Coffee, Cake, and Chat – which has now stopped, as it did not fulfil its purpose, but nevertheless allowed us to engage with the community.
Regarding the reordering of All Saints, there will be further news at the end of summer.
Dawn reminded the congregation of the encouragement from the prophesy given to her, which indicated that the Lord is preparing and equipping his church to be more spiritual and to make new disciples. The Church of England has seen a 70-year decline, experiencing birth pains as God reshapes His church. Throughout history, there have been significant changes/ reformation to the church roughly every 500 years. The church nationally is now in that phase. 2023 is a growing year.
As we emerged from the pandemic, we are the remnant, and it is taking time for us to adapt and reorder ourselves.
From the prophesy, we are in the third year with the winter past and spring on its way. This year we will start to grapple with what the church will look like going forward.
We will be focusing on shaping Connect Groups to fulfil our vision of, ‘Connecting: with Jesus, with each other, with the community.’ We will do this by: · Connecting with Jesus: o Through study o Prayer for one another o Prophesy · Connecting with each other: o Building friendships o Being honest about our home lives o Mutual support o Mutual discipling Acts 2 describes actions of early biblical community meetings in small groups, in each other’s homes, and caring for each other.
Connect Group leaders will now become facilitators, and we will be looking at how Connect Groups work.
At present there is a very small Care Team attempting to watch out for everyone. Due to the very limited numbers this team may cease to exist. We need everyone caring for everyone. We all have things to offer each other.
There are currently only four Connect Groups, and this number will need to increase.
Belonging to a connect group will look different for every one of us: · Some will take an active part and physically attend the meetings. · Some will just use the group for communication. · Some will only attend the social events. Everyone will receive an invitation to join a group and can try another group if the allocated group does not suit their needs.
Through Connect Groups we can learn to love and care for each other and gain a feeling of belonging.
Questions about the APCM reports · One person wished to know what measures were being taken to make sure that All Saints is accessible for disabled people. Dawn advised that: – o There are two accesses, one with steps and the second a slope. o The flooring inside is level, except for a step up to the bell tower, which will be ramped to allow access to the disabled toilet that will be constructed within. o There are a few steps in the Chancel and an auto-platform will be installed. · There were no other questions. |
There being no other business the Vicar thanked everyone for attending and the meeting closed with prayers and a reading from Hebrews 12:1-4.
ANNUAL REPORT
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2022
FOR GLENEAGLES ANGLICAN CHURCH,
WELLINGBOROUGH, PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL
REPORTS OF CHURCH MINISTRY AND MISSION
Church attendance
The total on the Electoral Roll for 2023 is 74. Last year it was 78, with 21 names being removed where people have left the church and 17 new names added.
Marion Darker – Electoral Roll Officer
Report on the work of the PCC
The PCC is made up of the following – ex officio members, who are the Incumbent, the churchwardens, and Deanery Synod representatives. The other members of the PCC are elected at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM). Deanery Synod representatives fulfil a three-year term, but new rules since 2020 enable them to stand for two terms before standing down for at least one term. Churchwardens are elected every year. They can be re-elected but can only serve up to six consecutive years and then have a break of at least one year before standing for re-election. Elected PCC members may remain on the PCC for up to three years and stand again after a one year wait. Most of the existing PCC members were elected two years ago at the APCM in May 2021, although one was elected last year at the APCM in May 2022. There is allowance for election of an additional three PCC members and one Churchwarden at this year’s APCM (2023).
The PCC is empowered to co-opt two additional members after the APCM for a particular purpose, regardless of vacancies, but only until the next APCM and then they would need to be elected. The PCC is required to have a Standing Committee, its membership comprises the Incumbent, Churchwardens and Treasurer.
As Gleneagles Anglican Church is a registered charity, members of the PCC are registered with the Charity Commission as trustees. The responsibilities of the trustees are detailed in the Trustees’ Report.
The full PCC met six times during this year, with an average attendance of 94%. Jeremy Bullock resigned from Church Warden at the start of the year, but a new Church Warden and new PCC member were elected at the APCM bringing the total to 12 members.
Members of the PCC also met together with church leaders in November 2022, after a short PCC meeting included above. This was for their annual half day of discussion, prayer and worship that helps formulate Gleneagles’ Vision for the coming year.
Given its wide responsibilities, the Ministry Leadership Team (MLT) look after hands-on mission and ministry covering the Under 18’s Ministry and pastoral care. The MLT is accountable to the PCC. At every meeting the PCC considers reports from each member of the MLT, and others who cover areas of the three priorities highlighted in the Church Vision, together with reports from Deanery Synod. The Treasurer also presents regular reports on the church finances. All are responsible to the PCC and report back to it regularly. Their reports are received by the full PCC and discussed, as needed.
Fiona Clarke – PCC Secretary
Vicar’s Report
I would like to start in my usual fashion by thanking our churchwardens, Elizabeth and David, the PCC, the Ministry Leadership Team, Connect Group leaders and our small staff team of Amanda Allen (Parish Administrator), Rob Seaman (Ordinand) and Alice Pettifer (Intern). This is an extremely hard-working team and I feel so privileged to work alongside them.
One of the things I enjoy about Gleneagles church is that we understand we are all involved in the mission of God wherever we are and whoever we are with…..and all work hard to join in with what the Lord is doing…thank you. As the church in this locality, we are this parish’s glimpse of heaven, and I love being part of it.
Last year I reminded us of one of Paul’s storm stories in Acts 27, and while the crew had a sense of where they were heading there were still some storms to navigate. In January 2022 I wondered if the Lord was preparing me for a year in which there would be some shaking in our church community alongside some significant changes – and indeed there were our own storms to work through. So often the way that God works with His people who are going through extraordinary change or difficulty is to meet that with the extraordinary resources of heaven. We were given a number of prophetic words last year but the one that stands out for me has its biblical basis in 1 Kings 17. Elijah was fed by ravens at the brook which are opportunistic birds and not known for sharing. Provision for Elijah came from an unexpected source and the Lord seemed to be saying to us that He would provide for us from unexpected sources. We have seen this fulfilled over and over again and it has been a huge encouragement to us. We are sons and daughters of the King of Kings, the God of the impossible!
By the end of 2022 it felt as though we were very much on our way to committing to walking the way ahead together; to encouraging and building one another up in prayer; in being community; taking hold of the call He has put within each of us; committing to gather our energies, time and passions around the new vision; and take hold of what the Lord was putting in front of us.
Some highlights for me in the last year have been:
-New ministries started & current ministries growing
-I have really enjoyed working with our small emerging staff team
-Ministry to Glenvale Park has increased
-The Easter rock hunt
-Double the numbers at our Christmas services
-Our first community days in the summer
-A growing presence in our parish
Looking forward:
I love how the Lord prepares us. Before I came to Gleneagles Church the Lord gave me the following scripture – Isaiah 37:30-32:
30 “This year you will eat what grows by itself, and the second year what springs from that. But in the third-year sow and reap, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.
31 Once more a remnant of the kingdom of Judah will take root below and bear fruit above.
32 For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
In my first couple of years here, as we emerged from the pandemic, there were many who looked around and wondered what had happened to the church, nationally as well as locally here at Gleneagles. We were the ‘remnant’ and it took time to adjust. Year 1 & 2 were about re-orienting ourselves, and starting to respond to what the Lord was putting in front of us. But it is in year 3 (2023 for us) where we ‘sow and reap’. And at the beginning of 2023 we received another prophetic word from Song of Songs 2 ‘the winter is past’ and spring is on its way. I don’t know all that this all means but I think it’s good!!!
Rev. Dawn Airey – Vicar
Churchwardens’ Fabric Report
During the past year there have continued to be challenges with the acquisition of the new building, yet very fruitful moves forward, not least the recognition of the new parish name that was recently chosen.
All Saint’s Church is a very old building and has some very big challenges as we continue to seek permission to make it fit for the 21st century and to care for it into the future. There are many parties with views on these changes and all demand time given to their interests, wisdom to negotiate with them, and resources to back all this effort up. The Diocesan Advisory Committee has been particularly concerned about the doom painting above the arch to the chancel which needs to be preserved, and consultations with a conservation expert have been required. Subject to the views of outside agencies we now have permission for Phase 1 of the alterations including installing effective heating, removal of pews to be replaced by chairs, erection of a theatre curtain between the nave and chancel, removal of the organ and first fix for the servery in the chancel.
Last year the PCC agreed to try to sell the plot of land on Farm Road, which is owned jointly by the Diocese and our parish. A buyer has not yet been found but negotiations are still being pursued with Carter Jonas Property Advisors in conjunction with the Diocese. The Diocesan Board of Finance have generously agreed that we can have part of their portion of the funds from the sale towards the cost of the re-ordering work at Great Harrowden.
Whilst we remain based at Redwell Primary School, articles belonging to the church, and used for worship and other activities, are stored in a shed on the school grounds. Everything is in good order, with no evidence of deterioration due to damp. Other items are used in the church office at the Vicarage. Electrical equipment and the lectern are stored within the school. Items are repaired or replaced as necessary, and the costs are borne from church funds under the oversight of the PCC. The PCC made the decision to replace the old office printer with a contract for a leased printer. We are now using the school’s in-built screen instead of the projector screen. This has removed the need for setting up both the aging screen and projector.
This report comprises the Terrier report, together with the report on the Church Inventory and Logbook.
In conclusion, we would like to acknowledge and give thanks for the hard work and dedication of those who fulfil so many duties across our church life, who make our task so much easier by their selfless service.
David Wells and Elizabeth Holbrook, Churchwardens
Financial Review for 2022
The church has two bank accounts: – a General Account, and a Building Account. Any spending from the Building Account is restricted to works associated with the building. The General Account is for general use but does have within it restricted monies that has been given for specific purposes, such as social events.
This year the accounts were examined by Mrs G Carter.
She has made three recommendations:
- Treasurer should provide you with receipts/invoices for the broadband/telephone monthly claim which are made. Mileage claims should also have more information with regards total miles & reason for journey.
- If you hold an event, it would be helpful if you had a summary in the expense’s folder. E.g., Wreath making & Xmas meal. Just total number of participates x £ charge less the costs.
- We had a lot of problems with the transfers between the accounts. If in future a receipt is paid into the wrong account, may I suggest in the software package you key it as a receipt and payment to the same nominal code – so it is straight in and out. Then in the correct bank account you show it as a receipt coded as if it had been paid there correctly in the first place.
GENERAL ACCOUNT We started the year with £3,396 in the bank account and ended the year with £ 9,524.
Restricted Money
There are three main restricted spending areas, these are money held for social events, money given for wages and expenses plus the Discretionary Fund (Acts2Fund or Family in Need).
There has been no expenditure from the Discretionary fund this year and has a balance of £1,460.
At the end of the year there was a surplus of £407 following social event in 2021. The remainder of the money in the Restricted General Account is for wages of the intern, and expenses related to staff. At the end of the year there was a balance of £8,540 in the Restricted Fund.
Unrestricted Money,
Our total expenditure was £82,974 and our total income £81,621. The Finance Team are pleased to be able to report that most of our Parish Share, £61500, was paid for 2022. In addition, £5,000 of our 2021 Parish Share was paid in January 2022. This is the largest expenditure for the church. We continued to support our many Mission Partners this year. The main source of our funding still comes from the congregation.
| GENERAL ACCOUNT (Unrestricted money) BUDGET 2022 | |||
| Receipts | Budget 2023 | Actual 2022 | |
| Planned Giving – Parish Giving Scheme | 49000 | 45972 | |
| Collections – Other giving eg plate and online | 15000 | 19048 | |
| Gift Aid recovered | 14000 | 13097 | |
| Other receipts | 3000 | ||
| Fundraising | |||
| Church activities | 3000 | 2491 | |
| TOTAL | 84000 | 81621 | |
| Payments | Budget 2023 | Actual 2022 | |
| Parish Share | 69,780 | 66500 | |
| Missionary Giving | 3000 | 3040 | |
| Clergy and staff costs | 3500 | 3334 | |
| Church running costs | 11000 | 10100 | |
| Transferred to Building Fund | |||
| TOTAL | 87280 | 82974 | |
PCC have agreed to set a deficit budget for a second year.
BUILDING ACCOUNT (Restricted Fund) We started the year with £56,759 in the bank account and ended the year with £56,864. There has been limited activity in this fund. Paying for the inspection of the Doom painting was the main expense and we received a donation to cover some of the expenditure.
We thank God for his generous provision during 2022 which enabled us to sustain ministry. We pray that this will continue.
Statement of Financial Activities 01 January 2022 to 31 December 2022
Key Vision Areas:
Discipleship
In the Autumn term we introduced ‘Tuesday Teaching evenings’. The idea being that we have occasional extra teaching series on a short-term basis. In the first term we ran a 4-week series for those who are new to the church, out of which a new Connect Group was formed led by Rob Seaman. Looking ahead to 2023, we plan on using those evenings for a Lent course and basic training in prophetic ministry.
- Connect Groups
During the early part of the year there were some changes in the number of Connect Groups, related to leadership changes. The situation became more stable from the Autumn Term, with three established groups. There were two daytime groups, one for ladies and the other a mixed group, alongside the Monday evening group. Groups continued to generally meet fortnightly.
All three group leaders agreed to follow the same topic, a study of Acts. This has proved to be really successful, leading to some interesting, sometimes challenging discussions. The leaders tend to meet at least termly to discuss progress.
We realised that we needed another evening group, so Rob and Maria Seaman have started a new Connect Group on Wednesday evenings. This new group is based upon the Discipleship courses Rob led in the Autumn Term
Greg Cracknell – Connect Group Co-ordinator
Under 18’s Ministry
- Under 11s ministry
Wellitots
Approximately half of the team stepped down in Summer 2022 and we wondered if we might need to close the group. Thankfully a new team developed, and we were ready to continue in September 2022. The group moved to the Hub at the school in November 2022 which meant the session time could be extended. It has proved to be a much better venue. The numbers throughout 2022 were quite low and the team were hopeful that the group would grow again with the move to the Hub – we will need to wait and see.
Sunday Club
Sunday club continues to be appreciated by children and parents. There is a great group of volunteers who lead and help with the groups. Huge thank you goes to each of them for their willingness to guide the children in their individual journeys with the Lord.
Regular numbers are around 7 for the primary age children and 4 for the creche children although not all of them will be together at the same time.
The children in the crèche enjoy playing and having fun in the sessions and the older group are currently using the SALT material MOSAIC, as we find it ideal for smaller groups. Activities are always very varied and inclusive and a good combination of learning whilst having fun.
Ignite
Ignite continues to be quite a popular group with an average attendance of between 15-20 children.
At the beginning of the year, we continued to have a birds-eye view of the Bible with important stories from the New Testament, including the young years of Jesus, parables and miracles of Jesus and Easter, for which we used some of the ‘Experience Easter’ ideas. Following Easter, we continued to walk through the Bible to the end of the school year.
In September we welcomed some new leaders including Sandra Labuschagne, Rob, and Alice. Anna has taken a more leading role and has prepared the craft, which the children really enjoyed! This gave us more opportunities of doing things in a different way and more time to pray opportunities as well as more time with the children. We started the year looking at the armour of God which the children really enjoyed, especially the boys.
Jon from NAYC has visited the group on a number of occasions and it has been really good to try new things and games.
On different occasions, children have been invited to be part of a group leading one of the songs at the All-Age Service. Some of them attended the first time, but the second time wasn’t greatly attended due to half term and a disco at the school stopping the children from coming to Ignite. We will continue to think of different ways to invite the children to this service, and to other things run at church, such as Christingle, Light and carols event and Carols at Glenvale.
It has been a blessing to see how the children are learning and remembering the stories and are happy to be part of prayers or retelling previous stories.
School’s work
Invitations to engage with Redwell School in 2022 increased, in part due to the ethos of a new Head Teacher. This has meant we were invited to be present at school assemblies/plays and special days at school. We continued to run several wellbeing groups throughout the year with different year groups….and were able to invite a number to Ignite and Ignite Youth as a result. We once again made a pre-recorded assembly for Easter and then for Christmas which were shown to the whole school. On both occasions we were able to advertise the seasonal family events – namely the rock hunt (& new Good Friday event) at Easter and then the carol & Christingle services at Christmas.
Looking forward we hope to be able to do more with and in the school, possibly introducing a Scripture Union initiative called ‘It’s Your Move’. This programme aims to equip children in year 6 as they make the transition to secondary school.
The building of Glenvale Park school began in 2022 but its opening has been delayed until September 2024. The Diocesan academy trust (PDET) will make a bid to run the school when bids are invited, so please be praying for this.
Other witnessing opportunities…
Following the popularity of the rock hunt last year, we decided to do it again this year with around 200 stones going out around the parish during Holy Week. This was finished with an activity morning on Good Friday which was very well attended and gave us a great opportunity to speak about easter and introduce the church to the families attending.
During the summer we had our first Community Days at Glenvale Park at the beginning of the school holidays. These were three days full of crafts, games, drinks and cakes, and finished with an inflatable obstacle course. This was very well received by the community and a great number of people attended from the community and further afield. Some people from the care home also visited the Community Days. The developers were very pleased with them and asked us to do it again in 2023.
It was fantastic to see a great number of church family working together and being involved in the preparation and/or the delivery of the Community Days.
In December we had our second Christingle, which was very popular, with the hall being full and everybody taking part. A number of the children and families from our groups attended the Christingle.
I would like to thank everybody involved in the children’s ministry for all the incredible work they do with all the children and families we are in contact with. They are a fantastic bunch doing a great job.
Please pray for all of us, that God will continue to give us the passion and the opportunities to present the gospel to all the children attending the groups and that He will continue to guide us in His will for all the groups and all of us. Also please pray for all the children attending, that God will work incredibly in their hearts.
Maria Seaman
- Youth Ministry Report
This year we have re-structured our youth ministry. We are running the same three groups as before. They are as follows:
- Ignite Youth. This is an outreach group which meets each Thursday evening (term-time). The group has around 25 young people who are regularly involved and is growing at a quick pace. It involves games, craft, and a tuck shop. There is a short 2/3-minute faith-based talk at each session.
- This group is led by Sarah Howes (Wellingborough Mission Enabler). The group is also connected to NAYC (Northamptonshire Association of Youth Clubs).
- Connect Youth. This is a discipleship group which runs fortnightly on Sunday afternoons. The sessions are structured with games, a meal, and then a faith-based discussion. There are 7 young people who are currently committed to the group.
- Sunday Youth. This is the group which meets during Sunday services and at present has 3 committed young people. It is focussed on Bible teaching and prayer.
The vision is that these groups will feed into one another, and that those attending Ignite Youth may choose to get involved with our discipleship groups. We have seen this happen in a few of our young people, which is a sign that the groups are operating well.
Team
I want to say a huge thank you to the Youth team, from those who have been involved every week to those who help occasionally:
Sunday mornings: Steph Gledhill, Jackie Brooks-Cheeseman, Helen Downey, Jazz and Chris Greene.
Sunday Youth: Hosted by Sam & Lisa Carew, led by myself and supported by Revd. Dawn.
Ignite Youth: Sarah Howes, Maria, Anna, Martin, Tim Tompkins and the Aireys (and on the tuckshop – Sue, Valerie and Bob).
Looking ahead
- In 2023 the Sunday afternoon group will be re-named ‘Connect Youth’ to establish a clear link between our groups.
- In Spring 2023, Connect Youth will begin the Youth Alpha course.
There have been some team changes and there are some team needs:
- Ideally, we would like another male leader for Ignite Youth.
- In 2023 Sarah Howes is slightly reducing her time at Ignite Youth to help other churches in the deanery.
Alice Pettifer – Youth Team Leader.
Wholeness in Jesus/ Wellbeing
- Care Team
Pastoral Care at Gleneagles Anglican Church has continued to operate through Connect Groups and by direct contact with the Care Team providing fellowship, friendship and practical help where needed. We have seen new faces in church over the past year and each has been greeted by our congregation and received a Welcome Pack from the Care Team. The Welcome Pack comprises information about the groups that meet within the church and a contact form to complete which gives access to the church emails and notices. Care team members over the past year have been Valerie Brown, David Downey and Elizabeth Holbrook. I want to thank them all for all they do, both in terms of responding to the needs of church members, and for the support they offer me in co-ordinating the “keeping in touch” aspect of the role.
Helen Downey – Pastoral Care Ministry Leader
- Prayer Ministry Report
- There has been a greater focus on the importance of prayer this year, with the congregation being encouraged to ask for prayer during services more often as a response to the themes being addressed in sermon series.
- As a result, more people are coming forward for prayer.
- We have revised our procedure for prayer during services in response to an occasion where the Spirit was very evident and caused someone to fall backwards. Whilst it is not necessary to have 2 people pray for someone when we are in a public space, we are now ensuring that we pray in pairs, with one person praying and the other observing for any signs of falling etc. This is for safety and the reassurance of everyone.
- With an increased number of people requesting prayer, we are expanding the team and two new members are joining us. (More are always welcome). A training session will be held for them which will also be a refresher for existing members of the team.
- In the interests of good practice and accountability, all members of the team must attend a training session in person to be able to minister to others.
- The Prayer Chain continues to be effective in its response to prayer requests. Requests come from congregation members for themselves or for people that they know.
- It is very encouraging that there has been lots of testimony given that God is hearing and responding to our prayers.
- Huge thanks as always to our prayer chain members and our Prayer Ministry volunteers for their faithful service in this essential area of ministry.
Jackie Brooks – Cheesman
- Social Events
The aim of this group is to organise 4 social events a year, one per quarter.
We try and include activities that appeal to all ages.
In 2022 we held the following-
- March – ten pin bowling, 24 attended after an initial slow take up and several people commented that they enjoyed it.
- July – Shared lunch after church, enjoyed by those that stayed.
- September – Treasure trail round Great Doddington which was a walk and tea and cakes afterwards, lots of friends and family also joined in.
- November – we assisted Dawn with the wreath making and refreshments.
- November – Christmas meal at the Merry Miller which had a great turnout and went well.
We are always happy to listen to any suggestions for any future get togethers.
Sally, Helen, and Heidi
- Bereavement and Loss Support Group
The Bereavement Support Group continues to grow on Facebook. Over the last year the Group started meeting in person on 2nd & 4th Thursday afternoons at the Social Club. Valerie and Cynthia host this group.
Dawn Airey
- Glenvale Park Care Home – Outreach
There have been many exciting and positive developments in our engagement with Glenvale Park Care Home, now part of our parish, over the past year.
One-off events have included some of the residents coming to participate in the Community Days which were facilitated in July 2022; several seemed to enjoy the games and the crafts provided which was wonderful (and at a time when most of the site was still its early stages of development.) At Christmas, we worked alongside ecumenical partners to facilitate a community carol event at the home which was both well attended by the community and appreciated by the home.
Whilst Dawn had gone in sporadically to lead services and, on occasion, to pray with residents, from September 2022, when I commenced ordination training, we established a weekly service at the home, which happens on a Tuesday afternoon. We have had the privilege of facilitating the service most weeks except when our team is unable to be there, or the home has other events or needs to close its doors for health-related reasons.
The service, starts at 2pm, is normally attended by 12+ residents plus one or two staff members, lasts about 30 minutes and includes worship songs, prayer activities, some liturgy and occasionally communion. The service seems very well received and it is a real blessing to see God’s presence descend into that space where many struggle with confusion and related anxiety.
In mid-November 2022, we started ‘Coffee, Cake and Chat’ – the team being led by Valerie Brown, running immediately after the service from 2.30 – 4pm. The home was very happy for us to use their custom-built tearoom (free of charge) to facilitate an opportunity for the community, alongside the residents, to come in and have a drink and a chat.
Whilst the residents have loved all the glorious cake and coffee, the numbers attending from the community have been disappointing. It is difficult to determine whether this is an issue of timing, location or whatever – but the team has happily served the residents and it has been a good opportunity for us to lavish our love upon them and to engage with the staff. Given the limited people available to facilitate such outreach, we are mindful of the need to put energy into things which are achieving their objectives; as a result, Coffee, Cake and Chat may cease in the coming months although the service, and contact with the home, will continue.
Rob Seaman
- Reading Group Report
The Group met six times during the past year.
The books we read are suggested from within the group and both the subject matter, and the authors and their styles, quite diverse.
We have read one biographical work by Philip Yancey alongside books on the practice of silence and solitude, how to hear God (Pete Greig) and Just Living, by Ruth Valerio which reflects on faith and community in an age of consumerism, amongst others.
We are a small group of four, currently, we take around 6 weeks to read a book and then have an informal discussion which lasts about an hour to chew over our likes, dislikes and the things that have blessed or challenged us.
We would hope that others will feel able to join us either for specific books which take their fancy or for all those we read. For more information speak to me or Helen Downey.
Rob Seaman
- Sung Worship Team
The past year has been one of considerable change, and blessing, for the Sung Worship Team.
During the year Carl, Steve and Alex all moved on to pastures new – we are thankful for their gifts and willingness to be involved in the enrichment of our sung worship over many years.
Encouragingly Steph, Ezra, Jasmine, and Ruth W have all stepped forward and are now included on the rota, with varying frequency. We are blessed to have such a broad range of skills, and of people willing to roll up their sleeves and get involved and it is a privilege to be part of this work.
Following Steve’s departure, leading of sung worship is shared between myself and Alex Palmer but we need to pray that God will provide us with other sung worship leaders in the coming months in advance of my departure in June 2024. We are already considering this issue and know God will come up with something greater than we can conceive or imagine.
Rob Seaman
- Hope into Action
Both of our tenants moved out of the Hope Into Action house this year. One tenant moved out in March 2022 and the second in July 2022 Both moved into one bedroomed flats in Wellingborough and are successfully maintaining their tenancies. A Ukrainian family moved into the house in July under the Homes for Ukraine scheme. After six months they opted to move out. As the church’s Hope Into Action project is now ending, in January 23 the house was put up for sale and is currently under offer.
Jane Bell
Safeguarding Report
Our members at Gleneagles are very committed to their faith and serve in many ways. We have lots of people who volunteer with groups organised by the church and most of these need DBS certificates. Since May 2022, 8 people have got DBS certificates and 10 have done the Safeguarding Training – some of this training has been done online, but we have also reintroduced it face-to-face which allows more discussion and sharing of ideas. We are also planning more training sessions for the near future. Thank you so much to everyone who volunteers. Thank you to everyone who has returned forms, gone online to do the paperwork, met up for training and made the first year in this role for me very straightforward.
John Gilyead Safeguarding Officer
Deanery Synod Report
Deanery Synod has met throughout the year at different churches in the Deanery. The meetings have been very useful allowing attendees to share their responses to a range of issues affecting them, such as the energy crisis. At each meeting there is usually a speaker who presents on a specific area of ministry. These have included stewardship, card readers, Thy Kingdom Come, and the Gen2 team and intergenerational ministry.
The meetings are always a good way to connect with people from other churches across the Deanery.
Helen Cracknell and Heidi Ellson
Approved by the PCC in April 2023
Signed: Dawn Airey (Vicar) Date: 24/04/2023
