PCC Meeting Minutes 6/7/26

Published 14/10/2026

Minutes of the PCC Meeting

Held on Monday 6th July 2026

 

    Action
1 The meeting opened at 19.12  
     
2 Attendance  
  ·       Chiaz Alozie, Fiona Clarke (PCC Secretary),  Helen Cracknell (Churchwarden), Matt Ellson (Churchwarden and Vice Chair),  Matt George, Ben Haughton-Scales (Curate), Livvi Haughton-Scales(Curate), David Meleleu,  Alan Palmer (Deanery Synod), Martha Senabulya, David Wells, Ruth Wium.

·       Apologies:    Dawn Airey (Chair),  Jackie Brooks-Cheesman, Melanie Hartung (Deanery Synod), Sandi Rance.

  
     
3 Previous Minutes  
  The Minutes of the Meetings held on 13th April and 26th April 2026 were approved by all who had been at the meeting and were signed off by Matt Ellson.  
     
4 Matters Arising  
  ·       People, including some PCC members, still need to do the Raising awareness of domestic abuse training as well as the Basic awareness and Foundations levels of the Safeguarding training, plus DBS.

·       Communion Table – this arrived by has an error in its text. It will be returned to the prison to be corrected before September.

·       The printer was moved to the Curates’ house and the plan is to set up the church office and move the printer there in August provided the Wi-Fi issues have been resolved.

·       Martha has now signed the Declaration of Interest and Fitness to serve paperwork.

·       Photos of all new PCC members were received and the “Who’s Who” section of the website has been updated.

  
     
5 Update on Key Priorities – See Appendices 1 – 3.  
  1.   Discipleship (DA)

·     No decisions and no comments.

 

2.   Under 18s (DA-Under 11s/ BH-S- Youth)

·     HC congratulated the team on the number of youth and also for maintaining links with Redwell School.

·     There is a meeting with the children and young people volunteers on Sunday to thank them.

·     No decisions  to be made.

 

3.    Wholeness in Jesus/ Wellbeing (DA); Prayer (JBC).  –

·       Prayer Ministry –

o   PCC members had training in February but some still do not feel equipped or comfortable to do this on Sunday mornings after the service. Also the new PCC members did not have the training and others were absent. Ben will liaise with Jackie to see if she can repeat the training to all PCC members.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BHS
     
6 Finance Report – See Appendix 4  
  Treasurers Report

·         HC sent questions to Dale the meeting:

o    I notice Giving is down by about 75% compared to this time last year, are there any factors PCC should know about? I presume that you mean down to 75% of what the total this time last year.  According to Jem, lost a major regular contributor towards the back end of last year. Combined, the increase in Sum up giving is less than the reduction in contributed loose plate.  There is a specific reason for the online giving but I can’t provide that in detail without disclosing the donors.

o    It is disappointing we have only contributed £11,000 to the diocese, what would you estimate the amount we are likely to pay by the end of the year? I’ve contributed all available up to the end of April and then, as my report states, I contributed a further £3,500 which is the balance on the unrestricted funds at the end of May.  As for estimating, that is difficult to say as there is so much moving.  For example, in May someone kindly paid £287 via the Sum up machine which was then repeated in June and this is new.  To be honest, unless the giving increases significantly, it’ll be a lot less than last year.

o    I am assuming the increase in Administrator’s wages is due to increase in hourly rate, am I correct?  Partly and of course that is governed by the National Living Wage.  If I recall, there were a number of months last year when the Diocese took some time to bill the amounts which then caught up in June.

o    Have the hall hire cost gone up? There was a long period last year when it wasn’t billed for which there was a catch up paid in October.

o    Has there been a major church running expenses to explain the expenditure of £1340. We paid the CCLI in April which was settled in July last year.

RESTRICTED MONEY

o   What is the MES Grant? Ministry  Experience Scheme grant of £5,600 received September 2025.  Approved by PCC 21/7/2025.  It is pays approx 70% of the cost of Chiaz, our intern.  Runs until end of August.

o   Has there been some expenditure out of the Building Fund to explain the £2129 decrease? Signage at the school £1775, movement of the printer from the vicarage at start of Dawn’s sabbatical £354.

 

·        Overall income is down and we cannot reduce costs.

  

 
7 Church Priorities for the next six months  
  For the past 3 years we have had three clergy. We have two for the next six months whilst in transition and then will be reduced to one when a new incumbent is elected. Therefore our practices need to change to be able to manage the reductions.

A discussion followed on the following three questions:

1.          What are we doing well?

2.          What can we do better?

3.          What aren’t we doing that we could/ should be doing?

No conclusions at this time.

  
     
8 Parish Update – see Appendix 5  
  ·         Nothing to add.  
     
9 Approving New Groups/ Activities  
  Proposal: – To hold three picnics after Sunday Services on 14th June, 5th July (both retrospective) and 2nd August.

 

Proposer CA

Seconder ME

All were in favour.

  
     
10 Safeguarding Policy  
  ·       The new safeguarding report was agreed by all, subject to the title and contact details of Victoria Kellett being updated, and all signed it.

·       AP raised a query on the wording and following the meeting contacted John for clarification:

o   Q. Items 14 and 15 reference visiting and/or transporting vulnerable adults, one of which suggests that you shouldn’t go alone, carry out a risk assessment and carry a mobile phone and some ID.  My question is ‘What do we mean by vulnerable?’ We have, for instance, a rota for transporting two elderly people to and from church on a Sunday morning, who require attention, but who I would not describe as vulnerable. I have also visited members who could not leave their home unaided

o   A.  You are right to raise the issue. A few weeks ago, we had an email discussion with the churchwardens and clergy.

The CofE distinguishes between a formal church-organised rota where, for example, the church might decide to offer a lift service to church or other events, and people can then sign up to it, and an informal arrangement between friends.   The former would need to follow the guidance from the safeguarding policy, so DBSs, training etc would be needed, but the latter wouldn’t require this.

We decided in our email discussion that the arrangement that currently exists with the two elderly people is more like the latter and so the need for DBSs etc is not required at this stage.  However, if the arrangement in future became more formal, then we would need to review it.

The same principle applies for visiting people in their own homes.  If it is a formal church-organised activity then DBSs, training would be needed.  However, if you are visiting as a friend, then these processes don’t apply.

Although this doesn’t apply to the issue here, V and B would probably technically be counted as vulnerable as a result of their age, although we all know they are both feisty when they need to be!

  
     
11 Deanery Synod Report – See Appendix 7  
  ·       No questions or comments  
     
12 Dates of next meetings:  
  PCC meetings:

·       PCC – Monday 14th September 2026 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 9th November 2026 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 18th January 2027 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 1st March 2027 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 19th April 2027 (To approve reports for APCM).

·       APCM – Sunday 23rd May 2027 as part of Sunday Service.

  
     
13 The meeting closed  at 21.03 after open prayer and closing prayer by Chiaz.  

 

Appendix 1– update on Key priority 1: Discipleship

 

  • Worship:
    In June 2026, we started a sermon series on ‘The Church,’ based on the passage about the early church in Acts 2:42-47. This passage highlights four key practices (or ‘pillars’) that were foundational to the early church: the apostles’ teaching, breaking of bread, prayer (and worship), and fellowship. Each week, we have been looking at a different pillar and considering how this relates to us as a church now. By doing this, we aim to put foundations down for understanding who we are as a worshipping community and God’s purposes for us. We hope this will lead to further conversations of who we are as a worshipping church and how we might continue to develop in our worship of Jesus through lots of different areas of ministry life.

 

  • Connect Groups:

There are now 4 connect groups which, apart from Sunday mornings, is our main discipleship, friendship and care model.

Our four groups are:

  • Monday afternoon (Carol Maycock)
  • Wednesday evening (Ruth W)
  • Thursday morning (Alan Palmer)
  • 1st Sunday in the month (Revd. Livvi Haughton-Scales)

 

The group facilitators continue to meet every couple of months to support one another, reflect on what God is doing among the groups, and prayerfully discern how they can best support the discipleship of the church.

Recognising that, apart from one church family, none of our families have made it into a connect group, I (Livvi) started a monthly connect group back in September, which takes place after the café style services. Overall, there have been challenges for this group all being able to meet together at once and we have often had small numbers or not been able to run. In the last few months, we have been able to meet in the play park next to the school with hot drinks and snacks, and more people have been able to join due to children of the families being able to use the play park while it is sunny. It has led me to wonder, though, if this has become more similar to extended church time, rather than a specific connect group. It still has value due to the opportunities for people in the church to connect further with one another, but hasn’t led to opportunities for prayer and bible study as first hoped. Perhaps other options could be considered as a means of helping families and others struggling to attend connect groups to grow in their faith. One idea that has arisen is the development of prayer partners or groups that can meet together on an ad-hoc basis, without the limit of a fixed time.

It was said that in the Monday 19th January meeting report, when members of the PCC gathered to discuss the overall direction of the church, that more thought is needed around our connect groups and their purpose.  More thought is also being given to what it means to be a loving community of God’s people.  We know that the early church spent much time and energy on both caring for one another, and on the Holy Spirit ministry of signs/wonders/healings.  As they sought to be God’s distinctive community, both of these things made them stand out from the world.  There seems to be a recognition in PCC that we need to ‘get back’ to this, so we hope that some of these steps might enable the PCC to continue thinking about how connect groups can be a place of people being nourished and strengthened in their faith.

Revd. Livvi Haughton-Scales.

No decisions needed from PCC at this time.

 

Appendix 2 – Under 18s Ministry

We continue to take the research seriously that tells us that churches who invest in under 18s ministry grow, and those that don’t decline.  The national church has a vision to see 30,000 employed children’s and youth workers in an attempt to double the number of children and young people in church on a Sunday morning by 2030! Although in this time of transition it is hard to fully say how our church will fit with this vision, we still see it as highly important and will look for ways in the coming months to lay the groundwork for how things might develop in the future. We continue to have lots of children as part of our services on Sundays and many new families are visiting and joining our church.

 

We have raised just over £53,000 to employ a part time children’s and youth worker but have not been able to appoint anyone so far. We are trusting God’s timing and provision. This post may be something that a new incumbent considers once they are appointed, but has been put on hold for the time being while the church discerns the next steps.

 

All under 18s groups continue to use the Energize resource.

 

We now have many parents/guardians in our church who have completed the relevant safeguarding procedures enabling them to support the under 18s ministry on Sunday mornings, which is wonderful and we are so grateful for their support of this ministry.

 

Ministry Experience Scheme

In September 2025 we took on Chiaz Alozie as our Intern.  He is supervised by Ben and spends the majority of his time working in the under 18s ministry. We are so thankful for all he has given and it has been a pleasure to see how he has grown and developed in this role, becoming an incredibly central and valued member of our staff team and our church. Sadly, his internship will be coming to an end in August 2026. Please be praying for Chiaz as he discerns God’s next steps for him and we hope Chiaz will continue to be a key part of our church even after his internship ends, although we leave that in the hands of God – His purposes for Chiaz’s life and where He might take him next.

 

  • Under 11s Ministry

 

Sunday mornings

The under 11s continue to use the Hub room on Sunday mornings for their group.  A huge thanks to everyone who leads and supports this age group and for their willingness to guide the children in their individual journeys with the Lord. Over the summer, we plan to gather the Sunday Youth and Children’s Leaders together to thank them for all they do, to hear their thoughts on how the groups are going, and to look ahead to the next academic year. One change we are looking to implement is to inform the youth/children’s leaders in advance of the Sunday service preaching topics, so they have the option of preparing sessions on these subjects too, to provide more connections between the youth/children’s groups and the rest of church.

 

Outreach – Glenvale Park toddler group

We began this group Easter 2024.  Glenvale Care home provides a beautiful room, toy storage and refreshments for this group.  Some of the residents join the group as well.

We have around 50 families now on the register and anywhere between 7 and 16 households can turn up on any given week!  This continues to be the case.

Outreach – primary aged children

PCC is aware that we did not restart Ignite after October half term last year due to both the rent increasing and the numbers of children attending decreasing. It is hoped that in the near future, once a new incumbent is appointed and particularly if we appoint a children and youth worker, that something new will be discerned and imagined.

 

School’s work

We have continued to have good relationships with both our schools in the parish. After a recent meeting with Claire Head, the Headteacher of Redwell Primary, we were excited about the possibilities of how we could continue to support and become embedded in school life. This is an incredibly exciting proposition for any new incumbent, as it is a huge privilege to have a non-church school that is so open to the presence of the church. It is also, hopefully, exciting for any lay people in the church who have a heart for schools work and especially Redwell Primary School, as there is a lot of scope for many to get involved in this. Glenvale Church of England Primary School continues to grow and it is anticipated it will take around 10 years for it to be fully open.  There will be lots of new ways the church can support and partner with Glenvale too, as the school continues to grow in its identity as a Church of England School.

 

The main ways we support both schools are through assemblies, collective worship, attending school performances, supporting school events, year 6 transition sessions and leading wellbeing groups. Wellbeing groups are something we have been running for many years at Redwell Primary School, but we have started to run these at Glenvale Primary School in the past year as well.

Revd. Livvi Haughton-Scales.

 

No decisions needed from PCC at this time.

 

  • Youth Ministry

 

The poster above highlights the church’s current youth work activities.

Sunday Mornings

Sunday Youth occurs on the second and fourth Sunday mornings of the month during the service. During this time there is in-depth Bible teaching and discussion.

 

We do not have enough leaders to run Sunday youth on third Sundays in the month and have been seeking to use this as a ‘Serving Sunday’, encouraging the young people to help with various aspects of the morning service (such as assisting with children’s groups, playing in the worship band, serving tea and coffee, and washing up). The church Youth Band have now led musical worship at several café services – they’re doing really well and it will be exciting to see them continue to grow as worshippers of God! We’ll continue to explore other serving opportunities for the young people and are open to ideas church members might have.

Since September 2025, Sunday Youth has split into two groups – one for years 6 and 7, and one for years 8 and above. We are really grateful to all those in the church who have stepped up to lead and help with these groups.

Rayo, who is a young person herself, stepped up to lead the year 8 and above group once a month and did a fantastic job. However, due to her beginning her GCSE exams, she could, understandably, no longer continue to lead this group. As a result, we have had to combine the year 6/7 and the year 8+ groups again. Although this has helped us to manage the different groups for the time being, it is not an ideal long-term solution.

If you feel God prompting you to help support these young people in their faith journeys, please speak to Livvi, Ben or Amanda, our administrator who puts together the children and young people’s team rota.

 

As it currently stands, our Sunday Morning Youth team is as follows:

  • Chiaz and Jackie lead our year 6+ group once a month and have 2 people who help support. However, sometimes there have been gaps and we have needed to ask someone from the children’s team to move groups at the last minute.
  • We also seem to be getting more creche aged children and so moving one of the children’s workers might begin to prove difficult. We need to find others who can support this group on a regular basis.

 

Connect Youth

Connect Youth is our discipleship group, which meets fortnightly on Sunday afternoons. Ben, Livvi, Dawn and Chiaz lead this group. We begin with a game and snacks, then have a time of worship, Bible teaching/discussion and prayer.

 

So far this school year, 18 young people have attended the group, with an average attendance of 8.

The number of young people attending has been noticeably lower this term and we have had to cancel several sessions. This is perhaps understandable during exam season, but we are monitoring this to discern if we are still supporting the discipleship of our young people in the best way. Most of the young people are connected with church. Our prayer is that they would all continue to build friendships and explore faith in Jesus together.

 

We have recently experimented with using a new resource called ‘Make Disciples’ alongside the Energize resource to which the church subscribes, which has covered sessions on topics including Anxiety & Peace, Loneliness & Belonging, and Significance & Purpose. We continue to hold half-termly social sessions, which have been really good ways of deepening friendships among the young people. This is especially important, as they attend lots of different schools and may not see each other much during the week.

Please pray for the following:

  • For all the young people connected with NWAC to be increasingly aware of Jesus’ presence with them.
  • Give thanks for those who faithfully support the church youth work activities, and pray for the development of more leaders with a heart and calling to serve young people.
  • Give thanks for the musical talents of the Youth Band, and pray that the young people involved would grow as worshippers of God and develop their confidence in leading others in worship.
  • For those young people who are undertaking significant school exams– that they would know God’s peace that passes all understanding, and that they would bring glory to God through their studies.

 

Revd. BH-S

 

No decisions needed from PCC at this time.

 

 Appendix 3 – update on Key priority 3: Wholeness in Jesus/ Wellbeing

  • Bereavement Support Group

We continue to have our bereavement Facebook group which has 87 people part of it.  It would be a wonderful opportunity for someone with the passion and skills in this area to really grow this  ministry.

 

Care
The main way of supporting one another continues to be via Connect Groups.  There is recognition that many families (in particular) have not made their way into Connect Groups and the PCC are currently thinking about this.  There is also a desire from the PCC that as a church we think about what it means to be part of a loving community and how we do this better.

Revd. Livvi Haughton-Scales.

No decisions needed from PCC at this time

 

  • Creations Craft Group

The Creative Crafts Group is a wonderful group of people. We meet up at the Ock ‘n’ Dough every Monday, including Bank Holidays, from 10 am. The members are always ready to help each other when mistakes happen, as I know – being a very grateful recipient of help! Our conversation is as interesting as ever, talking about the previous day’s service, theological points, family issues, and crafts, to name a few! We had breakfast together one Monday and will do so again, as it was a great time.

Sandi Rance.

 

  • Prayer
  • The WhatsApp group for prayer is working very well, with fast responses from all involved.
  • On 28th March, we held a day of prayer and fasting, as it was felt that we needed to pray urgently for world events.
  • We had 24 half-hour slots, during which time the person listed would pray using a list of suggestions. We managed to fill each slot.
  • At the end of the 12 hours, those who were able to met to share a simple meal and break the fast together, with more prayer and a plenary time.
  • Coincidentally (or not?) This was the day that the conflict began in Iran. Therefore the prayers seemed especially relevant and this was what we prayed for that evening.
  • Since the day of prayer was successful and well supported, we are considering holding more, especially now that we will be entering a period of interregnum. The benefit of this is that people can pray wherever they are without the pressure of having to attend an event.
  • As always, huge thanks go out to all of the prayer ministry team for their faithful service.

Jackie Brooks-Cheesman

 

No decisions needed from PCC at this time.

Appendix 4 – Finance Report –

At the end of May we have £79,883 in the church account, this is divided between two areas. The non-restricted area has £3,478 in it whilst the restricted area has £76,404.  I shall make a contribution of £3,500 to the Parish Share 2026 early in June.

If you have any questions, then do email me on treasurer@nwanglicanchurch.co.uk

Below is the situation in the church account (unrestricted)

 

Non-Restricted money against this year’s budget is:

RESTRICTED MONEY

 

Appendix 5 – Parish Update

We continue to see new people dipping their toes in with us and now some are beginning to become part of the church community.

Developments this year include:

  • Signage has been placed outside Glenvale Church of England School, enabling us to be a strong presence on the estate and in the school.
  • We have gained access to Wi-Fi in Glenvale Primary School, but the Wi-Fi connection is not as strong as would be preferable for us moving the printer to the parish office. Ben continues to follow up on this and, hopefully, the printer will be able to be moved soon.
  • The clergy and the wardens will put time aside in August to organise the parish office and church storage for the new academic year.
  • We have cleared the shed at Redwell Primary School and moved anything important for the future of the church to Glenvale Church of England Primary School, and disposed of anything no longer needed.
  • The communion table has been made for our Sunday Services and has been collected and brought to Glenvale Church of England School.

 

Revd Livvi Haughton-Scales

No decisions needed from PCC at this time

 

Appendix 6 – Safeguarding Report

The course ‘Raising Awareness of Domestic Abuse’ is now one of the 3 compulsory courses for validating the DBS certificate.  17 members of church have done the course (up from 11 in January this year), but there are still 9 who need to do it.  I will contact people again and we may set up a special NWAC evening when our Safeguarding Hub Co-ordinator can come and lead the course.

We currently have two people who have expressed an interest in doing volunteering for children’s work at NWAC and they have been forwarded the relevant information for applying for a DBS and the training courses needed.  Two other people have done the Basic Awareness and Foundations training.

John Gilyead  – safeguarding Officer

 

Appendix 7 – Deanery Synod Report

  • We were welcomed – this was our first meeting of our 3-year term
  • ‘Thy Kingdom Come’ (prayer initiative for between Ascension and Pentecost) was recommended as a helpful resource
  • We were invited to prayerfully visit prayer stations around the church (at Gt. Doddington).  Each station focused on a sentence from the Lord’s Prayer
  • We were informed of the new Bishop of Brixworth – Dr Alex Hughes – starting in July 2026 and replacing John Holbrook who has moved on
  • A reminder that the deadline date for church accounts to be submitted is 28thJune 2026

Alan Palmer – Deanery Synod Rep.

Good Friday Activities

Published 16/04/2026

A good time was had by all at our Good Friday event.

The children brought the painted eggs that they’d found and received chocolate Easter eggs as a reward and then joined in the activities.

Below is a video showing some of the action.

 Good Friday event video.mp4

PCC Meeting Minutes 26/4/26

Published 14/10/2025

Minutes of the PCC Meeting

held after the APCM on Sunday 26th April 2026

 

1 Attendance
  ·        Dawn Airey (Chair), Chiaz Alozie, Jackie Brooks-Cheesman, Helen Cracknell, Fiona Clarke (Secretary), Matt Ellson, Matt George, Melanie Hartung, Ben Haughton-Scales,

Livvi Haughton-Scales, Alan Palmer, Sandi Rance, David Wells, and Ruth Wium.

·      Apologies: David Meleleu, Martha Senabulya
 
2 Appointment of Officers
  ·        Lay Vice Chair – Matt Ellson.                

Already holds the position
·        PCC Secretary – Fiona Clarke
Already holds the position.
  ·       PCC Treasurer – Dale Gilbert
Already holds the position. Not a voting member of the PCC.
·       Electoral Roll Officer –
Heidi Ellson was elected. Not a voting member of the PCC.
  ·       Safeguarding Officer – John Gilyead
Already holds the position. Not a voting member of the PCC.
3 New voting PCC (including ex-officio) members’ admin
  ·       Declaration of Interest and Fitness to serve paperwork
Completed by Jackie Brooks-Cheesman, Helen Cracknell, Matt George, Sandi Rance. However, Martha Senabulya still needs to complete it.
  ·       DBS and Safeguarding Training
Those new to the PCC were reminded that they need to complete their training and paperwork as soon as possible.
  ·     Who’s Who
New PCC members were asked to send a photo of themselves to Fiona Clarke to be placed on the website under Who’s Who.
   
4 Safeguarding Policy

To be accepted at the next full PCC meeting on 06/07/2026
   
5 Appointment of Independent Examiner
All present voted to appoint Denton Tavara Ltd. to continue as Independent Examiner for this year’s accounts due for next year’s APCM.
   
6 Dates of next meetings – PCC meetings to be held at the Curates’ house until a new Vicar is in situ.

·       Lay PCC only  – Thursday 14th May 2026 19.00 with Archdeacon Richard at Helen Cracknell’s house

·       PCC – Monday 6th July 2026 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 14th September 2026 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 9th November 2026 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 18th January 2027 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 1st March 2027 19.00.

·       PCC – Monday 19th April 2027 (To approve reports for APCM).

·       APCM – Sunday 23rd May 2027 as part of Sunday Service.
 
7 The meeting closed at 12.00

Full Immersion Baptisms

Published 18/09/2025

Full Immersion Baptisms

We will have our next full immersion baptisms on Sunday 12th October.  If you would like to be baptised, or reaffirm the baptismal vows made on your behalf as an infant, by full immersion, then please speak to Revd Ben Haughton-Scales by Sunday 21st September.

Annual Report Year Ended 31/12/2025

Published 11/05/2025

Registered Charity No 1172631       

“Connecting with Jesus,

with each other,

with the community”

 

 

 

 

 

ANNUAL REPORT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025

 FOR NORTH WELLINGBOROUGH ANGLICAN CHURCH,

WELLINGBOROUGH, PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL

 

 

REPORTS OF CHURCH MINISTRY AND MISSION

 

Church attendance

The total of Church members on the Electoral Roll for 2026 is 78 with 13 having left and 15 added. This is a slight increase of 2 from last year’s total of 76.

Marion Darker – Electoral Roll Officer.

  

Report on the work of the PCC.

Membership                                            

The PCC is made up of the following – ex officio members, who are the clergy (currently including the Incumbent (Vicar), and our two Curates (Ben and Livvy Haughton-Scales)), the churchwardens, and Deanery Synod representatives. The other members of the PCC (lay PCC members) 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.

Elizabeth Holbrook stepped down from Churchwarden, and only one person applied for the role, at the APCM in May 2025.

Louise Harrison stepped down from lay PCC at the APCM, and three new people were elected, which made eight lay members in total. The total number of lay PCC members allowed is currently nine, calculated from the number of people on the electoral roll. Therefore, one lay PCC member position remained vacant.
Helen Cracknell stepped down from Deanery Synod at the APCM in 2025 and no-one applied for the role.
With Clergy and Churchwardens (ex-officio members) this made 12 PCC members in total.
Two lay PCC members are due to step down at the 2026 APCM having fulfilled their three year term, and Sam Carew will also be stepping down at this year’s APCM..

There is, therefore, allowance for election of an additional four lay PCC members, two Churchwardens and two Deanery Synod representative at the APCM (2026).

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.

Legalities

The PCC is required to have a Standing Committee, its membership comprises the Incumbent, Curates, Churchwardens and Treasurer.

As North Wellingborough 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.

Responsibilities

At every meeting the PCC considers reports from those who cover areas of the three priorities highlighted in the Church Vision, together with reports from Deanery Synod and Safeguarding. 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.

Attendance

The PCC would have met seven times but two were cancelled due to illness. They, therefore, met five times during 2025, including a short meeting after the APCM, with an average attendance of 78%.

Fiona Clarke – PCC Secretary.

 

Vicar’s Report

“Connecting: with Jesus, with each other, with the wider community”

I would like to start in my usual way by thanking our churchwardens Elizabeth (who stepped back due to moving away) and Matt Ellson.  Matt has been the only churchwarden for the last year.  I also give thanks for the PCC, Connect Group facilitators and to our staff team – Amanda Allen (Parish Administrator), our Curates Ben & Livvi Haughton-Scales and Chiaz, who joined us as our Intern in September.  This is a really hard working team and I so appreciate the wisdom and generosity from each individual and am privileged to work alongside them.

The major news of 2025

In previous years the parish boundaries were re-drawn so that Glenvale Park became part of our parish and as a result we changed our name to North Wellingborough Anglican Church.  The next and final phase of transition happened in 2025 when we decided to make Glenvale Church of England School our new home and, after 35 years of worshipping at Redwell School, we moved to Glenvale in March!  This was a huge change for the church and has taken time to get used to but I believe we are now settled and very much enjoying the new facilities.  This move also meant the church could have, for the first time, its own parish office based in the school.

Since we moved to Glenvale School we see new people dipping their toes in with us just about every single Sunday.  That is so exciting and now some are beginning to put their all in with us, really becoming part of the church community.

What else has been good in 2025?

  • The number of children and young people has increased.
  • Easter events and outreach.
  • Summer community days.
  • Christmas events and outreach.
  • Toddler group at the care home.
  • Creations Craft Group.
  • Starting a second prayer time, now on Sunday mornings, as well as midweek.
  • Midweek Care Home Service.
  • Connect groups (Livvi has started a new monthly one for those who struggle at other times).
  • Summer drink stop at Glenvale.
  • Continued schools work in both primary schools.
  • Start of the youth band.

 

Looking ahead

As we move forward there are things that still need resolving with the building, for example, sorting the shed at Redwell School, the Wi-Fi, getting the wooden communion table installed, moving the printer to the office once the Wi-Fi is sorted and working out how best to use the parish office.  A new Incumbent will need to re-visit the lease with the school to iron out our wider use of the facility, such as at festival times of year, etc.  A new church sign has now also been put up on the school wall, a clear marker of our permanence!

A dynamic we did not anticipate in our move to Glenvale School was that many of the new people who have come on a Sunday morning have a church back in the place they have moved from.  This is usually close enough to drive back to and so we are finding that many are only coming occasionally.  I hope that in time some will decide that worshipping where they live, and perhaps where their children spend most of their time, will be worth making the move to their local church, to be part of both the ministry and mission of God in this place.

There are a couple of things, that became very evident in 2025, that in my view are really important as the church looks forward:

  • Firstly, while we have a very large fringe, our core has grown smaller. This is partly as a result of the dynamic I outlined above, which means that there are less people fully committed and therefore less committed to serving and giving.
  • Secondly, the impact of Covid/cost of living crisis continues to have a significant effect, largely that there is less capacity/willingness to use our gifts for the ministry and mission of the church, or to take responsibility for particular ministry areas. This has had a profound impact in 2025.  A number of groups and the more pioneering work has had to stop.  For the church to go forward, it has to now address this honestly, asking itself, what does Church now look like and what are our priorities.  If this is not addressed fairly swiftly, it could have a negative impact.

Moving on:

It has been an immense privilege being called to serve alongside you – thank you for journeying together.  I believe I have done what I was asked to do when I came – to re-open the church post pandemic, to create a new vision, to grow the church younger, to resolve where the church’s permanent home should be and to re-shape the parish (in terms of its boundaries).

The church entered a very different phase in 2025, some of which I’ve alluded to above, and needs someone who can support and encourage the church in this next phase.  But I hope I leave you with this – whoever we are, whatever stage of life we are, the Lord simply calls us to be faithful to what He has given us, to respond to where He is taking us and more importantly than anything else, to know more deeply than before that we are sons and daughters of the King of Kings…..everything flows from this place.

We are this parish’s glimpse of heaven and I have loved being part of it!

Revd. Dawn Airey – Vicar.

 

Churchwardens’ Fabric Report

With effect from 2 Mar 2025 North Wellingborough Anglican Church have worshipped at Glenvale Church of England School. All equipment is stored within the school (either in the Hub/ Parish office or the PE cupboard) anything not required to operate at Glenvale has remained at Redwell School being stored in the shed. All equipment is in good state of repair with minimal financial outlays throughout 2025. We are grateful to Helen Cracknell and David Wells for the purchase of new mugs for use after services.

The parish still owns land in the Redhill Farm area of the parish, in conjunction with the Diocese. There are no plans regarding this at the present time.

I would like to acknowledge and thank all of those who volunteer and work tirelessly throughout the year covering off the duties and jobs which aid in the smooth running of weekly services.

Matthew Ellson – Churchwarden.

 

Sung Worship Team

Team: Alex Palmer, Ben Haughton-Scales, Dan Hulland, Ezra Airey, Jasmin Childs, Kendra Okelola, Louise Harrison, Mel Hartung, Noah Hartung, Olivia Okelola, Ore Alo, Ruth Wium, Seb Goss, Steph Gledhill & Steven Follows.

I’d like to start with a huge thank you to all those who have led and facilitated our musical worship over the last year. The process of planning worship, preparing music, learning new songs, and gathering during the week and early on Sundays to practice is not without sacrifice and we are grateful for the way these people’s gifts enrich our gathered worship. In addition to the team, we are also hugely grateful to Sally Wilkins, who diligently compiles the PowerPoint slides, to those who manage the visuals week to week, and to the sound team, who have served the church so faithfully in this area and have also overseen the transition of our PA setup to our new venue at The Glenvale CofE Primary School, including the purchase of new equipment.

We have sadly said goodbye to some of the team over the past year, with Louise Harrison and Steph Gledhill having moved on to pastures new, and at times others have needed to step back temporarily. Mel and Ruth attended the New Wine Worship Leaders Retreat in March 2025 and returned with some really good ideas for us to explore and implement as a team over the year. The new youth band comprising several of the church’s young people also led musical worship for the first time at the August 2025 cafe service. They have done this every month since then and it’s been great to see them grow and develop as lead worshippers! Noah Hartung has unfortunately been unable to continue with the youth band due to his increased school workload – we wish him well with his upcoming GCSE exams.

 

Looking Ahead

In early 2026 we have welcomed Kayleigh Bellamy, Amy and Matthew George, Victoria Hoy and Joshua Wium to the team, and are excited to see them grow in using their musical gifts in worship over the coming months. If you are reading this, harbouring a musical gift, and are interested in exploring how you might use that to serve God and his church, please do speak to me.

Revd. Ben Haughton-Scales – Curate.

 

Financial Review for 2025

At the beginning of 2025 the bank account balance was £61,334, divided £63,746 in restricted funds and £(2,412) in general funds.  At the end of the year following there was £79,202 in the account divided £81,776 in restricted and £(2,574) in general funds. Our restricted funds have grown during the year largely due to Children in Youth funds and funding for the MES intern.

Our Parish Share was set by the Diocese as £70,207; this was not paid in full this year and unfortunately we paid less than last year; the shortfall was £14,207. We continued to support our many Mission Partners this year.

The net income over the year was £17,868, some of this is linked to grants for the youth worker and the MES Intern. The main source of our funding still comes from the congregation, this comes into the bank account through the weekly plate, online giving, Parish Giving Scheme and the card machine.

The accounts were examined by Denton Tavara Limited and no issues were reported.

My thanks go to Helen Cracknell for starting the year as Treasurer until I took over in the summer.

We thank God for his generous provision during 2025 which enabled us to sustain ministry. We pray that this will continue.

Dale Gilbert – Treasurer – On behalf of the Finance Team.

Key Vision Areas:

Discipleship

Being a disciple of Jesus means being an ‘apprentice’, it’s a life-long, whole-life process of being with Jesus, becoming like Him and doing the things He did.  (John Mark Comer).

As a church we try to encourage and enable this through regular personal prayer and devotional time, through our Sunday morning gatherings, our midweek Connect Groups, through our giving and our serving (both the church and the mission of the church).

  • Personal Prayer & devotion:

At least once a year we suggest a new daily prayer resource but on the church website there is a dedicated ‘reading resource’ area.

  • Worship & Sunday morning gatherings:

Encountering God’s presence in worship and prayer continues to be fundamental and I believe we need to continue pressing into this much more than we have to date.  There have been some key changes for us on Sunday mornings, not least the change of venue to Glenvale Church of England School!

  • Connect Groups:

Throughout 2025 the groups changed a little and there are now 4 connect groups.  It is hoped that these provide a place of love, friendship, care, biblical study, shared use of gifts/skills and ministry to one another.  Thank you so much to the Connect Group Facilitators who meet together bi-monthly and have continued to work tirelessly.

Our four groups are:

  • Monday afternoon (Carol Maycock).
  • Wednesday evening (Ruth Wium).
  • Thursday morning (Alan Palmer).
  • 1st Sunday in the month (Revd. Livvi Haughton-Scales – Curate).

We recognized last year that most of our families have not yet made it into a connect group.  This prompted Livvi to start a monthly connect group which takes place after the café style services.  It is very early days but we are hopeful it will gain greater traction in the coming months.

  • Giving and Serving One Another:

A basic and important part of our discipleship is using the gifts and skills the Lord has put within us to love one another and to serve as part of His mission to the parish, and the wider world.  Of course this takes many forms and includes the whole of our lives, not just at church.  But during 2025 it has become increasingly more difficult to enable people to serve both in our church and missionally, within our parish.  There may be lots of reasons for this, good reasons even, but it has had quite an impact on what we are able to do as a church.  For example, groups have had to stop and some of our more pioneering work has also stopped.  Interestingly, our financial giving has also gone down year by year and last year saw the biggest yearly drop in the last 6 years.

  • Moving forward

The PCC are currently thinking through what the priorities of the church are and will be as we move forward to a time when the curates will move on and there will be just one full time clergy person.  In a recent extra ordinary meeting on Monday 19th Jan, one of the things identified was that more thought is needed around our connect groups and their purpose.

More thought is also being given to what it means to be a loving community of God’s people.  We know that the early church spent much time and energy on both caring for one another and on the Holy Spirit ministry of signs/wonders/healings.  As they sought to be God’s distinctive community, both of these things made them stand out from the world.  There seems to be a recognition in PCC that we need to ‘get back’ to this…..

Revd. Dawn Airey – Vicar.

 

  • Care home Services

Leaders: Ben, Livvi, Dawn, Sandi, Jackie, Mel, Chiaz.

The care home services have continued to run every Tuesday at 14.30. We have been visiting Glenvale Park Care home for a number of years now and have built good relationships with the residents, residents’ families and the staff. Every week, we do a short half-hour service that follows simple liturgy and includes a few songs. This is often via video, but Ben also sometimes brings his guitar to play, which is well-appreciated. We have tried to bring in more child-friendly, Sunday school elements to the service, including familiar Sunday school songs, as a way of connecting with the long-term memory of the residents. Research has shown this to be beneficial for those experiencing Alzheimer’s or other types of dementia. This has been well-received.

Sandi and Mel have taken the leadership for services when Ben, Livvi and Dawn are not able to take the service and Sandi has taken steps to collect resources for putting the services together, in order to provide a way for the services to continue regardless of the change in leadership of the church.

Overall, this ministry has proven to be consistent and fruitful. We do not always know exactly how the services are being received, but the relationships built with those who attend have been really heartwarming and we trust that the Holy Spirit is working in powerful ways beyond what we can see ourselves.

Revd. Livvi Haughton-Scales – Curate.

  • Alpha

Following a successful Alpha in 2024, we were able to run another in the summer of 2025, this time welcoming 3 guests. Mel Hartung and myself co-led the sessions, with meal preparation support from Livvi Haughton-Scales. I was initially unsure whether such a small group would work, but it was really fantastic to journey together as we met weekly for an extended period of time. The guests all encountered Jesus in significant ways and took major steps along their journeys of faith in him. One highlight was our Alpha Day, which we were able to hold at Launde Abbey in Leicestershire. The venue provided such lovely surroundings in which to spend time with each other and with God, and we were able to enjoy the prayerful, meditative environment together.

  • Looking Ahead

Following on from the 2025 Alpha, 2 of the guests renewed their baptismal vows by full immersion at our recent baptism service in March 2026. This was a fantastic day for our church family, and I know we’re all really excited to continue journeying with them in faith in Jesus. Experience has taught me that Alpha tends to work best when you start with a core group who are committed to taking part in the sessions, then publicise the course more widely to welcome additional guests. With that in mind, if you or anyone you know would be keen to take part in Alpha (or an alternative enquirers’ course), please do speak to me to register your interest and we’ll look to form a new group at the earliest opportunity.

Revd. Ben Haughton-Scales – Curate.

 

Under 18’s Ministry

We take the research seriously that tells us that churches who invest in under 18s ministry grow, and those that don’t decline.  The national church has a vision to see 30,000 children’s and youth workers in an attempt to double the number of children and young people in church on a Sunday morning by 2030!

But ‘growing younger’ was also what I was asked to do when I was interviewed and appointed to be Vicar here, it has therefore been a key priority for me.  It is a delight to see how many families we now have as part of the church.  In my first year here there were on average 5 under 16s on a Sunday morning with a maximum possible of 7.  As of the end of 2025 we now have an average of 17 on a Sunday with a possible maximum of over 32 (every Sunday it seems we are blessed with new people so it’s a little hard to be as accurate now, so it’s at least 32).

We have raised just over £53,000 to employ a part time children’s and youth worker, and £2,317 was raised through the ‘100 for 100’ project in 2025.  Unfortunately, we have not been able to appoint anyone as yet but it is so pleasing that the Lord has released this money to us…let’s keep praying for a creative solution for the right person.

All under 18s groups continue to use the Energize resource.

Last summer a number of the parents of our under 18s completed the relevant safeguarding procedures enabling them to support the under 18s ministry on Sunday mornings.  I am delighted and it is very welcome.

However, we continue to struggle to support the teen ministry on Sunday mornings.  We have more teenagers than children and in September we spilt the group into two groups (yr 6/7 and yr 8+).   Both groups meet twice in the month.  This continues to work very well:

  • Chiaz leads yr 6/7 group and has 2 people who help support where they can. However, sometimes there have been gaps and we have needed to ask someone from the children’s team to move groups at the last minute.
  • We also seem to be getting more creche aged children and so moving one of the children’s workers might begin to prove difficult and so we need to find others who can support the yr 6/7 group on a more regular basis.
  • At the moment we only have Jackie BC leading the year 8 and above group once a month. She no longer has someone to support her and you would have heard me recently let the church know this and ask for others to volunteer.  There have been 2 people who have offered to support where they can, but they are already committed in other ministry areas.
  • Rayo who is a young person herself, continues to lead the yr 8 and above group once a month. She is doing a fantastic job!

 

  • Under 11s ministry

Sunday mornings

The under 11s continue to use the Hub room on Sunday mornings for their group.  A huge thanks to everyone who leads and supports this age group and for their willingness to guide the children in their individual journeys with the Lord.

 

Outreach – Glenvale Park toddler group

We began this group Easter 2024.  Glenvale Care home provides a beautiful room, toy storage and refreshments for this group.  Some of the residents join the group also.  We have around 50 families now on the register and anywhere between 7 and 16 households can turn up on any given week!  This continues to be the case.

 

Outreach – primary aged children

PCC is aware that we did not restart Ignite after October 2025 half term due to both the rent increasing and the numbers of children attending decreasing.  We were making a loss of around £40 a week during that half term and despite Livvi’s best efforts, we could not increase the numbers.

It is hoped that in the near future, particularly if we appoint a children’s and youth worker, that something new will be imagined.

 

School’s work

Being present in our two primary schools is a very significant part of how we serve our housing estates and the mission of the church.  It is largely ministry unseen by the church but plays a huge part in what I would describe as ‘oiling’ the rest of ministry.

We continue to have a very good relationship with Redwell School which means between Ben, Livvi and I we are present on a regular basis, either through assemblies, collective worship, new parent intake evenings, Narnia prayers spaces, year 6 transition sessions, well-being groups, parent evenings and the various fayre’s and school productions.

Glenvale Church of England School continues to grow and it is anticipated it will take around 10 years for it to be fully open.  I am now part of the governing body which is now called The Schools Forum and has quite a different role.

Revd. Dawn Airey – Vicar.

 

Ignite

Up until October 2025, the leaders for Ignite were: Livvi Haughton-Scales, Ruth Gilbert, Alan Palmer, Chiaz Alozie.

Dawn Airey came at the beginning of most sessions to help with the register or speak with parents.

Ben Haughton-Scales has helped on some weeks when needed.

  • Firstly, a huge thank you to everyone who has put their time and energy into continuing this group. Since April last year, we have had many good moments. We recorded an Easter film with the children last year, which we showed to their parents on the last session before Easter. This was hugely popular, a lot of parents came and many were very touched by the film that was made. We then had a chance to speak more with parents afterwards, which appeared to be a helpful time to make further connections.
  • We also found through conversation with the children that came to Ignite that a few had started to pray and seen God answer their prayers, and remembered well the bible stories that had been told to them.
  • Unfortunately, the numbers declined sharply after Easter term. During Easter term (January – April 2025), we regularly had 25-35 children, but the number went down to less than 20 every week after Easter term (May 2025 onwards). After the summer, we had another big push to get more children to come along with school assemblies and increased advertising, but the group continued to decline until we had less than ten children coming each week. In parallel to this, the rent doubled in cost over the academic year 2024/2025. We increased the cost to £3 after the summer to try to supplement this, but this may have resulted in the decrease in numbers.

We do not know fully what resulted in the numbers decreasing, but we know from conversations that many had started to go to sport or other activity groups at that time instead. It seems clear the need for the group in the community was not the same as it once was. As a result of the decrease in numbers, we were losing up to £40 each week, which is unsustainable for us as a church.

  • In October 2025, the leadership team in the church made some difficult decisions regarding Ignite. None of these decisions have been made lightly and we were grieved to think of this group ending, as it has been so impactful for so long. Through prayer and reflection, though, we came to the conclusion that God was directing us to end this group after October Half Term 2025. Although there is sadness in this, there is also hope for the future, as the Holy Spirit may be taking us in a different direction to continue to reach the children and families in all areas of our parish, including Redwell Primary School. One thought we considered is how groups we start could have a clear purpose of teaching about Christianity and the bible, as we can see the rise in interest in the Christian faith in the population. This gives us the opportunity to be more overt in our intention to teach children and families about this.

Revd. Livvi Haughton-Scales – Curate.

 

  • Youth

Sunday Mornings

When all the young people are there, we now have around 18 young people on a Sunday morning.  That’s really fantastic news!  I have given more detail at the start of the section ”Under 18s Ministry”.

 

2025 has been a year of consolidation and embedding in the youth ministry at NWAC:

Sunday Youth – This is the group that meets during Sunday services on 2nd and 4th Sundays in the month. During these times there is in-depth Bible teaching and discussion. We currently do not have enough leaders to run Sunday youth on 3rd and 5th Sundays in the month and have been seeking to use these as ‘Serving Sundays’, encouraging the young people to help with various aspects of the morning service (such as assisting with children’s groups, playing in the worship band, serving tea and coffee, and washing up). The new youth band comprising several of the church’s young people led musical worship for the first time at the August 2025 cafe service. They have done this on 1st Sundays every month since then and it’s been great to see them grow and develop as lead worshippers! We’ll continue to explore other serving opportunities for the young people and are open to ideas church members might have. From September 2025, to accommodate the significant number of church young people in years 6 and 7 at school, Sunday Youth was split into two groups – one for years 6 and 7, and one for years 8 and above. We are really grateful to all those in the church who stepped up to lead and help with these groups to enable this to happen. I especially want to highlight Aderayo Adeliyi, a young person in year 11 at school, who took on the role of leading her peers in year 8 and above once a month (with support from her mother Racheal in preparing the sessions). The number of young people attending on Sunday mornings varies from week to week.

 

Connect Youth

This is a discipleship group which runs fortnightly on Sunday afternoons. We begin with a game and snacks, then have a time of worship, Bible teaching/discussion and prayer. 21 young people have attended the group this year, with an average attendance of 9. Most of the young people are connected with church, but we have started to see them inviting friends from outside the group to build friendships and explore faith in Jesus. We have been following a series on Christian Lifestyle using the church’s Energize resource and have run sessions on topics including holiness, perseverance, contentment and prayer. We have continued to hold half-termly social evenings to facilitate friendship-building among the group, including games nights and an outdoor summer social.

It is a huge joy and privilege to have such a fantastic group of young people within our church family. Helping them grow as followers of Jesus is a responsibility for the whole church family, so please do take every opportunity you can to encourage them in their journeys of faith. Our prayer is that they all build really solid friendships with one another that can sustain them in their faith in Jesus throughout their teenage years and beyond. The Energize online children’s and youth work resource by Urban Saints continues to be an excellent tool for all our children’s and youth volunteers to assist with planning and preparing sessions.

During the school summer holidays, 6 young people attended the Satellites summer youth festival at the Bath & West Showground from 6th-11th August 2025, with Dawn and Ben as the leaders for the trip, and Tola Okelola and Chris Airey very kindly assisting with transport and caravan setup/pack down. This was a fantastic time away for the young people; the range of activities provided was excellent and the young people all had stories of encountering Jesus in new and significant ways.

 

Team

The church’s youth ministry is completely a team effort and would not happen without all those who support the discipleship of our young people in so many different ways: Aderayo Adeliyi, Ben Haughton-Scales, Chiaz Alozie, Dawn Airey, Ihuoma Alozie, Jackie Brooks Cheesman, Jasmin Childs and Livvi Haughton-Scales. Thank you all!

 

Looking Ahead

In early 2026 we ran baptism preparation sessions for 2 young people, who were then baptised by full immersion during the morning service on 15th March. What a joy it was to celebrate with them! We have needed to re-merge the year 6/7 and year 8+ Sunday Youth groups back into one group, largely due to a reduction in leader/helper availability. The main challenge for 2026 is to ensure that the church’s youth ministry can run sustainably into the future. If you feel God may be nudging you to support our young people in any way, please do speak with me and I’d love to explore this with you further.

Revd. Ben Haughton-Scales – Curate and Youth Team Leader.

 

Wholeness in Jesus/ Wellbeing.

  • Bereavement Support Group.

Throughout 2025 we continued to have our bereavement Facebook group which has 87 people in it but we had to close the group that was meeting in person due to lack of attendance.

 

  • Care

In recent years we’ve moved away from the language of pastoral care and more towards Christian friendship which I think has been helpful.  The main way of supporting one another continues to be via Connect Groups.  There is recognition that many families (in particular) have not made their way into Connect Groups and the PCC are currently thinking about this.  There is also a desire from the PCC that as a church we think about what it means to be part of a loving community and how we can do this better.

Revd. Dawn Airey – Vicar.

 

  • Creations Craft Group.

The Creations Craft group was formed in December 2024 and meets every Monday in the dining area of the ‘Ock ’N’ Dough from 10:00 to 11:30.

The membership has remained steady, although we have one new member since the last report.

The participants carry out various crafts, including knitting, crocheting, colouring, cross-stitch and many other interesting crafts.

Last October 6th, the group was given an informal lesson in making an embroidered card for Christmas. This proved to be popular, with some trying embroidery for the first time. We hope to try something else new this year.

We are, again, knitting animals for the Christmas Nativity, and painting rocks for the Easter rock hunt this year.

The group share their expertise with each other and have encouraged people to either try new things or update their skills, which is wonderful.

We hope to have a sale of work this year at church.

Sandi Rance.

 

  • Prayer Ministry Report
  • Prayer ministry continued to be offered during and after services throughout the year, with varying amounts of people coming forward to seek prayer for their needs, on average 1-2 per service.
  • With the departure of Chris and Steph Gledhill we sadly lost 2 of our most committed prayer ministry members. I thank God for their ministry and wish them every blessing in their new setting, and know they will continue to be a blessing to others.
  • Towards the end of 2025 it was decided to instruct PCC members in the best practices of prayer ministry and safeguarding so that they can also help with prayer during and after services. It is quite often the case that prayer ministry team members are involved in other duties such as children’s groups, worship, preaching, refreshments etc., so having extra help is very important. This training has now been implemented.

Prayer Chain

  • To make the prayer chain more accessible and faster in its response times, it was decided to create a WhatsApp group as this is faster than the usual email route of communication. This has been a successful initiative, with faster responses. More members have joined since the group started.
  • We now have 16 members on the prayer chain, 14 of whom are in the WhatsApp group and 2 who prefer to be contacted via email.

Prayer Events

  • For Maundy Thursday, it was decided to combine a simple meal with prayer activities, to encourage a higher attendance. Commitment to attend was secured via a small charge for food. This proved successful, with a much higher attendance than previous years, and the prayer activities were well received and utilised.
  • The prayer activities for the Glenvale summer activity days focused on simple ways to pray, thinking about God’s creation and our place within it. Again these were well received by church and non-church members.

Weekly prayer pointers

  • With the departure of Chris Gledhill in the summer, the weekly prayer email has ended for the time being until we can work out a way to start this again or replace it with another initiative which is effective.

As always, my sincere and heartfelt thanks to everyone who volunteers to pray with and for others. This is such a vital ministry and it can be tiring on a spiritual level, so I am thankful to our prayer warriors for all of their commitment to take time out of their day to pray for others.

Jackie Brooks-Cheesman.

 

Safeguarding Report

At North Wellingborough Anglican Church, safeguarding is treated with the seriousness it deserves.  We have lots of members who give their time supporting children and vulnerable adults; DBSs, Safer Recruiting and Safeguarding Training are all important elements that back-up the work of volunteers.

Safeguarding information is displayed on the church noticeboard, website and weekly email news bulletin.

Within the deanery, there is now a safeguarding hub which enables relevant issues to be discussed.

Although I have not managed to get to either of the meetings so far, I have contributed in advance and picked up useful advice from the minutes.

During 2025:

  • 6 new people received DBSs.
  • 9 DBSs were renewed.
  • 13 people did the Basic Awareness and Foundation training courses,
  • 8 did the Raising Awareness of Domestic Abuse course (this is a new addition to the portfolio of 3 courses that volunteers are requested to do).

Thank you to everyone who volunteers at church and has done the forms and training – this certainly makes my role more straightforward.

John Gilyead – Parish Safeguarding Officer. 

 

Deanery Synod Report

The Deanery Synod met 5 times in 2025 and heard contributions on a range of themes including:

  • Emerging Mission – New housing developments in the Deanery (Various Contributors)
  • Prison Chaplaincy (Revd Canon Helen Dearnley)
  • Discovering Your Spirituality (Revd Dr Judy Craig-Peck)
  • Good News from the Archdeaconry (Archdeacon Richard Ormston)
  • Discussing the Diocesan Year of Prayer (Various Contributors)

Regular updates on Finance and Safeguarding were given at each meeting.

Additional Deanery events and meetings have included regular Treasurers’ Meet-Ups, Safeguarding Hub meetings for Parish Safeguarding Officers (PSOs), and various choral services and concerts.

 

Looking Ahead

The church can have up to two Deanery Synod Representatives but currently does not have any. It is hoped that these vacancies will be filled at this year’s APCM.

Revd. Ben Haughton-Scales – Curate.

 

 

 

 

Approved by the PCC 13th April 2026

 

APCM Meeting Minutes 2024

Published 11/05/2025

 

Gleneagles Anglican Church, Wellingborough

Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting

held on Sunday 26 May 2024

 

Present:     Rachael Adeliyi; Rev Dawn Airey (Chair) & Chris Airey; Amanda Allen; Mope & Oluwatosin Alo, Ihuoma Alozie, Pauline Ball; Gordon & Jane Bell; Jackie Brooks-Cheesman; Valerie Brown; Jasmin Childs, Fiona Clarke; Greg & Helen Cracknell; Bob Cutler; Marion Darker; Matt & Heidi Ellson; Ruth Gilbert; Stephen Girdwood; Sebastian Goss; Rory & Louise Harrison; Mel Hartung; Ben & Livvi Haughton-Scales; Elizabeth Holbrook; Dan Hulland; Stephen Lomax; Carol Maycock; David & Judy Meleleu; Sheldon Melville; Folarin & Tolani Okelola; Lola Olarinde; Alex Palmer; Judith Samworth; Colin & Sue Suter; David & Lis Wells; Kirsty Woodward; + 13 children.

 

  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.
 
2

 

 

 

3

 Apologies: Sam & Lisa-Marie Carew; Chris & Steph Gledhill; Alan Palmer; Rob & Maria Seaman; Ludolff & Ruth Wium.

 

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.

 

Election of Churchwardens

The Chair thanked Helen Cracknell and David Wells for all they’ve done over the past year to challenge and support her, and she gave them each a gift.

  • Both Helen and David have stepped down from churchwarden leaving two vacancies.
  • Matt Ellson was elected as Churchwarden.
  • Elizabeth Holbrook was elected as Churchwarden. She has stepped up from being a lay PCC member and Assistant Churchwarden.
  • Both Matt and Elizabeth had been proposed and seconded previously and were automatically appointed.
 
 
4

 

 

 

 

5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6

 Minutes of last APCM dated 21/05/2023.

The minutes from the last APCM were agreed by the majority at the meeting, however, some had not been at the APCM in 2023. Dawn will sign and file them.

 

Deanery Synod

Deanery Synod reps normally serve a three-year term. The current term is until 30/06/2026. However, new rules since 2020 allow them to stand for two terms before stepping down for at least one term.

  • Heidi Ellson is stepping down from Deanery Synod.
  • Helen Cracknell has stepped down from Churchwarden and reapplied, and been appointed as, Deanery Synod rep.
  • There remains one vacancy.

 

Election of PCC Members

PCC members can serve up to three years. Several of the existing lay PCC members have served three years and so needed to step down; A few other members have stepped down during the year; Elizabeth is now Churchwarden (ex-officio member) so no longer a lay member; this left seven lay vacancies. Four of these have been filled by:

  • Sam Carew.
  • Louise Harrison.
  • David Wells.
  • Ruth Wium.

Each of these had already been proposed and seconded and were automatically appointed.

There are three lay PCC vacancies that can be filled next year.

The new PCC is more representative of the church’s new population, increased area, and new goals.
 
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

Lis Wells thanked everyone for their contributions over the year.

Questions arising from the Finance Report:

  • Q.  Biblically, giving should be private and personal. Who is party to the information regarding people’s donations?
  • A. Through the Parish Giving Scheme (PGS) only the amount shows on the statement; if paid direct into the bank account, only the people who look after the account see it;
    • Gift Aid is claimed through PGS if the giver is a taxpayer and has completed the relevant form. It can also be claimed on any loose cash in the collection box, but not if it is in an envelope. Gift Aid (an extra 25% of eligible giving) is paid into the bank account.
  • Q.   Why are the payments received from Ignite not showing?
  • A.   Lis will investigate.
 

 

9

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10

 Vicar’s Report –

Dawn reminded everyone that we are the body of Christ, and each have roles to play.  She said that she loves being part of Gleneagles church (Now known as North Wellingborough Anglican Church), the congregation and staff, and feels privileged to work among us.

She reminded us of the passage given to her when she was preparing to join us 3years ago – Isaiah 37. This was a prophetic vision for Israel when it was written, but equally applies to us aqs a church locally and the church nationally. We were the “remnant” as we came out of recession. 2023 was year three, a growing year.

 

Song of Songs 2:11-12 was a new prophetic word given to Dawn this past year – See! the winter is past; …..the season of singing has come,…….. The Church of England has been in decline for 70 years and it can feel dismantled. We are experiencing birth pains as God reforms us – we are in a reformation era.

 

Reflecting on 2023

What a year it was for us:

·         There has been a growing desire for intimacy with God and new people attending regularly.

·         There has been a greater engagement with Redwell School.

·         Easter, summer, and Christmas successes.

·         Reshaping of Connect groups and their purposes.

·         Glenvale School is to be designated as a church school.

·         Alice finished her internship and has moved on.

·         We welcomed Ben and Livvi as our new curates.

·         We came to the decision not to continue with the plan to reshape All Saints church building.

 

Since the end of 2023 the parish boundaries have now changed, with Glenvale Park coming wholly within Gleneagles as Great Harrowden were unable to support their portion of it and, with effect from 1st May 2024, we are now legally “North Wellingborough Anglican Church” to reflect this. We now encompass Gleneagles, Glenvale Park, and Redhill Farm estates. Redhill Grange remains with Great Harrowden as part of their parish.

 

As our church now has a new name and boundaries, we will be choosing a new church logo over the next few weeks.

 

Connect Groups

How do we best enable each other, support each other, encourage each other? This was a major focus last year when we were reforming our Connect groups. Our Vision, to “Connect with Jesus, Connect with each other and Connect with the community” led to the goal of everyone caring for everyone else, praying, studying, and allowing the Spirit to shape our lives, which became the new basis for Connect groups. What God calls us to do looks different at different stages of our lives; it inspires us to keep seeking Jesus in all that we do; it means different things to different people according to their circumstances. Some people attend every meeting whereas others can only attend socials where we share hospitality with one another.

 

Questions about the APCM reports

  • Q.  Can we invite someone from outside of the church to join our connect group?
  • A.   Yes, but some groups are becoming very big and may need to split into two groups.

There being no other business the Vicar thanked everyone for attending and the meeting closed with prayers in groups and a blessing for the church, the clergy, the churchwardens, the PCC and all who serve in Gleneagles.

APCM Meeting Minutes 2025

Published 11/05/2025

North Wellingborough Anglican Church

 

Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting

held on Sunday 25 May 2025

 

Present: Rev Dawn Airey (Chair) & Chris Airey; Amanda Allen; Mope Alo, Chiaz Alozie; Ihuoma Alozie, Pauline Ball; John & Lynn Brooks; Valerie Brown; Jasmin Childs, Fiona Clarke; Revd. Bob Cutler; Marion Darker; Matt & Heidi Ellson; Ruth Gilbert; Chris Gledhill; Sebastian Goss; Louise Harrison; Ben & Livvi Haughton-Scales; Elizabeth Holbrook; Dan Hulland; David & Judy Meleleu; Michelle Norwood; Tolani Okelola; Lola Olarinde; Gayle O’Sullivan; Alex Palmer; Sandi Rance; Cynthia Rhone; Judith Samworth; Colin & Sue Suter; + Ruth Wium all on electoral roll; + Soji Adeliyi; Alex Amodi; Jennifer Obodoako ; Miche Olarinde; + several children.
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.
2

 

 Apologies: Sam & Lisa-Marie Carew; Steph Gledhill; Alan Palmer; David & Lis Wells; Jeremy Cox; Helen & Greg Cracknell;
3

 

 Elections

Under the current ruling for elections, 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.

 

Election of Churchwardens

The Chair thanked Elizabeth Holbrook and Matt Ellson for all they’ve done over the past year to challenge and support her. She reiterated that she relies on them immensely.

  • Elizabeth Holbrook will be leaving the Parish in autumn as she will be moving nearer to her family when her husband, Bishop John, retires. She has offered to assist whoever is elected into the post until she goes.
  • Matt Ellson was elected as Churchwarden last year and has reapplied this year.
  • Matt had been proposed and seconded previously and was automatically appointed.
  • This leaves one vacancy that has not been filled.

Dawn went on to say that Elizabeth has been totally loyal, faithful and reliable and that she owes her a huge debt and we will all miss her hugely.

Elizabeth addressed the church to give her thanks. See Appendix for details.

 

Election of PCC Members

PCC members can serve up to three years. The PCC is made up of clergy – Dawn, Ben and Livvi; ex-officio members – Churchwardens and Deanery Synod reps; and lay members. The number of lay members is determined by the number of people on the electoral roll. We are currently allowed up to nine lay members. There are currently three vacancies.

  • Louise Harrison is stepping down from the role and we thank her for her service.
  • That makes four vacancies. However:
  • Fiona Clarke, Chiazokam Alozie and David Meleleu have applied and each of these had already been proposed and seconded and so were automatically appointed.
  • There is one lay PCC vacancy that can be filled next year.

The new PCC is more representative of the church’s new population, increased area, and new goals.
4

 

 Minutes of last APCM dated 26/05/2024.

The minutes from the last APCM were agreed by 22 people present. The remainder of the congregation have joined the church subsequent to last year’s APCM meeting. Dawn will sign and file the minutes.
5 Deanery Synod

Deanery Synod reps normally serve a three-year term. The current term is until 30/06/2026. However, new rules since 2020 allow them to stand for two terms before stepping down for at least one term.

  • Helen Cracknell is stepping down from Deanery Synod.
  • No-one has applied to be a Deanery Synod rep.
  • There are two vacancies.

Dawn tried to encourage people to consider standing and explained that, in the Church of England, areas are split into Deaneries. Every month the clergy meet and every other month they are joined by Deanery synod reps. Their responsibility is to attend the meetings and feed back to PCC what is happening in the church in our Deanery and Nationally.
6 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.

Thanks were given for all that they do.

Dawn stressed that, as a church, take safeguarding very seriously and are doing all that we can to keep everyone safe. We know that it can be onerous completing all the necessary checks but there are really good reasons for this, and it is no more than is required for any organization.
7 Finance Report

Helen Cracknell had given her apologies for not being at the meeting but sent a statement about the state of the finances, paraphrased below:

  • So far this year the church has received, through the generous donations of the congregation, £28,307. This includes the tax recovered on those who give through the Parish Giving Scheme. Thanks so much to all those who give regularly.
  • Hall hire, expenses for events and other annual costs amount to £4,647. We do know of some outstanding payments at present relating to hall hire at Redwell school which we are still waiting to receive.
  • We have given to our Mission partners £1,100.
  • and paid £22,000 towards our Parish Share. Our Parish Share contribution to the Diocese this year is £70,207; we have £48,000 outstanding.
  • The total of payments is £27,747.
  • We also have restricted money:
    • for employing our Under 18s worker, hopefully ready to start in September,
    • and the building fund.

Money is tight and I’m having to juggle paying bills until money is banked and clears, especially as we started the year in a deficit for the general fund as banked money didn’t clear as quickly over Christmas as I had anticipated. Helen.

There were no questions arising from the Finance Report.
9 Vicar’s Report and sermon –

I start by thanking you, the church, where everyone is using their God given gifts to serve one another and to bring about God’s kingdom purposes where you live, where you work and being part of this church community ushering in God’s kingdom in this place.

I love being here and serving the Lord’s purposes together with you, genuinely, you’re a great bunch to do life with.  And I really love being part of the overall leadership team as well as the staff team, which is ever changing.  Last year we said goodbye to Rob who was an Ordinand here.

The leadership and staff are a hard-working team, and I appreciate the wisdom and generosity from each individual and am privileged to work alongside them.

I’m going to be brief and say two things: something about last year and something about looking forward.

Dawn went on to speak of her journey with this church, starting with when she was preparing to come to Gleneagles church towards the end of 2020 and the prophesies she received. . , Starting with the scripture from Isaiah 37:30-32. She said that:

  • as we emerged from the pandemic it felt like we were the ‘remnant’ (v31) and it took time to adjust.
  • Year 1 & 2 were about re-orienting ourselves, setting a new vision,
  • Year 3 (2023) we would ‘sow and reap’ (v 30).

And at the beginning of 2023 we received another confirmatory prophetic word from Song of Songs 2

  • ‘the winter is past’ and spring is on its way.

And yet again what a year of re-shaping 2024 has been for us!

  • Elizabeth, with missional imagination, started the Creations Craft Group on Monday mornings.
  • We also started a second toddler group, this time at Glenvale Park care home also on Monday mornings.
  • And the summer drink stop over at the park on Wednesday afternoons during the summer weeks.
  • Last year we ran Alpha for the first time in several years and off the back of that
  • we had two lots of full immersion baptism services with children, young people and adults as well as a confirmation service in the Autumn.
  • Our parish boundaries were extended so that Glenvale Park is now part of this parish (and we are now 3 housing estates).
  • We changed our name from being Gleneagles to becoming North Wellingborough Anglican Church.
  • Our engagement with schools increased, now that we have 2 schools, the new Glenvale School and Redwell School.
  • Easter rock hunt,
  • Summer community days,
  • Teenagers went to the Satellites camp
  • Advent/Christmas

Looking forward

Our core vision is ‘connecting’ – with Jesus, with each other and with the wider community.

The last couple of years at APCM I’ve focussed on Discipleship, but we made a significant decision last year about our Under 16’s ministry and looking at the possibility of employing a children’s and youth worker. We already have £53000 in the pot for this project, thanks to your generous donations and grants, and we are aiming for £65,000, which will allow us to employ someone for 30 hours a week, 42 weeks for 3 years.

To help achieve this, we launched the 100 for 100 project in January this year, whereby each person in the congregation aims to raise £100, which would collectively raise £10,000, and with gift aid on top which would take us to the £65,000!

Full details of Dawn’s review of 2024 and looking forward, can be found in the Vicar’s report which is now included in the Annual Reports.
10 Questions about the APCM reports

  • Q.  Is there a job description for the new children’s worker?
  • A.  We are in the process of developing one, which will then need to go to PCC for approval. If anyone has someone in mind for the role please speak to Dawn.

There were no further questions, so the meeting closed and continued with the church service with Chris Gledhill leading prayers.

Appendix – THANK YOU from Elizabeth Holbrook

 

I want to say an enormous thank you to our amazing God for bringing our family to this church in 2011. We moved to Mears Ashby and tried various churches but knew as soon as we came here that this was where we should be. We were drawn in by the warmest of welcomes, for us and our teenagers. I pray that the same generous, welcoming spirit always remains here. It is special.

Most of you will know by now that my husband John is retiring as Bishop of Brixworth at the end of September and we will be moving to a lovely home God has blessed us with in Seaton in Devon, to be nearer family and the sea. Next week we celebrate Pentecost and remember that Jesus commissioned us to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. We’re only going to the end of England! While we are really looking forward to all the new opportunities and challenges, these can only come after the very sad task of saying goodbye to all our lovely friends, not least, all of you here.

So thank you for your friendship and fellowship, which I hope will continue – a spare room 15 minutes’ walk from the sea might be very popular!

Serving God in this parish, alongside all of you, has been a real privilege and (mostly!) a pleasure. I just want to leave you with two words – generosity and encouragement.

We have the most amazing clergy and leadership teams, and we are all serving the most amazing God who deserves nothing less than our all. So practice a spirit of generosity. Give your time and resources, not because you feel you ought to, but out of gratitude for all you have received from God in his amazing mercy.

Look around you, see what is needed to fill people’s spiritual needs and also their physical needs. And accept help if you need it! Don’t suffer in silence! People like helping – it makes them feel good! So if you need help ask for it!

My prayer is that you will do all you can to encourage the clergy and each other, to build one another up, so that you can take the message of our amazing God outside this building and into the world.

As Melvyn used to say – God’s got More!

Search

Categories

Latest News

Archives