Welcome to St Martin of Tours

Parish Profile 2019

www.stmartinsbasildon.co.uk

Contents

1. Basildon and Our Church at Present

3. What are we looking for in a new Priest?

5. What can we offer?

8. The Wider Context

9. Finance

10. The Rectory

11. Basildon

12. Conclusion

Basildon and Our Church at Present

Basildon is situated in South , positioned between the A13 and the A127. It was one of the many New Towns that were developed following the New Towns Act of 1946. London, which had been badly damaged throughout the Second World War, was overcrowded and housing was largely very poor. ‘New Towns’ were the Labour Governments answer to the problem.

This year we celebrate the 70th anniversary of the start of the work in the building of Basildon. St Martins stands in the centre of the town, adjacent to St Martins Bell Tower, built in the millennium, the first steel and glass Bell Tower in the world, and the Civic Centre, housing the secular aspect of Basildon.

From the outside the building is not particularly impressive but step through the door and stand at the back, looking towards the altar, and the magnificence of this house of God really hits you. On the far east wall hangs a very large cross and when the lights are on, the shadow from the cross depicts three crosses on the wall; just as they stood together at Calvary, at the crucifixion. The Sanctuary, chancel steps and centre aisle are carpeted. But what now really strikes the on-lookers’ eyes are the breath-taking modern stained-glass windows on the south and north sides of the church, almost ceiling to floor. These were designed and installed by Joseph Nuttgens, in the 1980’s. The north windows tell the story of the life of St. Martin and the south windows reflect the building of Basildon and Gods presence around us. They are quite spectacular and cast amazing mosaics on the floors of the North and South aisles on sunny days.

Most first-time visitors to St. Martins comment on the ‘atmosphere’ and spirituality’ that is within the church walls and that is also true when the church is empty. A door on the south side of the chancel steps leads to the Lady Chapel. Once again, a stained-glass window is a feature of this space and behind the altar is a memorial to those who died in the holocaust, at Auschwitz. In the 80’s there was an exhibition about the Holocaust and the church was presented with ashes from Auschwitz. These ashes now reside behind a red brick in the wall, behind the Lady Chapel altar. A perpetual light burns above them.

Back in the church, on the north side of the sanctuary stands the very impressive organ. This was reclaimed from a Southend church where our present organist learnt to play it as a boy! Its sound is amazing and we have had many recitals over the years.

A door on the north side of the chancel steps leads to the vestry and then along the passageway to the Pastoral Centre, which is a moderately sized space that is used for a variety of activities; as well as church activities, it is also hired out to the public.

1. Behind the Pastoral Centre is the old church hall which is now rented by a Counselling organisation on a twenty-five-year lease. The annual income this generates helps to keep St Martin’s solvent. Like most New Towns, Basildon has been experiencing a period of change over the last decade and even more so at the present with the regeneration of the town centre.

The parish caters to both the businesses of the town centre and the dwellings that have been built in recent years, mainly flats and apartments, as well as the established housing of earlier years. There are several schools within walking distance of the church, and we are popular as a venue for school visits.

Our congregation originally were mainly Londoners who were re-settling in this new town but we now have an ever-growing multi-cultural congregation. The newer members of the church are the church’s future and have been a wonderful addition, providing new life and ideas.

The most noticeable feature of this growing congregation is the number of children who are now attending the Sunday school. From just one regular child only a few years ago we now have as many as twelve or fourteen children most Sundays.

Where are we going?

 We need to go out to the people; to be seen to be accessible to both the young and the old and everyone in-between. Sometimes this is daunting to members of the congregation; perhaps you have the skills to help us get over this hurdle.

 To show the love of Christ in our actions, as ordinary people.

 We have indoor space. The seating space in the church itself can be reconfigured for a range of activities. Perhaps you can visualise how the building can be used more affectively?

 Now the regeneration work is nearly completed we can see a vast, flat space to the south side of the church which might well lend itself to activities in the evenings for the youth of the town. Have you got experience in working with the youth? With the support of ‘Churches Together’ perhaps some of the needs of the people of the town can be addressed, and they can find Christ through a different direction. A lot of time has been spent helping the homeless, over the past 10 years, but now is the time to extend that help to others as well.

Churches Together

The churches in Basildon, of all denominations, support each other in many ways. It started about 10/12 years ago when a project for feeding the homeless was set up. Volunteers from the different churches joined together to provide ‘feeding’ stations where the homeless are fed every night and they are still operating today. Other projects operate in a similar way.

2. What are we looking for in our new Priest?  Ideally, we would like someone who is energised for the mission of the church.  We would like someone who will use the skills and willingness of the present congregation to be more active in their church and will encourage the younger congregation to also be active in the family life of the church.  We would like someone who is sympathetic to family life; either single or with children themselves.  We need someone who will be our ‘shepherd’ and work alongside us.  It would be helpful to have some experience in outreach and evangelism, as this is BIG on the agenda at St Martin’s.  We need to grow our congregation, through the Love of Christ, so that there is a viable and active congregation into the future.  We need someone who can combine the dignity, spirituality and holiness of worship with the joyfulness, happiness and relevance of more modern hymns.

As one of our questionnaire comments put it; ‘We need to move forward to the 21st century rather than remain in the 19th.

Our Church at Present St Martin’s is open 7 days a week

Services:

1st Sunday of the Month 9.15 Said Communion: includes a sermon but doesn’t have hymns. 10:30 Family Communion

This service is a shortened and simplified communion service. It is aimed at families with children and new members to faith. (The children do not go out to Sunday school but remain with their families and the sermon is an all-age talk.)

2nd 3rd 4th (and 5th Sunday, when it happens)

10.30am Communion Service (fully robed, with servers and procession.) In the past incense has been used and many of the congregation would like to see it used again. The children go out to Sunday school at the beginning of the service and return during the Peace and then go back to their families, or into the children’s area, before going for a blessing or to take communion.

Twenty years ago the PCC agreed that children of 7+, and who were regular in their attendance at church, could take ‘First Communion’ as in the Catholic Tradition and until their confirmation. Recently 4 of our youngsters have once more taken this option and receive their communion, but with non-alcoholic wine. (This is an option for all communicants).

3. Midweek

Said communion is held in the Lady Chapel, every Wednesday at 9:30am; Lunchtime communion on Fridays

Other Annual Services

The Council use St Martin’s for their annual service

Remembrance Sunday. St Martin’s generally hosts a joint service with the council, the Royal British Legion, youth organisations and the armed services. The service is in two parts: the first is the laying of the wreaths at the Remembrance stone (The Act of Remembrance), in the church garden on the south side of the church. This year about 800 people attended this and more then 400+ of those people (mainly uniformed organisations) squeezed into the church for a Service of Remembrance.

Special Services:

St Martin’s is normally available for any organisation to use it for such things as Carol Concerts or musical recitals. Schools sometimes use it if they want to hold a whole school Carol Concert, where school halls aren’t large enough.

What can we offer?

During the past years the members of St Martin’s have been encouraged to undertake the 2-year Diocesan Christian Studies course and this has led to members taking a more active role within the ministry of the church.

 Sub-deacons and Eucharistic Ministers help to administer the sacrament at the Communion service. They also visit the sick and house bound, and give communion as required.

 We have 1 Pastoral Assistant who works at the local hospital twice a week.

 We have 4 (ALPS) Authorised Local Preachers, who preach on a rota basis. They have completed 6 years of preaching already and have been re-licensed by Bishop John for a further 3 years.

 They lead Bible Study groups throughout the year.

Others St Martin’s survives through the hard work and good will of countless people who are not getting any younger. Our next step, under our new Rector, is to encourage newer members to become more involved, taking over tasks from the ‘oldies’ so they can learn what needs to be done whilst they still have an experienced person to support them.

4. St Martins during an ordinary week

Monday through to Saturday, the church is open to provide FREE toast and coffee/tea to anyone who needs it. Initially it was just a drink but after a particularly harsh winter, 2 years ago, we decided to provide toast as well, as there was no night shelter provided by the council, at that time. However, for the past 2 years a night shelter has been provided in one of the church halls, where there is a kitchen, so that a breakfast can be provided each morning. The night shelter is only in existence for a few weeks and during that time we have fewer people wanting toast, but numbers soon rise again once the night shelter stops.

Although some people think our mission is only for the homeless, that is not so. There are many people in Basildon who have a roof over their heads but little or no contact with other people. St Martin’s is a place to meet and chat and have a drink and something to eat. Also, during this time, the public will come in to have some quiet time or say a prayer or light a candle, at the ‘candle and prayer’ stand. Some people just like to sit and immerse themselves in the peacefulness of the church and reflect on the powerful story of the stained-glass windows. Sometimes people will ask for someone to say prayers with them and there is normally someone on hand to do this.

Monday & Thursday Lunchtime — Oasis Café

2 or 3 years ago we had the church fully renovated. This was paid for by grants from Veolia who asked us to make sure that the church was open to the public, as much as possible. It was suggested that we had a Café that was affordable to most people.

Sandwiches and rolls and slices of freshly home-made cake are now on offer with a drink, on Monday and Thursday lunchtimes, for just £2.00 it is the profit from the Café that pays for the toast in the mornings.

Wednesday morning: Edward Bear Club

This has been running for about 15 years and provides a place for parents (grandparents) and pre-school children to meet and socialise through play. It was set up by one of our curates, at the time. It has proved to be a great success over the years but recently numbers have dropped, however, since the beginning of 2019 numbers are on the rise.

5. Thursday morning: Flowers Fresh flowers are an extremely important aspect of St. Martin’s. We have a team of dedicated ladies who put heart and soul into their wonderful displays, not for self-gratification but because they see their efforts as an important factor in the worship in the church. The fabric of the worship is sacred and the importance of clean linen on the altar, polished silverware, laundered vestments, correct music, the ritual words and fresh flowers are all important in the overall worship. It is a dedication that is dying out but we hope to find some new blood very soon.

Friday morning: Bargain Box

Bargain Box has been operating for many years and is an extraordinary re-cycling unit. It sells clothes for the whole family, books, records, CDs, DVDs, bric-a-brac, toys etc. All its profits go into the church and it has been an important facet in the solvency of the church accounts. Those who work in bargain box and use it are of senior years and in more recent times the social aspect has become the most important factor and once again the church takes on the ‘get-together’ aspect.

It has been closed for some weeks after the death of one of the helpers, but they have reopened again recently.

Wednesday and Sunday: The Bell Tower

St Martin’s Bell tower is the first glass and steel, working bell tower in the world and it was opened by her Queen Elizabeth II on 12th March 1999. Although none of the congregation had experience of ringing bells there was enough interest from members of the congregation to learn the art of campanology.

With support from a local Bell Captain our members work extremely hard, under the guidance of Roger Hobson, our bell captain’ in perfecting the art of bell ringing.

The bells are rung for services every Sunday and many a bride has enjoyed arriving to her wedding to the sound of the bells. The bells are also rung for special civic occasions

Bell ringing practice takes place every Wednesday evening and all ‘would be campanologists’ are welcome.

Thursday & Friday: The Table This is a joint outreach project, between us and the and parishes and Churches Together. It is sited in St Martin’s square, offering a chance for local people to engage with the team over a cup of coffee and a chat.

6. Table report Responding to a challenge by Basildon Council on how St. Martin’s could be involved in the regeneration of the Town Centre, a community project ‘The Table’ was born. Now operating for over two years, its mission is to nurture respect and community cohesion (see Appendix - ‘The Table’ - Mission Statement and Vision). It does this by:

 operating a Drop-in service from the iconic Bell Tower offering conversation, a listening ear and free refreshments

 providing a Resource Hub (signposting service) from a market stall in the new Basildon Market

 offering local groups, charities and organisations the opportunity to set up alongside them at its sites, to promote themselves and serve the community

NB: It is also tasked to identify solutions to gaps in community services should it become aware of any, wherever possible.

Due to the wide scope of the project it is managed and directed by Clergy and representatives from the parishes of St. Martin’s, Langdon Hills and Laindon. Finance was initially provided by the three parishes, but now there is a dependency to obtain funding from external sources. Continuing support is provided by St. Martin’s in the form of oversight, financial management, facilities and prayer. Through St. Martin’s membership support is also received from ‘Churches Together in Basildon’ (CTB).

A ‘Church and Community Links’ officer is employed (part time) to coordinate and run the project on a day to day basis. The role covers funding, staffing, networking and liaison between the church, Basildon Council and the community.

There are currently nine volunteers mainly recruited from CTB member churches, and from the secular community. Recruitment is ongoing to support progression of ‘The Table’s’ vision.

7. The Wider Context

A message from the Basildon Deanery

The deanery covers the towns of Basildon, and and the rural areas surrounding them. Most of the population is in the three urban areas, Billericay (including and ), Wickford north of the A127 and Basildon to the south.

The total population is circa 175,000 and rising: significant regeneration is already under way in Basildon and new housing developments are being built or planned north of the A127. There has been a lot of discussion and public consultation on the proposed plan which is for about 13,000 new homes across the district, and includes provision for traveller sites. Following the change of council leadership after the recent Local Council Elections these plans are again under discussion. There are areas of high deprivation in Basildon and pockets of significant need elsewhere, notably in Great Burstead.

Ecumenical links are strong in each of the urban centres and there is a tradition of collegiality within the deanery chapter. The Deanery Plan, adopted in November 2018, commits us to continuing to value difference of tradition, to discern how sometimes scarce resources can best be used, to work together in responding to new housing developments, and to encourage vocations to ordained ministry, and to both licensed and less formal lay ministry, including the ministry of administration.

We will also be building on cooperation already established between churches and parishes with the intention of forming Mission and Ministry Units within the deanery. A guiding principle in shaping the units is geographical coherence, building on the needs and character of each community. St Martin’s, along with Langdon Hills and Laindon parishes and Churches Together have been cooperating on a number of outreach projects notably Night Shelter, and ‘The Table’ sited in St Martin’s Square and offering a chance for people from the local community to have a coffee, and to chat to members of the churches.

The Revd Canon Dr Jane Freeman, Area Dean Canon Shirley Jeffery, Deanery Lay Chair

8. Finance

The church is presently able to pay its way and after allowing for essential repairs and maintenance has a surplus annually for local and national Mission giving of about £2000. The current account stands at around £36,000 pounds of which £19,000 is restricted for the Organ Fund. The instrument is in good condition having been rewired 2 years ago. There are plans to tonally improve the Chancel section of the organ with second-hand pipes already purchased and stored. This will probably go ahead in 2020, Faculty permitting, and cost about £12,000 without any alterations to the church building.

The Quinquennial Report on the church and associated buildings was completed in 2018 and requires only minor works costing a few hundred pounds.

A significant source of income is from leasing the old church hall to an independent counselling service. This brings in £20,000 annually and is due to run until 2025. There is also a small income of around £1000 for renting out car parking space when available in the church car park. Seasonal Sales and Bazaars raise around £600 each time and renting out the Pastoral Centre and church building for functions is another income stream.

There is a Stewardship giving scheme and Gift Aid is claimed. In 2018 St Martins received more than the £8000 allowed for from undesignated giving.

The Honorary Treasurer keeps the account books up to date and regularly notifies the Diocesan Church accounts service of income and expenditure and HSBC bank details so that annual audited accounts can be prepared for the annual general meeting.

The largest single expenditure is the Parish Share of about £32,000 pounds. This is paid in 10 monthly instalments by direct debit. Utility bills, electricity and water are also paid by direct debit. The costs of heating the large church can be high in winter and we are trying different providers to get the best deal.

There is ad hoc weekly secretarial/caretaker help by the hour averaging about £4,000 per year. The subscription to the Church Accounts service is £540 per annum.

There are no other very expensive outlays planned for in the next year. When Basildon Council has completed the St. Martin’s Gardens and Town Square building work, they will be responsible for maintenance of the front garden areas owned by the church. There will be expenditure on replacing railings along Church Walk which is owned by the church and the garden areas there. This may be in the region of a few thousand pounds. The church has discretionary spending of around £8,000 annually which includes secretarial expenditure.

9. Rectory

The rectory faces the north door of the church and is a two-storey building.

The front door opens into a spacious vestibule with downstairs toilet. From the vestibule one enters through an inner door into a corridor to the rest of the house.

On the left-hand side is a large room which is the vicar’s study. It is spacious enough to allow room for the rector to have small private meetings e.g. couples for weddings.

On the right side of the corridor there is a dining room of moderate proportions. It looks out on to the Pastoral Centre and the kitchen is adjacent on the right-hand side. From the kitchen there is a back door out into the garden.

From the kitchen one continues along the corridor, past the stairs to a large lounge, with a sun-lounge extension. This overlooks part of the wraparound garden. Upstairs there are four bedrooms, three large and one slightly smaller and there is a large bathroom.

There is a pleasant garden with trees around the perimeter, screening the property from the road behind.

There is a double garage, detached from the vicarage, in the church car park.

10. Basildon

Basildon is situated in South Essex. It lies sandwiched between the A13 and A127. Both these roads run from the M25 to Southend.

Basildon has good rail and road links into London and beyond and to Southend and the coast.

Basildon town centre has the usual clothing/shoe shops, although like other areas BHS and M&S have left the town following financial difficulties.

Nevertheless, we are not far from The at Thurrock or the Blue Water Shopping centre, on the other side of the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, at Dartford.

If you are interested in keeping fit, then Basildon can offer a range of activities for the whole family at the Sporting Village in Gloucester Park. The Sporting Village houses an Olympic size pool which was used as a training centre for one of the teams during the 2012 Olympic Games. It also houses an amazing gym and is the place that Matt Whitlock, our gold medal gymnastic champion, trains.

Adjacent to Sporting Village is the bowling green and club-house.

Gloucester Park itself is a wonderful green space, on our doorsteps. It has great green spaces ideal for family picnics and places for the children to play.

There are also fishing lakes but fishing here requires a permit.

Gloucester Park is not the only green space in a concrete jungle because Basildon was planned from the start and the planners recognised the necessity for green spaces throughout the building. The major roads have wide green verges planted with trees.

Not far away, at , is Wat Tyler Park which is a huge open space. Wonderful for children, it houses an amazing play park, but also has an information centre, a variety of walks, ‘bird hides’ to watch the water bird’s habitat. A miniature railway runs around the park and there are numerous paths to walk and explore.

In the Civic centre, just beside the church, is the main library in the area. And next to the council building is the Towngate Theatre. This is a thriving theatre and puts on a very wide range of plays and musical acts, ballet, both professional and amateur, throughout the year and the pantomime at Christmas is always a sell-out.

But, of course you could always just jump on the train and be in the West End of London in forty minutes for even more culture.

11. Conclusion

Sylvia and Peter, the Church Wardens, and the PCC members would like to thank you for reading our profile for St Martin of Tours church. We hope you have found it has given you a clear understanding of what we are like and we hope that you are interested in making your new home with us. We are praying very hard, along with the rest of the congregation, that God will send the right person for us, very soon. If that isn’t you then God obviously has a different pathway for you, as he has for each of us. Thank you nevertheless for taking the time to look at us and our life here in Basildon. We pray for you in your continued search. If, however, you feel God directing you to us that is wonderful. If you are close enough please take the opportunity of being a ‘mystery shopper’ one morning; absorb the atmosphere and partake of a free tea or coffee at the same time.

With our continued prayers for you all. God bless you.

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