For the Vacancy of Rector

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BISHOP’S INTRODUCTION

So much has been achieved in the Stourdene Group for the kingdom of God and life of the Church. There’s an impressive track record of lay ministry of different sorts, a commitment to working together as a Benefice and a readiness to reach out to the community in imaginative ways. People have come to faith, lives have been changed, vocations to ordination have been nurture, and much more.

There is a great deal to build upon and many opportunities ahead. With the church schools and new housing developments, there is a vibrant spread of ages in the villages, especially in Ettington and Newbold and, so, lots of new life for the church to reach into with the good news of Christ.

When I came to the Diocese in 2008, I was charged by the then Archbishop of Canterbury to ‘release the missionary energies of the Diocese of Coventry’. That’s the work that has been going on in these parishes – and much of it before I arrived. We are helped by our clear Mission Purpose of worshipping God, making new disciples and transforming communities. We are strengthened, focussed and resourced by our strategic emphasis on growing healthy church communities. We are stimulated by a renewed attention to thinking hard about rural ministry and what it means today to lead the people of God into effective mission in these sorts of communities.

We committed to continuing and developing this work in the Stourdene Group and I gladly comment it to you.

With my prayers

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DEANERY SUMMARY

The Stourdene Benefice is part of the Deanery of Shipston, the southernmost tip of the Diocese of Coventry. Shipston Deanery has five Benefices containing 26 parishes with 28 churches: apart from the market town of Shipston (sadly without an actual market nowadays), each is a small rural community with its own identity – just like those in this group. The Deanery is geographically quite spread out, but with a total population of just 15,500 or thereabouts – smaller than many single urban parishes. It is an area with far more sheep than people, where the farming year is critically important, and which comes with all the privileges, responsibilities and challenges of rural life.

Stourdene has six churches in six very different villages, but their great strengths are that they have a steady track record of working together, and their encouragement of lay ministry. Each church has its own identity and life, its own strengths and weaknesses, and it is important that these are maintained. In each community there is a strong place for the church at its heart, characterised by the relationships which interweave church and village life. Over the years, the churches have developed lay leadership and lay ministry teams, and also a considerable amount of working together: as you will read, a great many of their activities and services are led by lay teams, and in places it is the laity who form a natural focus for ministry. There is great energy in this, and they are naturally, and rightly, keen to develop it.

Our aim as a Deanery is to celebrate our lives together as the family of God; to learn together, and to speak together of what we have seen and heard. As a Diocese we have spent much time in consultation with those involved in multi-parish benefices in our rural communities, and are actively committed to supporting them. Our small numbers here mean that Shipston Deanery as a whole has a vital role in resourcing, supporting and enabling those who in the small churches would find some tasks beyond their capabilities. Deanery Synod and Lent and Ascension Services have long formed the backbone of this: increasingly we are running teaching courses, music workshops and social events to enable us to be more fully the body of Christ. At its heart Chapter regularly meets together, involving all the clergy of the Deanery, as we pray and worship together, and support each other in the ministry God has given us.

Revd Canon Dr. Jill Tucker

Area Dean of Shipston.

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BACKGROUND TO THE POST

The Stourdene Benefice consists of six parishes straddling the Fosse Way and is situated at the northern end of the Cotswold Hills, in the beautiful South Warwickshire countryside. The parishes are Ettington (where the Rector will live), Alderminster (where the House for Duty Minister lives), Newbold-on-Stour, Halford, The Pillertons and Butlers Marston. There are two Church of England primary schools at Ettington and Newbold on Stour. We are part of the Shipston Deanery in the Diocese of Coventry.

Lying between Shakespeare country and the Cotswolds, the area attracts visitors, whilst many of the residential population have retired here. There are young families in all the parishes and we expect their numbers to grow with planned development. There are easily accessible road and rail links to London and Birmingham. Being a rural Benefice there are farmers and people who have lived locally for several generations, some seasonal workers and others workers who commute or work from home, thanks to the easily accessible road and rail links.

Our Rector, of five and a half years, left at Christmas 2015 in order to take up a post in schools Chaplaincy. Our Curate left at the end of July 2016 having completed her three year training period and our House for Duty Minister is due to retire in 2019. This creates both a challenge, in terms of nurturing established relationships in the Benefice, but also an opportunity for the new Rector to continue the development of the new Ministry Team. Leading us through this period of change successfully will require strong interpersonal skills, clarity of Christian vision, the ability to build on the good work already in progress and an ability to foster new Disciples.

Our Wardens meet regularly with clergy to discuss an agreed agenda; including worship, mission, outreach and finance in the Benefice. All our churches, except Halford, have at least one Church Warden.

We recognise the need for increased involvement by lay people in the Benefice, given that our incumbent will have a limited time in each parish. We seek a Rector who will encourage, empower and disciple us to build up an all-embracing Christian community that reaches out to all age groups, not least children, youth and young families who will together form the vibrant family of God in this place.

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CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Working Across the Generations

One of the key issues that we have identified as a Benefice is our ability to attract a broad range of age groups to our churches. Across our parishes we have a large number of families, some who already know God and worship in the Benefice. Some choose to go to other parishes or denominations in order to worship God in a way that they enjoy, or to find fellowship that is geared towards their needs. Despite the existence of a wide range of ages within the Benefice the majority of our churches are attended by those who fall into the 50+ age bracket and are heavily weighted towards those of retirement age. It is clear that we need an Incumbent who is capable of engaging with young and old alike, using creative worship whilst respecting the needs of existing parishioners.

There are currently a number of services in the Benefice aimed at encouraging younger people, particularly children, into faith. On a monthly basis, the Family Get-together provides Sunday school and fellowship for the benefit of the whole Benefice in Pillerton Village Hall. Messy Church meets at Halford. Pillerton and Butlers Marston each have a Family Service. Ettington had a Family Service but that ended recently due to poor attendance. There are child focused services and events throughout the liturgical year, such as Hot Cross Bun making on Good Friday, Easter Craft Week, Easter Egg Hunt, Light Party and Christingle and Crib services. There are plans to set up a youth group in Ettington in the near future in order to engage with local teenagers.

As there are two church schools in the Benefice, Ettington C of E Primary and Newbold and Tredington C of E Primary, both of which have achieved ‘good’ ratings in their SIAMS inspections (National Society Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools Report) there are many opportunities to engage more formally with young people. The schools are regularly visited by members of the parish and clergy, leading such activities as Collective Worship, Godly Play and Story Tellers who bring Bible stories to life with the help of the pupils. The church also supports services at key church festivals and times of celebration, such as harvest and the school leavers’ service. Although there are strong and mutually supportive links between the churches and schools but there are opportunities to expand them.

Whilst creating relationships with the community, and making the Church accessible to multiple generations, with focus on children, youth and the 30 to 40 age group, we are conscious that we must continue to nurture older members of the Benefice who often remain the bedrock of supporters and volunteers.

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Within our communities there are many groups that meet regularly; The Monday Club, Gardening Clubs and Mothers’ Union. There are well supported toddler groups and a number of youth groups such as Sea Scouts, Scouts, Cubs, Brownies and Beavers. We expect these groups to continue to flourish with the arrival of new people into the Benefice, with a number of new housing developments planned or under construction.The Rector needs to encourage a team of clergy and laity capable of strengthening the bonds between parishes, schools and the community in order to reach all the people of the Benefice and to take the church beyond its walls.

‘Rector on the Beat’

The Stourdene Benefice would welcome an incumbent who will be an open and pro-active agent of faith, clearly visible both within and outside the current church communities. We believe that it is vital that the incumbent is seen as a vibrant witness to God’s work, by regularly walking through the villages, talking to people and engaging at village events as part of ministry. The church can be seen as the centre of the rural community in activity and faith, and our vision is that the church (buildings and people) will increasingly radiate as Spirit-filled, relevant and active centres of the community.

Support of Lay-led Ministry

There is Benefice-wide belief, that in order to share the Gospel across our multiple village communities, it is essential to embrace a shared ministry between clergy and laity in worship, pastoral care, outreach and other events. Members of the Stourdene Benefice are passionate about their church buildings being the positive physical testament of Christian faith in our villages, historically, currently and also for the future. By providing services each Sunday, the churches offer welcoming and vibrant spaces where faith can be explored and people can grow on their journey of faith. To achieve this, the laity need to be well trained and supported. We are acutely aware of the need of the new Rector to have a sustainable workload, and we understand it is not possible to maintain this level of commitment to regular local services without the continued support of the laity.

This commitment to weekly services is undertaken by our Rector, our House-for-Duty Priest and our lay leaders. We are keen to support lay-led services, and have found that delivering lay-led services gives the opportunities to explore the Word for ourselves, learn together and provide an empowering and engaging experience.

We seek a Rector who will fully support this shared ministry, encouraging and enabling the many and diverse talents of the existing congregations and parishes whilst being alert to the potential gifts in those yet to be involved.

There are four lay-led Bible study/ faith groups in our Benefice which provide great encouragement and energy for those attending to understand the Word and then live it out in their daily lives. This encouragement has fed back through the members into the life of their own churches, and the resulting energy can be truly witnessed in the development of those churches and the communities they serve.

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THE ROLE

Role Description

The role of this post is to lead the churches of the Stourdene Benefice in fulfilling the Diocesan Mission Purpose of:  Worshipping God  Making New Disciples  Transforming Communities

This will be achieved via the development of the 8 Essential Qualities in the life of a healthy church:

 Empowering Leadership  Gift-oriented Ministry  Passionate Spirituality  Inspiring Worship  Holistic Small Groups  Need-oriented Outreach  Loving Relationships  Functional Structures

Person Specification

We would welcome applications from priests who:

 Have an infectious Christian faith and are passionate about sharing this faith with people of all ages in our rural communities and schools.  Thrive on training and developing others, can identify gifts and talents and have the experience to bring these out of individuals to the glory of God.  Are able to manage their time well: disciplined about their activity but flexible enough to cope with change and varying circumstances.  Are not afraid to take risks, and will love and support us when we try something new.  Enjoy being ‘on the beat’ and actively engaging and being seen with the whole community.  Have a good sense of humour!

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STOURDENE BENEFICE AND THE 8 ESSENTIAL QUALITIES

The Stourdene Benefice undertook the 8 Essential Qualities survey in January 2016. Reactions to the approach of the 8EQs and the associated surveys have been mixed, with some strong voices of objection. Some churches have felt quite demoralised by the results, which has further affected negative reactions to the process. The results can make uncomfortable reading in parts, and we will have to leave potential applicants to assess how accurate they are when they visit us! However, we do want to ensure that potential applicants know that overall the morale and atmosphere in the benefice is quite good!

One of the difficulties for us as a benefice is that there is no consistent picture of strengths and weaknesses across the benefice as a whole. Each church and community is unique and the results reflect this. Some congregations are healthier and more optimistic than others, but we do not wish to leave anyone behind! It will take a wise leader to discern with us what are our common strengths and to build on those whilst addressing our weaknesses. Empowering leadership The lay leadership within the Benefice has been encouraged by current and past ministry teams. Gifts are identified and many church members participate regularly in our worship services. We want our churches to grow and we need a leader with that heart and vision. In many of our NCD surveys, the results indicated that we felt that our leaders in the churches did not expect the churches to grow, and in some, found it a heavy burden on top of all their other duties. We would like that to change! We would welcome a collaborative leader who will discover, train, empower and support all to fulfil their God- given potential, removing any barriers to lay-leadership in all areas of church and community life.

Gift based ministry This is a strength in most of our churches. We enjoy using our gifts and skills in the service of the church. One common area of weakness however, is that we would value more training for our roles and responsibilities. We would therefore like our next leader to be able to identify, encourage and value our individual gifts and talents and to be proactive in helping others identify their gifts, backed up by appropriate training. Using our gifts creatively develops our faith and we experience the benefits of team working in the church to fulfil God’s purposes.

Passionate spirituality We did not score highly in the Passionate Spirituality quality. Indeed, our scores were very low, especially in the areas of personal Bible reading and application, and expectation of God to do great things in our churches. This perhaps arises from a desire to ‘keep the show on the road’, with lots of energy going into fundraising and buildings, but potentially, if we are not careful, draining us of spiritual vitality. Low numbers and people passing

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away whom we have known and loved for years (Alderminster for example have lost 10 members in the last year through bereavements or people moving area) have also affected the level of spiritual vitality.

We need our next leader to be infectious in their faith, and encourage us to read our Bibles and use them as a guide for our everyday decision making. As a Benefice we would like to develop our prayer life. We need to be supported in openly sharing the positive action of God in our lives with others. Whilst we have a varied worship programme, we recognise the potential to develop other areas of spirituality to raise the spiritual temperature across the benefice, and would value help in doing so.

Inspiring worship The worship offered throughout the Benefice varies from the Book of Common Prayer Holy Communion to the Family Get-together and everything in between! We feel that offering a wide variety of worship across the Benefice is important to encourage as many people as possible to meet with the transforming love of the living God. Our worship is perceived as positive by our congregations and we would like to find ways of engaging with those who don’t attend our churches or only attend at festivals. However, the NCD results perhaps show a slightly different picture – that we do not find our worship quite as engaging or as inspiring as we perhaps would like to think. This may have repercussions on attracting new people, so we may need some help with how to provide inspiring worship, especially in the busyness of lives and trying to prepare lay-led services. We also face the challenge of some parishioners not wanting to travel to other churches and would welcome our next leader to help us address the issue of worshipping together as a Benefice community.

Holistic small groups This quality scored well in our results. We have a number of small groups ranging from flower arrangers to bell ringers, church cleaners and Mothers’ Union who meet on a regular basis. There is a Bible study group, a Pilgrim study group, Monday Morning group and a faith group. These groups are friendly and well supported and have had a very positive effect on those involved. Prayer ministry is occasionally offered during some of the small groups. There are plans to run a Christianity Explored Course shortly. Many of our churches are effectively small groups themselves, who have known each other for many years.

Although it will be a new experience for us, we would like our next leader to explore with us how we can encourage the growth of small groups throughout the Benefice.

Need oriented evangelism Throughout the Benefice there is a well-established network of parishioners who help and encourage their neighbours. We would like our next leader to help us develop this ‘local action’ further in a more overtly Christian way. We also support our local food bank and have close links with a charity in Coventry that helps newly arrived refugees. In response to a locally perceived need we initiated ‘Coffee and Chat’ in one parish whilst ‘Tea and Chat’ operates in another. ‘Chat in Church’ is a pop-up-pub which provides an opportunity for those who would not normally come to church for worship, to gather

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together in community. On average, between 25-40% of the village attend. There is also a lunch club, coffee morning, breakfasts, a tea and a drop-in club, which all meet monthly. All of our parishes regularly participate in, or host a variety of events to raise funds for local and national charities, such as Lent lunches supporting Christian Aid. We would like our next leader to encourage us to use our buildings more imaginatively, to enable our churches to be hubs of community as well as going out to our communities and addressing their needs more directly.

Where we are weaker is in the more overt expressions of sharing our faith. We may have had a tacit expectation and attitude that it is the clergy’s, not our, job to do this! We would struggle to identify people with the gift of evangelism, and indeed, many of us would shy away from such an overt approach. This may be linked to low scores in Passionate Spirituality as well. If we are not confident in our faith personally, we are probably unlikely to want to share it!

This will be a challenge for the next vicar. We need help to gently build up our spiritual confidence, in communities where church members do approach newcomers lovingly but lack the confidence in faith to help them along their spiritual journey into discipleship.

Loving relationships We scored relatively highly in the area of loving relationships. As a Benefice we are friendly and welcoming. The ethos throughout the Benefice is one of encouragement and praise – a very positive atmosphere. We place a high value on our church friendships, encouraging each other and dealing promptly with any misunderstandings, which all helps to create a harmonious atmosphere. There is a willingness to work together on projects that are likely to benefit the benefice as a whole, so for example the Family Gathering was the result of effective and generous collaboration and is now widely accepted and appreciated for its role in reaching younger generations. We are very welcoming to newcomers, who are received openly and lovingly, but we do need help to encourage casual visitors to become part of our worshipping community.

Effective structures We seek a leader who can bring greater cohesion to our communication and planning activities as a benefice rather than as individual churches. We get on well together, but there could be much more development of benefice level initiatives. Our wardens recently explored briefly whether to have a Benefice Council but it was not felt appropriate to make such changes especially during an interregnum.

Each of the parishes has a functioning PCC, but as in many areas of life, volunteers are becoming harder to find, not helped by the weight of responsibility for finance and buildings in rural areas. However, we believe that if we try to improve the spiritual health of our parishes, more people will want to come forward to serve.

Following a successful Benefice away-day in March we intend to build on current initiatives and work together for the benefit of the whole.

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THE CHURCHES OF THE STOURDENE BENEFICE

The Church of St Peter and St Paul, Butlers Marston

St Peter and St Paul is the parish church of Butlers Marston, a small parish of approximately 250 people with 56 parishioners on the electoral role. The village comprises a mixed demographic of all ages, including several young families. Housing varies from four working farms and a wide selection of homes including a proportion of local authority and social housing. A parish with a noticeably warm and supportive village spirit, our open-minded community has a clear Christian faith at its heart. There is a service every Sunday, be it traditional BCP service, a reflective Evensong, Celtic Morning Prayer or the increasingly popular family service. There is also a pre-work, lay-led 7am Friday morning gathering of readings and prayer.

Our youthful PCC now stands at nine members. We have big ideas and have the ‘oomph’ required to get things done. We see ‘the church’ as the people of the parish, not just the building and the parish is defined by its community spirit. Acts of kindness take place daily and there is a great commitment to spending time together.

The Faith Group meets every fortnight and also publishes our thoughts on a Bible extract in the monthly village newsletter, produced by the church. Every month Chat in Church (our pop-up-pub) takes place with average turnout of 40 plus. Other activities include the safari supper, harvest supper,

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‘Beating of the Bounds’, the village fete, church teas, the Butlers Marston Concert Society and many more regular events throughout the year.

In a financially robust position, we are amidst plans to install a toilet and upgrade the heating and lighting in the building. We would like to develop an area of the church to create a kitchen and an area of versatile space to accommodate our widening parish needs.

We are an open-minded, strong community who believe in the power of prayer. We know that we have some work to do in the area of Passionate Spirituality, but we believe that we have a Spirit-filled vigour and are intent on transforming our parish in bringing the good news of Jesus Christ to all. We are looking for a strong, inspiring leader with a clear message, and are excited for what God has in store for Butlers Marston!

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Holy Trinity and St Thomas of Canterbury, Ettington

The village of Ettington is five miles from Stratford and lies along the A422, Banbury Road where it meets the Roman Fosse Way. There has been a settlement on the site since Roman times. The parish also incorporates the hamlet of Fulready. The village has seen considerable growth in the last 15 years and encompasses a variety of housing, old and new, rented and owner-occupied. The population is a mixture of families that have lived here for generations and people who have been attracted here by the friendly reputation, beautiful countryside and excellent links to employment and recreation. Most people work away from the village but there are some small businesses and Ettington Chase, on the edge of the village, is a thriving conference centre. The village shop and Post Office is a focal point in the village along with the local pub.

The Church of England Primary School was rated ‘good’ and pre-school, recently rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted, are well attended and there are strong links with the church. We are also blessed with a large village hall.

The church was built just over a hundred years ago and occupies a prominent position as you enter the village. A loop system has been installed and there is a PA system that allows recorded music to supplement the more traditional organ. A recent addition to the facilities is a purpose built kitchen and disabled toilet.

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The PCC is well supported and organises a regular programme of fund-raising events but also focuses on mission activities. A thriving Bible study group meets in the village.

What makes Ettington special? Well, everyone comments on what an open and friendly place it is. We believe that as a church we are also open and ready to listen and learn and try new ways to worship. We are conscious that we have a fairly diverse congregation and worship styles but we are united by a willingness to allow new members to contribute their own ideas and to meet people wherever they may be on their spiritual journey. We do not always get it right, and we know we still have a long way to go, but we support each other to carry on growing and learning together as we seek to share the Gospel and reach out to the wider community.

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St Mary the Virgin, Halford

Halford is an attractive village lying close to the river Stour (and a medieval bridge) and astride the Fosse Way. Formerly a farming community, most adults now commute to neighbouring towns or are retired. Housing ranges from sixteenth-century properties to recently built ones, with some social housing.

Amenities include a local shop and garage, a pub, and a Village Hall which is very well used for various activities involving a wide range of age groups.

The church dates from the early 12th century and the tympanum over the north doorway was considered by Pevsner to be the best piece of Norman sculpture in Warwickshire. Amongst the six bells is the oldest inscribed one in the county, and there is a team of ringers. The church can seat about 150 people in traditional pews, and is kept open throughout the day. We are exploring plans to make the building more welcoming and effective by creating a flexible space at the rear, to include a servery and toilet.

Fundraising consists of well attended events including a Summer Party, Harvest Supper, and Christmas Fair. Concerts are also held in the church from time to time.

The Church is represented on the Parish Council, the Village Hall Committee and ‘Leo’, a group of ladies meeting monthly with diverse speakers. People moving into the village are always welcomed with an information pack.

We use Common Worship and at the present time the Worship Group prepare a service once a month. Average attendance is between 10 and 14, mostly being middle aged or retired. Children have a ‘Messy Church’ once a month. Special occasions bring in significantly larger congregations. At the moment there is no Churchwarden in place at St Mary’s.

Like some other churches in the benefice, we are aware that many of the factors influencing our health as a church need to be improved, as can be seen from our NCD survey results

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St Mary & the Holy Cross, Alderminster

Alderminster lies in the Stour Valley, on the A3400 between Stratford-upon-Avon and Shipston-on-Stour. The parish includes Goldicote, with the former Goldicote Hall, now converted into smaller residences and other scattered properties. There is a variety of housing and a mixed population of farmers and other working people, commuters, retired people and young families. A new development of 25 homes has just begun in Alderminster.

Agriculture is the main industry but there are a number of small industrial units and businesses. There is a pub in the village and a Peugeot dealer. Church members take a lead role in organisations such as the Gardening Club, Amblers, MEGA (Monday Evening Group at Alderminster) and the Crafts Group. A monthly village breakfast is served in the village hall whilst a film is also shown monthly. There are bus services to Stratford, Shipston and Banbury.

The Church stands in the centre of the village and was established in AD 549 and became the Parish Church of the Holy Cross in the ninth century. There is a Victorian organ and a new keyboard. The nave area of the church seats about 90. The building is open daily throughout the year and is used for occasional concerts, lunches, harvest supper and the annual garden party which are organised by the PCC. The south transept was re-ordered some 6 years ago and a basic kitchen included. On Good Friday the parish hosts a popular Hot Cross Bun workshop for families.

Our monthly newsletter ‘Village Voices’ is shared with Halford, and covers news and activities in both villages. Our church tradition has moved from being ‘high’ to ‘middle of the road’. Our patrons are the Society for the Maintenance of the Faith.

In recent years the congregation has declined drastically, largely due to natural reasons. We are about 10 members now, and elderly. Our NCD survey scores were low in most areas, which has probably demoralised us yet more. Much work needs to be done to rebuild the spiritual life of this parish.

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St David’s, Newbold on Stour with Armscote

Newbold on Stour straddles the A3400 Stratford upon Avon to Oxford road. The hamlet of Armscote is a mile west. A more diverse village has grown out of the original farming community, with a mixture of housing. A development in 1999 introduced more young professional families, and widened the commuter range, however many also work from home. Planning permission has recently been granted for 62 houses on Mansell Farm land, providing a play area and parking for the church. Further housing applications are expected. Both Newbold and Armscote have a pub. There is a shop/post office in Newbold along with a village hall, green and war memorial. Local towns offer good facilities, Shipston on Stour, having a medical centre and an NHS community hospital.

Newbold and Tredington Church of England School (Voluntary Controlled), is a split site, infants in Newbold, juniors in adjacent Tredington. Pastoral care is in the remit of the incumbents of Tredington (Ilmington Benefice) and Newbold. There is a foundation governor representing Tredington, and there is currently a vacancy for a foundation governor from Newbold.

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The church was stone built in 1835. It is spacious and airy, and can seat up to 130 with additional seating. The recent Quinquennial reported that church has been well maintained, but needing some roof repairs, and other minor works.

Fund-raising events are held throughout the year, the plant sale being the highlight contributing in excess of £2K per annum, with lunches, coffee mornings, and a Christmas sale making up the balance. These popular events, special services and the Lent lunch project offer opportunities for mission. Our recent Parish Plan questionnaire showed that the church is well supported by the village. Attracting children to church is a continuing problem with today’s lifestyle, however craft afternoons were trialled at Easter generating enthusiasm and a desire for more. The PCC are looking for other ways to extend use of the building, a local florist has run a workshop, and other ideas are being discussed. There is a monthly church newsletter distributed free to all households. The Mothers’ Union hold a monthly meeting, and the school use the church from time to time.

The pattern of worship has changed to cope with the interregnum. We have reverted to a service each Sunday except the 5th which is United Benefice in rotation. Additionally there is a Communion on the first Wednesday of the month. A Worship Committee meets quarterly. Members of the congregation read lessons and lead intercessions. Some members are licensed to assist at communion and also by extension, others will deliver the homily. The congregation averages 20 and are predominantly retired or middle-aged professionals.

There is a good locally made organ, and upright piano. Music is a mix of traditional and modern. We are fortunate to have the occasional service of an organ scholar. For the future the over-riding priority physically is to install a toilet and kitchen. These facilities together with an increase in population will open new opportunities. The over- riding priority spiritually is to see how we can improve our faith development and ‘passionate spirituality’.

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St Mary the Virgin, Pillerton Hersey and St Mary Magdalene, Pillerton Priors

The villages of Pillerton Hersey and neighbouring Pillerton Priors were combined into a single Parish ‘The Pillertons’ around 1666 when the church in Priors was destroyed by fire. The Prior’s churchyard is still consecrated ground and a service is held there annually.

The church of St Mary the Virgin Pillerton Hersey is of the early English style and exhibits some interesting architectural features. The building and churchyards are well maintained. Following the installation of a lavatory and kitchenette the church can be increasingly used for community events. Funding is almost complete for an exciting project to re-hang the bells.

At St Mary’s we have a tradition of strong lay involvement in church life. Lay people lead morning worship each month, special services, read lessons and prepare prayers. We aim to embrace a variety of services from the Book of Common Prayer through Common Worship to more modern styles for families. Each year the outdoor rogation service alternates between the two villages.

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Formed 30 years ago St Mary’s has a robed choir of twelve adults who sing at festivals, special services and weddings. Choir members are also active in all aspects of church life and add to the strong pastoral support in the villages.

The non-denominational group ‘The Friends of St Mary’s’ organise fund raisers such as quizzes and the popular August Sunday teas. These events enable all the community to support the maintenance of the church fabric as well as having fun. The PCC are greatly indebted to ‘The Friends’ and to the large band of volunteers who help regularly with routine tasks, mowing, cleaning and flower arranging.

Our two villages share the use of the village hall at Priors for social events. The church distributes a bi-monthly newsletter to every house in both villages. There is a popular family run garage at Priors.

Our vision is to ensure that St Mary’s remains a vital and vibrant part of the community and extends a welcome to everyone who comes in to the Parish. Like many churches in the benefice (and indeed the wider Diocese) we are aware that we need to improve the quality of our ‘passionate spirituality’.

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The Family Get-together

The Family Get-together is for the whole Benefice and is not associated with any one church. It is a Sunday school for children, fellowship for adults and worship for all the family. We meet on the second Sunday of the month in Pillerton Priors Village Hall. We feel it is important as an outreach group to try and encourage people that would not necessarily feel comfortable attending a Church, so we base ourselves in a neutral location.

We are run by a small group of Benefice members, who although are keen would benefit from formal training in leadership. We are supported by the clergy and appreciate their presence and guidance at the gatherings.

While the children are in the Sunday school it is an opportunity for the adults to have a time for fellowship and informal discussion over coffee, which is led by one of the organisers of the Family Get Together. Our worship is led by a music group playing modern worship songs, but we also celebrate birthdays and take time to pray. The Get -

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together can take many forms, bread making and crafting all the way through to rocket launching. We even held a camping weekend this last summer.

A small fellowship group has been established with the mums from the Family Get- together and we try to meet every other week as the Monday Morning group.

The group was set up by the previous Rector in 2015 in order that the children of the Benefice had a place to learn more about God and the many families that live within the Benefice could get to know each other better. In 2015 a grant of £1,740 was given to us by the Diocesan Mission Fund to support us financially as we established the group. Some of this grant remains after the purchase of some basic equipment, and the on-going running costs of hiring the hall and supplying the food. We are supported financially by donations that are collected each month. We have up to 40 members (although attendance varies month to month) mostly made up of young families but ranging from infants to retired parishioners. They come from various villages and denominations in the Benefice, although the majority are from Ettington and are Church of England. There is a huge opportunity to expand this number given the number of families that already live within the Benefice and with the building of further family homes. In order to do this we need to work on our connections with the churches within the Benefice and although we have a good relationship with Ettington Primary School we are yet to make a connection with Newbold and Tredington Primary School.

We are still feeling our way in this new venture, and this is perhaps reflected in our NCD survey results. But we are enthusiastic, committed and enjoying the opportunity to try something a little bit different!

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SCHOOLS MINISTRY

There are two Church of England schools in the benefice - Ettington and Newbold. Newbold is linked with Tredington in a split site arrangement which crosses benefice boundary lines. The infants are in Newbold in our benefice, the juniors in adjacent Tredington. Pastoral care has been the remit of the incumbents of both Tredington (Ilmington Benefice) and Newbold. There is currently a vacancy for a foundation governor from Newbold. We would wish our new Rector to be very involved with the life of the schools.

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SERVICES

Example of a typical rota with one House for Duty minister in the Benefice. Please don’t be put off by the number of services! Most of these are lay-led (in blue)! The two clergy (Rector and House for Duty) share duties for the services in red. This shows that clergy do not usually take more than two services on any Sunday.

 Lay led services  Alternates between all churches in Benefice

Day / Sunday Time Church Service Type Tuesday 9am Benefice Morning Prayer First Wednesday 10.00am Newbold CW Communion Friday 7am Butlers Marston  Morning Prayer 8.00 am Ettington BCP Communion BCP Communion 8.30 am Pillerton  Reserved Sacrament First Sunday 10.00 am Butlers Marston Morning Prayer 10.00 am Halford CW Communion 10.00 am Alderminster Morning Worship 10.00 am Newbold Morning Worship Tuesday 9am Benefice Morning Prayer Friday 7am Butlers Marston  Morning Prayer 8.00 am Newbold BCP Communion 9.00 am Ettington Morning Prayer 10.00 am Butlers Marston BCP Communion 10.00 am Alderminster CW Communion Second Sunday 10.00 am Halford Morning Worship 10.15am Pillerton  Morning Worship 11.30 am Benefice Family Get Together 6.00 pm Pillerton Choral Evensong Tuesday 9am Benefice Morning Prayer Friday 7am Butlers Marston  Morning Prayer Alderminster/ 10.00 am Morning Prayer Newbold

(alternate each month) 10.00 am Ettington CW Communion Third Sunday 10.00 am Halford  Morning Prayer 11.15 am Pillerton CW Communion 16.00 Halford Messy Church

7.00 pm Butlers Marston Evensong Tuesday 9am Benefice Morning Prayer Friday 7am Butlers Marston  Morning Prayer

Continues over leaf →

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8.30 am Halford CW Communion

10.00 am Ettington Morning Worship Fourth Sunday 10.00 am Alderminster Morning Prayer

10.00 am Newbold CW Communion 10.00am Pillerton Family Service 11.15 am Butlers Marston Family Service Tuesday 9am Benefice Morning Prayer Friday 7am Butlers Marston  Morning Prayer

10.30am Benefice Service   Holy Communion Fifth Sunday

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ETTINGTON VICARAGE

Built in the 1960s, a four bed roomed detached property set a wooded garden, with oil fired central heating, wood-burning stove; large modern kitchen and utility, sitting room, dining room and study with double glazing throughout

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ADMINISTRATION AND COMMUNICATION

The Benefice employs a part-time administrator for 9 hours a week and we are currently exploring the possibility of placing the Benefice office in part of the vestry of Ettington Church.

There is Benefice Website at www.stourdenebenefice.org but it does need updating. Parishes produce their own monthly newsletters which are distributed both electronically and in hard copy. We also have an electronic newsletter “Weekly Grapevine” which is sent out to well over 120 homes every week using Survey Monkey. This includes news of what is happening in the Benefice as well as prayer topics.

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FINANCES AND STEWARDSHIP

Our churches have managed to pay their parish share in full each year although some are struggling to continue to do this as their numbers have been declining in recent years. All parishes work hard to maintain their finances.

We have a Benefice account into which each parish pays a contribution but for accountability purposes, on advice from the Diocese, we have recently brought it under Ettington PCC and the audited account is presented as a note to the accounts of Ettington Church. The Church Wardens’ approve an annual Benefice budget and we now ensure that these accounts are inspected annually by an independent examiner. The account is used to pay the Benefice administrator and clergy expenses, telephone, office costs and other items used by the Benefice.

In 2015 a grant of £1,740 was given from the Diocesan Mission Fund to help get the Family Get-together off the ground.

Newbold, Halford and Butlers Marston are all exploring the possibility of building toilets and kitchens whilst Pillerton is preparing to have their bells rehung.

Alderminste Butlers Ettington Halford Newbold Pillerton r Marston General £2,963.00 £3,061.00 £2,369.00 £3,716.00 £898.00 £2,561.00 income

Planned £10,898.00 £3,494.00 £10,116.05 £5,689.00 £7,557.00 £8,660.00 Giving

Fundraising £3,436.00 £3,871.00 £3,181.00 £2,472.00 £4,814.00 £3,921.00 (Fetes etc.)

Grants £5,881.00 £1,500.00

General £26,208.00 £4,332.00 £3,291.00 £6,048.00 £5662.00 £6,573.00 expenditure Parish share contribution £9,350 £5,910 £16,775 £6,891.00 £11,390 £8,546.00 (2016) Unrestricted £1,480.00 reserves

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For further information about the post please contact the Area Dean, Revd. Dr. Jill Tucker on tel: 01295 688193 (E-mail: [email protected]).

An application form can be downloaded from the Diocesan Website: http://www.dioceseofcoventry.org/vacancies/current_vacancies

Applications to be submitted by noon Friday 10th February Interviews to be held over two days on Monday 27th and Tuesday 28th February

Enhanced DBS disclosure is required for this post.

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