WHAT HAPPENS IN VACANCY?

As the Parish Church of All Saints faces a Vacancy, it might be useful for those unfamiliar with the term, to explain what this is and what it means.

In the ‘old days’ we used to call the period without a vicar an ‘interregnum’. That literally means ‘the time between reigns’ – not a helpful idea! It suggests that the Christian community is leaderless when there is no full time paid priest which we know isn’t true. Certainly Christian communities need priests, and the Church of England invests a huge amount in training and deploying clergy. But we also know from experience that every member of the Church counts and needs to contribute even more during a vacancy and, therefore, a Vacancy can be a time for growth. Having said that, Vacancy isn’t a very good word either!

Well, what are the nuts and bolts? What is the process in a Vacancy? Who is ‘in charge’?

Dealing with the last question first: the Churchwardens, as the Bishop’s officers, are formally in charge of the parish, working with the PCC. That doesn’t mean that the Wardens have to do everything – rather they have responsibility for making sure that everything is done. The Vacancy is an excellent time for people to step up and offer to take on tasks, roles and responsibilities. Please don’t wait to be asked! If you have some time you could offer to God and the Church, please speak to one of the Wardens. Huge thanks to those who have already stepped up to the challenge!

At All Saints, we also have the Revd Ruth Dowson who is licensed as an Assistant Curate and who is completing her 4th year of training in this parish. Due to full-time work commitments in a demanding role, Ruth’s commitment is 10-hours per week. This will of course, involve preparation time and training!. Her presence in the parish does however, mean that there is a clergy presence and sense of continuity. We also have Licensed Reader, Mrs Shirley Firth who has served St Aidan’s so faithfully. Within the congregation we have the Revd John Nixon Rtd who is happy to help out from time to time, once he has received PTO (permission to officiate) from the Bishop of Leeds. We also have the enormous benefit of faithful ‘friends’ of All Saints among the retired clergy – most especially Canon Bruce Grainger.

What about the process? The process is well tried, and goes like this:

1 1. The vacancy formally begins on 17th January 2016. At the beginning of the vacancy, the Archdeacon comes to have an informal meeting with the PCC in the parish. This provides an opportunity to outline the whole process and to ask questions and talk together. This should take place at the first PCC after 17th January. The Area Dean, ordinarily, will also meet the PCC and be readily available throughout the process with advice and ideas. The present Area Dean, the Revd Canon Gary Hodgson will be relocating to Holmwood in January. We shall be advised of Gary’s successor as soon as it is announced.

2. The PCC then get on with writing what is often called the “Parish Profile”. This is a document that describes the life of our church and the wider community. It describes the church’s mission priorities, ministries and interests and contains a clear role description for a new priest – the role they will fulfil and the skills and gifts they need for this post. This is a really important part of the document as it will be used for short listing and interviewing candidates. The Parish Profile also contains some “technical” information about church statistics, normally in an appendix.

3. The Profile is then discussed at a special PCC meeting called the Section 11 meeting. This meeting has two purposes: 1) to agree the Profile and 2) to elect the two PCC representatives who will sit on the interview panel. These do not have to be the Churchwardens.

4. A short time later comes the Section 12 meeting where the Archdeacon and the PCC together, go through the Parish Profile and formally sign it off.

5. The Archdeacon then writes a role description and a person specification drawn from the parish Profile, along with an advert, and all these documents are put on the “Vacancies” page on the Diocesan website. Clergy from across all the Episcopal Areas will be invited to apply. This will give us a wider reach for the internal advert than in previous vacancies but if suitable candidates do not emerge internally, the post will be advertised nationally. Once applications have been received, they are circulated around all those who will be doing the interviews and they confirm which candidates should be called for interview [ie, Bishop Toby, the Ven Andy Jolley and the two Parish Reps].

How are interviews dealt with? Guidance will be given by the Archdeacon/Bishop Toby. It may be that candidates are invited to come the evening before for an informal gathering, which could include people from the wider community (but which must not be attended by the two PCC

2 representatives who will be interviewing). We might consider, for example, the Head and Chair of Governors of Holy Trinity & All Saints School and those of the other schools in the Parish, other Bingley clergy, etc. It is very important to realise that this reception is for the benefit of the candidates. It helps them get a broader understanding of the community. The evening before is also an excellent time for the candidates (and their spouses) to look over the vicarage.

For more questions about the Vacancy, speak to Canon Bev before she leaves, or one of the Wardens. Be assured! This Vacancy will not be anywhere as long as the last one!

Canon Beverley

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