, and Benefice Profile

St John the Baptist, Flitton St James the Apostle, Pulloxhill

St James the Great, Silsoe

Deanery of and Shefford

Patrons: The Bishop of St Albans and Balliol College Oxford

www.3churches.co.uk

1

Contents Contents ...... 1 Mission Action Planning ...... 1 We are looking for an incumbent who: ...... 2 We will offer you ...... 2 The Vicarage ...... 2 The Benefice ...... 3 Location ...... 3 Worship ...... 3 Community ...... 3 Education ...... 4 How we work together ...... 5 Ministerial team ...... 5 Electoral roll ...... 5 Expenses of Office ...... 5 The Deanery ...... 5 St James the Great Silsoe ...... 6 St John the Baptist, Flitton ...... 9 St James the Apostle, Pulloxhill ...... 11

Our vision Our vision is for a benefice which is growing the church community in the three parishes by:  Being welcoming and loving;  Engaging in community outreach;  Respecting tradition and embracing differences;  Exploring a range of worship;  Sharing God’s love.

Mission Action Planning Each parish has a separate Mission Action Plan which is presented in the individual parish pages. The priorities and goals below reflect those that are common across the benefice. Our Priorities  Church growth  Community engagement  Deepening faith

1

Our goals  Appointing and welcoming a new incumbent who can help us achieve our priorities;  Making our worship more enjoyable and accessible to everyone;  To work together more effectively as a benefice.

We are looking for an incumbent who:  Is a spiritual leader with vision, drive, energy, humour and creativity with a strong calling to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ;  Is a good communicator and can establish a rapport with all sections of the community;  Can foster the contribution of lay members in leading aspects of church life, including some parts of worship;  Is confident to offer spiritual and moral guidance to the school community, is part of the school family and can inspire young people throughout the benefice;  Is willing to develop cohesion within and between the parishes, ensuring equity between them and a shared vision for the benefice;  Can demonstrate strong leadership in all aspects of their work;  Can understand and respond to the particular challenges of rural benefices;  Will be sensitive to what the three churches have already achieved, and able to inspire further initiatives;  Is willing to develop the pastoral care and outreach work of our churches;  Is able to maintain a good work-life balance.

We will offer you  A warm welcome!  The spiritual and secular support and encouragement of a committed and caring benefice;  An opportunity to work with three PCCs that are looking for change and are already actively pursuing new initiatives;  An attractive rural environment in which to live and work, with excellent recreational and educational facilities and good transport links The Vicarage This is located in a residential area about a quarter of a mile from the church in the centre of Silsoe, about 1.5 miles from Flitton and 2 miles from Pulloxhill. It is a two storey detached house, built in 1998, of about 208m2 (2,240sq.ft.), brick under a reconstituted slate roof, with a detached double garage. The ground floor includes sitting room, dining room, kitchen/breakfast room, cloakroom and well-equipped study large enough to accommodate meetings. There are four bedrooms on the first floor, with a bathroom/WC and a shower room/WC. The property has mains gas central heating. The garden of approximately 0.33 acre (0.13 ha) is a level plot laid primarily to lawn.

2

The Benefice Location The Benefice is composed of three parishes, Silsoe, Flitton and Pulloxhill, which are adjacent to each other and located in lovely countryside in central , about halfway between and . There are excellent transport links, being close to both the M1 and A1 roads and rail services from nearby to St Pancras, for Eurostar, as well as for Gatwick and Luton Airports.

Worship Silsoe Flitton Pulloxhill 1st Sunday 9:30 All age communion 10:30 Family Service 6 pm Evensong 6pm Parish 2nd Sunday 10:00 Family service 9:30 Choral Communion communion 3rd Sunday 9:30 Parish communion 11 am Matins 6 pm Evensong 8.30 am BCP said 11 am parish 4th Sunday 9:30 Parish communion communion communion 5th Sunday 10 am United Benefice at each parish in turn 1st & 4th 11 am Benefice

Wednesday Communion

Community Although a predominantly agricultural area, there is continual residential development in all villages. This, combined with the lack of a major employer in the benefice, means that only a small proportion of residents work locally, the majority commuting to work, many to London. Silsoe has a small selection of shops, including a post office, village shop and hairdressers. A range of facilities, including supermarkets, health care and professional services are available in nearby towns. Silsoe is the largest parish in terms of numbers of residents, and is growing rapidly due to new developments. Pulloxhill and Flitton & Greenfield have smaller populations. Local buses are relatively scarce, although there is a regular service between Luton and Bedford which stops in Silsoe and there is a volunteer bus service, Flittabus. It would, however, be difficult to live in the benefice without access to a car.

3

Local government is provided by a Parish Council for each parish while Council provides major services. There are no other churches or chapels in the benefice.

Leisure and recreation Currently there is a sports centre with swimming pool at Flitwick, with a new one to be built over the next two years. There are sports fields in Silsoe and Flitton, the latter with a multi-use games area with floodlights. A new sports hall is being built at Silsoe. There is a network of footpaths and bridleways joining the three parishes which are well used by dog walkers, joggers, cyclists and horse riders. Flitwick Moor and Flitton Moor, Centenary Wood and Barton Hills are all valuable recreational areas and wildlife havens in or near the benefice.

Education Central Bedfordshire operates a 3-tier education system, with lower, middle and upper schools. All three parishes have lower schools that are Ofsted-rated ‘Outstanding’. At age 9, children move to a middle school – the catchment schools are Arnold in Barton- Le-Clay, school, rated ‘Good’, which also has a specialist unit for children with autism and then, at 13 to , with specialist facilities for hearing-impaired students, also rated ‘Good’. All these catchment schools have converted to Academy status. A bus service takes the children to the middle and upper catchment schools. There is also a range of private schools – in particular the Harpur Trust Schools in Bedford - which many children attend, particularly from the age of 9. There are bus services available from locations within the benefice to these schools. Silsoe VC Lower School Silsoe Lower School is a voluntary controlled lower school and is very proud of its church school status. The close partnership between the school, the incumbent and the church community is a major reason why the school retained its “Outstanding” status in the recent SIAMS Inspection in June 2014. The strong links between the school, incumbent and church, will remain critical as the school grows in size and prepares to move to a new site within the village in September 2016. The incumbent is an ex officio governor on the governing body and it is hoped will be actively involved in the school including leading collective worship on a regular basis and in helping the school to develop the spiritual, moral, social and cultural aspects of learning. Values education is embraced by the whole school community and encourages every child to develop into a caring, responsible, tolerant, determined, hardworking and positive person.

Greenfield and Pulloxhill Academy Greenfield and Pulloxhill Academy consists of two lower schools in a federation, with a shared headteacher, single governing body and trust. The previous incumbent was a governor, and the Archdeacon of Bedford is a trustee. The schools have well-developed Values Education programmes, focusing on values such as honesty, peace, humility, freedom, co- operation, love, respect, tolerance, courage and patience. The vicar is encouraged to come into both schools to lead assemblies and to support

4 the values education. Greenfield school is a church school and takes children aged 3 - 9 having recently opened a nursery class. It has grown rapidly in recent years and now has 162 children. In the last SIAMS inspection the school was rated as ‘outstanding’. The school Nativity is held in the Church, and there is an Easter service in church on the last day of the spring term. The school takes part in Diocesan events including Harvest Festival at St Albans Abbey and Living God’s Love Celebration. Pulloxhill has a lower school with 69 children between the ages of 4 and 9 and although not a church school there are strong links. There is a pre-school playgroup attached to the school and there are good opportunities to expand and develop the link with the church.

How we work together We work together as a benefice through:  Regular united benefice Sunday services around the parishes, and a mid-week service at Pulloxhill;  A shared benefice choir;  A shared bellringing team;  A joint benefice website;  Regular joint churchwardens’ meetings;  Joint Lent courses and confirmation classes.

Ministerial team One Reader-in-training (Pulloxhill).

Electoral roll St James the Great Silsoe: 52 St John the Baptist Flitton: 22 St James the Apostle Pulloxhill: 16

Expenses of Office Office expenses are shared with the other parishes and paid in full. The benefice will pay the working expenses of the incumbent. There is no provision for paid assistance.

The Deanery The Ampthill and Shefford Deanery is a partly rural deanery with an active synod. The Deanery stretches across Central Bedfordshire with 34 parishes with 12 multi parish benefices and four single parishes. The area has 4 small towns - Ampthill, Flitwick, and Shefford - with villages making

5 up the rest of the settlements. Most of the towns and villages are expanding through housing developments.

Deanery Chapter meets monthly at Haynes which is central in this large Deanery. The programme is agreed by Chapter, and ideas are welcomed. Deanery Synod meets 4 times a year with visiting speakers. Deanery Eucharist takes place once a year and Deanery Evensongs twice a year. The Synod encourages discipleship and fellowship, and representatives are asked to offer opinions, share ideas and to discuss any problems they may have. The Rural Dean is Canon Rev. Lynda Klimas, the Rector of

St James the Great Silsoe

Community During the past 2-3 years there has been a large increase in mixed housing on the site of the former Silsoe College as well as significant infill within the village. By 2016 these developments will have doubled the population of Silsoe to about 3,000. In addition to the housing there will be a replacement lower school and the Silsoe Community Sports Centre, ready in 2016 and 2015 respectively. Many of the new houses are occupied by families so the average age profile of the village will be lowered and the population will have fewer long-term residents of the village. The site of a former research institute is being developed as a light industrial estate providing potential employment for residents. Mission Action Plan A detailed MAP has been produced, which in summary identifies our two key priorities, shown below, together with a brief account of achievements. 1. To develop the worship and prayer life of the church so that the church family are able to develop a deeper relationship with God.  Special services are held every year which are appreciated and well attended by the wider community and described under Worship (p7).  Conducting a review of the current service book with separate sheets for each service designed to be user friendly for new comers and visitors. Good progress has been made as service sheets have already been produced for the All Age Communion, Family Service and several special season services e.g. All Souls.  The Diocesan Foundation’s in Living God's Love was used last year for two teaching courses.  The Church is open every day for private prayer and reflection.

6

2. To seek to draw new people into the church family who can bring gifts and abilities that can enable the church to become more effective at living out God's love.  The school holds services in the Church at Harvest, Christmas, Easter and Remembrance, which most parents attend and enjoy.  Children contribute fully to a range of other services including Procession of Witness and Mothering Sunday.  The Church and churchyard are used by the school as an educational resource, with regular visits by each class.  Messy Church was started in autumn 2014, is held monthly after the family service, and is attracting between 10 and 20 children each time together with parents.  Reordering has been agreed to provide more space in the Church for social activities and interaction.  An annual Harvest Supper is organised.  A new notice board has been commissioned which will be far more visible for pedestrians Worship Average attendance on Sundays is about 30 except for Family Services which are about 35. The Family Service is followed by Messy Church and refreshments are served after services on the first and third Sunday. Additional services are held regularly throughout the year, some are listed below with attendance in brackets, Blessing of the crib: (410) Christingle: (60) Carol service: (100) Christmas Eve (70) Mothering Sunday: (65) Harvest Festival: (60) Remembrance: (55) All Souls: (70) Procession of Witness: (50) A prayer box is available in the church and is presented at each service. There is a remembrance book and floodlights are sponsored for remembrance, celebrations etc. Leadership The PCC has 16 lay members including two church wardens, who have responsibility for decisions on all matters of general concern and importance to the Parish including how the funds of the PCC are spent. The PCC also contributes to the development and implementation of the Mission Action Plan and effective planning and delivery of Sunday worship and special services. In discharging these duties joint meetings are held with the other PCC’s as appropriate. The PCC has 2 sub-committees, Standing Committee and Finance Committee. There are two representatives from the PCC on the Deanery Synod and one on the Pastoral Committee and the two church wardens are Foundation Governors of the Lower School appointed by the Diocese. In addition several members have specific responsibilities which they discharge with assistance from other members; these include health & safety, church building maintenance, website, Silsoe News, and provision of organists. The PCC has 9 members in full or part-time employment and ages range between 35 and 80. Organisations There is an active friends group which organises activities, including quizzes and concerts to raise funds for the church and involve the broader community. An effective food bank collection point is operated at the church. The church has a ring of 6 bells and an active group of ringers who ring for services, weddings and regular practices. There are regular rotas for flower arrangements and cleaning by members of the congregation. There is no church hall but a village hall which is regularly

7 and heavily used for a wide range of activities and classes covering drama productions, keep fit and dance as well as hosting regular afternoon tea for SOS (Silsoe Offers Support) and Macmillan. The village also has an active WI, Gardeners & allotments club, a Council run Horticultural Centre which has the Sunflower tea room open to villagers, as well as poetry and reading groups and a large Millennium Green providing a valuable open space for the village. Buildings There has been a chapel on the site of the present church since 13th century. In the early 1830’s Earl de Grey of designed and built the sandstone church which has been subject to major restoration and improvement in recent years and is in good order thanks to contributions from English Heritage. A sound enhancement system, including an audio loop, is fitted throughout the building. There are active rotas for cleaning the church and brasses and for the arrangement of flowers. The most recent improvement has been the addition of a flower room and disabled compliant toilet. Currently, following an inspection by the Diocesan Advisory Committee plans are being developed to replace the current heating system, remove some pews at the rear of the church and re-site the font. The churchyard is still actively used for burials. Some graves are maintained under trusts. Part of the churchyard is reserved for the internment of ashes. Most of the maintenance is carried out by a contract grass cutter. Finance Excluding one-off items, expenditure exceeded income of £30,751 by about £3,000 for 2013. The Parish Share of £17,937 was paid in full. Christian stewardship is practised through an envelope scheme and direct payments to bank account. There are voluntary contributions to other parishes in the Benefice to help them meet their Parish Share and a small, but variable, percentage of income is given to charity each year. The incumbent must be a trustee of the Church Estate as defined by the requirements of the charity. Communications The benefice website, www.3churches.co.uk managed by a churchwarden from Flitton, provides up- to-date information about the times and venues for services and the readings for each Sunday. Information exchange within and between parishes has been enhanced by the establishment of web-based calendars for Silsoe and for Flitton. These record all church related activities and via the three Churches website are easily accessed by PCC members and others as appropriate. Silsoe News, supported by the PCC and Parish Council, lists the services for all three churches and is delivered free to every house in the village monthly. Silsoe News is also used to provide regular reports about the Church’s services and activities to ensure all villagers have the opportunity to learn about the Church and what goes on.

8

St John the Baptist, Flitton The church is located in the heart of the village of Flitton, but also serves Greenfield and the hamlet of Wardhedges, which are now effectively joined together.

Mission Action Planning Our Vision is: We want to be a financially and spiritually sustainable church with a bigger, happy congregation that is confidently reaching out to the wider community. Our priorities are: 1. To make the experience of church more enjoyable 2. To improve engagement with the wider community 3. To maintain the building and fabric Two of our major achievements so far have been the revitalisation of the family service, and the introduction of the parish breakfast. Services The timing of services has recently changed slightly after surveying the congregation and wider community in 2012, as part of our Mission Action Planning, and is a response to feedback that 11 am was too late, as well as allowing those with other Sunday commitments to come at least once a month. Our family service has been renamed: ‘Sunday Fun Club’ with activities at 10.30 and a short informal service (with Vicar) at 11. Congregations for ordinary services are relatively small – 20 would be a good turnout for the family service and the choral communion on the 1st and 2nd Sundays respectively. The 3rd Sunday Matins and 4th Sunday BCP communion have smaller, but dedicated, congregations. The new Parish Breakfast on the 4th Sunday has slightly increased the communion congregation, but many more come just for the breakfast and to meet with fellow parishioners. Festivals are much better attended, with 86 at the Christmas carol service in 2013, and 53 at Easter in 2014. Special services, such as the annual Pet Service, or a one-off service in 2013 for armed forces day are also better attended. Fundraising The Friends of Flitton and Greenfield church raise money to support the maintenance of the building. Events include coffee mornings, wine tastings and the sale of christmas cards. In addition, the Church undertakes as many fundraising events as we can manage. These are intentionally ‘social’ and include a Harvest Supper, Quiz, and talks. We also have a unique baptism window, which has the names of those baptised in the Church etched onto the glass for a donation.

9

Other church groups  Bell ringers – we have 6 bells which are regularly rung;  Flower arrangers – a rota of arrangers ensure that the church always has fresh flowers;  Cleaning parties in the church, with plentiful refreshments, companionship and conversation;  Choir – with members from all three churches, based in Flitton and led by the Flitton organist. Communication We communicate through a quarterly parish magazine delivered to every home (supported by the Parish Council), a monthly email newsletter, the 3churches website, a large blackboard outside the church, and, of course, the village grapevine. Finance – year ending Dec 2103 Income £15,724.92 Expenditure £15,548.29 Parish Share (taking account of parish share reduction) £11,483.00 Current account balance at 31st Dec 2013 £4,470.45 Community There are three pubs in the parish. The White Hart next to the church is always very supportive of church events. There is a village hall near the boundary between Fliitton and Greenfield, together with a playing field and a Multi-Use Games Area with floodlights. The runs through the parish. This is next to Flitton Moor, a wonderful wildlife habitat, which is managed by local volunteers. There is a number of annual village events, including an annual Gala, a Fun Run and the ‘Famous Flitton Potato Race’ where the church has a presence. There is a Women’s Institute and a range of clubs and classes held at the village hall, including Salsa and Keep Fit, and tennis coaching at the MUGA. We also have our own small library – based in the redundant red phone box near the church! The Buildings There has been a church and village at Flitton since Saxon times. Although a few older parts are still visible, our Grade One Listed church was mainly built between 1450 and 1490 by the 1st Earl De Grey who lived at Wrest Park. At that time, Silsoe had no church and the parish was called Flitton cum Silsoe, making St John the Baptist the mother church. The church is Early Perpendicular, built on a mound in local stone and comprises the nave, chancel, 2 side aisles and a bell tower with 6 bells. Some of the oldest pews in Bedfordshire are in the nave and we have several carved 'Green Men' dating from the 15th century. Attached to the church with access from the chancel is the De Grey Mausoleum, now managed by English Heritage, built in the early 17th century on the instructions of the 6th Earl.

10

There is a separate adjacent church hall, which is owned by the church. It is run by a management committee, which undertakes fundraising and maintenance. It is let out regularly and used by the church for both social and religious events; it has the church’s only toilet and kitchen facilities. The churchyard is now closed and managed by Central Bedfordshire Council.

St James the Apostle, Pulloxhill

Mission Action Planning Our Vision “Our Vision is to create a church community that is welcoming, loving and draws in the wider community to its life and worship”. Our priorities are: 1. To organise events in the community outside the church that seek to engage with the wider community in God’s love; 2. To develop our worship so that it seeks to meet the needs of the church family and wider community and so take us deeper into God; 3. To improve our fundraising so that we can fully fund the cost of the church’s ministry; 4. To find ways of drawing new people into the family of the church, lowering the age profile of the congregation, and so making new disciples; 5. To grow new leadership; 6. Work on projects, in association with the Friends of Pulloxhill Church to improve the building and churchyard. Our Goals: 1. To continue to offer monthly community events; 2. To draw villagers into the church through its more relaxed special services; 3. To maintain our close links with the school and a range of village based organizations; 4. To offer regular family services.

The Parish St James the Apostle Pulloxhill is located in the Deanery of Ampthill and Shefford equidistant between Flitwick and Barton-le-Clay which have the same range of shops, health and social facilities. Whilst geographically large the Parish has the smallest population in the Benefice. The church is situated at the south end of the village and the churchyard has beautiful views over the Barton Hills. A development of around 100 houses called Woodlands lies to the north of the Parish and is geographically closer to Greenfield. There is a well maintained Travellers’ site on the western edge of the village at Kitchen End and a small group of Travellers, who live on an ancient site at Hermitage Lane to the east of the village.

11

Community Pulloxhill is a village with 985 residents and the age profile of the population at the 2011 census was: 0 to 24 years – 27%, 25 to 59 years – 49%, 60 + years – 24%. Pulloxhill has a very strong community with its many organisations interweaving to bring a variety of activities and entertainment to the village. In recent years three village residents have received much deserved honours from the Queen for their outstanding contributions to the community. The church hall is often used for meetings and there is also another building in the centre of the village called the Shelter which is used by the Parish Council and also by the popular Monday Coffee Club. There is a small but thriving group of Friends of Pulloxhill Church, which raises considerable sums of money to fund capital projects for the church. The current project is to provide a new church path. Pulloxhill has one pub, the Cross Keys. This focal point of the village is very well supported and the proprietors have always taken a keen interest in the church, helping out with various social functions and providing extra parking when large concerts are held in the church. The Pulloxhill Village News is a monthly magazine produced and distributed entirely by volunteers to provide information about the activities in the village. Worship The following services are regularly held at St James the Apostle: 1st Sunday: 6 pm Evensong 2nd Sunday: 6 pm Parish Communion 3rd Sunday: 6 pm Evensong 4th Sunday: 11 am Parish Communion 1st and 4th Wednesday: 11 am Benefice Communion in the Church Hall

Special Services: Advent Sunday/Christingle/Carol Service/Crib Service/Epiphany Tea Service/Mothering Sunday/Good Friday/Summer Family Service/Harvest Festival/All Souls. Leisure and Recreation There is easy access to footpaths and woodland in the surrounding countryside including the local Centenary Wood, and the ancient meadow of Rushymeade. Further recreational facilities for young children are provided at the Recreation Ground. How we work together On the retirement of the Churchwarden in April 2014 after 25 years service, the six members of St James PCC decided to work as a co-operative dividing the duties between themselves. This is working very effectively and bringing us closer together, giving a unity of purpose and strengthening our mission. The church is supported by a group of over 70 volunteers who undertake the day to day maintenance of the church and take pride in keeping the church well presented and the churchyard in accordance with the Diocesan guidelines

12

Electoral Roll There are currently 16 parishioners on the electoral roll. The age profile of the congregation is predominantly 55 plus, however, at specialist and family services the younger members of the community are well represented. Finances The Parish pays its annual parish share in full. We have 6 parishioners who pay on a regular basis by standing order and a further 17 who pay using gift aid envelopes. The monthly plate averages £300. The weekly giving has averaged £3 per person per week since 2011. Our fundraising activities, so far this year, have raised £4,500. We share the office expenses with the other two parishes and pay the working expenses of the incumbent in full. We make donations to Christian Aid, Help for Heroes, Combat Stress and The Royal British Legion and collect items for the food bank and toys for the Women's Shelter. Organisations and Clubs  Regular Monday Coffee Club organised by a PCC member;  The Pulloxhill Singers;  The Pulloxhill Players;  The Gardeners Club;  The Pulloxhill Art Class;  The Brownie group;  The Pulloxhill Chimes hand bell ringing group;  The Keep Fit class;

Church Events 2014  A Winter Warmer lunch;  A Banjo Bingo and Bangers evening;  Easter coffee morning;  Annual Thank You Evening;  Pulloxhill Singers concert;  Strawberry Tea;  Church Fete;  FOPC Bank holiday weekend Art Festival;  World War 1 Commemorative Lunch;  Christmas Bazaar;  FOPC Christmas carol concert;  Display of Nativity Scenes by village organisations;

13