The Church in Wales Yr Eglwys Yng Nghymru The Benefice of Llansantffraid, Bettws and Aberkenfig Benefice Profile - 2019 ‘Seeking to share the Love of God in deed and word’ 0 The people of Llansantffraid, Bettws and Aberkenfig are looking for a new Incumbent who will lead a process of consolidation and growth for our three churches in the coming decade. Consolidation will mean: • continuing to build on the goodwill which has grown between the three churches in the benefice, and also between the different denominations in the area • giving direction and focus to shared aspirations (eg our Mission Statement) • bringing unity and coherence to lay ministry, encouraging us to see that all that we do is valuable to God, so that we are both being church and doing church • seizing opportunities for wider collaborative working with neighbouring parishes and colleagues. Growth will mean: • pursuing the opportunities and needs provided by growing new housing estates • encouraging and developing a ministry to children and the “missing generations” • fostering an environment in which new vocations can emerge • addressing the ongoing stewardship challenges, especially in relation to financial resources • leading and encouraging new ways for the churches to become a ‘House of Prayer’, praying for the renewal and re-generation of the church and the spiritual community 1 The Diocesan Context This single-parish benefice lies within the deanery of Bridgend, in the archdeaconry of Margam. In Lent 2019 the diocese will launch its new vision strategy which has arisen out of a consultation process which took place last year. Our Vision We believe faith matters. Our vision is that all may encounter and know the love of God through truth, beauty and service, living full and rich lives through faith. Transforming lives through living and bearing witness to Jesus Christ is our calling. We seek to do this in a Diocese that is strong, confident, alive and living in faith, engaged with the realities of life and serving others in His name. Our profound belief in the sovereignty of God means that we will look to continue Christ’s church and mission by telling the joyful story of Jesus, growing the Kingdom of God by empowering all to participate and building the future in hope and love. Our Shared Aims Telling a joyful story Growing the Kingdom of God Building our capacity for good 2 The benefice serves the extensive northern edge of the expanding town of Bridgend. Bridgend itself is situated on the M4 corridor. It has fast rail and motorway links to both Cardiff and Swansea, and is within ten minutes’ drive of the beautiful Heritage Coast. Location St David’s, Bettws St John’s, Aberkenfig St Brides Minor, Llansantffraid 3 The benefice lies to the north of Bridgend with the M4 as its southern boundary and includes the confluence of the Ogwr, Garw and Llynfi rivers; it is the gateway to those valleys. In 2002 the parish of Llansantffraid and Bettws was united with Aberkenfig, forming the LBA benefice. Two years later a semi-formal relationship with the parishes of Ogmore Vale and Llandyfodwg / Llangeinor with Pontycymer was established, forming the LOG group (Llansantffraid, Ogwr, Garw). This LOG grouping meets together for worship and social events, and the clergy gather for worship together on a weekly basis to say the Evening Office, for fellowship and mutual support. They parishes of LOG share a monthly Parish Magazine (LOGON), edited and produced by the benefice of LBA. The benefice is served by a Priest-in-Charge (ie this post). There are two active retired clergy. The Archdeacon of Margam is a part time Associate Priest of the LOG group, living in the benefice at Tondu. Ministry Area The LOG group has successfully forged and deepened inter-parish relationships and collaboration over the last fourteen years. However, in line with the Church in Wales and Diocesan emphasis on forming Ministry Areas discussions (involving the clergy and PCCs of all three parishes) are well underway with a view to possibly forming a more formal connection between the parishes. One potential model for a Ministry Area is a Rectorial Benefice with a permanent vacancy of Team Rector, and in which nominal leadership of the clergy team would rotate between the Priests in Charge, who would all then be Team Vicars. Alternatively, the three parishes could remain separate, but a formal cross-licensing of the LOG clergy would bring a greater degree of formalisation of the inter-parish links. Discussions on the best route forward are continuing. 4 Churches Within the benefice there are three churches. All of them have benefitted from substantial expenditure arising out of needs identified by quinquennial inspections, and each has kitchen and toilet facilities. St David’s, Bettws, CF32 8YD - Grade 1 listed building opposite the newly-built Betws Primary School in the heart of the village. The church has strong links with the school. St John’s, Aberkenfig, CF32 9AU – 150 year old building which has been converted to a multifunction church building/community hall available for hire. 5 St Bride’s, Llansantffraid - CF32 9AH - Grade 2 listed building located at the bottom of Sarn Hill near Sarn Railway Station. Financially, all three churches have their own accounts, and contribute to a central Parish Account that services centralised expenditure. All three churches are licenced to hold weddings. Members of each church come together to form the PCC. Graveyards St Bride’s has space for new burials, while St John’s has space for new cremation plots. St David’s graveyard has been adopted by Bridgend County Borough Council. Congregations The average benefice attendee number is around 50. The congregations are mainly made up of people of a high age profile. There are two very good ecumenical Sunday Schools in Aberkenfig and most local families with young children attend there; as a consequence there are few young children connected with our churches on a regular basis. The congregations from each of the three churches are quite different. Those at St John’s prefer a more traditional approach, whilst at St Bride’s and St David’s there are more contemporary services each month which typically include the use of PowerPoint and a small group of musicians. The three congregations have the opportunity for joint worship four times per year. There is a benefice Retreat held twice per year at Nicholaston House, The Gower. This has proved to be of great benefit and value. 6 Organisations Like many parishes we have a range of different activities and organisations, some of which are seasonal or occasional. These include: Mothers’ Union Foodbank (weekly, held at St David’s, Bettws) Tea and Toast (weekly, held at St David’s, Bettws) Alpha (ecumenical) Occasional Offices 2017 figures: Baptisms: under 7 years = 23; 7 years + = 5 Weddings: 3 Funerals: 7 in church Lay Ministry Our Sunday services are a mixture of Eucharists and non-Eucharistic worship, the latter often being led by lay people. We have a small team of lay people licensed to take Communion to people in their homes. Ecumenical Relationships The benefice has long enjoyed excellent ecumenical relationships with clergy and lay people from a full range of Christian denominations, who successfully collaborate on a variety of projects and activities. We are members of Aberkenfig and District United Churches (ADUC) which organises, among other events: Christian Unity Songs of Praise, Lent lunches, collecting for Christian Aid in May, Macmillan coffee mornings, Christmas Walk of Witness, Open the Book schools ministry. Every Thursday morning leaders from various local Christian Churches meet for prayer and to foster unity. From this a calendar of shared worship has been built, including Good Friday Devotional, Remembrance Sunday Service, Songs of Praise, and Carol Services. In addition, these Church Leaders form a committee overseeing The Storehouse Project which runs a Community Shop in Aberkenfig, that in turn funds a Christians Against Poverty Debt Centre for the local community. As funds allow, the Storehouse Project intends to grow to provide further outreach in the community for schools, the elderly, and those leaving prison. 7 Communities The benefice serves the communities of Bettws, Sarn, Bryncethin, Ynysawdre, Coytrahen, Brynmenyn, Tondu, and Aberkenfig, together with the surrounding regions. The area is growing with many newly built houses and some still under construction. We serve several residential homes, and have good connections with Civic life and activities. St John’s provides a large usable space for benefice events and ecumenical gatherings. Schools There are four Primary Schools, comprising new builds at Bettws and Brynmenyn, and older schools at Tondu and Bryncethin. ‘Open the Book’ is delivered ecumenically to a number of these schools. The secondary school is Ysgol Cymunedol Y Dderwen (an amalgamation of the former Ynysawdre Comprehensive and Ogmore Comprehensive schools). Accommodation The old Rectory at Llansantffraid was sold a number of years ago, and until recently the Priest in Charge lived in the house now occupied by the Archdeacon. A new property is being sought for the incoming priest. It will comply with the standard diocesan specification for clergy housing. Person Specification We are looking for someone: who puts Jesus at the centre of their lives and their ministry with a warm pastoral heart seeking to share the love of God in deed and word who will help us grow in our discipleship and witness who will enable us to develop in our aims of growing Godward – Usward – Outward (see below) who is relaxed and approachable who is comfortable with our mix of traditional and more relaxed styles of worship prepared to listen to and respect the ideas of others who will bring to us new ideas, helping us to increase our reach into our communities who is enthusiastic about working ecumenically with people across the theological spectrum who is comfortable in the use of IT equipment 8 Our Vision for the Parish 9 .