Our Benefice Profile
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St Laurence, Winslow. Welcome to our Benefice Profile. St James, Great Horwood Winslow, Great Horwood & Addington, Buckinghamshire Index 1. Welcome to our Benefice Profile 2. Celebrating the Benefice 3. The Churches in the Benefice 3.1 St Laurence, Winslow 3.2 St James, Great Horwood 3.3 St Mary’s, Addington 4. The challenges 4.1 St Laurence , Winslow 4.2 St James, Great Horwood 4.3 St Mary’s, Addington 5. Our Worship 6. Person Profile 6.1 Personal Qualities 6.2 What we can offer 7. Buildings 7.1 Churches 7.2 Rectory 8. Finance 9. Benefice Website & ‘Trip Advisor’ 10. The Diocese of Oxford 11. The Claydon Deanery 1. Welcome to our Benefice Profile. Our Benefice is located within the Aylesbury, Milton Keynes and Buckingham triangle. We are three churches, each with its own identity and traditions, addressing different communities in the picturesque town of Winslow, village of Great Horwood and hamlet of Addington in rural North Buckinghamshire. Milton Keynes, with its wide range of sporting facilities, theatres , cinemas and vast shopping centre is only 11 miles away. Winslow is a small vibrant market town of 4 000 people, with Great Horwood , 1,000 and Addington, 100 nearby. Our three churches, St Laurence Winslow, St James Great Horwood and St Mary’s Addington all lie at the heart of their community and are supported by the town, village or hamlet where they are situated, especially for festivals and local events The town of Winslow has grown in stages in its history since 792, but has seen substantial expansion in the last two years with further residential development in the pipeline. This includes affordable and social housing together with employment which will provide us as a church with a range of opportunities and challenges as we seek to serve our community. This coincides with the new rail link connecting Winslow direct to Oxford, Aylesbury,Milton Keynes and London in 2018. The village of Great Horwood was first recorded in the Anglo Saxon Chronicle of 792. It has a number of conservation areas with 46 Grade II listed buildings. At present there are a number of proposals to build additional houses in the village. The Parish Plan is for approximately 40 new homes, but private developers are also seeking to add to this number. There is a wide range of activities supported by the village, from sporting clubs, the two public houses and groups that use the village hall and scout hut. Addington is a small rural hamlet 2 miles outside Winslow at the end of a no through road, with a total population of under 100. The village has no shop, pub, school or hall, and the only ‘communal’ building is St Mary’s Church. A major feature of Addington is the Addington Manor Equestrian Centre, of international competitive equestrian repute. We have two well-established Church of England Primary Combined Schools, both with Ofsted grading of ‘Good’, in Winslow and Great Horwood. Winslow is also home to Furze Down School for children with special educational needs, aged 5 to 19. From September 2013 a new Free School, Sir Thomas Freemantle Secondary opened in Winslow. Buckinghamshire has selective education from the age of 11 with Grammar schools in Aylesbury and Buckingham; both with ‘Outstanding’ grades. We see all of our schools as offering great potential to our mission to children, young people and families. All three churches are planning for the future and look forward to a new Rector leading us in the spiritual mission, growth and development of our churches in their communities. 2. What we want to celebrate in our Benefice. The three churches in the Benefice are all very distinctive with different strengths and areas of development. We all support each other and during the interregnum we have worked more closely as a benefice, with the Church Wardens meeting regularly which has helped the running of the benefice and the growth of their relationships. All of our churches have friendly and loyal congregations who enjoy welcoming visitors and those new to the area. Church members are very caring towards each other and also to their neighbours and those living in their community. Someone is always willing to help practically or to share a problem. We seek to be at the heart of our communities. Not only are our churches full for festive occasions, members of the community are very generous in their support of our fund raising events and individual appeals. Within each of the churches are active, talented lay people, which has been essential with a Rector seeking to minister across all three communities. This includes those leading and taking part in the services, flower arrangers, bell ringers, gardeners, cleaners, pastoral visitors as well as those leading and supporting work within young families and teenagers, to name a few. The Laity are confident to do their own tasks. People are enthusiastic to volunteer for new activities, one off events and even the PCC’s! A very varied pattern of social events brings the community and church members together, joining together for coffee on Sundays and Market Days to Harvest & Roving Suppers, Walks, Burns Night Dinners, open Gardens and fund raising activities including Fairs, Good as New & concerts. These events help our churches reach out to all members of the community not just those who come to our churches on Sundays. The interregnum has allowed us time to reflect and consider how we can support each other, building on our strengths. We have continued to grow and develop during this time with new ideas for mission and outreach e.g. Toddler Time and Messy Church at St Laurence, reviewing the music and looking to develop the choir at St James. We are Parish Teams without a leader which is why we are looking forward to a new Rector. 3. Celebrating the Benefice. 3.1 St Laurence, Winslow Our doors are always open during daylight hours and we are very proud of the warm welcome we give to all who visit, whether for a service, to look at our beautiful historic church or use it as a quiet place to sit. Our worship is enhanced by our active, talented, robed choir with an excellent choral tradition, affiliated to RSCM, currently 40 strong with ages ranging from 8 to 80. The young choristers and children from the congregation have their own teaching time, from the Gospel to the Peace using the “Roots” material. The musical director understands the need for flexibility and cooperation with the new incumbent. The church also benefits from a skilled bell ringing team (8 bells), some of whom are active members of the church. There is also a dedicated Sanctuary team. Groups meeting regularly in the church include a branch of the Mother’s Union (25) who regularly support church events, In Touch (discussion group), and a Bible Study home group which is extended during Advent and Lent to encourage those with greater commitments to come for a 4-6 week study. We have also held very popular evening talks such as “The Bible” and the Taizé Community. We have a very strong flower team who produce wonderful displays especially on special occasions. During a weekend in June 2014 we celebrated Marriage with wonderful floral arrangements in the church interspersed with bridal gowns through the decades. Our social events include Christmas Fairs, Garden Parties, Teddy Bears Picnics, Quiz Nights and Barn Dances. All our fund raising events aim to bring everyone together and it also raises approximately £8000 each year. The St Laurence Room is used as a focus for the church and the community e.g. Annual Winslow Town meeting, Local Health Authority, many local organisations and private functions. It also has a well equipped office with telephone and WiFi and the Lowrey Suite upstairs for smaller meetings. On Market Day we organise an open coffee morning which attracts over 30 people during which a Toddler Story time takes place in the church. In the autumn we are introducing Messy Church, once a term on Sunday afternoons for young families. Outreach and Mission are very important to us. This includes offering support and practical help to those living in Winslow, delivering invitations to services e.g. “In Loving Memory” an annual bereavement service, and to those families baptised in Winslow an invite to the regular All Age Eucharist. The Youth Cafe is run like a youth club, led by Aylesbury Youth for Christ and supported by volunteers from the three churches in Winslow. It runs on two evenings a week and regularly attracts 40 young people, something we are very proud of, given the church’s difficulty in reaching out to young people today. An area of the churchyard has recently been developed into a Teardrop Garden, in memory of children and young adults who have died in Winslow. This has been very much appreciated by the families involved who were included in its planting and maintenance. The Town Council is very supportive in its grants towards the upkeep of the Churchyard also providing Christmas lights and working together at the Christmas Open evenings. Winslow Churches Working Together is a group representing St Alban’s Catholic Church, Winslow Christian Fellowship and St Laurence Church. They work together with a common purpose to do God’s work in Winslow. Organised activities include services, Good Friday procession of witness and an annual fund raising activity for a local charity. Members of the Church are also involved in the local Big Society Group which organises various activities including gentle walks, a local transport scheme, regular lunches and Singing for Pleasure.