The Parish Profile of Christ Church

“Faith comes through hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ” Romans 10:17

1 2 WELCOME & CONTENTS Welcome to our Parish Profile

Thank you for showing an interest in the position of Vicar at Christ Church Cockfosters. We are excited and expectant as we move towards a new season in our life as a church community. We pray that this Parish Profile will give you a flavour of our church and encourage you to seek God’s will as you consider applying for the position. We shall be working with Rt Revd Rob Wickham, Bishop of Edmonton and Revd John Fisher of CPAS (our Patrons) to appoint the man of God’s choosing. Contents Celeste Tilley - Parish Representative Page Welcome and Contents 3 About our Church 4 Our Values and Vision 5 Strengths and Opportunities 6 Our New Vicar 7 Our Staff 8 - 9 Gathering 10 - 14 Children and Young People 15 - 18 Reaching Out 19 - 22 Praying and Caring 23 Our Buildings 24 - 25 Our Finances 26 Matt Lanstone - Parish Representative The Parish and Local Area 27 - 29

3 About our Church We are a vibrant evangelical church situated in a pleasant As will be detailed in this Parish Profile, a large number of suburb of North with excellent transport links to groups and activities encourage our members to become , the surrounding countryside and the M25 better disciples of Christ and also welcome and share the motorway. Our church was founded in 1839, has a conservative Gospel with those who do not yet know and love the Lord evangelical tradition and is known for strong Biblical teaching Jesus. We are far from complacent though and recognise and expository ministry. that there are broad areas for development and some Our congregation includes people with a broad range of specific opportunities which are highlighted in this Profile. Christian experience and conviction who respect each other’s views, while remaining concerned for unity, evangelism and We are expectantly looking forward to the appointment of outreach based on the authority of Scripture. We are situated in the man of God’s choosing to be our new vicar to lovingly the Diocese of London, Episcopal Area of Edmonton and lead, teach, challenge and care for us. Deanery of Enfield.

We have around 475 members on our electoral roll and, although the majority would consider themselves white British, we have a significant number of members from other backgrounds. Whilst our Parish is relatively small (only 22% of our members live within its boundary), we gather members from a wide geographical area. There are three large new residential developments either recently built or planned within our parish, which will provide a wonderful opportunity for future outreach and growth. We have an excellent Church school and good links with Oak Hill Theological College which is nearby.

In recent years we have seen a number of significant developments in the life of our church including the planting of Grace Church Highlands in 2007 and a major refurbishment of our church hall (Christ Church House) in 2011, including the opening of The House Café which has provided us with a tremendous outreach opportunity. ABOUT OUR CHURCH ABOUT 4 OUR VALUES & VISION

Our Values and Vision

As a conservative evangelical church we affirm wholeheartedly the Christian faith as expressed in the Bible, the Creeds of the Church and the prayers and services of the Church of . We want to express God’s love for the world in the way that we live and relate to others and we find the Bible a trustworthy guide in discovering God and His will for our lives and our community. Faith for us means a transforming and trusting relationship with God through Jesus Christ in the power of the Spirit.

Our core values are:

• Word: the Bible as the source of the good news about Christ which gives faith, hope and love to those seeking God and those who follow Christ.

• Welcome: the Church is a worshipping community of people of equal dignity and status in Christ in which each one is precious to God regardless of age, ethnicity, social standing or gender.

• Witness: in obedience to Christ’s commission, the Church exists in the community and the world in order to share the good news about Jesus and to baptise and teach in His name, and so to make disciples of Christ.

Our current Vision Verse is “Faith comes through hearing the message and the message is heard through the word of Christ” Romans 10:17.

Our vision for this year is to:

• Connect people with God through reading the Word and studying it together, praying and worshipping together.

• Equip people with the gospel through building confidence in the gospel, identifying and developing skills and recruiting volunteers.

• Send people as gospel workers through praying for friends who do not yet know Christ, training gospel workers and by gospel-sharing events. 5

Our Strengths and Opportunities

Following discussions with a number of members of our Small Groups, we have identified areas of strength which we wish to build on, and also opportunities to improve or develop ministries. Some of these are outlined below. We are also very much praying that our new vicar will help us shape our ministry and mission as is God's will.

Our Strengths

• We have a high standard of Biblical expository teaching • We enjoy a rich variety of corporate worship • We are good at attracting newcomers to our services • There is a wide range of activities and groups to cater for many different age groups • We have a strong network of Small Groups • Our Connect courses are an effective way of reaching out with the gospel to those seeking to learn more • We have an excellent staff team • We have an “outstanding” church school • Our finances are sound • We strongly believe in the importance of mission beyond the parish through prayer and financial support for our Mission Partners serving in the UK and abroad

Opportunities for improvement or development

• Whilst many newcomers attend our services, not all become church members • Our large electoral roll includes many who are on the fringe, do not attend regularly and who are not in a Small Group • There is scope for developing our corporate prayer life and pastoral care • There is currently no specific group or activities for those in the 18-30 age group • We wish to further identify and develop the God-given gifts of every member of the church family • Our church building needs significant work • New housing developments in the parish provide an opportunity to reach out to newcomers • There are opportunities for us to be more fully engaged with local churches within the Deanery of Enfield and to get more involved in local projects

STRENGTHS & OPPORTUNITIES STRENGTHS 6 Our New Vicar Our prayer is for a vicar who will lovingly lead, teach, challenge and care for us.

We are looking for: OUR NEW VICAR • A conservative evangelical with a deep personal conviction in the truth and authority of the Bible and who is open to God’s leading through His Spirit.

• A Biblical expository preacher, able to demonstrate a commitment to preaching sermons and providing other Christ-centred teaching, faithful to the gospel of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

• A visionary and inspirational leader and team player with good interpersonal skills, a proven track record of being able to lead and release a large team of staff and work in conjunction with the churchwardens and PCC.

• A pastor who is able to engage with, support and care for individuals within the church family and wider community whatever their backgrounds and further develop our pastoral team within the church.

• A man of prayer and integrity who will teach and lead us in the necessity of prayer and encourage the prayer life of all church members.

• An evangelist with a passion to reach out with the gospel to all those in our parish and beyond who do not yet know and love the Lord Jesus, working with local churches and other agencies as appropriate.

• A discipler and encourager with a proven ability to develop structures which promote mutual discipling within a church family and encourage every-member ministry so that all church members are able to fully use their gifts regardless of age, ethnicity, social standing or gender.

• A man who welcomes the ministry of male and female deacons, priests and lay members, including preaching to mixed congregations at Sunday services, and who supports the training of both female and male curates while being at ease with the resolution passed below.

We believe that, at the present time, the unity of our congregation would best be preserved by appointing a male incumbent and so the PCC has passed the following resolution: “This PCC requests on grounds of theological conviction, as well as the need to support its clergy and maintain congregational unity, that arrangements be made for it in accordance with the House of Bishops’ Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests”

Our commitment to our new vicar: we shall love, support, nurture and encourage our new vicar and seek to enable him to fulfil his calling at Christ Church. We shall commit ourselves to fulfilling our responsibilities and bring energy and enthusiasm to the work of mission and ministry under his leadership. 7 Our Staff Team and Lay Leadership

Revd James Knowles: Revd Jon Featherstone: James Morrey: Michael Andrews: Glenn Mewton: Associate Vicar Curate & Director of Office Manager Director of Music Site Manager James joined Christ Youth & Student James joined Christ Church in Michael joined us in Glenn has been on Church in September Ministry February 2016 as the Office January 2014 after two the team for thirty 2016 as Associate Vicar, Jon joined Christ Church Manager. Before moving to years as Music Director years. His role moving from Ongar in in July 2017 after Cockfosters James studied of a church in includes keeping our Essex where he training for ministry at History & Politics at Exeter having studied music at buildings in good completed his Curacy. Ridley Hall in University, worked as a university in London. He order and general He trained for ordination Cambridge. Before that Ministry Assistant at St. enjoys leading bands assistance to groups at so he worked as a Retail James’ Church and conducting choirs using them. He is has returned to North Manager for Marks and and then in a variety of roles and orchestras, and married to Glynes London, although he is Spencer and then at a within the Crown Prosecution plays several and they have two originally from Sydney, charity in East London Service, finally becoming a instruments as well as grown up children Australia, where he met helping disadvantaged Business Manager in a arranging and and a young his wife Tash. James and young people secure Magistrates’ Court Team. composing music. He granddaughter. Tash returned to the UK employment. He enjoys After leaving the CPS he married his wife Suzi in

OUR STAFF in 2008 and have two catching up with family worked for a national February 2017.

young children. James and friends, reading, Housing Association. James loves Jesus, football and running and playing enjoys history (especially that cricket (he is currently niche ‘sports’ like of the church), detective one of the lead wicket- snooker and croquet. Jon stories, and a well-organised takers of the London oversees our work with office! James is assisted by Diocesan Cricket team!). young people and Jon Anukam, who has James is passionate students. recently been appointed about making disciples Office Assistant. of Jesus. 8 Hilary Middleton: Pre-School Manager. Hilary initially joined the Pre-School team as a supply teacher when her daughter started school and has had a number of roles in the Pre-School, becoming the Manager in September 2010. She studied English and Education at Christ Church College Canterbury before starting her teaching career at Trent School in 1985. Hilary has worked with children between the ages of 2 and 11 years old and particularly enjoys supporting and nurturing the younger age group. Hilary is supported by Nicola Silcocks, Deputy Manager of the Pre-School and six other staff.

Beccy Ratcliff: The House Café Manager. Beccy has been manager of The House Café since 2013. She has been a member of the Christ

Church family for 23 years and is married to Mark and they have four children. She also helps as a OUR STAFF youth leader with the Pathfinders on Sunday mornings. Beccy is supported in the cafe by Elia Casotti, Deputy Manager, and a team of enthusiastic volunteers.

Claire Hammer: Financial Administrator. Claire began working as the Financial Administrator in 2001. Since then she has worked alongside five different Treasurers. Claire joined Christ Church Cockfosters in 1979 and was part of the Christ Church Cockfosters’ Church Plant team in 2007 when she and her family moved across to Grace Church Highlands.

Children’s Minister. This post is currently vacant.

Lay Leadership - Our churchwardens, Celeste Tilley and Olive Hurdman, work closely with our vicar and other staff in the leadership of our church. In addition, our Parochial Church Council seeks to be fully involved in the decision-making process. The PCC has 4 sub-groups which undertake responsibility for specific areas within our church life:

• The Standing Committee consists of the clergy, churchwardens and treasurer and meets between PCC meetings to transact any necessary business and produce the agendas for the PCC meetings.

• The Mission Action Group liaises with our mission partners and encourages prayer and financial support for our mission beyond the parish.

• The Administration and Finance Action Group is responsible for overseeing our finances and other administrative matters.

• The Fabric Action Group is responsible for arranging the maintenance and repair of our buildings.

9 Gathering Sunday Worship The main focus of our weekly life as a church is our Sunday worship together. All our services emphasise worship, expository preaching from God’s Word, prayer and fellowship together. Along with our great team of “Welcomers” we all try to make sure everyone is made welcome when they come to one of our services. We have three services on a Sunday:

• 9am Service is a quieter service following the liturgy of Common Worship with the singing of great hymns accompanied by the organ. The sermon follows the same Bible passages and themes as at 10.30am. On three Sundays per month there is a celebration of Holy Communion and the other Sunday is Morning Prayer. This service is attended by an average of 35 people.

• 10.30am Service has a more lively, contemporary style of worship, usually with a small band and sometimes the organ. During this service there are groups for children from age 0 to 14 in Christ Church House and the children join us in church for the last part of the service. Holy Communion is celebrated monthly at this service. We also gather once a month for an all-age service

GATHERING often led by a youth band and, once a term, members of the Scout Group join us for this service. This enables children and parents to worship together. There is a small television relay room where parents can take young children if need be. Refreshments, including fresh coffee, are provided in the church at the end of the service. Total attendance at this service, including children and their leaders, is around 240.

• 6pm Service takes place in the main hall of Christ Church House and is our most informal service. The Bible teaching usually follows a different theme from the morning and the worship in song is led by a band. Refreshments are served after the service. Many of our older teenagers come to this service and it has an overall attendance of around 80 people.

10 GATHERING

Music Ministry Christ Church has a history of excellence in musical worship and that continues to the present day, with a broad range of musical styles and ensembles represented on a weekly basis. 9am services include a number of hymns accompanied by the organ; 10:30am services consist of a mix of contemporary songs and usually one hymn, led by a small band; and 6pm services are more contemporary, with a band, often made up of a number of teenagers from our Koinonia group. On occasions such as Christmas, Easter, and Remembrance Sunday, we gather together a small orchestra and a massed choir to lead our musical worship. Guest services at Christmas time attract a large number of visitors, with our candlelit services with a choir and orchestra involving over 90 singers and instrumentalists and a ‘Jazz Carol Service’ with a big band. Other outreach opportunities have included hosting ‘Acoustic Café’ events in our House Café for the 18-30s age group. The weekly music, PA, and AV team consists of around 40 congregation members.

11 Small Groups and Contact Groups

Our Small Groups and Contact Groups are places where we can dig deeper into Scripture, spend time in prayer, and care for one another. In order to live for God both when times are hard and when times are good we each need a group of people whom we can trust. People who will watch out for us, remind us of God’s word and help us go on living for Jesus Christ so we do not drift away. These are here to provide this and we aim to make it possible for everyone to belong. We currently have 19 groups meeting in a variety of locations on different days of the week. The Contact Groups are geared towards women, meet in the mornings and have crèche facilities to make it easier for mums to attend. The Small Groups generally meet in the evenings but a few meet in the afternoons. One meets for breakfast. All are centred on Bible study, prayer and fellowship and make use of small group resources that the church produces. The recent pattern has been to follow the morning sermon series. Twice a term the Small Groups join a central Prayer & Praise evening. There are currently 158 individuals from our church family in a Small Group or Contact Group, which accounts for around a third of those on our electoral roll. The average age for those in a Small Group or Contact Group is 59 which presents us with a challenge about how we can better disciple younger church members. One way we are seeking to address this is by one-to-one Bible reading. There are also far fewer men in the groups than there are women. One way we are seeking to address this is by having two dedicated men’s groups, one meeting in the morning before work and another on Wednesday evenings.

Nasrin says: “The home group enables us to get to know each other intimately and hold each other in love and prayer. It is great to be able to share around God’s Word and have the support of the home group leaders” Cameo

Cameo (Come And Meet Each Other) provides the church’s more senior members with an opportunity for Christian fellowship, friendship, outreach and time to explore and deepen faith through meetings, occasional outings and lunches together. It has a membership of

GATHERING around 50 and an average attendance of 25-35. While its stated age group is 55+ (our oldest regular member is 99!) the majority of the membership is at the upper end of the age profile. Our challenge is to provide for the needs of this faithful group whilst offering a programme which “younger” people will want to feel part of, thereby bringing new energy and ideas into the important area of seniors ministry.

Max says: “There is always an interesting speaker at Cameo or, once a month, a fellowship meal. I love the fellowship and pastoral care of the group. The leadership team always makes sure that anyone with a birthday receives a personal card and the annual outing is always great” 12 GATHERING

Men’s Breakfast Around three times a year, on a Saturday morning, the aroma of a cooked breakfast fills the main hall of Christ Church House as a large number of men meet to eat and have fellowship together and hear an inspiring speaker. It is an opportunity for the men of our church to bring their friends to meet some of our church members in a relaxed atmosphere and hear a Christian speaker.

Kiri says: “This is a great way to invite family, friends, work colleagues, etc, to come and hear someone's story / testimony in a non Church environment. We are, after all, in the business of saving lives”

Big Weekend Away One of the recent highlights in our church life was the “Big Weekend Away” in October 2016 when 189 members of our church family spent a weekend away together at Ashburnham Place, deep in the East Sussex countryside. It was a great opportunity for the church family to listen to God’s Word, pray and have fellowship and fun together. It was a really special time for us, bringing together people from ages 1 to 98! Our guest speaker, Phil Sudell, spoke to us throughout the weekend on the book of Ruth and guided us towards the powerful message of God’s faithfulness. We came home refreshed with a deeper sense of God’s promise and purpose for our lives. It is hoped to have another BWA in the near future.

13 Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals

Baptisms We are privileged to conduct baptisms and thanksgivings throughout the year, usually during the morning service. We also offer an annual service of adult baptism and confirmation, usually during an evening service. Those interested in expressing their faith in Christ by making a public declaration of their faith are given preparation in a manner suitable and convenient to them. For example, we run infant baptism and adult baptism preparation courses in alternate terms, and work with candidates one-to-one. In a typical year we have around 8 infant baptisms, 3 adult baptisms, 6 confirmations and one thanksgiving.

Weddings Christ Church gladly conducts wedding ceremonies and delights in the symbol of marriage as the union between Christ and His church. We wish to support couples throughout their married lives and work with the couple before the ceremony to prepare them. One of the Christ Church clergy will be involved in the ceremony in some way, but other clergy, friends and relatives can also be involved. In order to be married at Christ Church people need to be a regular member of the church, to live in our parish, or to have a qualifying

GATHERING connection with the church. In an average year we have about two weddings.

Funerals We offer comfort and support to those who have suffered a bereavement, which can range from prayer and practical help to conducting the funeral service and committal. Clergy will meet with the bereaved and help them plan a funeral service. We normally have around 12 funerals and 2 interments of ashes per year.

14 CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE

Children and Young People On Sundays During our 10.30am service, we have a comprehensive range of groups to cater for children from age 0 to 14. They all meet in Christ Church House and we are blessed with dedicated teams of leaders for all the groups.

Little Stars is our group for the youngest children, from birth to two years of age. There are four leaders who are sometimes assisted by parents and there are normally 5-8 children attending on a Sunday morning. The children enjoy a short story time and singing some songs each week.

Shooting Stars is the children’s group catering for two year olds. Within this group, there are three lead volunteers and a support team of five volunteers. On average there are 8-10 children each week. The teaching is based on simple lesson plans that are short and interactive with actions, songs and visual aids and usually an associated craft. It is a challenging yet very rewarding group as it is the first time that the children experience a structured session, rather than play, and are introduced to who God is.

Rockets is for our three and four year olds. This lively group has an attendance of 15-20 children with a rotating team of 8-9 leaders. The morning activities include a Bible lesson, singing, craftwork and some free play.

Cosmic is for children aged five to ten years. There are 85 children on the register with a normal weekly attendance of 35-45 children. There is an experienced leadership team of five core members plus 3-4 other helpers. The purpose of the group is to bring children to a personal faith in Christ Jesus and start their discipleship journey thereafter. Each session includes games, drama, songs, a talk, discussion groups and crafts. It can be a challenge to engage the older boys who may prefer to be playing football on a Sunday morning. Cosmic provides great opportunities to engage with “fringe” parents.

Jake says “I love everything about Cosmic. We play games and do crafts and sometimes have drama. We have a bible story and today we learned about when Jesus healed a girl who was twelve years old”

15 Pathfinders, Koinonia and KLUB In our work with young people, we have focused in recent years on building the Biblical teaching content of our work and on training leaders. Across the two age groups of Pathfinders and Koinonia, we have an enthusiastic and committed team of volunteers, comprising both long-term and new leaders. Our vision is to make disciples of young people at Christ Church and point them to Jesus and his gospel from the Scriptures and to equip them for lives of faithful love and service of Christ both now and in the years ahead.

Pathfinders Our “Pathfinder” group for 10-14s meets during the 10.30am service, with a weekly attendance of around 15. The sessions are a mixture of teaching, short games and time for prayer. Monthly Friday socials are geared towards giving the young people fun events to which they can easily invite friends.

Koinonia Our “Koinonia” group for 15-18s meets after the 6pm evening service for a time of food, socialising and applying the sermon with an average attendance of 15-20. Socials take place to which members invite friends and groups also go to the excellent “Sorted” youth events in London on occasion. We are heavily plugged into, and grateful for, the Sparkford2 Venture camp.

KLUB On Thursday evenings during term-time we put on “KLUB”, a relational outreach evening for those of Koinonia age. The purpose is to provide a setting which is fun and accessible for our members to invite friends from school. Currently there are a few young people who come to this who don’t come along to Koinonia so we would love to give them more opportunities to hear about the transforming gospel of grace and are looking at ways that we can do this.

There is scope across our youth ministry to encourage more active evangelistic outreach and one-to-one discipleship. Pathfinders and Koinonia go away for a weekend over Easter, attended by 60-70 young people and leaders, where many take lasting steps of faith. We also have a number of our members currently at university who we encourage to get stuck into local churches and CU’s. We seek to keep in touch with them and to gather them in between terms to encourage them to keep following Jesus amidst all the challenges and opportunities of university life.

CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE YOUNG CHILDREN & 16 CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE

During the Week

Play House On Monday afternoons the main hall of Christ Church House is filled with the happy sound of young children playing and enjoying themselves. We welcome 30-40 families each week, where we get to meet the children and their mums, dads, grandparents and other carers and gradually build friendships with them all. We share a Bible story each week and sing a Christian song or two, together with other songs which the children know. This is proving to be a very successful outreach opportunity and some of the families have started coming to our 10.30am service, especially the all-age service, and some have come to a Connect Course or Contact Group.

Christ Church Cockfosters Pre-School Our very successful Pre-School started as a playgroup in 1985 and was registered as a Pre-School in 1992. It is located at the rear of Christ Church House and has a recently upgraded outdoor play area. We are registered to take 24 children aged 2-4 years and there are morning sessions Monday to Friday with afternoon sessions on Tuesday to Thursday. We have an experienced Pre-School team who strive to support the individual development of each child. As would be expected with a Pre-School run by our church, there is a very strong Christian ethos and atmosphere and strong links with other church activities including services at Christmas and Easter. We seek to foster good relationships with the parents and encourage them to become involved in our church. Many of the children go on to attend Trent School.

11th Southgate, Christ Church Cockfosters, Scout Group The Scout Group is based in the Scout HQ adjacent to Christ Church House. It has a long association with Christ Church originating from the founding of the Group in 1927 and members of the group attend the 10.30 morning service once a term. There is a team of approximately 10 leaders registered with the Scout Association and around 65 young people across the three sections of Beavers, Cubs and Scouts. The programme and structure of the Group is set to deliver the purpose of the Scout Association which is: to actively engage and support young people in their personal development, empowering them to make a positive contribution to society.

17 Trent Primary School We are truly blessed to have a wonderful church school, which is situated adjacent to the church building. Pupils attending are aged from 4, in Reception class, to 11 years old when they leave in Year 6. Around half of its 208 pupils are of minority ethnic heritage, with a significant proportion of pupils being Greek Orthodox. Around two thirds of pupils attend church and pupils make excellent progress. The school was successfully inspected by SIAMs last year: “The distinctiveness and effectiveness of Trent as a Church of England school are outstanding”. The most recent OFSTED report rated the school as “Outstanding”.

• Christian values underpin the school and are evident in every aspect of its life and work. They inspire the excellent compassionate relationships between and among adults and pupils and demonstrate the school’s motto: “serve one another in love”.

• A golden thread of prayer is woven throughout the school and provides a context for worship. The free, enthusiastic and deeply spiritual participation of pupils in extemporary prayer is a feature of worship and characterises this prayerful and worshipping community.

• The school’s Christian ethos informs its policies, enriches its curriculum and makes religious education (RE) central to its work.

• The headteacher’s strong, faithful Christian leadership leads to high expectations among all stakeholders so that academic excellence is matched with spiritual development and the nurture of faith.

• The strong threefold links between the school, the parish church and Oak Hill College makes for an effective partnership that is a beacon of hope, faith and belief to the community it serves. The vicar of Christ Church is a member of the Governing Body.

Trent School has nine dedicated services at Christ Church per year and a team from Christ Church lead assembly every week, on Wednesdays, to support the strong and purposeful relationship between church and school. Themes for worship over each term are determined between church and school. We search for partnership in many meaningful ways, perhaps the most powerful of which is through prayer, whether in organised groups or events or in our daily practice. Trent is an extremely popular school, being five times over-subscribed.

CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE YOUNG CHILDREN & 18 REACHING OUT

Reaching Out

We take very seriously our Lord’s command to “go and make disciples of all nations” and we have a number of activities which aim to reach out to the lost both in our local community and beyond.

The House Café The House Cafe opened in 2011 following the refurbishment of Christ Church House. It is a community cafe with a heart to serve God within the Cockfosters locality. The primary aim is to show the love of Christ to customers through how they are served, through conversations with them, through befriending and caring for them and through being available to share faith in Jesus with them. The cafe is managed by Beccy Ratcliff and Elia Casotti (Deputy Manager). The rest of the staff are volunteers from the Christ Church family. It is open Tuesday - Friday 9-4pm and we have 19 volunteers who work throughout the week. Excellent coffee, homemade cakes and savoury dishes are served plus much more.

Lesley says “The House Café is great for fellowship and meeting new people who aren’t part of the church, including people who work in the local offices”

Connect Courses The Connect Courses are one of the keystones of our mission to bring the gospel to those who are not yet Christians. The aim of the courses is to provide a welcoming and informal environment for people to explore the claims of the Lord Jesus Christ together. We are currently running the “Life Explored” course which looks at some of the promises that God has made to his people and in so doing exposes the little gods that promise us so much happiness yet deliver so little. As it explores the Bible story, Life Explored shows how our deepest desires for happiness can only be satisfied by one person: Jesus Christ. The courses are held three times a year, in the autumn, spring and summer terms and are offered as a morning option (with crèche) and an evening option. The courses have proved to be a very effective way of bringing the gospel to those seeking to learn more and, since the beginning of 2015, 70 people have completed a Connect Course. It is our strong desire to see more and more come to know, love and obey the Lord Jesus for themselves and so be saved from being eternally lost. It is hoped that courses such as Life Explored or Christianity Explored will continue to help point people to Jesus.

19 Welcome Course The Welcome Course is an opportunity for newcomers to Christ Church to meet each other, members of staff, and longer-standing members of the church in an informal and relaxed gathering. It aims to introduce newcomers to what we believe and an overview of the sort of activities into which our faith in the Lord Jesus leads us. The Welcome Course is held three times a year in the autumn, spring, and summer terms and is offered as a morning option (with crèche facilities for parents) and an evening option. Both courses are identical and consist of a single session followed by a meal in a church member’s home. A typical session will involve several volunteers from the church family welcoming newcomers in, serving them refreshments and getting to know each other. A leader will then talk the group through the material (making use of a handbook) and giving people a chance to respond. Since the beginning of 2015, 88 individuals have completed a Welcome Course. Each session typically has 5-10 guests and 2-5 volunteers. It is our hope and prayer that the Welcome Course will continue to prove a safe and informal way of getting to know people, and build good relationships with them so that we can share the good news that all are welcome to find rest in Christ.

Doreen says “I found the Welcome Course tremendously helpful with being welcomed into the church. I made new friends and learned a lot about the church. Everyone was so friendly”

Five Oaks Residential Home A small team from Christ Church visit the local Five Oaks Residential Home and conduct a simple service with a brief talk every three weeks. Three of the residents are Christ Church members but a number of other residents also attend the services. Private communion is also offered and two residents have private Bible reading sessions on a regular basis. Through this ministry we seek to reach out with God’s love to some of our most senior and frail parishioners.

The Christmas Experience In late November 2014 and 2015 our church building was transformed into a “Little Town of Bethlehem” for The Christmas Experience, an innovative and interactive presentation of the Christmas story for children from local schools. In 2015 some 800 children attended and were captivated by scenes including fields with shepherds, Herod’s Palace (with a very duplicitous King Herod) and a stable with a real live

REACHING OUT REACHING baby! This was a wonderful opportunity to share the truth of Christmas with many children, some of whom had never before come into a church. This outreach to local children was successfully repeated in 2017, in collaboration with St James' Church, Muswell Hill.

Food Bank Ever mindful of the needs of those who have pressing physical needs we have a link with Foodbank. Church members can make donations of non-perishable food via large baskets in the church and Christ Church House and our small groups take it in turn to take the food to the Foodbank. At Harvest Festival time, a large volume of donations is received both from church members and the children attending Trent School.

20 Compassion REACHING OUT Recognising all that God has given us materially and spiritually, we feel deeply called to give back to the world around us. In 2008 we began an exciting link with two children’s projects in Uganda through Compassion International, and now 184 of the poorest children are being sponsored by and personally connected with members of Christ Church, lifting them out of poverty with better education, healthcare and gospel teaching. A third project became a partner with Christ Church in 2012.

Our Mission Partners

We have a long history of support for mission beyond our parish both in the UK and abroad, dating back to 1945. We support our Mission Partners in prayer and financially.

David Hooke - Asaph Christian Trust Dr Steve Nicolle – Wycliffe Bible Translators In 2011, after 20 years serving as Christ Church Cockfosters’ Steve and Ali Nicolle have been serving with WBT for nearly 20 Music Director, David felt called to serve full-time with the years and have been our mission partners for much of that time. Asaph Christian Trust which aims to provide churches with They served for 8 years in Kenya in a language development excellent musical events that can be used as part of their project among the Digo people and then, over the next 6 years, outreach. David was instrumental in founding the Adoramus Steve taught linguistics and translation at universities and choir and orchestra of which he is Music Director and Principal theological colleges in Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Conductor. Its aim is to bring the gospel to a very wide range of Congo, and the Central African Republic. In 2013 they moved people in the UK and northern and southern Europe through with their three children to British Columbia, Canada where evangelistic and pre-evangelistic musical events. Steve is involved in training linguists for the international field.

21 Steve Sanderson - BMS Steve and Caroline Sanderson have been our mission partners since 2006. They are both lawyers and served with BMS in Uganda for four years before returning to the UK in 2010 with their three children to serve with BMS at its headquarters in Didcot. Steve is Deputy Director of Mission and involved in strategy implementation and organisational development across key BMS sectors while Caroline heads up the legal team at Baptist Union GB.

OF – Spoken Worldwide In 2015 OF was re-adopted as one of our long-term mission partners. She is responding to God’s call to reach out to a semi-nomadic, unreached tribe in north west Kenya. Working with local Christian partners and, using her 10+ years’ hard-won experience ministering to nomadic tribes in Chad, she has been building up and training groups of local pastors to evangelise to and disciple their own people through methods such as oral Bible storytelling. OF’s full name has been withheld for security reasons.

Margaret Rugira – OMF International Margaret is serving with OMF, Japan and has been one of our mission partners since 2012. Last year she completed her first term of four years in Japan where she spent two years undertaking Japanese language and cultural studies and two years in a church plan in Hanamaki, Iwate prefecture. After her 12 months’ home assignment, several months of which were spent with us at Christ Church, she returned to Japan in August 2017 for a 3 months’ language refresher course before moving to Sendai, Myagi prefecture, to serve in student focussed ministry, evangelising and discipling those in colleges and universities.

Community Based Evangelist - CMJ Adopted as one of our mission partners since April 2017, a member of our church has been serving part-time for some years as a CBE in with the Anglican charity and mission organisation The Church’s Ministry Among Jewish People (CMJ). The mission partner’s name has been withheld to protect their work.

REACHING OUT REACHING Rod Walker – Street Pastors Christ Church member, Rod Walker has worked with Street Pastors for many years. As a volunteer he is principally supported by Christ Church Cockfosters through prayer rather than financial giving. Rod serves on local street teams, mainly in Enfield, at least monthly and has witnessed many occasions when God has been working through the team to reach people as well as keep them safe. 22 Praying and Caring We firmly believe in the power of prayer and the importance of pastoral care for our members.

Praying Together There are many opportunities for us to gather for prayer:

• In our Sunday worship there is a time of intercessory prayer, normally led by a lay member of the church. • In our Small Groups there is always a time of open prayer when members bring to the Lord the needs of members of the group and others. • Around twice every term, all the Small Groups and other members of our congregation meet together in the church or Christ Church House for “Prayer and Praise”: a time to praise the Lord and pray together. • On Wednesday and Saturday mornings we have dedicated prayer breakfasts which are the vital expression of the church's humility before God and the vital power base for the church’s life. There is usually a short bible reading to help prompt prayer. There are prayers for the local church community, the local area and for the country overall and worldwide matters. Prayers for our sick members, church services and currently the new incumbent are always a part of this prayer time together.

• We have a monthly prayer meeting to pray specifically that the man of God’s choosing will be appointed as our new vicar and also for God’s guidance during the vacancy. • There is a monthly World Mission Prayer Group where the focus is on mission beyond our parish and, in particular, our Mission Partners. • We encourage all members to pray privately in their daily Bible Reading/Prayer time. To help focus our prayers, we have a comprehensive monthly prayer diary which is provided free to our members.

Whilst there are many opportunities for our church members to meet together for prayer, the numbers attending the Prayer and Praise and other prayer meetings could be higher and we are always seeking ways to improve this so that our corporate prayer life as a church becomes more effective.

The Pastoral Team exists to support the clergy and Small Groups in the care of our congregation in all aspects of their lives: spiritual, physical and practical. We are keen to see every member’s skills develop in interpersonal ministry so that we shall all be built up in Jesus and show His love to all. This small team meets regularly and endeavours to keep one another informed and up to date. We wish to further develop our pastoral care network. & CARING PRAYING

23 Our Buildings

The Church Our church building was consecrated in April 1839 and was founded by wealthy banker Robert Cooper Lee Bevan. The building was enlarged in 1898 and re-orientated so that it faced west, as it still does today. A vicar’s vestry with small toilet was added in 1970. The most recent significant development was the removal of the pews and replacement by chairs in 2010 and this has greatly improved the flexibility of the church interior. Whilst the church has no great architectural or historic merit and is not listed, it is a very pleasant building, a prominent and well-known feature of the area and is in the Chalk Lane Conservation Area. Our church is comparatively small for the size of our congregation and a number of schemes to enlarge the building have been considered over the years but, thus far, none have been implemented.

More recently, in 2016, the Quinquennial survey identified a number of issues with the building which need addressing over the next few years. These include some general repairs, the need for permanent disabled access and proper toilet facilities. The heating system needs replacing and the pipe organ is in need of refurbishment or replacement with a digital instrument. There is also a desire to provide a dedicated space during services for parents with very young children.

Some initial plans to carry out significant works were being developed when we learned that our vicar was leaving us. Apart from the most urgent works, the plans have been put on hold until the appointment of our new vicar. We very much look forward to working with him to develop a comprehensive vision for the future of our church building as OUR BUILDINGS we seek to make it fully fit for our ministry and mission in the 21st century. It is intended that, if a substantial project goes ahead, it will be overseen by a professional Project Manager.

24 OUR BUILDINGS

Christ Church House The Vicarage Our splendid Church House was opened in 1932 and provided The Vicarage is a substantial five bedroom detached very generous accommodation with a lovely main hall and house situated in Chalk Lane between the church and st several other rooms and halls. By the start of the 21 century, Christ Church House. It was built in the mid 1970s and however, it was obvious that the building was very old- replaced its dilapidated Victorian predecessor. It has fashioned and no longer fit for purpose. A major £1.5 million ample living accommodation, a conservatory, a study extension and refurbishment project was therefore undertaken which can be accessed without going into the main and completed in July 2011, when the renamed Christ Church accommodation, a garage and pleasant gardens. House was re-opened by the Bishop of London. We now have a modern, well equipped building which is much used by the church and the local community.

1 and 2 Chalk Lane 13 Wilton Road These two detached three bedroom houses in Chalk Lane next This is a three bedroom 1950s built semi-detached house to Christ Church House were built in the 1960s and provide within easy walking distance of the church which is owned accommodation for our Site Manager and our Associate Vicar by The Christ Church Trust for the purpose of providing respectively. They are generally in good condition and No 2 has accommodation for church staff. It is currently occupied by just had a large ground floor extension added in order to Jon Featherstone, our curate. provide much needed additional space for our Associate Vicar, James Knowles, and family.

25 Our Finances

Christ Church is in a strong position financially. Over the past few years our income and expenditure have been broadly balanced and our reserves are very healthy for a church of our size. The charts below illustrate our recent income trend as well as a break- down of our expenditure in 2016. Our focus is to be good stewards of our resources, ever mindful and thankful for the ways in which God has blessed our church in terms of our financial needs. Our main source of income is congregational giving (around £350,000 p.a.) with additional contributions being made by other sources including letting income from our church hall (£17,500 p.a.) and the Pre-school (£22,000 net p.a.). Our total income has averaged £400,000 over the past three years. Our congregation gives financially in a number of ways - around 185 by regular monthly bank payments but there are many who give annually or in other less regular ways. Our key outgoings in 2016 were on staff wages (£230,500), maintaining and running our buildings (£46,000), mission (£29,000) and our contribution to the London Diocese Common Fund (£122,000). Our financial reserves on our general funds stood at £157,000 at the end of 2016. This is equivalent to five months of total expenditure or eight months excluding Common Fund. This is a healthy level of reserves and has allowed us to invest where appropriate in our staff team and our facilities over the past few years. The annual report and accounts for 2016 can be accessed via the following link: http://apps.charitycommission.gov.uk/Accounts/Ends44/0001134144_AC_20161231_E_C.pdf OUR FINANCES

Income 2012 – 2017 (projected) Expenditure breakdown 2016

26 THE PARISH & LOCAL AREA

The Parish & Local Area Cockfosters is a pleasant north London suburb. It is perhaps best known for its Tube station, which is around 200 yards from the church and provides direct access to central London. The busy Cockfosters Road runs through the parish and provides access to the M25 motorway, less than 3 miles away. The original small village of Cockfosters was expanded greatly with the arrival of the Tube in the 1930s and much of the housing stock dates from this period. There are plenty of small shops, cafes and restaurants along the high street. The area is comparatively wealthy and many of the residents commute to London for their employment. We are within the London Borough of Enfield and the Enfield Deanery. The Borough is divided by the A10, with the financially wealthiest parishes to the west and the poorest to the east. By most measures, the levels of poverty on the east of the A10 are around three times higher than in our parish and the Deanery helps to bring people together across many divisions

Our parish is officially known as the Parish of Trent. It is comparatively small and includes the lovely Trent Country Park which is within the Green Belt and much used for walking and recreation.

The northern part of the parish was designated a Conventional District in 2000 and now comes under the care of St Paul’s which was previously a daughter church of Christ Church Cockfosters. Of the around 475 members on our electoral roll, only 22% live within the parish and a large number come to our church from a wide geographical area.

The population of the parish includes those from a broad range of ethnic and religious backgrounds. The 2011 census data for the parish tell us that:

• The total population of the parish was 5544 people, although this is increasing (see next page). • 50% of the population describe themselves as “Christian” and the next largest religious group are those describing themselves as Jewish, at 13% and 7% Muslim. • The residents of the parish represent a wide range of ethnic backgrounds. The largest minority group is those identifying themselves as Greek/Cypriot, who make up some 10% of the population.

27 Proposed Developments Within the Parish There are three significant residential developments either recently built or planned within the parish. These provide us with an exciting and challenging opportunity to reach out to new residents in the area with the good news of Jesus:

Blackhorse Tower is currently a 1960s office block near the Tube station. There are plans to convert this into 164 homes, a hotel and shops.

Trent Park. This is an exciting development of 262 dwellings by Berkeley Homes on the old University campus site in . Christ Church Cockfosters has been actively involved in the community consultation for this development and has hosted large public meetings in the church. As a result of community pressure it has been agreed that a museum of the history of Trent Park will be included in the development. It is hoped that this will include something of the history of Christ Church as our founder, Robert Bevan, lived in the mansion in Trent Park and founded the church for the workers on the Bolingbroke Park is a recently completed development of estate. 212 homes at the junction of Cat Hill and .

THE PARISH & LOCAL AREA & LOCAL THE PARISH 28 THE PARISH & LOCAL AREA Map of the Parish of Trent (Christ Church Cockfosters)

CHRIST CHURCH COCKFOSTERS

PARISH BOUNDARY

ST PAULS HADLEY WOOD CONVENTIONAL DISTRICT BOUNDARY 29 Christ Church Cockfosters, Chalk Lane, Cockfosters, Barnet, Herts. EN4 9JQ www.christchurchcockfosters.org.uk 020 8449 0556 offi[email protected]

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