For the Vacancy of Rector Page 1 of 29 BISHOP’S INTRODUCTION So much has been achieved in the Stourdene Group for the kingdom of God and life of the Church. There’s an impressive track record of lay ministry of different sorts, a commitment to working together as a Benefice and a readiness to reach out to the community in imaginative ways. People have come to faith, lives have been changed, vocations to ordination have been nurture, and much more. There is a great deal to build upon and many opportunities ahead. With the church schools and new housing developments, there is a vibrant spread of ages in the villages, especially in Ettington and Newbold and, so, lots of new life for the church to reach into with the good news of Christ. When I came to the Diocese in 2008, I was charged by the then Archbishop of Canterbury to ‘release the missionary energies of the Diocese of Coventry’. That’s the work that has been going on in these parishes – and much of it before I arrived. We are helped by our clear Mission Purpose of worshipping God, making new disciples and transforming communities. We are strengthened, focussed and resourced by our strategic emphasis on growing healthy church communities. We are stimulated by a renewed attention to thinking hard about rural ministry and what it means today to lead the people of God into effective mission in these sorts of communities. We committed to continuing and developing this work in the Stourdene Group and I gladly comment it to you. With my prayers Page 2 of 29 DEANERY SUMMARY The Stourdene Benefice is part of the Deanery of Shipston, the southernmost tip of the Diocese of Coventry. Shipston Deanery has five Benefices containing 26 parishes with 28 churches: apart from the market town of Shipston (sadly without an actual market nowadays), each is a small rural community with its own identity – just like those in this group. The Deanery is geographically quite spread out, but with a total population of just 15,500 or thereabouts – smaller than many single urban parishes. It is an area with far more sheep than people, where the farming year is critically important, and which comes with all the privileges, responsibilities and challenges of rural life. Stourdene has six churches in six very different villages, but their great strengths are that they have a steady track record of working together, and their encouragement of lay ministry. Each church has its own identity and life, its own strengths and weaknesses, and it is important that these are maintained. In each community there is a strong place for the church at its heart, characterised by the relationships which interweave church and village life. Over the years, the churches have developed lay leadership and lay ministry teams, and also a considerable amount of working together: as you will read, a great many of their activities and services are led by lay teams, and in places it is the laity who form a natural focus for ministry. There is great energy in this, and they are naturally, and rightly, keen to develop it. Our aim as a Deanery is to celebrate our lives together as the family of God; to learn together, and to speak together of what we have seen and heard. As a Diocese we have spent much time in consultation with those involved in multi-parish benefices in our rural communities, and are actively committed to supporting them. Our small numbers here mean that Shipston Deanery as a whole has a vital role in resourcing, supporting and enabling those who in the small churches would find some tasks beyond their capabilities. Deanery Synod and Lent and Ascension Services have long formed the backbone of this: increasingly we are running teaching courses, music workshops and social events to enable us to be more fully the body of Christ. At its heart Chapter regularly meets together, involving all the clergy of the Deanery, as we pray and worship together, and support each other in the ministry God has given us. Revd Canon Dr. Jill Tucker Area Dean of Shipston. Page 3 of 29 BACKGROUND TO THE POST The Stourdene Benefice consists of six parishes straddling the Fosse Way and is situated at the northern end of the Cotswold Hills, in the beautiful South Warwickshire countryside. The parishes are Ettington (where the Rector will live), Alderminster (where the House for Duty Minister lives), Newbold-on-Stour, Halford, The Pillertons and Butlers Marston. There are two Church of England primary schools at Ettington and Newbold on Stour. We are part of the Shipston Deanery in the Diocese of Coventry. Lying between Shakespeare country and the Cotswolds, the area attracts visitors, whilst many of the residential population have retired here. There are young families in all the parishes and we expect their numbers to grow with planned development. There are easily accessible road and rail links to London and Birmingham. Being a rural Benefice there are farmers and people who have lived locally for several generations, some seasonal workers and others workers who commute or work from home, thanks to the easily accessible road and rail links. Our Rector, of five and a half years, left at Christmas 2015 in order to take up a post in schools Chaplaincy. Our Curate left at the end of July 2016 having completed her three year training period and our House for Duty Minister is due to retire in 2019. This creates both a challenge, in terms of nurturing established relationships in the Benefice, but also an opportunity for the new Rector to continue the development of the new Ministry Team. Leading us through this period of change successfully will require strong interpersonal skills, clarity of Christian vision, the ability to build on the good work already in progress and an ability to foster new Disciples. Our Wardens meet regularly with clergy to discuss an agreed agenda; including worship, mission, outreach and finance in the Benefice. All our churches, except Halford, have at least one Church Warden. We recognise the need for increased involvement by lay people in the Benefice, given that our incumbent will have a limited time in each parish. We seek a Rector who will encourage, empower and disciple us to build up an all-embracing Christian community that reaches out to all age groups, not least children, youth and young families who will together form the vibrant family of God in this place. Page 4 of 29 CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES Working Across the Generations One of the key issues that we have identified as a Benefice is our ability to attract a broad range of age groups to our churches. Across our parishes we have a large number of families, some who already know God and worship in the Benefice. Some choose to go to other parishes or denominations in order to worship God in a way that they enjoy, or to find fellowship that is geared towards their needs. Despite the existence of a wide range of ages within the Benefice the majority of our churches are attended by those who fall into the 50+ age bracket and are heavily weighted towards those of retirement age. It is clear that we need an Incumbent who is capable of engaging with young and old alike, using creative worship whilst respecting the needs of existing parishioners. There are currently a number of services in the Benefice aimed at encouraging younger people, particularly children, into faith. On a monthly basis, the Family Get-together provides Sunday school and fellowship for the benefit of the whole Benefice in Pillerton Village Hall. Messy Church meets at Halford. Pillerton and Butlers Marston each have a Family Service. Ettington had a Family Service but that ended recently due to poor attendance. There are child focused services and events throughout the liturgical year, such as Hot Cross Bun making on Good Friday, Easter Craft Week, Easter Egg Hunt, Light Party and Christingle and Crib services. There are plans to set up a youth group in Ettington in the near future in order to engage with local teenagers. As there are two church schools in the Benefice, Ettington C of E Primary and Newbold and Tredington C of E Primary, both of which have achieved ‘good’ ratings in their SIAMS inspections (National Society Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools Report) there are many opportunities to engage more formally with young people. The schools are regularly visited by members of the parish and clergy, leading such activities as Collective Worship, Godly Play and Story Tellers who bring Bible stories to life with the help of the pupils. The church also supports services at key church festivals and times of celebration, such as harvest and the school leavers’ service. Although there are strong and mutually supportive links between the churches and schools but there are opportunities to expand them. Whilst creating relationships with the community, and making the Church accessible to multiple generations, with focus on children, youth and the 30 to 40 age group, we are conscious that we must continue to nurture older members of the Benefice who often remain the bedrock of supporters and volunteers. Page 5 of 29 Within our communities there are many groups that meet regularly; The Monday Club, Gardening Clubs and Mothers’ Union. There are well supported toddler groups and a number of youth groups such as Sea Scouts, Scouts, Cubs, Brownies and Beavers. We expect these groups to continue to flourish with the arrival of new people into the Benefice, with a number of new housing developments planned or under construction.The Rector needs to encourage a team of clergy and laity capable of strengthening the bonds between parishes, schools and the community in order to reach all the people of the Benefice and to take the church beyond its walls.