ST.
PETER’S
SHARED
CHURCH
CHERTSEY
VISION
FOR THE FUTURE
2007
- 2011
It is with thankfulness to God for
his faithfulness in the past and with anticipation and trust in His
provision for the
future that the Church Council offers the church this Vision for the
next five
years. The Church Council,leadership team and working groups have
consulted
widely across the church over the period of a year. The Church Council
adopted
this document in November 2006.
As the
Church Council has reviewed the developments
which have taken place since ‘Vision for the Future’ 2000, it has been
greatly encouraged to see that virtually all of the proposals set out
at that time
have been achieved. However, as it looks back on past achievements and
moves
forward into the next phase of the church’s life it is aware of the
need to be
totally dependent upon God, rooting ourselves as a church in prayer and
constantly open to the Holy Spirit’s leading.
As Vicar/Minister of this church
and benefice I warmly
commend this document to the church.
‘And
whatever you do, whether in word or deed,
do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the father through him.’
Colossians
3 : 17
In Christ,
TIM HILLIER
Introduction to
Vision 2007-11
1.
Process - The Church
Council met for a ‘Study Day’ on
September 17th 2005 in order to begin a
year’s process of discerning a vision for St. Peter’s Shared
Church
for the next five years. The day
was led by Canon Chris Neal, one of the co-authors of ‘Missionary
Shaped
Church’,
a report
commissioned by the General Synod of the Church of England and
recommended to
the whole
church. The day involved an over- view of many of the cultural shifts
within
the UK
and their
implications for the church.
Following
this meeting, the church council gave over a full SCC meeting on
September 19th 2005 to
discuss and respond in small groups to the study day. It also commented
upon
both the
present and future priorities for the church as it looked ahead to the
next
five years.
1a. The
SCC made the following analysis of the church at present:
‘This
church is welcoming and accessible. It is growing, friendly and has a
large
inner group of people
committed to serving God in Chertsey.
The
church has a good reputation in the town. It caters
well for all ages but could still further connect and show the light of
Jesus
in the wider community.
The preaching and teaching are good and lively at all levels. It is
already an example
of an ‘emerging church’. Existing community work is good, particularly
outreach through
youth worker, schools, toddlers groups, and where the elderly are
concerned,
Songs of Praise,
and Coffee Break. The church has strong leadership and has a clear eye
on the
future. The
church is ‘on the move’. People love God and each other although we
remain
financially challenged.’
1b.
Looking at the future, the SCC made the following broad recommendations:
‘The
church needs to use the gifts of the whole Christian community more
effectively. Continue to be
rooted in Christ - prayerful, loving and forgiving, seeking to be holy
and
always with an eye on
converting people to Christ. We need to continue to sustain our present
numerical growth.
We should always question contentment and instigate action. Discover
ways of implementing
new ideas without longwinded procedures. More concerted prayer for the
town and
community. Be open and willing to look constantly at new ways of
proclaiming an unchanging
gospel in a rapidly changing culture’.
Following
the SCC’s work, a small sub group met to oversee the vision process in
order to determine
areas to be covered. Following this, individuals with specific
responsibilities
within the church
were consulted, and in turn consulted their teams, in order to make
specific recommendations
of the SCC’s overall recommendations. The ministry team also met for a
day to work
on specific areas for the church’s ongoing vision.
2.
Looking back - Vision for the Future 2000 - 2005
However,
before introducing the Church’s vision for the next five years it would
be
appropriate to look
back to our last vision document, ‘Vision for the Future’ published in
March
2000 following
the appointment of the new vicar, and looking ahead to 2005.
It
is
extremely encouraging to look back at that document’s proposals to
appreciate
that we have
implemented virtually all of them and much more besides. A full copy of
‘Vision
for the Future
2000’ can be obtained from the church office.
i.
Church Growth
The
document of March 2000 highlighted, statistically, the decline in the UK
church and
sought, within
local context, to provide a vision for growth. Despite the loss of over
80
people from the church
since 2000, largely through death or moving away, we have seen a steady
growth
in membership
and attendance over that period. Our electoral roll was 145 in 2000 and
has increased
to 220 by 2006.
In
1999,
one of the Bishops described St. Peter’s as a ‘grey’ church. The age
profile of
the church
has become very much younger with steady growth in numbers of new
families and younger
people. The major town-wide mission ‘Chertsey Alive’ took place in
2003, along
with Michael
Green, and led by St. Peter’s. Alpha has continued to thrive and now
includes
Youth Alpha.
Alpha has been a major contributor to church growth.
ii.
Staffing
The
document looked to continuing our appointment of a ‘training curate’
and the
appointment, possibly,
of a Locally Ordained Minister. Both of these proposals have
materialised. In
addition, we have
also benefited from the ministry of Trevor Parkin in his retired
capacity. In
2007, we will
also benefit from the ministry of a Non-Stipendiary Curate although
much of his
time will be spent in
Lyne. Two new pastoral assistants and a Lay Reader have been trained
since
2000, and a third
will begin training in 2007. We have sponsored three candidates for
ordained
ministry in the last
five years.
‘Vision
for the Future’ looked to a time when a youth worker might be
appointed. This
was achieved
more quickly than anticipated - within two years.
The
appointment of a part time Music Director also took place in 2002. This
was not
part of the ‘Vision
for the Future’ but quickly became a priority in order to carry out the
proposed developments
in music and worship.
iii.
Patterns of Worship
‘Vision
for the Future’ proposed considerable changes to our 10am morning
worship
pattern from one
which was largely traditional in character to a ‘mixed economy’. The
exact
proposals were
modified after discussion in 2000 to include two relatively formal
communion
services and two or
three informal services per month. The proposal to form a music group
in
addition to the choir
began to materialise in 2001.
Evening
Service patterns have become more informal with the introduction of a
monthly
healing service.
The
document stressed the need to encourage more people to join home
groups. During
this five-year
period, the number of home groups has increased from three to seven in
addition
to a new
daytime group for young mums.
The
introduction of some form of mid-week worship was highlighted in
‘Vision for
the Future’ and is
now taking place.
iv.
Songs of Praise
A
service for older members of the wider Chertsey Community. This was
suggested
in the vision document
and, beginning in 2000, has continued to thrive.
In
addition, a weekly ’Coffee Break’ was launched in 2003 and provides
another
important ministry
provision for older people. This is now packed out each week and has
been an additional
growth ‘node’ for the church.
v.
Penton
Park Church
This
church plant was in its infancy in 2000. It has continued to develop
and, in
line with ‘vision
proposals’,
now has its own Church Council.
vi.
United Benefice
‘Vision for
the Future’ mentioned the possibility of the Parish of Lyne coming
under the
umbrella of the
Vicar of Chertsey following the decline within that parish. The United
Benefice
was in fact formed
in spring 2004, and a House for Duty Priest appointed.
vii.
Finances
In line
with proposals, the finances of the Anglican Church and United Free
Church were combined
to form a Shared
Church
account in late 2000. Funds from
the UFC reserve were also transferred
into a Shared
Church
reserve fund in 2003. For the first
time, the SCC agreed to tithe 10% of
the church’s income in 2000 as proposed in the vision. This has
continued and a
series of eight
recipient organisations were chosen to represent local, national and
international needs.
viii.
Reordering
This is
the only area in the vision statement in which little progress was made
until
2006.
However,
it is hoped that redecorating and new lighting will take place in 2007.
3.
Church and Community
We
recognise that our links with the local community are good. In addition
to
occasional offices (baptisms,
weddings and funerals) through which we minister to thousands of people
annually, we offer
a wide range of ministries to the community from our work with
toddlers,
children and youth
through to our extensive ministry to the older members of our
community.
Individuals also
have roles within many areas of the local community. Our links with
local
organisations are strong -
i.e. Chertsey Society, Rotary Club, Combined Charities. Our
relationship with
the local press
has been carefully nurtured in the recent past and bears fruit in terms
of
publicity and comment
on a regular basis.
In the
last two years we have developed our work with nursing homes through
the home
groups as well
as ministry team members leading services at The Grange, Abbey Chase
and Floral House.
Our team of Pastoral Assistants visits widely across the parish.
We wish
to continue to develop our good relationship with local schools and in
particular, Stepgates School, our newly
affiliated
Church of England School. Close nurturing of this link led to
discussions with the head teacher, staff, governors, parents, diocese
and
bishops throughout 2004/5
and led to formal affiliation in January 2006.
We
need
to continue to contact those moving to new homes in Chertsey
with our welcome leaflet
and to do so more systematically and extensively. Attempts to minister
to the
business community
have been made in recent years but with limited success.
The
major aim in terms of community involvement in the next five years will
be the
development of
Counselling Services based at St. Peter’s. We have two people currently
in
training and one new
member of staff already qualified. An application from the Big Lottery
Fund to
build a counselling
room and to refurbish the existing hall and kitchen will be submitted
in
December 2006.
The
vicar continues his trusteeship of eight local organisations and
charitable
trusts as well as being a
governor and company director of Sir William Perkins School.
Two
new
pastoral assistants have been trained in the last two years and a third
begins
her training
in February 2007.
4.
The
ongoing development of the United Benefice
In
May
2004, the parish of Lyne and Longcross joined the parish of Chertsey
to form a United Benefice
under one Vicar. This followed the retirement of the vicar of Lyne and
Longcross and the
decision by bishops and archdeacons that the size of the Lyne and
Longcross
parish no longer
justifies a vicar of its own.
Having
appointed Lucy Clare as House for Duty Priest, much of the life of Lyne
and Longcross has run
separately from Chertsey.
Each parish has a
different theological background and tradition
and it has been important to respect those differences.
The
benefice has come together on three occasions each year for United
Benefice
services on Sunday
evenings.
As
Vicar
of Lyne and Longcross, Tim has worked with the PCC in setting its first
Five
Year Vision, which is
now complete and due to be published at the end of 2006. A baptism
preparation
team has been
set up with the help of the Chertsey
team, as
has a marriage preparation course.
In July
2007, we will be appointing Laurence Gamlin, a Church Army Officer and
Evangelist who has
recently worked as a church development consultant for CPAS.
He is
joining the benefice team for four years as a curate in training
(NSM.). It is
the vicar’s aim that
Laurence will offer his considerable experience and skills to Lyne and
Longcross in particular and give
much needed support to Lucy Clare and Tim in developing the life and
ministry
of this part of
the benefice. It is hoped he will offer up to three Sundays a month to
Lyne and
at least one
evening a week.
Laurence
has a particular interest and experience in the area of ‘New
Expressions of
Church’ and will have much to offer the whole benefice and deanery in
this
respect. This has been acknowledged in the 2006 Runnymede Deanery
Mission plan.
5. St.
Peter's Shared
Church - the Ecumenical Dimension
St.
Peter’s is a Local Ecumenical Partnership although the church is
arguably ‘post-denominational’.
Of the original members of the United Free Church of Chertsey, only
eight now
remain. However, in the last five years, just under a hundred new
people have
joined the church, all of whom now have ‘Shared Membership’. The church
is more
accurately described now as
ecumenically ‘United’ rather than ‘Shared’.
The
leadership team is committed to leading a church which is rooted in
scripture,
open to the Holy
Spirit’s leading and seeking to be ‘organic’ in the way in which its
development grows from the
local culture in which it ministers. Whilst retaining two communion
services on
Sunday mornings,
which are ‘nominally’ Anglican and Methodist (referred to as Service A
and B),
we deliberately
do not stress the denominational roots.
As
a
church which is led by an ordained Anglican team, we aim to continue
our links
with the Methodist
church by inviting Methodist ministers and Local Preachers to join our
team
once a month
(4th Sunday evening) and by members of our team preaching in the wider
circuit
from time to
time. Tim (recognised and regarded as a Methodist and URC Minister)
attends a
small number
of staff and business meetings within the Methodist Circuit and if
possible URC
each year in
addition to Deanery and Diocesan responsibilities. The SCC has elected
four representatives
to sit on appropriate bodies of our parent denominations - Anglican,
Methodist and URC.
No
further developments are planned from an ecumenical point of view. We
will
continue to pay a
nominal sum of money to the URC and Methodist Churches
from the Shared
Church Account each
year.
In
the
coming year we urgently need to update our Shared Church Constitution
as our
growth and
development ecumenically has greatly exceeded our original remit.
6.
General comments and proposals from the Ministry Team on the
Worshipping Life of the
church.
(This
section flows out of a Ministry Team “Day Away” in the summer of 2006.)
There is
an awareness that the worshipping life of St. Peter’s has made major
strides in
recent years
(see section 2). The team is united in its commitment to diversity in
patterns
of worship, which is
seen to be a real strength of this church. This diversity should be
made more
widely known.
It is perceived by newcomers of all ages and traditions as a real
strength. There is
a desire to develop opportunities for the exercising of spiritual gifts
within
some of our regular
acts of worship. The team is committed to developing high standards in
all
areas of the worshipping
life at St. Peter’s, whether in terms of preaching, music,
reading or the
leading of prayers.
There
is
concern that those members undertaking public reading and praying
should be
given adequate
quidance and training in these ministries.
There is
a desire to offer sermon outlines at main services to encourage
congregations
to engage
more fully with preaching and teaching, with suggestions for follow-up
reading, reflection
and prayer.
We
would
like to see more extended times of sung worship both in morning and
evening services
and to use silence more than we do currently.
There is
a serious desire by the whole team to move towards the use of Power
Point in projecting
hymns, songs and liturgy but awareness that these may need to be tied
in with
the wider
project of relighting, decorating and associated fund raising.
7. Music
Ministry
Our
aim:
‘To help all at St. Peter’s to express our love and thankfulness in
praise to
our great God, and
to draw other people, through our worship, to come to know the love of
the
Father, the
saving work of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit in and through
their
lives’.
Our
existing music is drawn from a variety of sources and traditions and
ranges
from traditional hymns to
contemporary songs and choruses. Contemporary music comes from sources
as widespread
as Spring Harvest, Iona,
and Taizé as well as
more contemplative worship produced by
Margaret Rizza. Christ in Quiet is a valued evening and includes chants
or
songs from above sources.
In
all
that we do we need to be aware of the words we sing. We need to fully
express
our faith in our
God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as well as the richness of the
gospel. We
need to avoid the
tendency so prevalent today, of watering down the fullness of the
Gospel into
easy devotional
sound bites.
7a.
Music Group
There
are currently (in 2006) 16 people who contribute to the Music Group.
Over the
next five years we
have the following aims:
i. To
fully give of ourselves in offering and leading of worship and as a
true
expression of our love and
commitment to God
ii. To
maintain a spirit-led and sensitive music ministry
iii. To
seek always to improve musically
iv.
To
enable different instruments to take the lead with more harmony and
descants by
singers in order
to provide a more varied texture
v. To
maintain good and prayerful relationships in the group, which will
reflect in
the way we play and
sing
Maybe,
there could be music groups with different emphasis: perhaps one fairly
classical and reflective
with flute, classical guitar etc. and one guitar based with bass
guitar,
guitars and drums.
7b. The
Choir
There
are currently 11 choir members. Over the next five years we have the
following
aims:
i. To
maintain good and prayerful relationships in the group, which will
reflect in
the way we sing
ii.
To
sing well and to continue to enrich the Communion Services including
new items
and arrangements
iii.
To
be numerically stronger and in particular become more reliable in
singing for
weddings as we have
a moral obligation to those getting married to provide a full choir for
which
they have paid;
also to extend our repertoire of the music we sing during signing of
registers.
iv.
To
offer engaged couples a more discerning choice of wedding hymns, as we
are
concerned that,
with greater unfamiliarity with Christian music, the situation can only
get
worse (this is a pastoral
area the clergy team needs to look at carefully in preparing couples
for
marriage)
v.
Because of various commitments it is inevitable that numbers are
sometimes low.
We need to build up
the choir membership, with more young people and more men!
vi.
No
group can survive for long without a regular input of younger members.
We want
to be open to
the Spirit so that the choir and its music ministry can develop fully
to serve
in God’s way in the
future.
7c. Both
Music Group and Choir
We
praise God for the increasingly good relationships between the choir
and music
group. We aim to
be a prayerful group of people, learning together and appreciating each
other’s ministries.
With
many of our musicians leading busy lives, we hope to see more
overlapping of
the two groups.
This is already taking place with some younger members moving
effortlessly from
one group to
another. This has also happened when members of the music group have
stepped in
to assist
with the music at weddings when it was not possible to gather a full
choir.
7d. Cool
Kids
This
delightful group of young people aged 7-12 meets on Friday evenings
before
Choir or Music Group
Practice. Our aim now and for the next five years is:
i. To
have fun and experience the joy of music and offering our gifts to God
in
helping to lead worship
ii.
To
nurture these young people as future leaders in the church
iii.
To
become sufficiently proficient in playing instruments to occasionally
lead a
song in our morning
service or help in a Youth 4 Youth service, and in so doing draw closer
into
the reality of God
iv.
To
occasionally sing with the choir or music group by way of introduction
to their
future ministry
7f.
Use
of organ
We
should continue to use the organ in much of what we do. Very often this
is the
sole instrument
- communion services, wedding and funerals for instance. The organ will
also
remain an
important part of the music group.
7g.
Practical issues
We
look
forward to the updating of the sound system and the use of projected
words of
hymns and
songs. This will:
i.
Free
us from being book bound
ii.
Give
flexibility in offering a range of liturgies/service patterns
iii.
Be
of use in music as well as providing bullet points for sermons and
headings for
readings and
prayers
iv.
Enable us to project encouraging scripture or thought provoking
pictures on
entering worship
8.
Youth
and Children
(Section
written by Marie Adams, Youth and Children’s Worker)
Five-Year
Vision for Youth and Children’s Ministry at St. Peter’s Church
I feel
it is important to split into two areas: children’s (0-10) and
teenagers
(11-18), as each area has
its own needs and goals.
However,
the broad overall vision is: to see every child and teenager in Chertsey having the
chance
to hear and the opportunity to respond to the gospel within the next
five
years.
This
is
no small task. It requires the church as a whole to see Youth and
Children’s
Ministry as a top
priority; it’s time to get committed in our outlook. Today’s kids and
teenagers
are going in the
opposite direction of church and it’s going to take a lot of vision and
passion
to turn that around.
The reality we face looks bleak but I believe the church can achieve
much if it
gets behind
what God wants to do which I believe is to commit to forming
relationships with
young people
that will help them embrace the gospel as it is lived out in front of
them.
8a.
Children
It
is
important to get the balance between in-house and outreach; in-house
being the
parts of the
ministry primarily aimed at “churched” kids and outreach being the
evangelistic
side of ministry
aimed at “non-churched” kids.
At
the
moment we have the following set up.
I
feel I
need to explain the target groups in order to explain the long- and
short-term
goals. We have 4
main target groups:
* Community
kids and teens who live in the area
* Congregation- kids and teens who pop in to
special services or events (holiday clubs, Christmas)
* Committed kids and teens who attend church
groups and have made some sort of commitment
to faith, either through confirmation or simply personal
* Core kids and teens who are “going for God”,
have made a personal commitment and are
growing
in their faith
My
aims
to help fulfil the overall vision are:
i.
Having a team of six adult Co-ordinators, each in charge of one area of
the
Children’s and Teenager’s
Ministry that I can work alongside in helping them to develop their
areas.
ii. I
need to put in place a more strategic recruiting system of new leaders.
As the
ministry grows
more leaders are needed and this is a top priority.
Hopefully,
having these co-ordinator roles and more leaders will allow us to
expand the
ministry.
As
far
as the children’s side of ministry goes I feel encouraged by its
development
but feel we need to
explore new ways of “doing children’s church”. I have made contact with
a
children’s worker
who is involved in just this and I feel it is something worth looking
into with
the possibility
of trying something new in the way of format over the next few years.
8b.
Teenagers
As
for
the teenagers’ side of ministry I feel we need more in-house and
outreach. I
would like to see the
following developments happen over the next five years:
i. A
united youth service between the three churches in Chertsey
at least once a term. This would
provide our core and committed teenagers to participate in ministry,
our
congregation teenagers
to receive, and our community teenagers to try out (dip there toes in
the
water) something
that’s not what they expect of the church.
ii.
A
week away at Soul Survivor for our committed and core teenagers in the
summer.
iii.
An
evangelistic course of some sort, possibly youth alpha or a course
called Quest
that runs at least
twice a year, attached to the Hub Night Café.
iv. The
Sunday night youth group, which has ten members, growing and splitting
into
cell groups that
alternate fortnightly between worship and the word, and social events.
To
summarize, the Youth and Children’s Ministry at St.
Peter’s is definitely moving in a positive
direction
long-term, though it needs to increase its efforts in reaching out to
non-Christian young people
and also to commit in our journeying with our Christian young people.
This
requires more leaders
willing to get involved in this exciting area of ministry and the
church to
view it as an absolute
priority.
9. Mission
and Evangelism
The
leadership acknowledges this to be central to our existence as a
church. All
areas of development
in the life of the church are to be viewed in terms of their
effectiveness in
drawing eople
to Christ and serving in his name. If a church is “mission shaped”,
then it is
by nature, evangelistic.
It is arguable, therefore, that a separate section is unnecessary.
However,
there are
particular areas, which may be viewed as specifically evangelistic.
9a. The
Alpha Course
Alpha
has been the single most significant entry point for the church since
Alpha
courses were introduced
ten years ago. In recent years, its effectiveness in reaching the
‘unchurched’
has developed
year after year, with current courses consisting largely of those with
no
church linksat all.
There is now a rolling Alpha programme for adults, a successful Youth
Alpha
Course, andplans to
introduce an Alpha course for older people following on Friday
lunchtimes from
January 2007. In
talking with new Alpha members, and many newcomers generally, the
importance of the
large banner outside the church as a vital tool in attracting newcomers
has
become clear.
In
recent years, some of our home groups have been formed from the
graduates of
particular Alpha
courses.
We
plan
to continue to use and develop the Alpha Programme in the coming years.
10.
Home
Groups
In 2000,
there were three home groups meeting (Abbey, Meadhurst and Weymead). By
2006, the
number has increased to seven and includes a range of age groups. The
number of
people taking
part in home groups is now approximately 82. Whilst this is a fairly
high
percentage in terms of
the wider Anglican or Methodist church, we aim to encourage a much
larger
percentage of the
church people to benefit from all that home groups offer.
In
September 2006, the daytime group ‘Mum’s the Word’ was also set up.
This caters
for young mums.
A range
of materials has been used in home groups over the years, ranging from
biblical
studies through
to evangelism and life style issues.
In
the
last two years, home groups have taken part in the leading of services
in
retirement homes
(Abbey Chase and The Grange) on a monthly basis. They have also been
involved
in prayer
walks within the town and in the leading of evening services.
11.
Songs
of Praise
This
service continues to be effective in ministering to older members from
the
wider parish, most of
whom have no other regular contact with the church. Through worship and
fellowship (afternoon
tea is provided after each service) a distinctive community has been
built up
over recent
years in which faith is nurtured and pastoral needs met. This regularly
attracts 50+ people
with a contact figure of 70+. We plan to continue to develop this
monthly
service.
12.
Coffee Break
This
venture has surprised everyone involved by its success from a numerical
point
of view, and in its
capacity to form a much-valued community. Over the last three years
over 50
people, many
with no previous links with the church, have been drawn into the orbit
of St.
Peter’s. With a good
number of helpers this will, as stated above, feed into a lunchtime
Alpha group
in the spring
of 2007.
13.
St.
Peter's
Football Club
The
club
has been established for many years and continues to compete in the
Southern Christian
League. The club has always had an evangelistic role and provides
opportunities
to draw
young men into the orbit of the Christian Community. An increasing
number of
men from within
the worshipping life of church are now playing in the team. The annual
Football
Praise and
Dinner is a significant evangelistic opportunity.
As
this
report goes to press we give thanks for the life of John Dunster whose
enthusiasm and passion
for the football club has been at the very heart of this area of the
church’s
ministry.
14.
Communication
In
recent years, the church has invested a great deal of thought, energy
and
resources into improving
the quality of communication at many levels, whether in terms of notice
sheets, Newslink
or notice boards. A look at material produced as recently as five years
ago
shows an enormous
development and improvement. The Archdeacon’s Visitation Report
commented upon the high
quality of publicity material and notice boards. Much of this
development has
been undertaken
by the church office, especially the administrator. The monthly notice
board is
also produced
with flair by a member of the congregation.
With
the
quality of reproduction/publicity in the wider world improving every
year, the
church cannot
afford to skimp in the area of publicity.
An
area
for particular development is the church website. The site is to be
completely redesigned
by the end of 2006. In addition to coverage of the church’s life and
mission,
we also hope to
be able to ‘stream’ particular sermons and teaching series after the
event. Our
existing website
is visited by over 3000 people a year.
15.
Finances
The
Diocese of Guildford figures show planned giving at St. Peter’s Church
to be
20% above average
for the diocese, which in turn is the wealthiest diocese in the
country. Chertsey
by contrast,
is as a town towards the bottom of the league table in terms of
relative
prosperity in Surrey. We can
seriously celebrate the growth in
planned giving over the past five years and a very
generous congregation!
For
decades, St. Peter’s was unable to pay its Parish Share to the
Guildford
Diocese. Since 2000 the
church has paid its parish share in full every year without exception.
We have
also tithed 10% of
our income every year since 2000. This has also been a time when Parish
Share
has increased
at a higher rate than at any time in history. We can celebrate this
achievement!
By 2006,
our payment to the Diocese is £64,000 per year. This figure has doubled
since
2000.
We also
pay nominal sums to the URC and Methodist Church.
Despite
year-on-year increases in numbers joining our planned giving scheme, we
are
constantly faced
with the need to pass deficit budgets at the beginning of each year.
This is an
ongoing concern.
Our expenditure is tightly monitored at all times.
Whilst
our congregations and membership are growing steadily, the average age
of our members
is falling considerably. This is a positive trend and ‘bucks’ national
trends.
However, older
members tend to have a higher level of expendable income than younger
ones who
are paying
extremely high mortgages and have higher levels of family expenses. As
older
members die or
move away, their level of giving (per person) is not replicated by
newer,
younger members
joining the church.
15a.
Suggested methods of increasing income
In the
coming five years we need to continue our existing policies by:
i.
Continuing our regular teaching on planned giving
ii.
Targeting new members on a regular basis
iii.
Encouraging the leaving of legacies more directly
iv.
Continuing to maximise hall use
v.
Continuing to apply for grants where possible
vi.
Using the Christmas period more effectively to maximise occasional
giving
We
hope
for a small reduction in Parish Share in 2007 owing to changes in the
means by
which Parish
Share is collected. As training curates will be funded entirely by the
Diocese
from 2007 this
will also provide some relief.
16. Building and
Plant
The
SCC
is aware that a building of the size and history of St. Peter’s is a
mixed
blessing. Whilst some
churches are responsible for modern, functional buildings with limited
upkeep,
others such as
ourselves have a building rooted in history and requiring constant
upkeep.
The
property committee believes that a minimum of £2,000 needs to be set
aside for
day-to-day repairs
and upkeep but acknowledges that to carry out repairs and long-term
projects
will require
very significant sums of money from time to time.
At
present, projected costs for repair and redecoration of the main
building will
cost in the region
of £150,000 with significant, but smaller amounts being needed for the
remainder of the plant.
Whilst
the local church can reasonably be expected to fund day-to-day ministry
costs,
it is questionable
whether it can reasonably be expected to finance the upkeep of an
historical building
of the age and size it has inherited.
The
SCC
has established (in 2006) a working group to seek community funding
especially geared
at redecorating and relighting the church. The group aims to obtain
funds from
the local community
and local businesses, and from charitable trusts further afield. A
brochure is
nearing completion
at the time of writing this document, with an appeal being launched in
December 2006. It
is hoped that the church will be in a position to begin work in 2007.
In
addition, the SCC voted to allow an application to the Big Lottery Fund
for
£150,000 to provide
a new kitchen in the hall, build a new counselling room and redecorate
completely. The application
will be submitted in December 2006.
17.
Social life of the church
As
churches grow and change, the need to encourage integration grows also.
St. Peter’s
has a membership of 220 people with many more worshipping during the
course of
a given
month. The worshipping life is divided into seven different
congregations, four
on Sunday, one on
Friday morning, Songs of Praise and mid-week worship. There is
surprisingly
little ‘crossover’
between these congregations and yet all rightly see themselves as part
of St.
Peter’s.
Add to
this a steady stream of newcomers, particularly to our 10am service,
along with
children and
young people, and there will always be a need to provide events at
which
integration can take
place.
This
need for integration is a widely recognised and discussed issue across
middle-
sized/larger churches
such as ourselves, which are growing and have several congregations.
Compared
with the majority of established churches we have a high percentage of
members
in home
groups, which in itself aids integration (over 80 people now belong to
one of
the seven home
groups).
Occasional
social events at The Abbey draw people from various worshipping groups.
Agape suppers,
barn dances, firework parties and specialist weeknight activities,
including
the German and
Spanish groups etc. aim to do the same. Spring Harvest also draws
together
members from various
worshipping groups. Our current social organiser has done well to set
up events
on both the
larger and smaller scale but wants to stand down to focus on other
areas of
church life.
An
ongoing series of social events is desirable for the reasons outlined
above.
However, we along
with most other organisations at this time (Christian and non-
Christian), are
faced with the
issue of people working longer hours and with increasingly limited
amounts of
leisure time. Understandably,
individuals are often unwilling to commit to events when pressure on
time, especially
family time, is so great. With our main 10am Sunday congregation
becoming increasingly
younger, this latter issue will become more and more significant for
our
church.
As we
move into a new social era, we need to be aware of what is widely seen
across
our culture
as increasing fragmentation in all areas - a so-called ‘post modern’
phenomenon. However,
we need to seek, whenever possible, to provide as many opportunities as
possible for the
wider ‘Body of Christ’ to meet as a body both to worship and to
socialise.
18. Penton
Park Church
This
church plant was founded in December 1996 and is based in the Community
Centre
at Penton Park. The church
has gone through
several phases since the initial ‘plant congregation’ provided
the foundation.
The
church began with one monthly service and has slowly developed to a
‘three
Sundays a month’
pattern. It was the aim of the leadership team to introduce weekly
services by
July 2006. However,
the decision to provide monthly ministry input at Lyne by members of
the St.
Peter’s preaching
team has delayed this move.
A
Church
Council was set up in 2001 and continues to oversee the church.
In
the
next five years, Christine Pattinson (LOM) will take on an increasing
level of
leadership. It is aimed
that Alpha will be reintroduced to Penton Park, as
well as an
indigenous home group. Christine’s
vision is to encourage more and more people on the park to have their
hearts touched
by the message of the gospel through witness, commitment and service.
It is
hoped that in
the next year a new home group will be set up at Penton
Park.
The
decision by the park owners to place a minimum age of 50 for residents
will
preclude any developments
in the area of children’s work.
Penton Park’s first ‘home
grown’ Pastoral
Assistant will be licensed by the Bishop of Dorking in November
2006 following a year’s training with Guildford Diocese.
19.
Church Office/Administration
(Jackie
Loveridge/Angela Boast)
The
church office is situated in the Hall. It is rather isolated. However,
it is a
place of frequent visitation
and in the future, while there is no particular advantage in moving the
office,
it would be good
to make it more ‘welcoming’, with more adequate surface space and
equipment.
Better storage
facilities elsewhere in the hall could be made available to stop the
office
becoming a ‘cupboard’!
(There is much kept ‘safe’ in the office by other users of the hall).
From the
office all wedding, baptism, funeral and church hall booking
administration is undertaken.
Also weekly Notices, monthly Newslink, service sheets and
publicity/info are produced.
Pastoral enquiries are covered by the ministry team on Monday evenings
7.30-8pm and
otherwise when office is open : Mon/Wed/Fri 10.30am - 4pm and Tues
9am-1pm.
Busy weeks
are balanced by quieter periods. Peter Whisker and David Lillicrap
oversee the
computer which
has recently gone ‘broadband’ and while David has also recently
upgraded the
system it remains
basic and a new computer with scanner would enable better communication
with
both ministry
team and church members. It would be helpful to be able to produce more
dynamic publicity.
This would in the future necessitate some form of adequate computer
instruction
as currently knowledge is at best basic.
This Vision
document was unanimously approved and
adopted by the
Shared
Church Council at their meeting of Monday
20th November 2006
Whilst
the Vision document needs to be read as a whole in order to appreciate
overall development
there are some specific aims which can be drawn from the report.
Church
and Community
*
Training of a further
Pastoral
Assistant in 2007
*
Focus on developing our new link with
our newly affiliated school at Stepgates
*
Systematic contact with newcomers to
the town with welcoming leaflet to all new homes
*
Establishment of counselling services
by 2008
Wider
Benefice
*
Appointment of a new curate at Lyne
*
Assist the Parish of Lyne and
Longcross in developing new expressions of church
(see separate document for Lyne and Longcross)
Ecumenical
*
Update the official Sharing Agreement
as required by parent denominations
Worshipping
Life
*
Provide regular courses for those
reading and praying in public
*
Provision of sermon notes for each
main service
*
Introduction of Power Point for Sunday
worship both for music and liturgy
*
Develop still further extended times
of sung worship in both morning and evening
services
*
Establish strong midweek worship
Music
*
Maintain and continue to develop a
Spirit led, sensitive music ministry
*
Possibly develop the music group into
two sections: Classical and reflective (eg flute
and guitar) and more contemporary, with
guitar, bass and drums
*
Seek to make the choir numerically
stronger (more young people and men)
*
Weddings - seek to be more reliable
(numerically) and offer advice to couples on
hymns/music
*
Nurture young people to become future
leaders through ‘Cool Kidz’ and other means
Youth
and Children
*
Every child and young person in Chertsey to have the chance to
hear and respond to the gospel within the next
five years
*
A team of six adult co-ordinators,
each in charge of one area of ministry
*
Put in place a strategic recruiting
system for new leaders
*
A united Youth Service between the
three Chertsey Churches once a term
*
Organise a week each year for young
people to attend ‘Soul Survivor’
*
An evangelistic course (possibly
Quest) to be linked with The Hub
*
Cell groups to be formed from Sunday
night Youth Group
Mission and
Evangelism
*
Alpha Course - to continue on a
‘rolling’
basis
*
Home Groups:
*
Continue to form new
home groups as each Alpha course finishes
*
Encourage a large percentage of the
church to become part of our home group structure
*
Continue development of ministry to the
elderly - see specific sections
Communication
* Website
to be re-designed by the end
of 2006
*
Dynamic publicity
Finance
*
Continue to tithe 10% of
the church’s
income
*
Increase annual planned giving
Building
and Plant
*
Raise £110,000 to re-decorate and
re-light church
*
Raise £100,000 for remedial repairs to
interior
*
Raise £150,000 from a specific grant
application to re-develop hall and kitchen and
build a counselling room
Social
*
Provide a wide range of social
activities for building up and encouraging
integration of congregations
Penton Park
*
Establish a home group structure
*
Fully utilise newly trained curate and
pastoral assistant
*
Increase service regularity to a
weekly structure
*
Make inroads for the gospel across the
Park
Church
Administration
*
Work to better equip office in terms
of surface and cupboard space
*
Dynamic publicity
5YEARVISION2007-11
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