St John the Evangelist East Dulwich Annual Report and Accounts 2016

Transcription

1 St John the Evangelist East Dulwich Annual Report and Accounts 2016

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3 REPORT FROM THE MINISTRY TEAM ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST, EAST DULWICH: ANNUAL REPORT 2016 Our new Vicar, Revd Gill O Neill was inducted and installed in July, on the hottest day of the year. Gill served her curacy not far away at All Saints, West Dulwich, having previously been a secondary school teacher. On her arrival, Gill sought to listen and learn about the people, the place and the context, taking Parish walks with knowledgeable church members, and asking us about our hopes for the future. Change can be tricky, and the clergy team has sought to maintain equilibrium, as well as seek new life and vision. At our Parish History Day in October, we shared wonderful stories of the changes and challenges of our 150 years. At Christmas we reached out to the parish, delivering our Christmas card in all weathers, promising a warm welcome at our services. Towards the end of 2016, we bravely agreed to a new challenge: hosting 20 homeless guests as part of the Robes project in early The Revd Anne Clarke has offered friendship and support to Gill as she has settled in, continuing to lead Sunday services, baptisms, weddings and funerals, and maintaining a strong pastoral ministry. Anne will take a long-overdue sabbatical in 2017, returning in August renewed and refreshed. Revd Alistair McCulloch is lead chaplain at the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, and is a valued member of the clergy team, leading worship, Lent courses, and supporting church life. For the first four months of this year, Bill Jacob was with us as priest-in-charge. He was present at services at least twice a month and chaired the PCC during this period. We are grateful for his stepping out of retirement to help us prepare for Gill s recruitment. The clergy team would like to thank all who make our shared life possible. Our churchwardens, Rachel Mills and Joy Taylor have accompanied Gill through her first nine months of her incumbency, giving considerable time and support. Rachel is stepping down at this APCM, and we are grateful for her hard work, enthusiasm and considerable knowledge of all aspects of church life. Thanks also to Gareth Mills for his work as interim Parish Administrator, giving much support to Gill in her first six months. Gareth stepped down in November, continuing as Goose Green Centre Manager. Our new Parish Administrator, Rachel Smith, brings great skill and talent to the role, having worked in senior management in the fashion industry. Sarah Goudge continues as Treasurer; we are very grateful to Sarah for keeping a meticulous eye on finances, and successfully reclaiming a large tax rebate on our gift aided contributions, with help from Helen Hunt. This year Alistair Read steps down after years of faithful service as Goose Green Centre Treasurer, and Sarah has agreed to combine those roles. This is the start of a process of amalgamating church and centre finances. Many thanks to Alistair, and also to Dorothy Oxley, who continues as our PCC secretary. Martin Howell is our Stewardship Officer, seeking to encourage us to give of our resources, time and talents. John Webber continues as Director of Music, and we are grateful to all our choir and musicians who bring life to our praise and enable our worship. Eurica Shaw continues as a Southwark Pastoral Auxiliary, taking Home Communions and visits, organising a parish trip to Winchester Cathedral in the summer of Eurica also volunteers at the Manna Centre and offers faithful prayer and service as well as organising our housekeeping rota. A committed team of volunteers offers time and energy to providing a fun and stimulating programme for children. Many thanks to Alex Adie and the Sunday School team, Libby Coates who runs the crèche, and Katherine Lyon and Julie Whitney who coordinate young people s work. The 3 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

4 Children s Mass has been hard to sustain in recent times, and we are seeking a fresh approach to including all ages in our worship; children are much-valued members of our community. The people of St John the Evangelist make an immense commitment to the life of our church, whether that is making coffee, being sidespeople, flower arranging, operating the sound system, serving at the altar, gardening and in so many other ways. Without this commitment St John s would not function. In a time of immense national and global change, the local church will become more significant as a place of stability, generosity and hope. We look forward to finding a new sense of direction and energy, sharing the abundant life of God here in East Dulwich. Gill O'Neill, Anne Clarke and Alistair McCullough REPORT FROM THE CHURCHWARDENS From the Churchwardens point of view 2016 was very much a year of two halves. It began with Michael Robinson and Rachel Mills as both Churchwardens and the PCC representatives on the interview panel for our new Vicar; the panel s other members being Bishop Humphrey, Bishop Michael and our Archdeacon, Jane Steen. After all the discussion and preparation demanded by the recruitment process, and the time preparing associated documentation, the recruitment process itself felt something of a blur; advertising, applications, short listing, the parish visit, the interviews and appointment occurred across just a few short weeks. After all the time and hard work in preparation, the interview panel emerged from an initially nervous huddle with bright smiles and the certain knowledge that the best candidate had been selected unanimously. We would like to thank everybody who helped in the recruitment process particularly those who helped to make the day of the Parish Visit go so well, along with Humphrey and Jane whose passion and advice proved invaluable. The good news of Gill s appointment left us with just three months to prepare for her arrival. During this period Maxine Plunkett stepped down as Deputy Warden and Joy Taylor replaced Michael Robinson as Churchwarden at the APCM. Soon after we bade farewell to Father Bill at a drinks reception in appreciation of his gifts and our thoughts turned to the celebration of Gill s induction. Three hundred invitations went out and the church was full to bursting as we welcomed Gill, her family and friends, visiting and local clergy, centre users, representatives from across the deanery and borough, the head teacher and staff of St John s and St Clement s school, the deputy Mayor and, of course, the St John s congregation all keen to see Bishop Christopher induct Gill as our new Vicar. Sadly, due to illness, Jane Steen was unable to attend, but her place was taken at the last moment by Susan Height, our Area Dean, to whom we are most grateful. After the service there were refreshments in the centre and the following Sunday after mass a parish lunch was held in the centre to welcome Gill and her family. As we have come to expect at St John s everyone pulled together to make these events great occasions of celebration and we would like to thank everyone who made them work so well. Since then Gill has made a presence felt in so many diverse and special ways. Once the initial euphoria of actually having a Vicar had worn off we quickly came to realise what we had missed during our two years in interregnum, someone to guide and lead us and Gill has not failed to challenge us either. Hopefully we can continue to rise to her challenges and perhaps bring a few of our own to the table. As usual, 2016 was a year of steady progress and consolidation as far as church maintenance was concerned. The boiler and heating system received another year s reprieve at its annual service in February; the centre boilers were serviced and inspected at the same time. The fire extinguishers 4 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

5 were serviced with two being replaced. The lightning conductor was inspected and all portable electrical appliances were tested. The guttering and drains were checked and cleared and repairs to several cracked and missing roof tiles were made. A small crack caused by missing mortar in an almost impossible to reach spot above the Sanctuary was repaired, unfortunately not before it had caused extensive damage to the ceiling on the south side of the Sanctuary; this will be left to dry out before proper repairs can be made. One of the clerestory windows blew out during a very stormy night. It was subsequently repaired and with one other, which on inspection had proved fragile, has been sealed permanently shut. The organ and pianos were tuned and the organ received minor running repairs. The paintwork of the windows to the south and east of the vestry received some badly needed attention. The paths to the north and west of the Goose Green Centre were re-laid in concrete to provide additional emergency access and egress. The last of our ailing lime trees were removed under faculty in March 2016 and the new cherry trees planted to replace them seem to be flourishing. The church hedges were professionally trimmed and the churchyard continues to look marvellous, we would love more volunteers to join our dedicated gardening team. The Clergy house has required the most minor of attention this year and Hindwoods continues to keep us abreast of all relevant legislation so that we are fully compliant has been, by halves, both a struggle and a pleasure, and very occasionally both at the same time; but it was also a most satisfying year not least because we began it seeing distant light at the end of tunnel and finished it in the warm glow of Midnight Mass with a new Vicar clearly comfortable in her new clothes and a congregation with a bright future to look forward to. Lastly, we would like to thank Michael Robinson for his continued support and our clergy team: Eurica Shaw, Father Alistair and Mother Anne, whose tireless efforts have kept the Parish going through thick and thin and without whose knowledge, good humour and understanding our jobs as Churchwardens would have been so much harder. Rachel Mills & Joy Taylor PARISH ACTIVITIES AND REPORTS Children welcome! We try to make sure that children and young people of all ages have the care and activities they need to feel part of St John's. Crèche: For the very little ones The crèche continues to provide a caring and nurturing environment based on the foundations of Christianity. New toys have been purchased over time and we have welcomed ideas from parents and children in how we can improve and what activities and toys they think would be beneficial. We aim to mirror the teachings in the service each week in our activities with the children. This varies from colouring and worksheets with a Christian theme, to more complex tasks to prepare our older children for Sunday School. All the children really enjoy the Bible stories and religious children's songs sang at the end of crèche, helping the children to calm down before returning to the service. During 2016 there have been dwindling numbers in the Crèche, both in children who attend and the volunteers who run it. This often means that these committed volunteers rarely get to 5 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

6 worship in the service, which is not fair on them, or sustainable. We hope however to recruit more volunteers with the right skills and enthusiasm to look after our little ones. Libby Coates Sunday School: Once you're old enough to go to school, you're welcome to come to us too! Regular members of our congregation will know that there's a sudden exodus from Church in the last verse of the first hymn, when the Sunday School children and their leaders move into the Goose Green Centre's large hall to learn about God, Jesus, and the Christian life in ways that we hope will catch their interest and stimulate their thoughts. There are three groups, and a total of 12 Sunday School leaders who take it in turn to lead sessions for their respective groups. We generally follow the Church calendar, often basing our activities around one of the day's readings which the adults will be following during the service. But we don't need to create everything for ourselves we use an online resource, Roots, ( which not only offers suggested texts and printable resources, and also some ideas and suggestions from children. If you had come in early to Sunday School on any Sunday in 2016, you would probably have found the children sitting in circles, the little ones on the floor, the older ones on the platform. We'd be having a reading, or a prayer, or discussing something which the reading suggested to us. It might surprise you how children can respond to quite complex philosophical challenges so long as they're presented in a way they understand. For example, if we look at the Sermon on the Mount, we might ask why Jesus says 'Blessed are the poor', and that could lead us on to looking at what poor people need, and how we might be able to help them. The idea of being kind and gentle often comes up, and that can lead on to how we treat our friends, what's bad about bullying, and so on. Later, we might be doing some art or craft work to show what we'd learned, or maybe doing role play to help us understand it better. Role play's great because even the shy children who don't want a speaking part can always be involved in some way if God speaks from a cloud, for example, the shy ones can link hands and surround the confident one who's happy to read out God's lines! Everyone is included. We are always happy to welcome more children to Sunday School, so do get in touch with either Alex Adie, who is in overall charge of the Sunday School, or any of the other leaders if you have a child who might be interested in joining us. Simon Compton (one of the Sunday School leaders) Young People There were many highlights in The Sunday school plus continues during the Sunday service, and in term time we have occasionally had up to 12 participants. Young people have become an established part of the services on the first Sunday of the month, being involved in the readings and intercessions. We met for a Lent group and studied Rowan William s Being Christian, raised money for Christian Aid with a Big Breakfast, met for revision sessions before exams and saw some of our number leaving for university. In 2016, we started a younger group for those aged So far, we have baked cakes to fundraise, had a trip to a WW1 exhibition, held a film night and went on a New Year s Eve visit to the Unicorn Theatre. We hope to continue to build the younger group and offer events throughout the year to create a safe space for friendship and discussion. Looking to the future, more volunteers to help out either at one-off events or on a regular basis would allow us to sustain and grow what we already have. 6 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

7 Our long-term vision is that we can provide outreach to also include young people in our parish who don t necessarily attend church. Katherine Lyon and Julie Whitney A safe place to be At St John s we are committed to the safeguarding of children, young people and vulnerable adults. Our team meet quarterly, ensuring we follow Diocesan guidelines, promoting good practice in all aspects of church life, and implementing policies and training. Laura Williams delivered an excellent training session earlier in the year, and we have sought to improve communications. In future we would like to offer further training opportunities, plan a fire drill and ensure DBS checks are up to date. Safeguarding is a standing item at PCC meetings, and is a responsibility shared by the whole church. WORSHIP AND SPIRITUALITY As well as our services on a Sunday, St John's also offers opportunities to worship and explore our spirituality in other ways, such as our Lent Study Groups. Silent Prayer Group We have continued to meet regularly throughout the last year; our numbers are low, but we feel it is important in these days, when we are all so busy and the world is full of words, that we share a time and space that is silent. During Advent, we shared three weeks of led meditations. Whilst knowing that this type of prayer is not what most people seek, we look forward to encouraging others to share with us the presence of God in the quiet of a Sunday evening. Sue Lock (on behalf of the group) Women s Spirituality Group The Women s Spirituality Group meets monthly and is open to all women who would like a regular opportunity to discuss prayer and issues of peace and justice. The highlight of this year was creating and celebrating a liturgy for St Mary Magdalene on the evening of 17 July. This was an enjoyable and fulfilling occasion and we were pleased to welcome number of Roman Catholic visitors, as well as St John s parishioners, to share it with us. We hope that we will have the chance to host similar events in the future. In addition we have discussed how to disagree well, vocations, women and the penal system, and the spiritual and practical aspects of preparing for death. We made pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, shared a summer meal out in Peckham and enjoyed an Advent party. Clare Brown Men's Spirituality Group A small men's spirituality group meets three or four times a year, discussing a range of topics decided by the group. We would welcome new members. If you are interested in joining, please contact Vince Turner or Martin Howell. 7 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

8 MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE UNTO THE LORD Music is very much a part of our 10 am services and for many years now, this has been the remit of John Webber, whose report is below. Director of Music's Report The Choir has continued well over the past year and has done its best to give a strong lead to the rest of the congregation. The Junior Choir, present on two Sundays per month (occasionally more), has grown to seventeen members; the Adult Choir usually musters twelve to fifteen people. The adults continue to hold their monthly Wine Club, where there s a chance for social time after some Thursday rehearsals. The Christmas and Easter services had full input from the musicians, including daily services in Holy Week. The annual Fauré Requiem was sung liturgically in November, with augmented Choir. Choral Evensong took place three times during the year. Julie Whitney has passed the Bishop of Southwark s Award to choristers with distinction and was presented last September at the Catholic Cathedral. Several members of the Choir have additional responsibilities which support me, such as preparing and training others, for which I am hugely grateful. A Choir Committee was formed in early 2014 and meets to discuss non-musical aspects of our task. I am always looking for new members for the Choir. More tenors would be especially welcome. Thanks are also due to our team of organists, whose time and energy enables me to concentrate on the Choir. Thanks also to our brass players and other musicians who contribute by playing in our services on a musical instrument. Finally, thanks to Gill for her support of the music and musicians since her arrival last summer. John Webber A RICH HISTORY Given that St John's has now been in existence for over 150 years, we have built up quite a wealth of historical information. Clare Brown, our archivist, reports below on recent changes to its storage location. Parish Archives Following a meeting in April 2016 with Jeff Gerhardt, Senior Archivist (Diocesan Archives) at the London Metropolitan Archives (LMA), I proposed to the PCC that the parish should make a further deposit of parish registers and historic archives in accordance with the provisions laid down by General Synod in the Parochial Registers and Records Measure, This was duly agreed at the PCC meeting of 21 June and the deposit was made on 17 January LMA is the diocesan record office for the dioceses of London and Southwark and provides an excellent professional service which will ensure that the parish s unique heritage is stored in the correct environment. In due course it will be catalogued to professional standards (with a catalogue available online) and made available in the public search-room in Farringdon. I should stress that the parish continues to retain ownership of the records and is not charged for the service which LMA provides. Clare Brown 8 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

9 KEEPING EVERYONE IN THE LOOP With many different things happening at St John's, it's important that everyone knows what's going on and when. This is the role of the Communications Group. Communications Group Report During the interregnum work on the website was kept to a minimum although we made sure that everything to do with the advertising for a new vicar, and our mission action plan and subsequently the appointment of Revd Gill O Neill was clearly displayed. My thanks to Charles Corbin, Tayo Olatunde, and Christine Camplin for their invaluable support. Jim Nurton and I have maintained the Twitter account which is perfect for letting the wider community know what we are doing and for us to be abreast of current news stories in the Diocese and major announcements from Lambeth Palace and General Synod. You can find our account on please do follow us but if you don t have an account and would like some help, I d be more than happy to set you up. We also send out a weekly This Sunday at St John the Evangelist. Anne Coates A RESOURCE FOR THE CHURCH AND COMMUNITY: The Goose Green Centre The Goose Green Centre welcomes bookings from all local groups, organisations, charities and individuals who share its commitment to equality and inclusion regardless of creed, gender, disability, racial background or sexuality was another rewarding year for the Goose Green Centre. The Buds Pre-school remained an essential part of the life of the centre and continued to help the Centre s finances to an ever better footing. Exemplary tenants and very cheerful comrades, Buds Pre-school uses the Centre every weekday morning plus Wednesday and Thursday afternoons. In addition the Centre was pleased to host eighteen other weekly users, these were: Sing + Sign who entertained and informed young children on Monday and Friday mornings; Hartbeeps who provided classes for the very young on Monday afternoons; Rix Pyke s Chi Kung class and Tania Tempest-Hay s Pilates class met on Monday evenings; Monkey Music held sessions for young children on Tuesday mornings; the GDND Academy taught children s Ballet classes on Tuesday afternoons followed by a dance class catering for children with a range of disabilities; the Woodcraft Folk met on Tuesday evenings; Rebecca Vicary s Music for Little People classes happened on Wednesdays mornings; Perform Workshops gave forth on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons; Stephen Walsh extended his Tai Chi classes on Wednesday evenings; the Thursday Playgroup met before the Goose Green Lunch Club on you guessed it - Thursdays; the Voiceworks Company of Singers raised the roof on Thursday evenings; the Donguri Club, a series of parent led Japanese classes for children met on Friday afternoons; followed by Alcoholics Anonymous in the small hall and Narcotics Anonymous in the large on Friday evenings; Baby Ballet used both halls on Saturday mornings; and the Youth Learning Network did just that on Saturday afternoons. 9 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

10 Other notable Centre users included: the Little One Led monthly baby weaning workshops on Wednesdays; the South London Lesbian Mums Group who met on the second Sunday of each month; the Peckham Society and the Southwark National Autistic Society; while the Centre was also used as a polling station during Routine annual maintenance in the Centre included boiler, fire extinguisher, and alarm servicing; piano tuning, the partition was serviced and the clearing of gullies, guttering and roof debris. Minor repairs included an emergency plumbing call-out to the children s loos, the replacement of the maglock key switch; a new central heating timer and control valve; the clearing of the urinal drain and the north dormer windows were painted. A new larder fridge was also purchased. The major summer project was the laying of a new concrete path, with associated drainage, to the north and west sides of the centre, which doubled the centre s emergency egress. The Centre Sub-committee met on a bi-monthly basis during 2016, having taken the decision to reduce the frequency of meetings at the end of The Centre s finances are sound and in good order; the Sub-committee presented an annual budget for 2016 to the PCC which was ratified at its February 2016 meeting, and a 2017 budget was similarly ratified by the PCC at the end of There are capital projects in hand in respect of heating, lighting and replacement chairs with significant works to the foyer roof expected to be the big summer project. Lastly, the Sub-committee would like to thank the centre caretakers. Pam Kyeyune, who had been with the centre almost since it opened left us for, we hope, much greener pastures in May and is of course sorely missed; but Tina Steadman steadfastly continues the hard work of maintaining the Centre as a pleasant place to be. Gareth Mills and Alistair Read PART OF THE WIDER CHURCH OF ENGLAND St John's is part of a Deanery (a grouping of local parishes) and also part of the Diocese of Southwark. We therefore send representatives to the Deanery Synod, and are also represented on the Diocesan Synod and Diocesan Council. Deanery Deanery has met four times this year and St John s has five representatives: Anne Coates, Lay Chair, Alistair Read, Joy Taylor, Malcolm King and Alan Croft who filled a one year vacancy when Stephen Phillips stepped down in March. Revd Susan Height (Priest-in-Charge of St Faith s) was appointed as Area Dean after serving as Acting Area Dean from the end of We have had a variety of speakers including Jackie Pontin, Parish Support Fund Project Manager, our archdeacon Jane Steen and Anna Khan CEO of Welcare who joined us for our bring and share supper at our December meeting. Katherine Lyon (St John s) has continued as the deanery champion of children and young people. In February 2016, the Lay Chairs of Woolwich episcopal area organised a Lay Day with various workshops which was well received and attended by members of our deanery. Anne Coates and Stephen Phillips led workshops on Deanery Synods and Churchwardens respectively. Our Deanery has four representatives on Diocesan Synod: David Beamish (St Barnabas), Anne Coates, Revd Susan Height and Revd John Watson (St Barnabas). Anne Coates continues to be a trustee for the Diocesan Council (DCT) and was appointed to the board of Welcare. Joy Taylor was co-opted to the DCT and is secretary for MEAC. Anne Coates 10 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

11 GOVERNANCE As we are also a registered charity, we need, in our Annual Report, to reassure you that we are run properly, and the reports below are designed to give you some insight into our Governing Body, the PCC (the equivalent of a charity's Board), and the work of its sub-committees and Officers. The Parochial Church Council (PCC) The PCC's responsibility is to ensure that St John's carries out its declared purposes, complies with the law and looks after its resources our finances, buildings and equipment. Meetings were held monthly during 2016, except in August, with generally good levels of attendance, but in the coming year we will be experimenting with meetings every two months, though an extra meeting can be called if there is anything urgent to be dealt with. All PCC members also keep in touch by . Because of the number of people on its Electoral Roll, St John's has quite a large PCC, comprising our Vicar, Gill (who normally acts as Chair); any other clergy licensed to the Parish (in this case, Anne Clarke, as Alistair McCulloch is licensed elsewhere and sits on the PCC as a co-opted member); the two Churchwardens (elected each year at the Annual Parish Meeting); the five people elected from the Church to sit on the Deanery Synod; 15 members elected at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM), who normally serve for a term of three years, and up to three co-opted members. PCC membership during 2016: One of the problems when it comes to writing the Annual Report is that it covers the calendar year, 1 January 31 December 2016, but changes in the PCC take place at the Annual General Meeting, which last year took place on 17 April. During 2016, the following people either ended their term of office at the APM/APCM or stepped down from their roles: Churchwardens: Michael Robinson (but elected to PCC) Deanery Synod: Stephen Phillips (on moving from the area) Elected members Sian Conlon, Charles Corbin, Tina Hampson (after a one year casual vacancy), Jayne Mallett, Maxine Plunkett, Elizabeth Stevenson and Deepthi Wickremasinghe (after one year of her term of office, in order to train for the ministry; this vacancy was carried over). We are very grateful to all of them for their service, and after a period of one year's 'rest' they are welcome to stand again for re-election, if they wish. Membership of the PCC as at the end of 2016 was as follows (those whose names are shown in italics are due to stand down at the 2017 APCM) Incumbent: Revd Gill O'Neill Assistant Priest: Revd Anne Clarke Churchwardens: Joy Taylor (elected 2016) Rachel Mills (elected 2015) Deanery Synod: Anne Coates (also Diocesan Synod); Malcolm King, Alistair Read, Joy Taylor (also Churchwarden) (All elected in 2011) Alan Croft (elected to a one year vacancy in 2016) Elected members: Ola Jibona, Tayo Olatunde (elected 2011), Libby Coates (to stand down after a 2 year casual vacancy, but may stand for re-election); Sarah Goudge 11 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

12 Co-opted members: Non-voting: (Treasurer), Sally Gross, Ben Hunt, Vince Turner, Julie Whitney (all elected 2015), and Christine Camplin, Natasha D'Souza, Martin Howell, Gillian Nash, James Nurton and Michael Robinson (all elected 2016) Revd Alistair McCulloch, Eurica Shaw (SPA) Dorothy Oxley (PCC Secretary) Sub-committees reporting to the PCC: Finance Committee: This committee supports the Treasurer in monitoring the accounts, preparing budgets, and all other elements of the Church's financial responsibilities, including practical matters like reclaiming Gift Aid on donations via returns to HMRC. Staff team: At the start of the year the Staff Team and Standing Committee had been merged. After the Vicar's arrival it was agreed that they should once again be split into two separate groups. The Staff Team, consisting largely of the clergy and churchwardens, deals with the organisation of worship in the Parish, for example, the complex rotas of sidespeople and those who administer communion, and practical administration. Standing Committee: The Standing Committee comprises the Vicar (and other clergy, if desired), the Churchwardens and two members appointed by the PCC. They plan the agenda for the PCC and are also authorised to take decisions, if necessary, should something urgent arise between PCC meetings (though given the ease of communication by , or of holding an extra meeting after Church, this is rarely likely to be needed). Premises Committee: This is not a permanent Committee, but can be called into being if there are any major premises issues which cannot be addressed by the Churchwardens and the Vicar, and/or by being brought to the PCC. Goose Green Centre Committee: This Committee, which includes (as a non-voting member) the Centre Manager, two members of the PCC (including one Churchwarden) and two members from the Electoral Roll, oversees the finances and activities of the Centre and discusses such things as the purchase of new equipment, building improvements, and broader aspects such as how the Centre's role fits in to that of the Church as a whole. Treasurer's Report 2016 was a year of consolidation as we got back to normal after a difficult time. The accounts show a profit of 45,606 but just over 40,000 of this arose from successful claims to recover Gift Aid tax for 2014 and We are now almost up to date with these claims, thanks to the hard work of a few individuals. Income from planned giving was about 15,000 less than in 2015 but general collections were 4,500 higher than in the previous year. I am pleased that over the last six months several people have increased their standing orders by a net total of 160 per month and others have started new standing orders. I thank all those who made a great effort to be frugal in Overall expenditure was 30,000 lower than in the previous year which means that we are in a better position than I had dared to hope for this time last year. 12 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

13 Following the ending of an arrangement between the Diocese and NatWest Bank we became liable to bank charges on our current account with NatWest. Most of the charges were refunded following a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman and our main current account is now with CAF bank which is much more friendly to medium-sized charities. Finally, I would like to thank all those who help with counting and banking money, Stewardship and Gift Aid and many other tasks. They have contributed to 2016 being a successful year financially and we are now in a position to build on this in the future. Sarah Goudge Hon Treasurer Full, detailed accounts for the financial year are provided separately. Reserves Policy The PCC aims to maintain a general reserve of at least three months' expenditure (including the amount pledged to the Diocese's Parish Support Fund) and, where necessary, transfers appropriate amounts from other reserves to achieve this. The PCC also maintains church premises and other reserves which reflect plans for future expenditure on restoration and other major work to the church and the clergy house for which it is responsible. There is also a reserve for the Goose Green Centre which is at present managed by the Goose Green Centre Sub-Committee. PCC Secretary's Report I was going to begin this with the phrase a year of two halves but the Churchwardens got it in first! And as the churchwardens have already outlined, the first few PCC meetings of the year concentrated very strongly on the recruitment of a new vicar; all the paperwork necessary was finally prepared (many thanks to Rachel Mills, who took this on). There were also quite a few forms which had to be filled in and things that we had to do as a PCC to meet Diocesan and Church of England requirements. Two PCC representatives were elected to sit on the interview Panel. Of course, while all this was going on, the PCC also had its usual business to conduct, with a new Treasurer (Sarah Goudge) taking over in January, an APCM and APM to arrange, decisions to be made on St John's contribution to the Diocesan Parish Support Fund (our quota ) for the year 2017, and a job description for a new Parish Administrator to be drafted. Although Christine Abbott had retired the previous November, the PCC waited until the new Vicar could be involved in the appointment. We were fortunate in that Gareth Mills had been willing to provide interim cover, in addition to his duties as Goose Green Centre Manager. We improved our own awareness by having a useful presentation on safeguarding from Laura Williams. The mood, though, has been pretty positive; getting a new vicar after a long wait and quite a lot of turmoil was a clear indication that the Church was beginning to move forward again. After Gill's arrival, obviously, there was a getting to know you period, on both sides, and a bit of experimentation in the ways we held our meetings. For quite a while, the PCC had concentrated on the practical issues of recruitment, but with Gill s arrival we began once again to look at things to do with spirituality, worship and mission. Throughout the year the Minutes of the PCC, once signed at the subsequent meeting, have been photocopied and put in a green folder on a table at the back of the church, available for any 13 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

14 member of the congregation to read. Hopefully this has given people an insight into how the PCC works and what it discusses. Dorothy Oxley, PCC Secretary PARISH STATISTICS Church attendance and ministry Electoral Roll: As this report goes to press, a review of the Electoral Roll is being undertaken, so the numbers reported here are those given at the APCM, plus applications received during the year. In April, the total membership was 248 (95 living within the parish and 153 living outside its boundaries). A further 3 people joined during Sunday Services: Each Sunday, St John's holds at least two communion (Mass) services. A Said Mass takes place at 8am in the Lady Chapel, and our main service is the 10am Sung Mass. Average Sunday attendance at both services combined is 138 adults and 37 children. The choir is in attendance at this service, with the Junior Choir singing also on the second and fourth Sundays of the month, and there is a Sunday School and Crèche. We also hold a regular Said Mass at 12pm on Thursdays, which is also attended by some of the people who come to or help at the Lunch Club that day. Sung Evensong was held three times last year, and special services took place on Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. Christmas increases our numbers considerably, with the 'Carols by Candlelight' service and Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve being particularly popular. We also need to have two Christingle services in order to accommodate the number of families with children who wish to attend (up to 500 in total) and are delighted to host both St John's and St Clement's School, and Goose Green Primary for their Christmas services. SJSC hold a number of services here during the year, including Harvest, Easter and end of year services. The Children's Mass is currently under review and a group is exploring options. During the year, the Ministry Team have administered communion to a number of sick or housebound members of the Church in their own homes. Parish statistics for 2016: Baptisms 32 Admission to Communion 7 Confirmations 0 Marriages 6 Marriage Blessings 1 Renewal of Vows 0 Funerals 5 Deposition of ashes in Calvary Garden 1 14 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

15 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

16 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

17 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

18 5th March 2016 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

19 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

20 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

21 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016

22 St John the Evangelist Annual Report 2016