There follows an attempt to give responses to many of the questions raised during the consultations about People & Places (P&P).

13. Frequently Asked Questions There follows an attempt to give responses to many of the questions raised during the consultations about People & Places (P&P). 13.1 Spirituality 1. What is the theology behind P&P, specifically behind oversight and context ministry? Where has the oversight/local ministry model come from? Does P&P pose fundamentally big questions about the nature of priesthood? i. The New Testament does not describe a single pattern of ministry which might serve as a blueprint or continuing norm for all future ministry in the Church. In the New Testament there are a variety of forms of ministry which existed at different places and times. As the Holy Spirit continued to lead the Church in life, worship and mission, certain elements from this early variety were further developed and became settled into a more universal pattern of ministry. For example, during the second and third centuries, a threefold pattern of bishop, presbyter and deacon became established as the pattern of ordained ministry throughout the Church. (from Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry: Faith and Order Paper for the World Council of Churches 1982). There is also evidence of hubs in the early church in places such as Ephesus, Philippi, Corinth etc. from which people went out to the surrounding areas. ii. As the Holy Spirit continues to lead us today, work is ongoing about what this means for the demands of life, worship and mission in C of E Birmingham today. The terms oversight, local and context are working-titles (which at this stage should not be probed too deeply) for exploring what might work best for us within the historic threefold pattern alongside the ministry of the whole people of God. iii. We already have a practised theology of oversight in a third of our parishes (multi-parish benefices, team ministries, parishes with more than one place of worship or multiple congregations) who already enjoy a degree of oversight ministry so the proposal to have more oversight ministers is nothing new. iv. Oversight, local and context ministers can all be found in many places around the C of E currently, even if they have different names. v. We are working on developing a theology that undergirds oversight and context ministry as a more general ecclesial practice. Bishop David set up a theological reflection group in 2017 which produced the paper An Invitation to Explore Being the Church of England Birmingham Here and Now inviting responses to the theological questions behind the shape of ministry in the 21st Century. Since then, a number of papers are in the process of being written by our Director of Ministry and Director of Mission Learning and Development which explore the differing roles and directly address what this means for the nature of ordained ministry. vi. The linking of oversight and ministry to population affirms and follows through our theological commitments to national ministry and all people in every place. This carries forward a belief that all are equally made in God s image, that the kingdom of God s 18

vii. viii. Missio Dei embraces the one who created order for redemption and that is expressed in callings to particular places. This has been a feature of scripture ( to the Christians in xxx ) as well as the emergence of parishes from which we currently work. The recognition of all God s people s calling and gifts is fundamental to Pauline and Petrine Christianity, the emergence of both threefold ministry and the missional effectiveness of the early church and all subsequent healthy churches and renewal movements. Right from the eternal purposes of God expressed in Old and New Testaments the priestly character of God s people has been primarily corporate in nature and effect (see also recently Graham Tomlin s The Widening Circle). P&P does not presume on the presence of mature lay ministries but sees their flourishing as essential to whatever organisational path we may take. A full-orbed theology of ministry and calling underlies many proposals that follow about the possibility of Ordained Local Ministry. We know that there is much theological work to do, not least greater clarity on the meaning of oversight; our understanding of sacraments, community and ministry; the spiritual meaning of place and the gospel; and the developing understanding of ordination and episcope. There is a rich diversity of theological insight across our traditions which we value, we have no wish to be a theologically monochrome or brittle place. We are committed to listening and seeking the voice of the Spirit through the variety of theological gifts we find in and beyond Birmingham and welcome positive contributions and critiques from wherever they come. 2. Where is prayer in P&P? At the heart. Every discussion of P&P has included an element of worship and prayer, although a greater, more focussed wave of prayer should be encouraged: there can never be enough. 3. What special provisions are being made for parishes with alternative episcopal oversight? The House of Bishops has agreed Five Guiding Principles as the basis for mutual flourishing which we are committed to and these Principles will be applied as conversations on the ground progress. 4. Will priests become drive-by dispensers of the Eucharist? No. Oversight ministers are not being asked to celebrate the sacraments for every congregation under their oversight. They are asked to ensure that each local church has access to sufficient sacramental ministry from a team of stipendiary, self-supporting and retired priests. 5. Should we be considering a framework for permanent deacons? Yes, we already have had three permanent deacons in Birmingham in recent history, and a suitable framework is being considered seriously. 19

13.2 Ministry allocation 6. What is the calculation to get the ratios of ministry to population: 1:17,700; 1:50,000; 1:41,000? The population of Birmingham is 1,500,000 of whom 350,000 are of other faiths (2011 census). We are committing 10% of oversight ministry (72) to other faiths, which is the equivalent of 7 oversight ministers. 7 for 350,000 people is 1:50,000. That leaves 1,150,000 people excluding other faiths. 72 minus 7 oversight ministers is 65 for 1,150,000 people, approximately 1:17,7000. 28 context ministers for 1,150,000 is approximately 1:41,000. 7. Does P&P mark the start of a withdrawal from Presence & Engagement areas (ie those with at least 10% other faiths represented in their parishes), which also tend to be the most deprived areas? No. The opposite is true. P&P ensures that even in a 100% other faith places there will be 1 oversight minister for every 50,000 people, which in some cases is a greater commitment to other faiths than at present. The allocation of oversight minister of 1:50000 is to the proportion of other faiths population in the parish, not to the whole parish population. The population of the parish excluding other faiths is allocated oversight ministry at the ratio of 1:17,700. 8. How does the smaller deployment to people of other faiths chime with everyone needs Jesus and the mission of the church is for everyone? The different deployment ratios are a compromise. If the 72 oversight ministers were distributed equally according to population, 16 paid ministers would be allocated to ministering to people of other faiths, leaving just 56 oversight ministers for the nominally Christian/no faith/not stated populations. Such an equal plan would be a very large investment in ministry to other faiths, to the potential detriment of congregational growth in poorer areas unable to afford additional local paid ministry. A compromise allocation, committing 10% of paid oversight ministry to other faiths (the equivalent of 7 paid ministers), is proposed. 9. Is P&P just a front for reducing stipendiary ministry to cut costs, leaving the remaining clergy to cover the gaps? No. P&P is a genuine attempt to reimagine ministry in order for parish ministry to be sustainable and flourishing in the long-term. There is the prospect of more paid ministry than at present, albeit very differently configured, if Common Fund can be reformed to afford context ministers. 10. Where did 72/36/28 oversight/locally funded/context ministers come from? The five-year financial plan predicts an affordable ministry of around 100 by 2020 if there is no significant change to Common Fund. Scenario 5 (one of the options suggested to our consultation groups) was constructed to reimagine this ministry, split roughly 70:30 oversight to context as an example. The 70 was changed to 72 (slightly tongue-in-cheek and after a vigorous discussion on the variations in the Greek manuscripts of Luke 10.1). The number 72 is used for the theoretical 20

calculation of a just paid ministry allocation, but the actual number of oversight ministers will be determined after local discussions as practical plans emerge from the framework. The number 28 is an aspiration (= 100 minus 72) which is included in the new Common Fund method, with the hope of generating sufficient new income to fund up to 28 context ministers. 36 comes from an analysis of 2016 unrestricted annual parish income. 36 is the number of current posts that could be fully funded by places that do not currently pay for the full costs of the ministry and whose oversight allocation would be less than their current ministry, subject to the cap of their Common Fund request not exceeding 60% of their unrestricted annual income. 11. Do we have to stay present everywhere? A key Church of England distinctiveness is that we are here for the whole population of England, not just those who choose to come to our churches. 12. Does P&P discriminate against the less wealthy parishes? No, it is just for all parishes because it introduces unrestricted annual income as a wealth measure. This gives a quantitative measure of ability to pay. The cap of 60% of unrestricted income primarily benefits the lower income parishes. 13. Has an average vacancy rate been factored into the calculation of sustainable paid ministry? Should we be trying to minimise vacancy periods? Yes. Whilst it is considered by many that our vacancy lengths are too long, and we recognise that these can be vulnerable times for congregations, at present the five-year financial plan factors in an average vacancy rate of 9 Full Time Equivalents or to reduce posts further. That said, research indicates that vacancies can be times of flourishing and growth if approached well: Archdeacons and Area Deans are on hand to help with this. 14. Will curates only be deployed to parishes that can afford to pay for one in future? Definitely not. The Church of England locally and nationally needs curates who have been trained in a wide variety of contexts and there is no intention to restrict curacies to places which can pay. Indeed curacy numbers are not included in our P&P calculations and we would like to increase the number of curates. That said, some wealthier parishes that can afford to pay for their curacies will be asked to do so. 15. Is P&P fair in sparser population density areas? Yes, in the sense that P&P is population-based and thus just across the piece, but there is a recognition that the outcome of this new calculation may be harsh in such areas. We are mindful of this and thought is being given, in conjunction with our rural areas, as to how this might be approached, perhaps through context ministry. 21

16. Is it proposed to have part-time paid Area Deans who are also part-time paid oversight or local ministers? No firm plans have been proposed at present, but this is a good time to look at many similar questions about deanery organisation. Thoughts on the pros and cons are welcome. 17. Is the proposal to have paid Deanery Operations Mangers, similar to GP Practice Managers? This is one of many deanery proposals which can be considered. 18. Is the parish system dead? No. We are still committed to having an effective Anglican presence in every place, which is the essence of the parish system. Parishes are not static entities, indeed they have shifted and changed radically over the last 150 years in Birmingham. What we are trying to re-imagine is what this looks like on the ground in the twenty-first century across the diocese of Birmingham and this is where there may need to be changes. Several dioceses are ahead of us in trying this and we are keen to learn from them. 19. Does minister mean stipendiary priest? No, ministers could refer to Readers, Readers-in-charge, self-supporting priests, permanent deacons, youth ministers and so on. 20. Will my parish still get a vicar? The aim of P&P is that every church will have at least one local minister, but that local minister may not be ordained, paid or full time, though in many places having one minister who is all three will still be the norm. 21. Who will take Mass on Sunday? It may not be possible to celebrate a service of Holy Communion on every Sunday in every one of our 184 places of worship (just as it isn t now), but it is envisaged that in every place there will be a Priest somewhere who will preside at the Eucharist. 22. We may be able to get to the right number of clergy, but how do we make sure they are the right sort of clergy? This is a matter for prayer, good recruitment processes and the work of the Holy Spirit. 23. How many clergy are due to retire in the next 3-5 years in Birmingham? 4 stipendiary clergy reach the age of 70 in the next 3 years and a further 7 in the following 2 years. 24. I m currently an Incumbent: will I be asked to be an oversight, local or context minister? 22

Most current clergy will be asked to be one of these. You may initiate conversations about this or be asked to enter into a conversation about this. For many current Incumbents, little may change in the short-term, but it depends on the context. 25. Will any clergy be made redundant? It depends on the outcome of the Common Fund discussions but it is expected that there will be some movement around the diocese as the right people are found for the right roles, where their giftings best match the need and God s calling. 26. How can change happen if individuals don t want to move? Much of P&P depends on the good will of the clergy and the whole people of God as we seek as a diocesan family to face this financial challenge and opportunity together. 23

13.3 Oversight Ministry 27. What is the role of an oversight minister? An oversight minster sustains the mission and ministry of a place through their own ministry and by facilitating the ministries of a variety of others and by fostering collaboration. The oversight minister will inspire, teach, organise and lead on strategy, vision, mission, accountability and support throughout the place. While there are many ideas around about this, official role descriptions have not yet been drafted and comments are welcome. 28. Is an oversight minister always ordained and always paid? Usually but not necessarily. Occasionally they may be lay and sometimes they may be selfsupporting or both. There are good models of this in many dioceses. 29. What training, mentoring and support will be available for oversight ministers and their families? It is recognised that many existing Priests do not feel they have been equipped for oversight, so it will be vital to provide high quality training and mentoring for all oversight ministers, and for their families and for other ministers as well. 30. How will oversight work if local parishes have different traditions? Increasingly over the last few decades, Priests have been trained to cross traditions and so in most cases this will not be a problem, but each instance will need to be looked at separately. 31. Will the oversight minister chair every PCC under his/her oversight? It depends. This may not be possible and, in some places, it may not be desirable either. In some rural places, chairing every PCC meeting would mean that the minister is able to do little else in the evenings and would simply become a professional chair, which is not the idea. 32. Will the oversight minister receive a higher stipend? No, there is no thought to do this, though it is hoped that some oversight ministers may be given additional other resources (perhaps specific parish services, such as help with book-keeping or building maintenance and development) which will recognise the additional responsibility they hold. It is important to emphasise that oversight ministry is not intended to be more work, but different work, which will mean reorganising some existing responsibilities. 33. Is oversight ministry turning clergy into area managers? Isn t P&P over-managerial and hierarchical creating layers of distance from vibrant parish life? No, those who are ordained will still be primarily Priests rooted in a place and not managers, though we do not see managerial gifts as a bad thing. No new layers are being created. 24

34. How many churches will an oversight minister oversee? It will depend from area to area, depending on the population and number of existing and new churches. 35. Is oversight envisaged to be across contiguous geographies, or could it be by context or tradition? This is an open question. In other dioceses there have been a variety of models used. 36. How will the oversight places be selected? There will not necessarily be specific oversight places, but oversight ministers covering an area of mission and ministry. The places that they oversee need to cover the population and the geography justly and sustainably. The factors of population, geographical spread and financial sustainability will help inform local discussions about the appropriate places to be clustered together under common oversight. 37. How do we know that any parish wants to be overseen? Parishes are currently under the oversight of the diocesan Bishop. The bishop shares that oversight with locally deployed ministers. P&P is about reviewing how we organise the sharing of that oversight and is not introducing a fundamentally new concept. New relationships may take a while to get used to, but in several other dioceses, parishes report many benefits (as well as some early tensions) from joining together with other churches. 25

13.4 Context and Local Ministry 38. Where will context ministry be deployed and who decides what it is in a particular context? Local conversations are crucial to discern which specific ministries are relevant to a particular context and whether to deploy such ministries to a particular place, area or across the whole diocese. Ultimately the Bishop will make the decision. 39. Is Birmingham introducing Ordained Local Ministers? Are we maximising the marketing advantage of the dog collar? The Director of Ministry and Director of Mission Learning and Development are working up proposals for Ordained Local Ministers. 40. Who will do clergy Ministerial Development Reviews (MDRs) in future? It will be important to review MDRs in the light of P&P and it may be appropriate for Area Deans or Oversight Ministers to conduct MDRs for the clergy in their area. This is at a very early stage of thinking and no decisions have been made, but it seems that a new, enhanced MDR process as part of ongoing equipping for the roles will be important. 41. How do Self-Supporting Ministers (SSMs) fit into P&P and will they be valued? SSMs will play a key part in the C of E Birmingham in a number of different roles, depending on their gifts, calling and the greatest need: so much so that we are keen to attract many more SSMs. 42. Will every church have a local minister? Predominantly, yes. And sometimes that person may also be an oversight minister or a contextbased minister. 26

13.5 Common Fund 43. Can local funding be for oversight, context or local ministry? Local funding within Common Fund is required to maintain the current level of stipendiary ministry where the oversight allocation is less than the current level. Separately to this, a parish can of course use its local income to invest in other types of ministry. 44. Will parish income from church building lettings be included in unrestricted income? Yes, unless there is a compelling case that a significant regular expenditure is directly linked to the income generated. 45. Will income for roof or organ repairs be included in unrestricted income? If income has been specifically given for a restricted purpose, then No. If the income has no such restriction, then Yes. 46. Will Parochial Fees be taken into account in setting Common Fund? Not directly in setting Common Fund, though we will look to see if it would be possible in the 2019 budget to return some or all of the DBF s Parochial Fee element to the parish as an incentive. 47. Will parish reserves be taken away? No. Parish reserves generate income. Parishes with larger unrestricted reserves will have larger unrestricted incomes and those incomes will be included in the Common Fund calculation. 48. Why was the percentage of 60% of unrestricted annual income chosen for the Common Fund cap? Does the 60% cap benefit wealthier parishes more than poorer parishes? Currently 85% of parishes donate up to 60% of their unrestricted income in Common Fund. The vast majority of the remaining 15% who are asked for more than 60% are in the most deprived 20% in the country, and many of these parishes do not pay the requested Common Fund anyway. It seems sensible to introduce a cap so that every parish retains local income for the running costs of a parish, and 60% seems to be a reasonable cut-off based on the current payment profile. 49. Will the three richest churches be asked for 60% of their income? No. The cap for the richest churches will be to contribute the cost of one full time stipendiary minister (c. 45,000) towards ministry elsewhere in the diocese on top of the full costs (including curates) of their ministry. In discussion with the wealthier churches this concept and level seems to be acceptable and collectable. 50. For the wealthier parishes, what is the basis for the calculation of their additional contribution to ministry elsewhere in the diocese? 27

Wealthier churches will be asked to contribute the full costs of their current ministry (including curates) and a contribution towards ministry elsewhere in the diocese. This contribution will be equal to the difference between their current ministry cost and the cost of their allocated oversight ministry (subject always to the cap of 60% of unrestricted annual income and the further cap of the cost of one full-time stipendiary minister.) 51. Could wealthier parishes which are asked for less Common Fund under the new method be encouraged to contribute their windfall towards initiatives in more deprived parishes? We will encourage those asked for less Common Fund to contribute some or all of their windfall to initiatives in deprived places. 52. Explain how we could afford more paid ministry than at present? It is proposed that Common Fund is reformed so that the majority of places at least fully fund the cost of their paid oversight ministry (by reducing to the proposed level of paid oversight ministry from the current stipendiary ministry level). The framework is for 72 FTE paid oversight ministers with 36 FTE paid locally funded ministers and potentially 28 FTE paid context ministers, giving an overall FTE paid ministry equivalent to 136, an increase on the 2017 level of 134, but very differently deployed and funded. 53. What happens if Common Fund doesn t yield the projected increase in income? We will be able to fund less than 28 context ministers. 54. How will parish services, the diocesan office, clergy training and grants, archdeacons, chaplains, ordinands and curates be funded if they are no longer part of the Common Fund calculation? When we prepare the annual budget for the DBF we do not allocate specific unrestricted income sources to specific expenditures. We add up all the income and try to make it match the sum of all the expenditure. We treat Common Fund, Lower Income Communities Funding, Fees and Trust income as unrestricted. There is an argument that we could treat some income streams as restricted (to particular parishes), but this would be an unnecessary accounting nightmare! It can be confusing then that we are asking for Common Fund to cover the full costs of parish ministry (which it currently doesn t) in order that parish ministry is sustainable for the long term, even if/when other grant funding sources (such as Lower Income Communities Funding) disappear in future. The expenditure under threat if those other income sources were to reduce would be parish services, the diocesan office, clergy training and grants, archdeacons, chaplains, ordinands and curates. 55. Why are the much richer dioceses not helping to fund ministry to Birmingham s large population, when the disparity of reserves between dioceses is so large? There are several mechanisms, such as Lower Income Communities Funding, Strategic Development Funding, ordinand cost pooling and diocese to diocese grants (such as Gloucester to Birmingham 28

for the Gas Street resourcing church) for the richer dioceses to contribute to the poorer dioceses. The disparity between historic reserves has been raised nationally, and may be addressed over the coming years, but will not be a quick fix, so we have to sort ourselves out within the current financial environment. 56. Can you explain how the calculation of ministry and Common Fund would work? How will deaneries be involved in decision making and what authority do deaneries have? See section 10 above for a detailed explanation of the new Common Fund method. Here is an example of how the ministry conversation in a parish or deanery might be informed by the new P&P Ministry Deployment Framework and Common Fund Method: Parish Population 8,827 (of which 5% are of other faiths) Current Stipend and Cost 1 full time stipendiary minister costing 45,000 P&P Oversight Allocation 0.48 = 95% of 8,827 divided by 17,700 plus 5% of 8,827 divided by 50,000 P&P Context Allocation 0.20 = 95% of 8,827 divided by 41,000 Possible Locally Funded Ministry 0.52 = 1 minus 0.48 (P&P Oversight Allocation) 2016 Common Fund Received 23,312 (= 36% of income) 2016 Unrestricted Income 65,449 60% of 2016 Unrestricted Income 39,269 = max Common Fund (unless more income) 2019 Common Fund Possibilities Maintain current paid ministry 54,000 = (0.48 + 0.20 + 0.52) x 45,000 = 82% of income Share ministry 30,600 = (0.48 + 0.20) x 45,000 = 47% of income Parishes and deaneries will be encouraged to use this framework to shape sustainable plans for mission and ministry for implementation under the authority of the Bishop. 29

13.6 Lay Ministry 57. Does lay mean unpaid? No, not always, just as ordained ministry won t always be paid. 58. How do Readers fit into P&P? Should Readers be locally ordained deacons? We have around 200 Readers in this diocese and they already play a key part in our mixed economy and will be essential in getting the right ministry in the right place. Some of them may be asked to consider being Readers-in-charge (local ministers), and we have identified around 20 who may be able to do this. Others may consider ordination and others will be happy to continue the good work they re already doing where they are. 59. Could Readers be licensed to a Deanery rather than a Parish? Readers are nationally accredited but are under the direction of a particular Incumbent. However, they can operate more widely with the permission of another Incumbent. 60. Are there enough potential lay disciples who want to be set free to lead local ministry and provide a pastor in every place? Only time will tell, but there are at least 13,000 Anglicans (of all ages) who regularly attend church across our diocese, so it is anticipated quite a few will want to rise to this challenge. 61. Can lay ministry training become less onerous and be completed in a shorter time period? Yes, quite possibly, the Director of Ministry and the Director of Mission Learning of Development are looking into this. 30

13.7 Places 62. Why does P&P mention a lot about People but not a lot about Places? Work has been completed on a quantitative analysis of the cost of maintaining our church buildings and parsonages over the next ten years. An initial qualitative appraisal has been made across 15 criteria of each church s suitability for twenty-first century mission and ministry. This information is available to inform discussions on P&P and to work out locally how the current buildings fit into the new configurations of ministry, and how we could generate more income from our buildings or their development. Together these building decisions will form a future Places strategy. 63. Will diocesan boundaries change as a result of P&P? This is not currently envisaged, although cross-border co-operation is encouraged. 64. Does P&P rely on lots of mucking about with parish boundaries? No, unless this is something that makes sense for a particular local context. Many of the changes envisaged can be achieved without complex legal changes. Flexibility already exists to appoint oversight ministers as incumbent or priest-in-charge of different parishes without changing structures. In the medium term there could be benefits in simplifying legal structures, such a reducing the number church officers required and fewer formal meetings, but that should evolve naturally from consultation with congregations and parishes. 65. Will there be fewer deaneries? We think it would make sense to have fewer deaneries, especially as a few of our deaneries are quite small. However, no decisions have been made as to the number or how to go about this. One suggestion which has come forward has been that of more radial deaneries, emanating along our major transport routes (e.g. along the A38, A34, A456, A45, A41 etc). It might have the potential to hold together diversity in culture, wealth and social background in a much more inclusive pattern than our current deaneries, as well as make more sense as to how the city region works. Slightly larger deaneries might also lessen administration, create greater capacity for prayer, collegiality and cover as well as helping the role of the Area Dean in its development. We are sure there are more suggestions for other options, all of which will be welcome. 66. Will churches close under P&P? Why don t we close more churches and bring people together? Isn t it madness having so many church buildings so close together? There are no current plans to close any churches. Rather, the ambition is to revitalise churches which are struggling. If this is not possible, however, then closure might sometimes be the best solution, so that resurrection can happen somewhere else. This will be examined closely as part of the emerging Buildings strategy. 31

13.8 Process 67. Has P&P been tried elsewhere? Not in the same way, but many of the Welsh dioceses have been on a similar path for a while and English dioceses, such as Carlisle, Exeter, Liverpool and Chelmsford have all been involved in a degree of reorganisation. 68. Why the urgency to start change now? Over 100 of our 184 places of worship are struggling in different ways and reimagining how we do mission and ministry is urgent. The catalyst is that we have to either increase income and/or reduce expenditure significantly to balance the annual budgets. 69. Why do the P&P papers and presentations change every time we see them? The consultations on P&P started in early 2017. Various iterations of the papers and presentations responded to these genuine consultations by modifying and refining proposals to take account of suggestions for improvements. The proposals have been in the current form since November 2017. 70. What is the timescale for P&P? Bishop s Council approved the Framework and new Common Fund method on 8 March 2018. Work on detailed plans through local discussions will begin after Easter 2018. The new Common Fund Method will be introduced from 1 January 2019. Achieving the reconfiguration of ministry will take a long time, but the majority of stipendiary reductions should be achieved by 2020. If Common Fund yields the necessary increases in income, the new Context ministers could be employed from 2020. Working through the necessary culture changes to implement a completed model of oversight, local and context ministry will take 5 to 10 years. 71. What s the plan? There isn t a plan yet there is a framework. Work is starting on implementation plans, starting with local discussions, now that Common Fund and the Framework have been agreed. The Church Commissioners have agreed to fund, from 2018 to 2020, the necessary programme management to develop and implement detailed People & Places plans. The Bishop s Senior Staff will take the lead on this programme. The Bishop has agreed to release the Archdeacon of Aston for around 2 days per week to take on the role of Programme Director. Some Archdeacon functions will be back-filled by deputies for particular non-statutory functions to release those two days a week. A full-time professional Programme Manager will help us construct appropriate plans and drive the implementation of People & Places. The full-time Programme Manager will report to the Archdeacon of Aston, and both will receive support from a full-time Support Officer to administer this large culture change and transformational programme. We have pressing short-term budget issues which means that we need this programme to start and deliver as soon as possible this year. 72. Is it realistic to have 151 parish conversations before 2019? No, but we would like to make a start on up to 50 key conversations in 2018. 32

13.9 Parish Services 73. Are there enough professional lay volunteers to release ordained ministers from finance, buildings and safeguarding, to focus on mission, particularly in the less academic congregations? Will any support be provided to maintain our churches, churchyards, finances and safeguarding? This varies from place to place. It maybe that we will need to consider setting up some additional central parish services, such as help with book-keeping or building maintenance and development. 74. How will Initial Ministerial Education change? We will need to prepare ordinands and curates for the roles we anticipate they might take on in the future. The Director of Ministry is starting to have conversations as to how this might look. 75. Are we reviewing the level of diocesan staffing? Yes, the Bishop s Council has been asked to make recommendations on this. 76. Should the diocesan office move to a cheaper office rental area? This is a question that it is good to ask and keep asking. The current excellent value lease on 1 Colmore Row runs until July 2022. At the moment the thinking is that the positives seem to outweigh the cost of being at 1 Colmore Row, but this should be reviewed before any renewal of the lease. 33

13.10 Mission Strategy 77. Will P&P help us to grow younger? We hope so, especially if our fresh expressions of church and church plants take off, as these often (though not always) attract younger people. 78. What has happened to Transforming Church, Growing Younger and Shaping the Future? Transforming Church remains the primary vision for the C of E Birmingham and as such, we continue to work together to grow younger (Transforming Church Goal 4) and to shape the future, with everything that these initiatives represent. We need them now more than ever. 79. Should equal emphasis be given to all schools, not just church schools? Yes, as far as P&P is concerned, but it is worth noting that sometimes a church school may be a particularly strong beacon of Anglican/Christian presence in an area and that this should be marked. 34

13.11 Culture Change 80. How will PCCs that are parochial by nature catch the diocesan vision and become partners rather than obstacles to be overcome? We would love to hear ideas on this one! The governance mechanisms of the Church of England through dioceses, archdeaconries and deaneries make it difficult to engage and communicate directly with every parish. 81. How do we change the culture of congregations so that they don t always demand to see the vicar? This will take a while, but elsewhere in the C of E, and even within this diocese, this has happened. Quite often people are pleasantly surprised by some of the pastoral changes. 82. People will leave if things change too much, and no clergy will want to serve here. We believe Birmingham remains one of the most exciting places in the country to serve God, so our prayer is that, in time, quite the reverse will happen. 35