PARISH OF OUTWOOD S.MARY MAGDALENE PARISH BROCHURE August 2018
Brief history of the church Parish of Outwood S. Mary Magdalene. The Church of S. Mary Magdalene has been the Parish Church of Outwood for 158 years. Originally when built in 1858 it was the mission church within the Parish of Stanley. After two years, enough money was raised to establish us as a separate parish with our own priest. At that time we also ran the only day school in the district. In the 1880 s, the original church building was extended and the new Sunday school and Church Institute building established in 1877 was partly re-built in 1903. The present vicarage was bought to replace the old one (now the Kirkland s Hotel) in 1971. In the more recent years, improvements have been carried out replacing the heating system, totally renovated the Sacristy and the choir vestry, the latter now also being used as a meeting room, and installed a toilet and galley kitchen and an enlarged social area in the North Aisle of the Nave. This last development has enabled social events and after-service refreshments to be carried out in the church building rather than having the inconvenience to move across to the church institute for these facilities. Further details of the of Parish activities, achievements and development areas are included in pages 6 and 7 of this brochure. Church Hall (Outwood Church Institute) Outwood St Mary Magdalene Church Institute is a Victorian building situated on Leeds Road a short distance from The Church on the opposite side of the road. The Church Institute was erected in 1877, a purpose built building to house a school, which had been established elsewhere in Outwood in 1840, and rooms for community activities. It was extended in 1906, when a clock tower and clock were erected. The building is situated in the centre of Outwood, and together with the clock tower is a land mark in the village. A volunteer winds and maintains the clock on a weekly basis. In 2006 on the centenary of the clocks erection funds were raised from public subscription for its renovation. The institute was funded originally by fund raising and money from Church funds. This continued for many years, and apparently many local functions were held in the building. However from the 1950 s onwards the building began to deteriorate because of its age and lack of funds, and became underused, possibly because of a new community centre being built in Outwood in approximately 1953. On the 2 nd December 1980, Outwood Church Institute Management Committee was formed as a sub-committee of the PCC. The Committee, made up of members of various groups and organisations who use the Institute manage the finance and maintenance of the building. The Church Institute through rents and donations is in a sound financial position enabling many improvements to being made to the building since 1980. The building is used regularly by various Church groups, private individuals and for Church social activities. The Institute is the home for many groups, many originally Church sponsored. Outwood Pre-School Playgroup meet every day during term time, a Mother and Toddler group weekly, Explorers, Scouts, Cubs, Beavers, Rangers, Guides, Brownies, Church Lunch Club and the Wives Group all using the building. Rents provide a substantial income for the maintenance of the building, Playgroup and Mother and Toddler group paying rent in line with commercial rates. Additionally Weightwatchers, Outwood Community choir and a Dance Class and an office tenant hire rooms.
The hall is also used by the Church to involve the local community, organising social events such as luncheons, barbecues, autumn fayre and the annual gala in the large field at the rear of the hall. A proportion of the income of the Institute is transferred to the PCC general account to help payment of the Parish Share. Church Hall (Outwood Church Institute) Outwood Community Choir presenting a Christmas concert in Church
Christingle service with uniformed organisations and children Outwood Parish Church Gala in the Institute grounds
Rook s Nest Academy, Outwood Worship Our principal service is the Parish Mass held each Sunday at 10.00am. Mass is also offered during the week on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. We made some changes to the way we celebrate worship over the course of the year. New All-Age Masses were introduced when we welcomed our uniformed organisations into church. This also extended to family services for Mothering Sunday, Harvest Festival, Family Carol and Christingle Service. Furthermore, we have supported the associate priest s introduction of a new form of worship called Spirit of the Age, combining contemporary music with Christian worship. Christmas was very busy last year with two very well attended carol services, as well as hosting Rook s Nest school for their carol service. We want to build on this success this coming year. Beginning this autumn we are planning to introduce a regular family event in church based on the popular Messy Church format. We are introducing this as FREE@4 and hope this will attract families with school age children through bible stories and action songs. We have publicised services and events at Outwood Parish Church by purchasing print publicity and supporting the associate priest s use of social media, as well as through direct invitations to friends and family members. Performance We had 28 baptisms last year including 4 adults, 3 marriages, 13 funerals and 2 confirmations. We worked hard to welcome people to church for special events, especially those who do not come often. We also introduced a new welcome service for baptism families before the Christening takes place so that those who have a Christening at Outwood experience Sunday worship. Details of our weekly attendances are in the separate diocesan questionnaire.
Community Involvement Community involvement is one of our strengths in Outwood, and is very much a joint effort between priest and people. As a Church and some of the individuals in our church we have built strong links with our local schools. We continue to work with our local schools by supporting our Parish priest s ministry there, which includes assemblies, and through individual members of the PCC s own involvement with those schools. Through our Parish priest, we also support the community life at West Ridings Nursing Home and Ashby Lodge. This includes provision of regular Christian worship and music listening sessions for the elderly. Members of the PCC and choir also joined in a Christmas carol event at West Ridings Home in December 2017. We also hold a lunch club every other week in the Church Institute. Mainly organised by church members, this provides an opportunity for many of our more senior village people to get together and have a natter over a wholesome meal. For many years our Parish Summer Gala and Autumn Fair have been important fund raising events for church people as well as our involvement of the local community. In recent years, selling tickets for our Grand Easter Draw at the local Coop and the also holding the draw in our local Pub. These events are enjoyed by all but particularly by those with little or no attachment to the Church. We also support local charities with special collections and make up Christmas hampers for the Home-start family support group. Finance Despite our best efforts, we struggled to meet our financial commitment to the Diocese of Leeds, and underpaid our parish share last year by 11,000. Not enough income was raised in the course of the year to pay our obligations despite significant income from our Summer Gala, Autumn Fair, Easter draw and 100 club. Our social events which comprise 3 parish lunches and an annual barbeque, these being primarily for church members and their guests but help considerably with our finances. This Autumn, with the help of the Diocesan staff, we are carrying out a financial stewardship campaign primarily to review our financial commitment to the Church. The United Benefice The United Benefice of Outwood, Stanley and Wrenthorpe was officially inaugurated in 2017 not very long before our Priest in Charge, the Vicar of Stanley retired. However, a good working relationship developed between the three parishes. We believe this has resulted in a positive way, sharing and meeting together in social and worship activities irrespective of our different churchmanships. We are encouraged that this will be possible with the proposed inclusion of the Parish of Alverthorpe to the Benefice. Planning for the Future During 2017 and this year the PCC, our parish priest and other church members started their work to support the mission of Outwood Parish Church. In particular, we have put together a detailed Plan for Growth following the away day last year. This is will be publicised as VISION 2020
We have agreed the 5 priorities: Encouraging new lay leaders for our church s future A new family service beginning Autumn 2018 Renewing our church inside and out Fundraising for a sustainable future Improving our publicity in print, online and in person These will all be progressed by the PCC and other church members over the coming months.