St Anne s Church, Whitecross Street, Derby

St Anne s Church, Whitecross Street, Derby

A word from the Bishop of Ebbsfleet We often speak of God s faithfulness and about our faithfulness as Christians as mirroring his. I have rarely come across a parish in the Church of England where the sheer abiding faithfulness of God was more clearly at work than St Anne s. The lay people of this community, supported over the years by the ministry of many non-resident priests, have a deep double loyalty: first, to the inheritance of Anglican faith as their inspiration, but also to the people of the locality and their needs. An Anglo-Catholic parish community deeply embedded in the kind of community the Church finds hard to reach, in a part of Derby which has changed out of all recognition in recent decades. Thanks to the combined energies of all who want to reverse the decline of the parish s fortunes, and wonderfully supported by the Additional Curate s Society to ensure housing for a priest, St Anne s and I now faithfully await a blessing from God. We need a priest who can guide this community confidently into a period of renewal, outreach and growth, including a catholic and sacramental approach to mission and evangelism, which is not only the hope of the parish but a declared need of the whole deanery. While the arrangement is at present a house for duty, you would be working in a supportive grouping of catholic parish clergy and deanery colleagues, and ministering a much-needed sense of hope and enterprise. We are praying for you as you read. +JONATHAN The Parish Profile of St Anne, Whitecross Street, Derby A parish entrusted to the oversight of the Bishop of Ebbsfleet affiliated to The Society and Forward in Faith and awaiting the priest whom God is calling to lead our worship and mission. Introduction St Anne's lies in the area known as the West End of Derby. It has since its foundation been firmly in the Catholic tradition, and the Bishop of Ebbsfleet provides episcopal oversight at the request of the Bishop of Derby. It has a long tradition of very dedicated clergy serving a very needy working-class population, but has been for thirteen years without a priest. Our neighbouring parish of St John's, with whom we were once a joint benefice, has enjoyed a revival since the appointment of a part-time incumbent. We now hope that the appointment of a house for duty priest will begin this sort of growth in our own parish. Dedicated priestly leadership is our greatest prayer. We need to build up the life of the church and create strong links with the community in general and especially among the young people, developing the connection with the local schools, so that we can show that the church has a positive role to play in the lives of the parishioners.

St Anne's is greatly blessed in possessing excellent facilities in its church hall complex, and it is the intention of the parish and the deanery to explore ways of putting these resources to use in serving not just the parish, but the wider community of the West End. Initial discussions have identified a number of ways in which the parish might become the centre of links to the community and University, exploring collaboration across parish boundaries; a very successful scheme of this sort has been established in the Walbrook Epiphany group of parishes in the south of the City. Our next priest will be A faithful priest, formed in the catholic tradition, to lead and teach us A man with enthusiasm, energy and practical understanding of running a parish in a socially deprived area Prepared to work to build up the life of the church Able to communicate with all ages and social groups, and especially with children and young people in education Possess a good sense of humour Committed to the traditional Catholic movement within the Church of England; willing and able to register as a priest of The Society. The City of Derby The City of Derby lies in the south of Derbyshire in the East Midlands. It has good road and rail links. The M1, M42, A50 and A38 offer easy access to and from the City. Nottingham, Leicester, Sheffield, Birmingham and Manchester are all about an hour away. The Intu Derby shopping complex is in the city centre, along with indoor markets and a good choice of shopping. Derby Theatre, the Guildhall Theatre, two multi-screen cinemas and the Quad centre offer a wide range of entertainment. The city also boasts a university, some superb parks and a new Derby Royal Hospital. The nearby Peak District offers beautiful countryside for walking, climbing, caving and relaxing with a number of notable National Trust properties (Calke Abbey, Kedleston Hall and Hardwick Hall) and private stately homes (Chatsworth House and Haddon Hall) to visit. The Parish of St Anne The Parish of St Anne has a population (2001 census) of 2,273 with 24% over 60 years of age and a 6% ethnic minority, Government figures giving a multiple deprivation score within most deprived 20 30% of the population of England. The University is nearby, and there are many students living in the parish. The core area of the parish is social housing, flats and maisonettes, complexes for the elderly and some owner-occupied houses and flats mainly on the outskirts of the parish. Streets of terraced houses in the older parts of the parish are now almost exclusively student lets. There is now no industrial employer in the parish. There a few shops, including a Local Sainsburys, small businesses, Post Office, two public houses, a doctor s surgery and two schools (one state nursery and one private prep school this being an evangelical Christian School). There is quite a lot of open space with three parks and allotment gardens and an historic brook with walkway. There is good public transport and we are within walking distance of the city centre.

The Church and parish buildings St Anne s was built in 1872 as a centre of Anglo Catholic worship. The inside of the church is English Heritage Grade II* listed which has recently been photographed in preparation for a guidebook being written and for artwork to go on the revamped website when this is done. Full details on the church building can be found in Nicholas Pevsner s book on Derbyshire. We get visits from people to see the church from outside the county during the week by appointment. The church is fitted with a T loop for the hard of hearing. The land for the church plant was given by one of the local gentry families who no longer live in the area. The church contains a substantial War Memorial to the Fallen of WW1 and WWII.

Our Church Hall is an excellent resource which we hope to use to reach out to the community. A local authority grant has enabled a programme of refurbishment (disabled access, new toilets, heating, lighting, kitchen and floor); all that is needed is some decorating. There have been, until recently, regular hall bookings with keep fit, dancing and police youth activities. Unfortunately, the initiatives had the funding withdrawn with the recent Council cutbacks, and we hope our new priest will develop fresh initiatives.

The adjoining Mission House originally housed assistant priests and sisters who worked tirelessly to support the traditional ministry of the parish. The house at present has four student tenants which enables us to pay the parish share. With help from grants from various societies, the church was re-roofed in 2002. A new central heating boiler was installed over 7 years ago and within the last few years a new carpet in the Good Shepherd Chapel (a generous legacy) and new low energy lighting in the main body of the church. A legacy also funded a new manual computer organ of cathedral standard. The church building is well cared for and loved by its members. Worship Pattern Since losing our priest over 13 years ago, the only regular service is on Sundays at 11.15 a.m. Parish Mass on the second and last Sundays of the month (where possible) which is common worship. Other weekday masses as and when priests are available. Traditional ceremonies are observed on Candlemas, Ash Wednesday, Holy Week, Corpus Christi and Stations of the Cross on Fridays during Lent. In the past our Christmas Eve crib service filled the church but this is on hold until we obtain a priest. Instead for the last few years we have had a well-attended Nine Lessons and Carols Service. We hosted the St George s Day parade for the Derby area in 2015 whilst the Cathedral was closed for major refurbishment. The local Nursery school visits regularly and we have University students from time to time.

The diocese and deanery have been most helpful in providing acceptable clergy to maintain our worship. The Bishop of Ebbsfleet s representative in the diocese monitors this provision, and acts as our advocate to ensure that it is maintained. Masses have now increased from once a month to twice a month plus an Annual Carol Service and a weekday evening in the Summer. Longer term the congregation would like to have a service at least once a week. In addition, the Church has been available for Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals. Last October there were two Baptisms, one Anglican and the second (with the approval of the Derby Rural Dean) was an Eastern Orthodox Christening being the baptism by the local Eastern Orthodox priest, Fr Daniel, of his grand-daughter. This was very well attended by the family and friends along with some of our regular congregation who were invited to go. We are building ecumenical links with the Eastern Orthodox Church, Fr Daniel and his family regularly coming to our services being an integral part of the Carol and Patronal services. It is hoped to have a side altar for Eastern Orthodox use at other times. There have been no recent weddings, but banns are read regularly. Despite the dispersal of the population in the 1960 s, the church is packed by former west enders when we have funerals. In addition, funeral plans have been made requesting that the priest of St Anne s is to take funerals at the Markeaton Crematorium. We currently do not have a resident organist but are fortunate to have three organists from other churches and a pianist if these have other commitments. Also, we do not currently have a choir but local singers assist for special services, e.g. the Patronal Festival. We have offered the facility of Weddings, Baptisms and Funerals. Four members of the congregation read the lessons. There is also one server who also acts as sacristan. Currently there are approximately 24 on the electoral roll and the Sunday morning service is usually about dozen with varying personnel. At the special services members of the congregation show both their usual friendliness and generosity with much food! The Vicarage The Additional Curates Society has generously offered to fund a house for this post, as the former St Anne's Vicarage is used by the diocese. Parish Finances A gift aid scheme is supported by the congregation. Until recently our Parish Share was paid in full aided by income from rental of the former Mission House. For two years we had no tenants for that property but, have now invested heavily in this to attract interest from students of Derby University. Four tenants have been in occupation for this academic year (2016 2017) with reservations already being made for the 2017-2018 academic year. In the future, we hope that once again St Anne s will have sufficient income from letting out the Mission House that can assist in paying our Parish Share.

Redevelopment of the area There were originally three church schools in the parish, one a nursery school, one a junior school for boys, and one a junior school for girls. In the sixties, the schools in the parish were all demolished with the ones nearest the church (the girls and the nursery schools) now being the carpark adjacent to the church. Terraced properties in the vicinity which had become slums were redeveloped as new council flats. Recently more flats and houses have been built including some single-storey old people s terrace homes opposite the church. The remainder of the Victorian terraces remain with a mixture of private owner and private rental properties. On the edge of the parish there has been a private development of houses. Also on the edge of the parish there are several convenience stores, a fish and chip shop, a barbers shop and an excellent Post Office which serves a large geographical area outside the area. Across the Kedleston Road in the adjacent parish is a very good newsagent. In our parish is a GP s surgery and excellent pharmacy in the adjacent parish on the other side of Kedleston Road (the parish boundary) regularly used by our parishioners. Education in the Parish Nursery Across the square from the Church is the Whitecross Nursery. It is so well known that they have a catchment area across the City of Derby. We have been building bridges with that school and after an initial visit the first Christmas to look at the crib singing a few Christmas items there have been two sets of annual presentations (morning and afternoon on the same day in 2015 and 2016) with the nave full of parents and grandparents. Increasing year on year. I attach a note from the Nursery s Head teacher. Junior School Within our parish is the independent Christian Emmanuel School. They have an excellent academic record as well as a highly accomplished school choir. The lady who conducts and organises the school choir is married to the Minister at the church in Pride Park, Derby. The local state primary school is Markeaton Primary School which is on the other side of Kedleston Road in the parish of St Alkmund. Pupils are drawn from the parishes of St John the Evangelist, ours and St Alkmund s. Clergy from all parishes need to work together. Any child who is Roman Catholic goes to St Mary s RC School which is now adjacent to Broadway, near Duffield Road, Derby. In addition, there is St George s RC Junior School being the other side of the City. Secondary Schools The local Secondary School attended by most children in the parish is Woodlands Secondary School. There is a very large catchment area taking in our church, St John s, St Alkmund s, St Nicholas, Allestree, St Edmund s, Allestree and other parishes up to Duffield Road which is the boundary of St Matthew s, Darley Abbey. In addition, there is an excellent RC Secondary School in the area on this side of Duffield Road facing St Matthew s parish. St Benedict s School is a Performing Arts College serving mainly the RC community across the City. On Saturday

mornings, the City s Music Centre holds its classes on the site. During the week, the Derby Concert Orchestra and Derby Bach Choir have their weekly rehearsals there. Regular drama productions are held in the Hall at the front of the site. Landau Forte College is near to the Chester Green parish in Fox Street, Derby. This is an Academy open to students from across the City by examinations. Some go from this parish. Derby University Parts of the University are in various areas of Derby. In our parish is the Britannia Mill on the Mackworth Road. Some of the students rent properties in the parish. The Halls of Residence are mainly in the parish of St John. The Multi Faith Centre at the University of Derby (MFC) The MFC exists to promote mutual understanding between people and different faiths/beliefs, to build respect between people as fellow human beings. The building is in St Nicholas' parish but its mission extends across parish boundaries in the City. Scouts We have a scout troop within the parish who have premises on the edge of the parish. In 2015 the Derby Cathedral was closed for major repairs. We were approached by the Cathedral through the then rural dean of Derby North and we were pleased to offer our building for the Annual City St George s Day Parade.

Derby City Deanery Rooted in Prayer, Serving Derby, Sharing the Gospel. St Anne s Derby is part of Derby City Deanery. Launched in September 2016, the Deanery is still a fairly new body. It brings together for the first time all of the parishes in the City of Derby, together with a very few on the edge of the city. The Deanery comprises 35 parishes, and about 250 000 people live in the Deanery. There are also chaplaincies at the University of Derby and hospitals in the city, a Resource Church opening in September 2017 and a Bishop s Mission Order community in the Deanery. The Deanery aims to bring parishes together for mutual support, and to work together in mission. We launched with a Festival of Life, which brought all of the parishes together to engage in outward facing mission activities in one parish in the Deanery. Current plans for working together are focused on mission to new areas of housing, which will add about 20% to the existing population of the city in the coming decade. We are also actively developing a Deanery Mission Action Plan, which will support mission activity, service and deployment into the future. The Deanery takes an active approach to life in the city. We are supporting Derby City Council s Talking Point initiative, bringing adult social care into the communities of the city. We have supported a parish initiative that offers practical help, such as gardening and D.I.Y., to vulnerable people in the city. We are exploring how to bring our collective energies to bear on the issue of mental health in Derby. The Chapter meets monthly. A typical chapter meeting involves time spent Dwelling in the Word together; time learning from the church in which we are meeting; time thinking together on a particular area of work/mission; and time in supporting one another through sharing news and enjoying one another s company. The Area Dean is a half time appointment, which enables support for clergy and parishes to be more readily available. We hope that the next priest at St Anne s will be able to work with Fr. Leonard Young, Priestin- Charge of St Luke s and St Bartholomew s, Derby, to bring a vibrant traditional catholic presence to the city and the deanery. The catholic approach to mission and evangelism is needed as a vital part of the life of the deanery. We are praying for a priest who will work with the congregation and others in the deanery to make St Anne s into an outward facing and growing church. We pray for someone who will work collegially with others in the Deanery to serve Derby and to share the Gospel. Simon Taylor Area Dean Madelaine Goddard Lay Chair CONTACT DETAILS The Archdeacon of Derby Ven Dr Christopher Cunliffe Tel: 01332 388676 Email: archderby@derby.anglican.org