BILTON ST JOHN AND ST LUKE Parish Profile 2014

BILTON ST JOHN AND ST LUKE Parish Profile 2014 Our Parish has a population approaching 20,000, from the new born to nonagenarians, yet fewer than two percent join our congregations. We would love it to be many more so if you feel called by God to help us grow - Welcome to Bilton 1

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Our New Team Rector We are praying for A bold, visionary leader who has a servant heart and a desire to build up the body of Christ as we seek Christ s kingdom together in our locality and beyond. We are looking for someone: who can lead us to be as God wants us to be in this community by looking at the larger picture of what God wants us to do, helping us to organise and plan to do it through deeper discipleship and real engagement with the community; whose prayer life prompts action; who recognises the enabling power of the Holy Spirit, teaches from the Bible, communicates with enthusiasm and can inspire us to better discipleship and taking risks in faith by pointing us to Jesus; who welcomes a broad range of worship styles while helping to inspire us with joy and bring us closer to God; who is a good communicator, a good listener and able, or has the potential, to fulfil the role of Training Incumbent; who, by being welcoming, approachable and inclusive, encourages and enables us to motivate one another to follow suit; who supports Fresh Expressions of church as well as inherited church and music. And in return we offer eager anticipation of a new beginning prayerful support willingness to work with you to achieve results an appetite for change a wealth of gifts within the congregations some might need unearthing! Northern candour a family sized rectory close to wonderful countryside We believe that, in the Body of Christ, all have gifts and need each other and, however imperfectly we fulfil the above aims, we won t sit back and leave the leaders to journey alone. 3

Our Strengths, Challenges and Opportunities We believe our strengths to be welcoming to all who come through our doors encouraging our young people to develop their faith by interaction and participation committed teams of leaders supporting our young people, leading services, preaching and other activities a committed PCC striving in friendship and with mutual respect to act as one determination to address our long term deficit budget; through a recent stewardship campaign we have made some progress determination to continue to pay Parish Share involvement at Deanery and Diocesan level little fishes parent and toddler group We believe that we are welcoming but one of the difficulties of a large congregation is that we may not be as friendly and hospitable as we could be and individuals may feel lost in the crowd. Our church family can sometimes be fragmented and the solutions are not always obvious. We need to bind our church family together. We are concerned that we fail to enthuse our young people sufficiently so that they continue to develop their discipleship after they move to secondary school. Smelly yellow welly club We offer these challenges and opportunities Our mission statement is:- A worshipping community, passionate in loving Jesus Christ, committed to loving others. We adopted this in recent years but it is the view of the PCC that as individuals and so, as Churches, we are not all as passionately devoted to Jesus as we could be or may want to be and that the other challenges, which we now recognise, suggest that our mission statement needs refreshing. We are concerned that although our stewardship campaign has increased our planned giving, we still had a deficit of around 9,000 at December 2013, which needs addressing, and a resistance to financial giving which needs to be overcome. We need to continue to strengthen our links with other local churches. Are you willing to share the challenge? We wish to embrace and nurture all those who come through our doors or who are on the periphery of church and to make contact with those who stop coming. 4

Our Parish Bilton has grown from the small village described in the Domesday Book and has become part of the spa town of Harrogate. The Parish stretches from the beautiful Nidd Gorge to the thriving International Conference and Exhibition Centre. Harrogate is within easy reach of the cities of Ripon, Leeds and York and the market towns of Knaresborough, Skipton and Wetherby with good road, rail and air links to the rest of the country. Unit for ages 11-16 near Grove Road School; and also Woodleigh Children s Home. The five state secondary schools, including St Aidan s C. of E., are elsewhere in the town, as are several private schools for all ages. Whilst all the schools are good, a number of our Church Family attend because of the link with Richard Taylor and St Aidan s Schools and a wish for their child to progress with ease from one to the other. On the north side of the very busy A59 Skipton Road, the Bilton part of the Parish comprises the old village and several newer housing developments built at various times during the last century as Harrogate expanded. South of Skipton Road, the Parish consists of Victorian and Edwardian properties, newer housing including flats and, closer into town, hotels, guesthouses and houses in multiple occupation. Many people commute, unemployment is low and the majority of homes are owner-occupied. Socially and economically, the Parish is significantly white British with a high proportion of working age adults and families. However this general picture obscures significant elements of difference: in the Woodfield area of the Parish there are pockets of deprivation where up to 68% of children are living in poverty; an increasing number of people were born elsewhere (mainly EU and Eastern Europe); a higher proportion of lone parent families live in private rented accommodation in the St Luke s area; some elderly, sick and/or disabled people who can be very isolated. There are seven Primary schools in the Parish including Richard Taylor Church of England School and St Joseph s R.C. School. There is a Sure Start Children s Centre on the same site as Woodfield School; a Pupil Referral The Team Rector is, ex officio, Chair of the Richard Taylor Educational Foundation (RTEF - established 1785), a member of the Governing Body of Richard Taylor School and Chair of Bilton Youth Centre Management Committee. The land and buildings of both are owned by RTEF. The School is Voluntary Aided; the Centre is run by North Yorkshire County Council. The Parish has a doctor s surgery and Woodfield House Care Home. There are four pubs, two social clubs and a cricket club. Bilton and Dene Park Community Centres are both thriving and used by the Church. The first for monthly lunches for about 40, mostly older, people and the second for Thirst (coffee morning) every Wednesday. Both Churches host uniformed organisations and a range of other community groups. Two Women s Institute groups and Harrogate Rotary meet in the Parish as well as many other clubs and societies. The annual Bilton Gala, at which Churches Together have a presence, attracts several thousand people each May Day Bank Holiday. We have good links with the local Methodists and the United Reformed Church and contact with Woodfield Gospel Hall and St Joseph s Church. Calvary Church meet at Woodfield School and Concilia at Dene Park Community Centre. There is also a Kingdom Hall of Jehovah s Witnesses with three congregations. 5

Our Churches The Parish of Bilton St John and St Luke is in the Harrogate Deanery and has two churches, St John the Evangelist Bilton and St Luke s. The two Churches came together as one Parish on 1st October 1996. St JOHN THE EVANGELIST St John s Church was consecrated in 1857 and is grade II* listed with a seating capacity of 300. The structural and decorative condition of the Church is very good, with recent improvements including access ramps; refurbishment of the east end to provide additional worship, storage and meeting space; re-opening of the South Door as the main entrance to the Church; and, most recently, re-roofing of the main Church building and masonry repairs. The Church Hall was opened in 1897 as a Sunday School. It is grade II listed and still used as a Sunday School for our members aged 4 to 18 years - younger children are catered for in the Church. On Saturdays the Hall is used for jumble sales, autumn and summer fairs and monthly coffee mornings for a variety of charities. It is also used by the community, including a local play group (Monday to Friday), Church Cherubs (a parent and toddler group - Friday afternoon) and during evenings for uniformed organisations, badminton, Morris Dancing, Yoga and Tai Chi. The Hall has recently been redecorated and new curtains fitted. St LUKE s ST JOHN S CHURCH HALL 6 St Luke s Church was constructed in 1959/60 as a church hall and converted to become St Luke s Church Centre, with the first service taking place in 1974. The old church was sold for conversion into flats. St Luke s has a seating capacity of 140 and the structural condition is good with recent works undertaken including replacement windows, a new ground floor meeting room and the refurbishment of the kitchen. Although some re-decoration was done at the same time as the works, some parts of the interior and the exterior are in urgent need of attention. On Sundays the creche and Sunday School meet away from the main hall, where the service continues. Still Waters, which is an evening contemplative service is held twice a month. During term time the main hall is used weekly for Blast-Off (our church youth group for 11-13 year olds); Little Fishes (a parent and toddler group) and Themes and Fun (an all age after school messy church, officially a Fresh Expression of Church) and Rainbows and Brownies. Rooms are also let to organisations including a dance academy, a Scottish dancing and two Pilates groups and a reading group.

Our Congregations St John s includes those who have attended for many years and members who have joined more recently. Although some have spent their lives in Bilton, the congregation is constantly varying as a small percentage move away and others come into the Parish. We are blessed with a strong youth element. There are 218 people on the Electoral Roll at St John s. St Luke s includes those who have attended for many years and an increasing number of new members, particularly young families, which is very encouraging. There are 48 people on the Electoral Roll at St Luke s. Some members of St John s congregation also attend St Luke s, particularly when there is no 10.00 am Communion Service at St John s. St JOHN THE EVANGELIST The Clergy Team comprises the Team Vicar, Rev. Darren McClintock, who has been with us for more than nine years, and those who have retired to Harrogate and found a home in our Churches. The Team Vicar has given us continuity and care, Rev. Pam Mills has restored the long standing ministry of ordained women to our services after a couple of years of its absence and Rev. David Williams is a strength in all aspects of the workings of our Churches. The Team Rector has special responsibility for St John s Church and the Team Vicar for St Luke s. For most of the last twenty five years we have had curates or other clergy and a Lay Reader augmenting the Team. St LUKE s Members of the congregation lead the intercessions, read lessons and are authorised to administer the sacrament at all Eucharists. Home Communion is taken, currently, to five housebound people by lay administrators. Where coffee or tea are not part of the service they are provided afterwards on nearly every occasion. 7

Our Services Our Church Family meets as shown in the tables below and for special celebration services at the usual Church Festivals, mostly on Sunday evenings at St John s. Choral Evensong is also sung four times a year at St John s. St JOHN S Average attendance First Sunday: 9.30am - All Age/Parade Service 120 11.00am Holy Communion 55 Second Sunday: 8.00am Holy Communion 8 10.00am - Holy Communion 160 12.15/12.30 pm Baptisms and Thanksgivings Varies Third Sunday: 10.00am Morning Worship 150 7.00pm Theos (see page 9) 25 Fourth Sunday: 8.00am Holy Communion 8 10.00am - Holy Communion 150 Fifth Sunday: 10.00am Morning Worship 115 Wednesday: 10.30am mid week Communion 16 Saturdays (Quarterly) 3.00pm Songs of Praise 40 St LUKE S First Sunday: 10.30am Holy Communion 45 Second Sunday: 10.30am - All Age/Parade Service 55 Third Sunday: 10.30am - Holy Communion 40 Fourth Sunday: 10.30am Morning Worship 40 Fifth Sunday: 10.30am Holy Communion 40 2nd and 4th Tuesdays Contemplative Service (Still Waters) 9 Thursdays Themes and Fun A Fresh Expression of Church 25 3.30pm 4.45pm (during term time) 8

Other Services The decision was made to have a separate Parade Service at St John s when the congregation at a single service regularly breached the fire certificate limit. The attendance numbers do not currently produce that result but it is believed that numbers at Parade Service are beginning to rise again following a change in the structure of the service. Theos is an informal service at St John s based around a topic with a band leading the worship and quiet prayer as an important element. Originally, the name stood for The 8.00 o clock Service but that has been lost with the change of time. Recently, following the Parade Service at St Luke s, a Sunday School class for teenagers has begun with four young people attending. A service is held at Woodfield House NYCC Care Home on the morning of the second Tuesday of each month by one of the Clergy team and a pianist from St John s congregation. The Team Rector or the Team Vicar also take part in assemblies at some of the primary schools. Richard Taylor School has services at St John s on eight or nine occasions each year, one of which is the Wednesday morning Communion Service when the children prepare and read the lessons and intercessions and learn about the symbolism and purpose of the service afterwards. Coppice School and the Scouts usually hold Carol Services at St John s as do other schools on occasion. Christingle Service Other celebration services: Women s World Day of Prayer Toy Service in December at St John s - toys or gifts are brought and then given to Save the Children Shop in Harrogate. Save the Children sometimes speak at the service. Christingle Services at both Churches In Memoriam services are held twice a year on Sunday evenings at St John s to which anyone who is known to have been bereaved in the previous year is specifically invited. In 2013; eight weddings baptism services for 29 infants, children and adults mostly at the specific monthly services, for three families on each occasion, but some at the normal Sunday services at either Church thanksgiving services for the birth and naming of ten infants and children our clergy presided at six funerals in Church and 18 at the Crematorium RICHARD TAYLOR Edwardian school service 9

We also have at our Churches a salaried part time (17.5 hours) church administrator with an office in St John s Church a part time voluntary children and youth coordinator a single PCC of 18 members usually chaired by the Team Rector one churchwarden at each Church; this will become two at each Church following the Annual Meeting on 27th April 2014 a recently formed group of seven lay preachers/leaders (currently not undergoing lay training) full choir at St John s with paid organist and junior choristers taking examinations; a training choir for 8 year olds a children s singing group at St Luke s Parade Services talented musicians including music groups at both Churches talented flower arrangers at both Churches a prayer ministry team at St John s providing private prayer at 10 am and 11am Sunday services and Theos a weekly one hour surgery for making arrangements about weddings and baptisms is held in the Church Office: Team Rector or Team Vicar and one churchwarden attend a baptism information group a pastoral care team at St John s a bereavement support group adult and youth confirmation classes when required nine Sunday School groups for ages 0-18 at our Churches - there are up to 80 children and young people registered to attend at St John s and up to 30 at St Luke s the three mid-week groups for ages 0-13 at St Luke s have already been mentioned and some 65 children and adults attend five mid week cell groups for ages 13-18 from St John s with 33 participants plus leaders ten adult house groups including Healing Prayer and CMS with over 100 participants Smelly Yellow Welly Club is held for three days at Easter for ages 0-18 and 2014 is the 21st Anniversary: approximately 150 children and 100 young people and adults attend each day St John s Church and Hall are cleaned by volunteers: St Luke s has a paid cleaner. 10

And together we are Fair Trade Churches; organise Thirst - a weekly coffee morning held at Dene Park Community Centre as part of our outreach in the Woodfield area; cater for the monthly community lunches at Bilton Community Centre; have run regular Alpha courses for some years both daytime and evening; encourage and support individuals from our congregations in mission activities; three individuals have been supported in working visits to different parts of Africa in the last three years; financially and prayerfully support CMS mission partners working in Hull (UK) and Nepal; support the Harrogate Homeless Project Hostel and Day Centre mostly through St Luke s long term activity; are part of Bilton Churches Together along with Bilton Area Methodist Church and Bilton Grange United Reformed Church which: meet regularly to share the journey of faith; provide a joint Lent course; have a presence at Bilton Gala; provide It s Your Move books for every Year 6 pupil; are planning Tour de France events; deliver and collect over 5,000 envelopes for Christian Aid Week through 70 supporters ; have an uninvited guest collection each Christmas for charity; have collecting boxes for The Children s Society: have Website: http://bilton-cofe.org.uk/ Facebook page: St. John s and St. Luke s Church Family Harrogate Twitter account: twitter.com/stjohnsstlukes publish a magazine circulation 300. 11

The Rectory, Churchyard & Other Properties The Rectory The Rectory is located alongside St John s Church and was built in the early 1970 s when the original adjacent vicarage was sold to be used as a library. (The library will be closing soon and moving, probably in July, to Woodfield Road within the Parish. The use of the existing building which belongs to North Yorkshire County Council has not yet been decided.) Surrounded by gardens, the house looks onto the Church drive. It is a good sized family house with four bedrooms, a well proportioned study and a garage. The RECTORY Although in good condition, the Rectory will be undergoing further improvements this summer which will include a new central heating boiler (wall mounted to replace the floor standing boiler), new kitchen fittings and double glazing throughout. St JOHN s CHURCH HALL The Churchyard St John s has a large churchyard which, although not officially closed, is only open for interment of ashes. It is maintained by Church volunteers. There are extensive grassed areas either side of the drive, maintained by the Local Authority. St Luke s has no churchyard but there is a garage, used for storage, within the curtilage. Other Properties The PCC own two former curates houses, which no longer meet diocesan standards, a terraced property at 13 Albany Road, built in the 1920 s and a semi detached property at 59 Coppice Way, 48 years old. They are both in good condition and let to tenants through managing agents. The Team Vicar s house is owned by the Diocese and lies about a mile from St John s in one of the newest housing developments. ST JOHN S CHURCH 12

Our Finances Financial Summary for 2012 General Building ALL Accounts Improvement Annual Income for last financial year 152,220 72,270 224,490 Annual Expenditure for last financial year 187,620 376,750 564,370 Sources of Income Gift Aided and other Pledged Giving 59,420 3,348 62,768 Tax Recovered from Gift Aid 13,100 411 13,511 Open Plate Donations 5,030 0 5,030 Income from Investments 2,250 104 2,354 Income from Fees, Rents and Anciliary Trading 48,570 0 48,570 General and Charitable Fundraising 16,550 19,660 36,210 Refunds, Legacies and Other Income 7,290 48,744 56,034 Parish Share Parish Share allocation 117,154 Is this paid monthly/quarterly/annually/irregularly? Monthly Last year s Share: paid in full/amount deficit Paid in Full Historic Share (Arrears) 0 Financial Summary for 2013 General Building ALL Accounts Improvement Annual Income for last financial year 165,000 13,220 178,220 Annual Expenditure for last financial year 192,000 (4,700) 187,300 Sources of Income Gift Aided and other Pledged Giving 66,190 3,048 69,238 Tax Recovered from Gift Aid 13,250 610 13,860 Open Plate Donations incl. GASDS donations 5,650 0 5,650 Income from Investments 270 0 270 Income from Fees, Rents and Anciliary Trading 49,300 0 49,300 General and Charitable Fundraising 18,380 3,136 21,516 Refunds, Legacies and Other Income 11,710 6,424 18,134 Parish Share Parish Share allocation 116,984 Is this paid monthly/quarterly/annually/irregularly? Monthly Last year s Share: paid in full/amount deficit Paid in Full Historic Share (Arrears) 0 * 2013 Figures Subject to External Examination The building improvements carried out in recent years have mostly been paid for from legacies and, apart from the two houses, there are no reserves. 13

BILTON ST JOHN AND ST LUKE Parish Profile 2014 St John s & St Luke s Together St John s Church, Bilton Lane, Harrogate, HG1 3DT Tel 01423 565129 www.bilton-cofe.org.uk 14