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CAPTURING GOD’S VISION... BEYOND 400 Read online at www.baptist.org.uk/transform transform April2012_031.indd 1

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Inside Transform Editorial Mission Ministry Faith & Unity Council Around the Union Staff News Communications Baptist Times Home Mission Finance Legal & Property Issues Safeguarding Events

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Editorial

CAPTURING GOD’S VISION...

BEYOND 400 The Anniversary of the first Baptist church in this country gives us a superb opportunity to reflect on our roots. Indeed that has always been the passion that has driven Baptists – the desire to get back to the New Testament and to ensure that the church of today bears the closest possible resemblance to the kind of church that Jesus wanted.

The conversations that are taking place about the future of the Baptist Union are important for all of us, and I hope that you will have a good opportunity to share your thoughts.

The online survey was completed by over 1600 people, but many more have sent letters and shared in different kinds of discussion.

The Baptist Assembly in May gives us a further opportunity to listen to God together and I do hope that you will be able to join us for that historic occasion. There is an imaginative and inspiring programme and it is vital that we spend time listening to God together.

I hope that you will feel directly involved in the present reflections on the life of the Union, and the most important way in which you can do that is in prayer. As we pray together we immerse ourselves in God’s Spirit and we deliberately seek to capture his vision. I urge you to find time in your personal prayers but also in the prayers of your fellowship for these crucial issues. Without prayer we will be lost.

The Baptist Assembly will give us a wonderful opportunity to pray together as a Union, but I hope that every church will set aside time on the Sunday of Assembly, 6 May, to pray that God will direct us in the decisions that we make about our life together. You will find prayer material on our Baptist Union website. We need to cover the whole of our discussions in prayer and particularly as we prepare for the Baptist Union Council meetings in June and November.

One of the greatest privileges of my life is to spend time with local churches. Almost every week I will find myself in a different church and I never tire of hearing the stories of what God is doing. These are challenging days for us all and for us as a nation, but when you hear about people who have been born again of God’s Spirit or meet folk who have been put back on their feet through the love and care of a local fellowship, it puts everything else into perspective.

May God continue to encourage, strengthen and bless you as we seek to capture his vision for our future.

Jonathan Edwards BUGB General Secretary

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Mission Ian Bunce Head of Department

Introduction This is the eve of the summer of mission activity. Possibly never before has there been so much activity by churches of all traditions working together in mission! From the opportunities of the Olympics with More than Gold – with the torch relay, evangelism, service and justice mission – to the great celebration of the Diamond Jubilee. We have been working with partner groups to prepare to do the work of mission in these nations. I would particularly like to commend Undefeated, a resource for the Paralympics produced in partnership with BMS World Mission. Grab the potential that this summer brings!

Diamond Jubilee The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee presents churches with an opportunity to take a lead in community celebrations focused around the Big Jubilee Lunch on Sunday 3 June.

HOPE has all the resources to make this a major mission opportunity which will build lasting bridges in communities countrywide.

The Big Jubilee Lunch

The Eden project which organises ‘The Big Lunch’ each year has asked HOPE to help churches to get involved. This year, up to six million people are expected to sit down together for Sunday lunch with neighbours and friends at parties in streets, parks and playgrounds on Sunday 3 June. This is an opportunity for churches to work with other residents’ groups to make the Diamond Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend a ‘once-in-alifetime’ community celebration.

Saying thanks to God as a nation

The Queen’s Chaplain is writing a special Grace to be said at the start of the Big Jubilee Lunch. Plans are being made for the Grace to be televised at the start of the Big Sunday Lunch, and HOPE will provide you with the wording of the Grace as a download as soon as it is available.

The Big Thankyou

As well as encouraging parish churches to work with others in their communities to hold a Big Jubilee Lunch, Anglican Bishops are organising a Big Thankyou to the Queen from cathedrals and parish churches. HOPE would like to extend The Big Thankyou to churches of all denominations.

The Baptist Union will therefore be producing a Big Thankyou letter for Baptist churches to download from the BUGB website and print. May we encourage your church to print copies and collect signatures and other thankyou comments? These letters will be collected at Baptist House and then presented to the Queen on behalf of Baptist churches.

HOPE can provide you with copies of a DVD and flier to encourage your church to get involved, and there are lots of other resources available on the HOPE website www.hopetogether.org.uk : • Resources for schools: drama, lesson plan, assembly ideas • Ideas to use with senior citizens in residential care homes • Service plans and liturgies to use for church services on the Sunday morning before the Big Jubilee Lunch • ‘My Prayer for Queen and Country’ sheet where children can write a prayer for the Queen, for their own family and for the nation

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• Games to develop community at your celebration so that everyone can join in and have a lasting memory of the day The words of the Grace will also be included in a special souvenir booklet produced by HOPE and CPO for churches to use in their communities with schools and in residential care homes.

Why not take a lead in your community and co-ordinate a Big Jubilee lunch and send ‘A Big Thankyou’ from your congregation and community?

For more information, see www.hopetogether.org.uk Getting involved in the Olympic Games We hope that you have already been making the most of the excellent resources from More than Gold, and that your church has taken part in the ‘Get Set’ tour to find ways to engage with your local community during the Olympics.

If you are still looking for practical ideas, More than Gold has produced a book of resources to help churches make the most of their engagement with the 2012 Games. It offers ways to engage with their community during the Games and the Torch Relay, which will come within ten miles of most of the UK churches. The ideas include large screen festivals, barbecues, street parties, picnics, breakfasts, children’s games, sports quizzes and sport competitions.

There are also resources for church activities, including an all-age sermon outline, sketches, prayers and outlines for small groups, a sample press release and church magazine article.

Order your free pack from Traidcraft at www.traidcraftshop.co.uk/churcheventpack or call 0845 330 8900. For more information about ideas and resources from More than Gold, see: www.morethangold.org.uk The BIG Welcome In September 2011, around 3000 people were invited to Baptist churches for a BIG Welcome event. This year we are planning something even bigger, working in partnership with Elim and Methodist churches throughout the country. We hope and pray that even more people will be invited to a special BIG Welcome event in 2012.

The idea has been developed over many years and encourages us to invite one person we know to something we love. The important thing is that people are invited by personal invitation, and when they respond they feel welcome.

We are using the theme of welcoming the prodigal this year, and offering a variety of flexible resources suitable for churches to use at their Sunday service and at other times. As last year, there will also be an option to order invitations and posters overprinted with details of your church’s activity. We hope that your church has already received a mailing from us with 5

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Mission details of these resources and information about how to order them. Packs will be made to order, and sent in July, enabling you to start advertising your event in plenty of time. Please complete your order, online or with the order form sent to your church, by 30 June.

New for 2012 is a BIG Welcome website www.thebigwelcome.org dedicated to providing all you need to help plan your BIG Welcome. Have a look at the website to find and order this year’s posters, invitations, etc and watch the video of General Secretary Jonathan Edwards encouraging churches to take part. Take up the challenge and begin to plan ways to offer a warm welcome to those who do not usually come to church.

There’s no need to stick to one day in the year to offer people a BIG Welcome. Why not plan a BIG Welcome family fun day, a BIG Welcome at Christmas – the possibilities are endless!

Get in the Picture

Last Christmas, people in over 100 towns donned tea towels and angel’s wings and took part in an instant nativity. Get in the Picture took place across the country – from Jersey to Greenock, from Norwich to Torquay.

Bethel Baptist Church in Cardiff did Get in the Picture in November when the community Christmas lights were switched on. ‘It went really well’, says assistant minister Jonathan Vaughan-Davies. ‘People,

dads especially, could not believe it was all free. It led to some great conversations about what the church is and does, and what Christmas really means’.

We also held a competition to find the town which had created the best nativity scene for their Get in the Picture project.

As in previous years, the standard was very high, with some really creative scenes to encourage people to take part. We asked a team of independent judges to look through them all and choose a winner, and the first prize was awarded to Colchester Baptist Church.

The church’s minister, Nick Lear, tells us: ‘I came up with the idea that we could create a Christmas display that resembled a seaside scene with holes cut out for people’s faces.

I felt that this would make things easier for people to participate and might look quite attractive outside the church when we were not taking photographs. This idea became a reality thanks to the skills of a joiner (David Stockwell) and artist (Gill Chelski) who are part of our church family.

‘Next year we will use the scene again and I hope we will be able to do a lot more alongside it – perhaps carol singing, serving hot drinks and mince pies, and perhaps even some street magic.’

Whilst Christmas may seem a long way off, start planning now to offer Get in the Picture in your town this year. Encourage different people to use their particular skills for each stage of the initiative – from praying for the events, to designing the scene, making costumes, publicising the events, welcoming people and taking photographs on the day. For more information about what’s

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involved, see the Mission File available from www.baptist.org.uk/resources-events/ missionfiles/doc_download/842-get-in-thepicture.html or contact the department. re:focus

Many Baptist churches throughout the Union have been encouraged by mission consultants from their local association, who have helped them rediscover God’s vision for mission in their local area. The BUGB Mission Consultancy scheme, first launched in 2003, has just been updated and re-written with many extra features, and is now called re:focus. re:focus is a flexible process which has been developed in modules to be suitable for a wide variety of churches. User-friendly, it assumes two external facilitators will work with each church. The re:focus journey will take 6 to 12 months and most associations will provide the facilitators for this. It is a valuable tool for any church, including churches developing a mission strategy in order to apply for a grant. All modules are freely downloadable from the BUGB website.

There are several re:focus resource modules that can be recommended as part of the Action Plan for the church. In some modules, resources are brought together in unique way, for example from the Baptist Union Corporation, the Mission and Communications Departments when looking at how best to make our buildings suitable and welcoming for our local mission. Some modules may also stand alone as a way of helping churches, for example: • A Welcoming Place • Local Community Research • Sowing, Reaping, Keeping • Resources • Evangelism Resources • Discipleship Resources If your church might find it helpful to consider the re:focus journey, download the Introduction from www.baptist.org. uk/refocus and contact your association to discuss it further.

re:focus incorporates thinking about the individual disciple’s crossingplaces as well as the crossingplaces opportunities of the church. It also embraces material on lifelong discipleship and missional spirituality through the preparatory sermons, small group work and follow-up material. The re:focus journey is inclusive of people of all ages within the church, especially through small groups and the main meeting.

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Ministry Paul Goodliff Head of Department

Introduction Supporting ministry through Churches Ministerial Counselling Service and debt advice, and re-envisioning ministry in missional ways.

Re-envisioning Ministry in Missionary Focus It has become commonplace to speak of a post-Christian culture in Britain, of an increase in secularisation or of a Post-Christendom cultural context. The recent debate provoked by the banning of prayers on the agenda of Bideford Town Council meetings (and its subsequent re-instatement), or the wearing of the symbol of a cross by Christians may have inflated the seriousness of the supposed threat to Christianity in Britain, but certainly there is a more widespread conviction that there is a concerted attempt by the secularists and bodies such as The National Secular Society to challenge any privileged position Christianity holds in Britain. The fact that Britain was (and I think, still is) a Christian nation, albeit populated by ‘non-practitioners’ and largely ill-informed Christians, has still some traction in the defence of our liberties, but more importantly, describes the opportunity and task that the Church has as it engages in the mission of Christ. Ministers must be at the forefront of this mission, be they local pastors or youth specialist ministers, chaplains or called to regional or national roles. This key role of enabling, encouraging and participating in the mission of the church falls to those who lead the church, and ministers must be at the forefront of that.

For this reason, the Ministry Executive Committee has recently approved a smallscale re-working of the Core Competencies for ministry to more closely reflect this missional imperative, in anticipation of wider discussions to come and a more thorough re-writing of the competences to reflect this missional 8

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mode of conducting ministry in Britain today. For a closer look at the re-worked Core Competencies for Ministry go to www.baptist. org.uk/useful-information-for-ministers/ ministry-helpful-guidelines.html Reaching out to the Workplace Workplace Ministry offers a way to contact many people outside the orbit of the Church. The Work and Economy Group has arranged a symposium exploring this mission opportunity, to be held in Birmingham on Saturday 16 June. This is for those already involved and those who want to know more.

For information contact Ian Millgate on 01235 517705 or imillgate@baptist.org.uk Ministers and Debt Ministers may well be familiar with helping others who find themselves in unmanageable debt, but who does a minister turn to when their own finances are in meltdown? Not every minister will receive a sympathetic hearing from their own congregation, so we are grateful to Church Action against Poverty (CAP) for developing a tool for ministers who need to begin to address their own financial turmoil. Being aware that some solutions open to the general public might be difficult to implement for those ministers who are covered by charity legislation (such as embarking upon an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) which may render the minister ineligible to continue to hold pastoral office) CAP can give wise and appropriate guidance. I hope that many will find this service a God-send. Remember that as a managing trustee of a charity, which all pastors of local churches are by default, embarking upon an IVA will render anyone ineligible for holding that office, and will probably require their resignation from the post held.

This is only likely to make ministers’ financial circumstances more severe, as they will face unemployment and often homelessness if

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they reside in a church-owned manse. So care needs to be taken when seeking advice, and we strongly recommend ministers do nothing until they have spoken to either a member of the Ministry Department or their Regional Minister.

CAP know of this difficulty for ministers, and we anticipate their advice will make ministers aware of those risks, but only if they use the dedicated service for ministers. A local CAP centre may be unaware of this exception. The response that many take, to ignore the difficulty in handling personal finances, only makes matters worse. Certainly any attempt to mishandle church money in an attempt to resolve personal finances will be considered conduct unbecoming of a minister, and may well involve criminal behaviour. However difficult it may seem, or embarrassing it is, to be honest and as open as possible with trusted leaders or those offering pastoral support is much wiser behaviour than either procrastination or dishonesty. For more information, go to www. baptist.org.uk/useful-information-for-ministers/ finding-support-in-ministry.html

Having said that, there is no intention to restrict the usage of the scheme beyond its stated purpose: the provision of short-term counselling of up to 12 sessions delivered by trained and professional counsellors for ministers or their dependants. The identity of those who use the scheme remains strictly confidential, and no one in the Baptist Union knows whether you (or I) have ever used the Service, unless they tell us so (and some do, in gratitude for a vital provision in times of deepest need), and the regular updating of the details on the website www.cmcs.org.uk point to the first contact that you can make in seeking a suitable counsellor.

Churches Ministerial Counselling Service Baptists seem to use this service more frequently than our ecumenical partners with whom we share it, (The Methodist Church, The United Reformed Church and Salvation Army amongst others) which means that either Baptists are more prone to those circumstances that warrant counselling support (which I hope is not the case, although congregational government does bring its own challenges!) or Baptists have greater awareness of its existence, and so use it because they value it. I hope this is the case. A recent change has been to ask Baptists using the scheme to pay at least the first ÂŁ10 of each session, and a greater proportion of the actual costs if possible. Home Mission funds our use of this service, and the more the user can share in the costs of its provision, the less burden it is for Home Mission.

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Faith and Unity Stephen Keyworth Head of Department

JPIT The Joint Public Issues Team continues to be a valuable part of our work, providing resources for churches and assisting our contribution to social-political debate in our country. The last few months have been very busy and fruitful with the team working on a number of projects including: Measure for Measure Our country has a drink problem: • Alcohol costs the NHS £2.7 billion in England and law enforcement agencies £13 billion in England and Wales • Between 1.3 and 2.6 million children are affected by parental problem drinking • 61% of adults feel that excessive drinking is a problem where they live The BUGB is part of the Measure for Measure campaign which is also supported by the Methodist Church, the United Reformed Church, the Church of England, Quaker Action on Alcohol and Drugs, the Christian Nightlife Initiative, Street Angels and the Evangelical Alliance. The aim of the campaign is to help tackle our nation’s drink problem by introducing a per unit minimum price for alcohol.

A per unit minimum price is supported by academics, health professionals, charities and churches. The Government has the opportunity to introduce a per unit minimum price in its Alcohol Strategy to be published shortly. Minimum pricing of around 50p per unit • Would only affect a small proportion of alcohol sold • But it could prevent 3,000 deaths a year and save £1.37 billion in healthcare costs

Measure for Measure urges you to write to your MP now asking them to support minimum pricing. For more information about the campaign, including resources for use in church newsletters and housegroups visit the campaign website: www.jointpublicissues.org.uk/alcohol ‘What did you do to cherish my creation, in its hour of danger?’ Climate change and the purposes of God: a call to the Church Operation Noah launched The Ash Wednesday Declaration on 22 February 2012 at the start of the Lent.

The Declaration, signed by church leaders including Jonathan Edwards for BUGB, challenges the church to realise that care for God’s creation – and concern about climate change – is foundational to the Christian gospel and central to the church’s mission.

Churches are urged to consider signing the Declaration and for this pledge of support to indicate a change of heart regarding climate change, and a commitment to take on-going action.

The Operation Noah website (www. operationnoah.org/ash-wednesdaydeclaration) has the full text of the Declaration, ideas for how to introduce the Declaration to your church, services, magazine articles and a wealth of resources on actions you can take.

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The Sam Sharpe Project In November 2008 the Baptist Union Council made a formal Apology for the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

This was made in person by representatives of the BUGB the following year in Jamaica. Subsequently a strategic plan was formulated and has begun to be implemented. Entitled The Journey, its purpose is to convert the Apology into concrete action by providing resources for associations, colleges, churches and the National Resource and to assist the Union’s journey towards being a multicultural family.

During the same period, the Oxford Centre for Christianity and Culture was developing research around the figure of the black Baptist Deacon Sam Sharpe, and in April 2010 hosted the first International Conference on Sharpe in partnership with BUGB, BMS World Mission and the Jamaica Baptist Union. Following this initial Sam Sharpe Conference, many of the delegates expressed a desire for a Sam Sharpe Project to be established.

This will shortly become a reality. It will be an important contribution to the field of Black Baptist Studies and will also support The Journey, by assisting the Racial Justice Working Group of BUGB in its implementation of the recommendations accepted by BU Council. It anticipates work over an initial two year phase, with the hope that sufficient momentum and resources can be gained to sustain the project beyond this initial period.

Who was Sam Sharpe?

Sam Sharpe was a Baptist deacon and enslaved person who played an important

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role in the ‘Great Jamaican Slave Revolt’ of 1831-2. One of the leaders of a group of enslaved persons who took part in a ‘sitdown strike’ against slavery, he was executed together with more than 500 others.

The revolt is recognized by historians and theologians as having a powerful influence on the process leading to the abolition of slavery, and Sam Sharpe is honoured as a National Hero in Jamaica. The story is of a Baptist Christian whose actions were clearly motivated by his faith and by his reading of Scripture; he is reported to have said, ‘In reading my Bible, I found that the white man had no more right to make a slave of me than I have to make a slave of the white man.’ He remains a witness to the principle of ‘liberation from below’: that is, true liberation comes when those who are oppressed or marginalized participate in making their own freedom and justice, rather than simply having it granted to them by those who have power and authority.

The aims of the Sam Sharpe project are: • To encourage the growth of missioncentred churches and associations able to engage with our contemporary multicultural society • To support the RJWG as it creates fresh resources based on the six Journey recommendations • To develop the potential of black and ethnic minority leaders and prepare some for Baptist ministry and scholarship in Baptist colleges • To encourage Baptist colleges, associations and churches more seriously to engage with black and Asian history, culture and theology • To research the historical and theological legacy of Sam Sharpe and to reflect on the impact of this and other related stories for Baptist Christians in the 21st century

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Faith and Unity All of which we anticipate will contribute to the development of missionary disciples who are equipped to engage appropriately and confidently with the culture and context of 21st century Britain and beyond. (Contact: Wale Hudson-Roberts whudson-roberts@baptist.org. uk; Nick Wood nicholas.wood@regents.ox.ac.uk)

diverse Union.

Out of Many One People (Cultures in Communion)

Visit of Jamaican Baptist Union We are delighted that four senior Baptist ministers from the Jamaican Baptist Union have been formally invited by the BUGB to the UK. The team will comprise of two former Presidents and the General and Associate Secretaries.

The visit’s purpose is to assist the BUGB in developing our culturally inclusive strategy, The This conference is intended to explore how Journey, which was unanimously agreed by the individual and collective identities are nurtured BUGB Council. through relationships and the movement of people groups. The conference will also address Whilst in the UK the JBU team will engage with relationships between cultures and the complex regional ministers, churches and associations issues that arise through face to face encounter. such as London, Southern Counties, Heart of England, North Western and Yorkshire. Meetings Using the Jamaican national motto: ‘Out of have also been planned for the team to meet Many One People’ the conference will explore with ministerial students, college principals and a variety of themes around race and what new staff from both the National Resource and BMS and dynamic models of community potential World Mission. emerge as we learn to worship together.

The timing of the teams arrival is opportune as it coincides with the launch of the Sam Sharpe Project at the Jamaican High Commission on 10 May and the Baptist Assembly, in which they have been invited to make a contribution, including the Day Conference at Bloomsbury Baptist Church – 19th Century Preacher in a 21st Century World. Members of the team will also be delivering presentations at Ecumenical and Baptist gatherings, Baptist Colleges and churches.

The information gathered from the visits will assist BU Council and the Racial Justice Working Group in implementing The Journey, and create resources to develop and sustain a culturally

Some of the conference contributors will be the General Secretary of the Jamaican Baptist Union, the Revd Karl Johnson, the Associate General Secretary, Merlyn Hyde-Riley, Dr Glenroy Lalor, Tutor at United Theological College of the West Indies, the Revd Karl Henlin, Pastor of Gregory Park Baptist Church, and the Revds Chris AndreWatson, Jonathan Edwards and David Kerrigan.

The conference doors will open at 17:00 at Edmonton Baptist church on Saturday 19 of May and will finish with communion and an Agape meal at 20:30.

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Council Richard Nicholls General Manager

BAPTIST UNION COUNCIL

The majority of the Council was devoted to conversations concerning the Baptist Futures process. In view of this all the other business of Council was accommodated on the first day. This included the recommendation that Malcolm Broad MBE be reappointed as Union Treasurer, and the reappointment of Sarah Parry as Moderator of the Ministry Executive. Simon Woodman was appointed as the new Moderator of the Faith and Unity Executive, and generous thanks were offered to Sian Murray-Williams for the gentle and wise way in which she had led the Executive. Barbara Carpenter and Joe Kapolyo were appointed as new Trustees, and Steve Finamore was reappointed for a further term of service.

Sheila Martin was appointed as Moderator of Council from 1 September 2012.

Council received the Management Accounts of the Union and the Consolidated SORP accounts of the Union for the year ended 31 December 2011. The Management Accounts showed a deficit of £685,503 on the Home Mission Fund account for the year, the largest deficit in the Union’s history. The position for 2012 was also under pressure with a further large deficit budgeted, and this set the scene for the discussions on the future of the Union which took place later in the meeting.

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No decision was made on the 2012 Home Mission Stipend, but it was suggested that the increase would be between £500 and £1,000, being 2.5% and 5% respectively.

Comments are welcome on the appropriate level of stipend which will be finalised later in the summer.

Council noted that the Defined Benefit schemes were closed to future accrual on 31 December 2011, and the new Defined Contribution sections were opened on 1 January 2012. The increased contributions, including the necessary deficiency contributions, came into effect on 1 January 2012. Thanks were expressed to Robert Ashurst, the Moderator of the Pension Fund Trustee Boards, and to Ruth Bottoms, the Moderator of the Pension Review Group, for the major parts they had played in changing the Funds to a more appropriate basis.

Council was also advised that new government regulations issued in January (and based on the Union’s request to government in March 2010) gave the Pension Trustees discretion to extend periods of grace from employing a member from one year to three years. This would mean that many more settlements could be achieved within the period of grace, and reduce the number of interim members required. Churches needed to apply for the period of grace within two months of the previous member leaving the payroll.

Bill Johnston offered the last Baptist Times report, and was warmly thanked for his significant contribution to the life of the Baptist Times Board. Mention was made of the Service of Thanksgiving which had taken place at Baptist House in February to which former staff and directors were welcomed.

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Council FUTURES CONVERSATIONS Members of the Futures Steering Group made presentations to Council on Tuesday morning in order to acquaint members with the huge amount of work that had been done in recent months. The online Survey had been completed by 1662 people and this had been enormously helpful in identifying the key priorities. These included providing Baptist ministers who are trained and accredited; support for local leaders such as deacons, elders, secretaries and treasurers; help in developing relationships beyond the local congregation to create a sense of belonging to the wider church; inspiration, encouragement and support for the mission of the local church and the development of mission resources; the provision of a wider voice; provision of expertise in financial, legal, property and human resources matters.

Council was encouraged to look back at the story so far and to reflect on the way in which the present context has been shaped by previous work such as Transforming Superintendency, Relating and Resourcing and the work of the Roles and Tasks Group. The Futures Group believed that the vision for our Baptist future could be captured by the words, “Growing healthy churches in relationship for the mission of God in the world.” This vision had led to a careful consideration of the values and organizational principles that would need to underpin the future life of the Union. These can be found on the Baptist Union website.

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This would involve Associations working in Mission Hubs (possibly six in number) alongside three national roles – shared services (eg finance, property and legal); ministry; and church and society. There was a great deal of conversation about the models that were offered and others were advanced including a version of the Integrated model which would involve all the present Associations. There was also repeated concern for conversations with BMS World Mission to be advanced, and frequent mention of the need for the six colleges to be fully involved in the Futures process.

The Futures conversations were surrounded by a great deal of prayer led by Tony Peck the chaplain. Materials were laid out in the middle of the room symbolizing a river, and there were constant encouragements for Council to get into the flow of the Spirit’s life.

The General Secretary encouraged Council to pray for wisdom, courage and grace as this demanding and important journey continues.

Models for the future life of the Union were considered, ranging from a centralized model to one which devolved all functions to Associations. These extreme models were the least favoured and there was a strong preference for the Integrated model.

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Around the Union Central Administrative contact: Stephen Copson 01462 442548 stephen.c@centralba.org.uk January has seen another association roadshow – this year it was a repeat of the training session ‘Help I’m a Deacon’, offered five years ago. It was taken to four venues by Geoff Colmer and Helen Wordsworth. January also saw the launch of a pilot scheme in Northamptonshire to encourage volunteering.

Those who have skills and time to share will be invited to apply to join a list of potential volunteers that can be introduced to help other churches with specific mission projects or church planting work. Later this year we look forward to the commencement of the Footsteps Course in CBA.

East Midlands Administrative contact: Rebecca Nicholls 0115 981 8645 administrator@embaptists.co.uk Leicester Baptists and Leicester BMS group have merged to become Leicester Baptists in Mission. Their launch event was well supported with over 100 present, Pat Took was speaking and Tim Fergusson leading worship. All four counties of the association are preparing for Chris Duffett’s visit and are looking forward to being inspired in big hearted evangelism. New opportunities for developing mission work are opening up all the time – Aylestone BC have been asked by the council to start a community activity in a hall on a estate where little is happening, so they have offered messy church which has been readily accepted.

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Eastern Administrative contact: Hayley Beckett 01263 826377 secretary@easternbaptist.org.uk Richard Lewis has brought useful insights back from his sabbatical in Australia. Arising from this, we are looking to implement a system of area ministers to support local ministers. The association has helped sponsor ‘The Cambridge Conversations’ a day for people from a variety of backgrounds to look at the developing policies around economic issues, education, law and order, health, physical infrastructure and social infrastructure.

Heart of England Administrative contact: Karen Martindale 0121 472 4986 mailbox@baptist-heartofengland.org A committed group of people undertook a review of HEBA’s Staff Team last year.

Special attention was given to the pattern of employing four Regional Ministers who, since 2007, have developed closer relationships with churches and pastoral leaders in defined geographical areas. This approach has clearly worked well and there was a lot to be encouraged about. The exercise also looked at how RM’s can identify priorities and strategic aims.

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Around the Union London Administrative contact: Norman Kincaid 020 7692 5592 norman.kincaid@londonbaptist.org.uk At our Pastors’ Consultation in February we considered what it meant to live in ‘multi-everything’ London. We considered, particularly, the challenges of living in a multi-cultural city. This has enriched the life of the city, but brings with it challenges of our different histories and how we relate to one another. The Consultation also gives us the opportunity to renew friendships and seek God’s anointing on our various ministries. In March we set aside two days of Fasting and Prayer for the life of the association and BUGB. On Monday 5 March people were encouraged to fast and on 6 March we gathered for prayer, seeking to hear what God is saying to us about our shared life. We continue to look forward to the Assembly and pray that many will join us for this event.

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North Western Administrative contact: Mandy Howarth 01942 221595 baptnw1@aol.com We are now in the middle of touring the region with our ‘roadshows’ aimed at taking our 2012 theme of ‘Down to Earth’ to each of the networks in a way that is relevant to each particular region. We also look forward to our autumn forum as we welcome Revd Dotha Blackwood of Spurgeon’s College who will be bringing God’s word to us during the evening celebration.

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Northern Administrative enquiries: 0191 273 7641 admin@thenba.org.uk The Association’s Council held an awayday led by Roy Searle at the Northumbria Christian Community. It was an opportunity to review our life and to discern what God is saying to us at this time. The ministers had a very refreshing and inspiring conference in February with Andrew Rollinson of St Andrews Baptist Church being the speaker.

‘Expect’ remains an important theme as a call to a fresh expectancy of what God would do amongst us and what he is saying to us and calling us to do.

South Eastern Administrative contact: Steph Tidy 01444 233431 admin@seba-baptist.org.uk March saw our Ministers’ and Church Leaders’ Conference and a Women’s Ministry Weekend. Plans are well advanced for workshops for Church Elders and Deacons in collaboration with Spurgeon’s College and the start of SALT (SEBA Alcohol Listening Team). The latter is an initiative which churches could latch onto to help people with alcohol issues. We have a growing number of ‘Home Mission Champions’ with the aim of having one in every network and are hoping that our free newspaper SEBA News will continue to be published quarterly under a new arrangement.

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South Wales Administrative contact: Jackie Godding 02920 491366 office@swbabugb.org.uk The annual conference for ministers in the South Wales Baptist Association and Baptist Union of Wales was held in February in beautiful Saundersfoot. Our speaker was Revd Roy Searle, and response from ministers confirmed they found the time to be refreshing and recharging. The storytelling evening was an honest time of sharing together what the Lord is doing in his Church in the nation of Wales.

West of England Administrative contact: Gary McFarlane 0117 965 8828 office@webassoc.org.uk Many of our activities are part of an intentional shift Towards a Missional Association.

This is our second year focussing on Encouraging Missionary Disci ples, when we are inviting clusters to organise their own 3 in 1 Events, considering Jesus’ call to make disciples at the local level. Stuart Murray Williams is consulting with those interested in church planting; Nigel Coles is developing material for small groups interested in exploring their missional DNA; and we’re involved in a Home Mission Advocacy pilot which will expand our ability to share stories.

South West Administrative contact: Chris Wooding 01392 433533 chris@swbaptists.org.uk

Southern Counties Administrative contact: Keith Hawton 023 8041 0691 k.hawton@scba.org.uk

Yorkshire Administrative contact: Debbie Gamble 0113 278 4954 debbie.gamble@yba.org.uk In the YBA we are presently in a time of change and review with our “new” Regional Ministry Team of Graham Ensor and Jane Day. After a busy first four months of 2012 with farewell services, an induction and our April Assembly & AGM, our prayer for the summer period is for space to reflect together as YBA churches, ministers and a regional association. Please especially remember the staff team in prayer when we gather on 24 July for a team day of reflection and planning.

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Staff News National Alex Baker

Alex Baker has joined Communications as Creative Resources Coordinator. He has worked for The Baptist Times as Sub-Editor since 2007 and we are delighted that he brings many skills as a photographer and graphic designer.

Paul Hobson Similarly, Paul Hobson has joined the Communications Team as Baptist Times Online Editor, with responsibility for producing the weekly update. Paul brings his experience of working as News Editor with The Baptist Times since 2008.

Jonathan Barr Jonathan Barr has joined the Faith and Unity department on a temporary appointment to work as a member of the Joint Public Issues Team as a Research Assistant based at Methodist Church House, London.

Kathryn Morgan Kathryn Morgan retires from the Mission Department after the Assembly in May. Kathryn served as a Mission Adviser particularly looking at church planting, church schools links and the issues of Baby Boomers. She also oversaw the recent rewrite of re:focus, the new church health materials. Kathryn is retiring to Somerset, where she is sure to continue a ministry, which will always have a missional prophetic edge. We wish Kathryn and Peter well as they begin the new chapter.

Alan Elson

Alan will be retiring as BUGB Safeguarding Officer at the end of April, after 12 years of service.

We are indebted to Alan for his experience and expertise in the area of safeguarding, and for the help and advice that he has given in many situations. Alan has recently married Jill and we wish them both many happy years together.

Carole Alder Carole Alder will be leaving us at the end of April to take on a role with the Bible Reading Fellowship. Carole has worked in the Mission Department since 2006 and will be missed.

Regional Eastern Our Association Treasurer will be retiring at this year’s Assembly and we are seeking the Lord’s guidance for his replacement.

East Midlands Becky Nicholls our administrator will be going on maternity leave from mid March. Becky Hardiman will be covering Becky’s maternity leave. All contact details for the administrator will remain unchanged.

Northern At the end of August John Singleton retires from full-time ministry. John has been the NBA’s Regional Minister: Mission Enabler for almost 10 years. He has encouraged the churches as a missional pastor and played a pivotal role in the developing of mission team exchanges with Lithuania and Texas. We wish John well in these final months of service to the NBA and in his new calling known as ‘retirement’.

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Communications Amanda Allchorn Head of Department

Introduction “ …so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty” (Isaiah 55 v 11)

At the start of 2012 two staff from The Baptist Times newspaper joined the

Communications Department. Our new Baptist Times Online Editor, Paul Hobson and Creative Resources Coordinator, Alex Baker are featured in the Staff News section. The team is now busy amongst other things with the countdown to Assembly, developing the new Baptist Times website and creating Just Imagine resources. One of the passages that I have returned to often recently is Isaiah 55: 10-11

“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”

I hope this is an encouragement for you all – that as God speaks through us we can be assured that his word will not go unfulfilled.

Just Imagine (Home Mission Project) Online Giving and other new resources Online Giving (NEW!)

Breaking news! For the first time we are providing the opportunity for people to give directly online to Home Mission via the BUGB website. Those that give to your church are of course already giving indirectly to Home Mission but from time to time we know people like to make extra or one-off donations. So for six months we are piloting online giving to see what the take up might

be. By using Just Giving we are keeping administration costs down to a minimum and will update you later in the year on how this has gone.

Sermon Outline ‘Outrageous Grace’(NEW!)

A new sermon resource for busy ministers, treasurers and secretaries is now available online. Mark Woods, former editor of The Baptist Times, has created these helpful sermon notes especially for those pushed for time!

Just Imagine DVD The 2-minute DVD has now had over 1100 views on YouTube! If you have not yet used this, do visit www.youtube.com/ baptistuniongb Baptist Assembly 2012 (London, 4-6 May) Podcasts – Assembly Guests

This year we’ve produced some pre-Assembly podcasts featuring speakers and guests who’ll be joining us at this year’s event. The podcasts are proving to be very popular and can be found at www.baptistassembly.org. uk/information.asp?id=1027 Session and Day Conference Tickets

Don’t forget that it is not too late to book tickets for specific sessions and the Day Conferences! Why not make a day or weekend of it? If you cannot come to the whole event why not mix coming to the Assembly with taking in one of the London sights?

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The Baptist Times Paul Hobson Online Editor

The last ever printed edition of The Baptist Times came out on 20 January, a special, commemorative issue looking back on its 156-year history. A service of thanksgiving at Baptist House on 10 February followed, attended by a number of former editors and staff. It was an occasion to focus on the role of the newspaper in the Baptist world; and though difficult to quantify, a reminder that it has been used by God to nudge, provoke or inspire in countless ways.

Notably the service looked forward as well as back. The Baptist Times may have dramatically altered its make-up but it remains, attempting to engage and inform in ways that are appropriate to how people consume their news in the 21st century.

Much has happened since that last edition.

The first thing we did was to bring the daily sweep of news from the web, produced by the BUGB’s Communications Department, under The Baptist Times name. The Baptist Times Daily News Sweep provides a mix of Christian news and views from every Monday to Friday, as well as highlighting key events in the calendar. It’s a free service which is growing, now topping more than 1000 subscribers.

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We then launched a weekly newssheet, the first of which went out on 25 January.

Another free service, The Baptist Times Weekly News Round-up is emailed to more than 5200 people every Wednesday afternoon and provides a snapshot of news and opinion from the denomination, including notifications of baptisms and deaths. Part of the rationale was to keep in touch with any former subscribers to the newspaper who are not online, so we ask recipients to consider printing it out. We have been buoyed by the response and thank

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everyone who has taken the time to do this.

Others are using it in ever more creative ways: incorporating it into their notice sheets and church magazines; even subscribing to their Kindle via Amazon.

The most ambitious part of the post-print landscape of The Baptist Times is the new website. At the time of writing (late February) this had not yet been launched; by the time of publication (April) it should have been.

We aim to bring daily, updated news, both from around our churches, but also the wider world, nationally and internationally. We aim to provide insightful comment from people within the denomination, and where appropriate, outside. We hope it can become a forum for debate (one feature is a Mailbox, the online equivalent of the letters’ page), and we are gradually stepping up our use of social media. A good dollop of history and job advertisements are all part of the mix, as are Baptist bloggers. Video and audio are planned. In this digital world the ultimate aim is to connect and resource, to celebrate how God is moving in our midst, flag up concerns; in short to serve the Baptist family by promoting both the independence and interdependence that characterises it.

We hope you can take a look and encourage others to do so!

To sign up for The Baptist Times Weekly News Round-up or The Baptist Times Daily News Sweep visit www.baptist.org.uk/news/newsemail-newsletters.html Visit www.baptisttimes.co.uk

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Just Imagine

Home Mission supports, equips and empowers

Just Imagine… what could happen if there was the opportunity to start all over again.

For over 150 years a Baptist Church was based in the current buildings. Sadly, over the years, a gradual decline led to the church becoming untenable. In conjunction with the Eastern Baptist Association a decision was made to close the existing church and plant another. Whilst many considered this to be a resurrection of an older work, in reality it was something completely new.

I was asked to lead this new work that started in March 2009. The obvious downside to a new venture was that there’d be no-one else to blame for our mistakes but ourselves! The considerable upside was that we could build firm Word and Spirit foundations, establish a new culture of expectation, and be open to all that God had for us.

Starting from scratch had implications in many areas including finance. We are in receipt of Home Mission funding that has been a key part of our financial provision for the past two years and, we trust, for the immediate future. Mission Project grants have also enabled us to facilitate specific ideas, particularly in multimedia. My role at Beacon is currently part-time.

In 2011 we were so encouraged to see two people come to faith, both of whom were baptised and two further baptisms followed in November. The Harvest Fun Day for the community brought in about 100 adults

and children who are not part of our regular congregation. An after-school club started last year and regularly sees about 10 children and three mums stay each Wednesday. Connect Groups enable folk in the church to receive and contribute in a smaller group setting during the week. The attendance at the most recent baptism was our highest to that point at 66, though it was topped at Christmas with 80 people of all ages. More regular numbers on a typical Sunday morning are now over 40.

Visitors are always welcome!

We have been particularly challenged to see church as much more than the Sunday morning service. Church is people, and our times together need to be ‘God Friendly’ so that he is free to act as he wishes. Our corporate times do not follow a conventional pattern but are open to what God is saying on that particular occasion. Such flexibility was built in at the beginning and is one of the major benefits of starting something completely new.

At the very beginning God impressed on me the need to see the church as a well, providing life-giving water to which thirsty people can come and drink. Some are only with us for a week or two. Others come from time to time or make longer term commitments. Like the huge sheep farms in Australia that are too large to maintain a fence around the flocks, and where the farmers sink wells to attract the sheep instead, we seek to ensure that God’s refreshment is always available.

Our vision is to Connect with God – Equip the Church – Transform a Generation.

Please pray for us, visit us and check us out online at www.beaconcentre.net Jonathan Squirrell, Minister Beacon Community Church

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Just Imagine

Home Mission supports, equips and empowers

Just Imagine... helping to share the Good News with migrant workers through your giving to Home Mission

My name is Ania Talalaj and in March 2009 God gave me the opportunity to move to Herefordshire to work as a Polish speaking pastor/evangelist with the Mission to Migrant and Seasonal Workers. With the help of a grant from Home Mission, the Mission was set up in cooperation with three Baptist churches in Gorsley, Hereford and Ross-on-Wye to provide support and to share the Good News with migrants coming to the UK from Eastern European countries like Poland, Romania, Bulgaria and Latvia. My passion is to help migrants to know Jesus and help them to deal with the everyday problems they face living in a foreign country. The most common ones are loneliness, a sense of inferiority, language barriers, discrimination, frustration and depression, lack of care and hope, and uncertainty about the future.

As a Mission we provide help with integration into a foreign culture, including learning English. We organize drop-ins with conversational English classes. We help practically by partnering with other agencies like the council, police and NHS to provide health care and support for migrants. We also provide spiritual and pastoral care, and share the gospel by organizing evangelistic events like Polish Alpha Courses, individual meetings and home visits.

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Regularly we make farm visits to build relationships and friendship, and share the

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gospel. We join with the NHS medical bus to provide medical care for seasonal workers, we also organise trips and provide Bibles and Christian literature.

Besides the seasonal workers employed on farms, we work also with the permanent Polish community. We support people with problems like homelessness, unemployment, alcohol addictions and family problems. We work also with children and youth. Last year we had Romanian Pastor Narcis who came for two months to help in mission among the Romanians.

We plan to invite him to come again this year for a few months and he may start a Romanian Christian fellowship in Ross or Gorsley.

I am really thankful to God for the last three years of ministry among Eastern Europeans, for all that He has done among migrants, for all the miracles we see that have changed and transformed the lives of these people. Thousands of Eastern European migrants get the chance to hear the gospel and they are more open to the gospel here than in their own countries. The Polish Church was planted in Hereford and is growing. We meet twice a month and we are a mission-oriented church with a strong aim to reach other Eastern Europeans for Christ. More and more people have come to Christ and we have experienced miraculous healings, delivery from addictions, and family relations have been restored after domestic violence. God is working in an amazing way bringing salvation to these people together with healings, freedom and hope for the future.

Jesus told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. (Luke 10,2) Ania Talalaj, Pastor/Evangelist with the Mission to Migrant and Seasonal Workers Heart of England Baptist Association

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Finance Philip Putman Head of Department

Introduction The year end accounts for the many charities and companies which the Finance Office staff administer are almost all complete. The staff are always available to assist churches and ministers with many topics ranging from loans and gift aid to pensions and deposits.

Taxation queries are often forwarded to the Honorary Taxation Advisor, Philip Cooke, and many of the frequently asked questions appear in this, and every issue of Transform.

2012 Home Mission Stipend The Trustees fixed the Home Mission Stipend for 2012 at £20,000, an increase of 1.78% on the 2011 Stipend.

The Manse Value used in the pensionable income calculation for ministerial members of the Baptist Pension Scheme was set at £6,000 from 1 January 2012.

Deposit rates The Baptist Union Corporation currently (from 1 April 2012) pays interest at 0.90% on money deposited by churches in the Baptist Union Loan Fund. The current rate can be found on the Union’s website in the Finance & Legal area. The deposits assist the provision of loans to churches, and are welcomed by the Corporation.

Loan rates The Baptist Union Corporation is willing to lend at 3.80% (from 1 April 2012) to churches buying, extending or renovating buildings or manses, subject to suitable repayment arrangements being in place. This rate is also subject to change in line with national interest rates. The current rate can be found on the Union’s website in the Finance & Legal area.

Mileage rates During 2011, the Government announced an increase to the recommended mileage rates as from 6 April 2011. For the first 10,000 miles in each tax year, the rate is 45p and for mileage over 10,000 the rate is 25p.

Charity Numbers Many churches assume that as they are in membership of the Baptist Union they are able to use the registered charity numbers for the Baptist Union Corporation and the Baptist Union of Great Britain. This is not the case. Churches that are regarded as ‘excepted charities’ under section 3(5) of the Charities Act 1993, as amended by the Charities Act 2006 do not have a charity number at all, and should quote the Charities Act reference above.

Those churches that have registered due to their level of income should quote the number issued to them by the Charity Commission.

Church Accounts – Pension Note The triennial actuarial valuation for the Baptist Pension Scheme has now been signed off. The pension note that appears in church SORP accounts has therefore been updated. The updated note can be found in the revised ‘F7 Charity Accounts with income over £250,000’ leaflet on the Union’s website and is also available from the Pensions Office and Finance Office.

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Finance

Compiled by Philip Cooke FCA, Honorary Taxation Adviser to the Baptist Union Gift Aid relief claims: Some churches continue to receive instructions from HMRC (usually contained in a remittance advice) to submit future Gift Aid relief claims on a tax year (to 5 April) basis, rather than a financial year-end basis.

HMRC has apologised that this is still occurring but it seems that they are unable to over-ride the system. In the event that you receive such an instruction do please get back to the originating office and make clear that it has been agreed that Baptist churches are regarded as unincorporated associations for tax purposes and, if necessary, reference should be made to their Stephen Maudsley for confirmation of this.

Handing over PAYE tax and NIC deductions to HMRC: HMRC are now able to use the banking ‘Faster Payments’ service so that if a church is set up for internet banking it is now possible to make periodical payments of PAYE and NIC deductions etc by this electronic means.

Class 1A NICs: Churches are reminded that Class 1A NICs (which arise on certain taxable benefits) have to be reported on form P11D(b) not later than 6 July following the end of a tax year, payment being required by 19 July (or 22 July if paid electronically). Penalties are imposed for late filing and payment.

PAYE coding notices: Churches (as employers) are also reminded that advices of any changes in PAYE codings for ministers and any other employees are now intimated on line through the HMRC (Government Gateway) link.

Tax credits helpline: The new telephone number for the HMRC Tax Credits helpline is 0345 300 3900.

Online filing of Ministers’ tax returns: The online filing facility for ministers’ self assessment tax returns offered by Keytime continues to be available at a very attractive price. The website link is: www.keytime.co.uk/ministers/ In completing your tax return you might find it helpful to refer to the Self Assessment Guidance Notes for Ministers - document F13 on the BUGB website.

Housing allowance: I apologise for being repetitive but there are clearly still some church treasurers who do not appreciate that a housing allowance is simply additional pay for tax purposes which must be included with stipend for the purpose of computing PAYE tax and NICs. The only circumstances where payments in respect of housing are not classified as ‘earnings’ are: (a) where a property owned by a minister (and spouse if jointly owned) is leased to the church for use as a manse under an agreement which provides for the payment of an agreed rental; or (b) where a property is leased by a church from a third party tenant for use as a manse.

In the case of (a) the rental income received by the minister (and spouse if the property is

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jointly owned) will be treated as income from property for tax purposes which must be shown in their respective self assessment tax returns along with a claim for any allowable expenses, such as loan interest and property maintenance costs. In the case of (b) the lease must be in the name of the church and not the minister.

Beneficial loans to ministers: HMRC has announced that the ‘official rate of interest’, which determines whether loans made to an employee give rise to a taxable benefit, will continue at 4% for the tax year commencing 6 April 2012. This means that where loans are made to a minister or other employee, either interest-free or at a rate less than 4% pa then, to the extent that the outstanding aggregate balance at any time exceeds £5,000, a taxable benefit (reportable on form P11D) will arise on the whole of the total amount outstanding calculated by reference to the difference between the ‘official rate’ and the rate actually charged (if any). The benefit also attracts a Class 1A NIC charge.

Church corporation tax returns: It appears that HMRC are again in the process of issuing random requests to churches to complete a corporation tax return. This is done in order that they can check that a church is not in receipt of income which might be taxable, such as trading income.

Whilst this is somewhat irritating, especially since I am not aware of a single instance where any such liability has been exposed, it is necessary to go through the motions of making a return, which now has to be done online. Please refer to section 12.5 of my

Taxation Guidance Notes for Churches & Ministers (document F5 on the BUGB website)

for further guidance.

Manse accommodation for a part-time minister: The official view of HMRC is that the tax exemption relating to the benefit arising from the provision of manse accommodation for a minister of religion applies only in the case of a full-time minister. However, in a number of situations where a minister has been appointed on a ‘part-time’ basis, simply because the church is unable to afford a full-time stipend, I have successfully contended that the minister is nonetheless required to be ‘on call’ to members of the congregation on a 24/7 basis, and the church must therefore provide accommodation accordingly. There could, however, be some difficulty in a situation where a part-time minister has another occupation which might prevent him or her from being available to meet the needs of the congregation at all times.

PAYE system - proposal for real time information (RTI): Significant changes in the way in which employers report tax, NIC and other payroll deductions are due to come into force in 2013. Instead of providing information to HMRC after the end of a tax year, RTI will require employers to tell HMRC about the tax, NICs and any other deductions when or before payments are actually made. Such information will be reported by internet using the Government Gateway or, transitionally, through Elecronic Data Interchange (EDI). It is intended that all employers will be using RTI

by October 2013, though most will be using it

by April 2013.

RTI is intended to: • make the PAYE process simpler and less burdensome for employers and HMRC; for example by removing the need for the end of year return (P35 and P14) and 25

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Finance simplifying the employee starting and leaving processes • make PAYE more accurate for individuals; over time reducing the number of bills and repayments sent after the end of the tax year • enable HMRC to pursue late payments more effectively • support the payment of Universal Credits • reduce Tax Credits error and fraud HMRC are currently consulting on the detailed implementation of the proposed scheme so final details are not yet available, but it does seem that they are determined that RTI will be operational in the 2013-14 tax year. The following link: www.hmrc.gov. uk/rti/employerfaqs.htm will take you to a an information sheet on the HMRC website which provides a more detailed introduction to this project and further information will be provided in Transform when it becomes available.

These notes are issued for general guidance only. The author or publisher cannot accept responsibility for loss occasioned to any persons acting or refraining from action as a result of material contained herein. If you are in any doubt about the correct treatment of any matter you should seek further professional advice. I am, however, prepared to respond to questions of a general nature on a similar ’no responsibility’ basis and my email address is: philipjcooke@aol.com. In order to prevent e-mails being treated as ’spam’ please state under ’Subject’ the name of your church plus the words ‘Church tax enquiry‘.

Important deadlines to watch: • 19 April - Final remittance of PAYE, NICs and other payroll deductions (22 April if paid electronically) • 19 May - Filing of annual PAYE return (forms P35 & P14) • 6 July - Filing of forms P11Ds & P11D(b) • 19 July - Payment of Class 1A NICs (22 July if paid electronically) • 31 October - Final date for filing self assessment ‘paper’ income tax returns • 31 January - Final date for filing self assessment online income tax returns Taxation Guidance Notes: The Taxation Guidance Notes for Churches & Ministers (document F5 on the BU website) have recently been updated.

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Legal and Property Issues Linda Holder Manager of the Baptist Union Corporation

Introduction We are often encouraged by the great work done by local churches – and delighted when projects are successful. We are also here for the frustrations and difficulties to offer help and guidance. Most of our ‘help’ can be accessed through our guideline leaflets but if you cannot find the information you need please contact us by email bucorporation@baptist.org.uk.

We were sorry to see Louise Wilkins leave us at the end of January. Louise had been our Property Officer since August 2008 and has left to take up a promotion to the role of Governance Officer for the Methodist Church.

Caring for Historic Graveyard Monuments English Heritage has published new guidance on caring for historic monuments.

It is intended for anyone interested in or responsible for the conservation of monuments, memorials and sculptural elements within a churchyard, burial ground, or cemetery. It provides guidance on best practice for the assessment, planning and implementation of conservation work to monuments as well as legal frameworks and statutory duties.

It is available on the English Heritage website and is called ‘Caring for Historic Graveyard and Cemetery Monuments’.

Public Screenings of the Olympic Games Churches that are planning to organise screenings of the Olympic Games on their premises need to note the following BBC conditions. The screening must be via a television aerial (not via satellite or cable) and the church

must hold a television licence. The BBC transmissions must be received and shown simultaneously with their transmission by the BBC, in their entirety, without any cuts, alterations, modifications, interruptions or superimpositions. In particular, all credits, or messages must be broadcast in full.

There can be no imposing of any other commercial messages into or over the broadcast. No charge may be made to view the programmes.

Baptist Churches as Companies We stop short of recommending a company structure for Baptist churches, since we believe there are difficulties in balancing the requirements of Company Law with the core characteristics of a Baptist church. However, in response to demand from churches we have prepared a set of Memorandum and Articles that resonate with Baptist patterns of church life. We do not claim that the document is perfect, nor that the balance we have achieved is entirely satisfactory.

The M&A is available from Jenny Smith at the BUC solicitors, Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP Jenny.Smith@anthonycollins.com . Churches interested in considering a company structure for their church should read BUC guideline leaflets: C29 Churches, Charities and Incorporation C31 Creating a New Church or

Organisation C36 Using the Memorandum and Articles of Association.

Churches may wish to wait until the new CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation) legal structure is available so that this alternative structure can also be considered. We are hopeful that this may be more suitable.

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Legal and Property Issues Commission will only allow new charities to register as CIOs initially in order to manage the flow of work. The timetable for existing unincorporated organisations who want to become a CIO is not yet known.

Marriage Certificates for New Church Buildings It has been brought to our attention that a certificate for a place of worship for the solemnization of marriage only applies to the building itself and not the land upon which the building stands. If a church were therefore to erect a new building which is completely separate to the old one and plan to hold marriages in the new building, the church need to make an application for the new building to be a place of worship for the solemnization of marriage.

Metal Theft This is a national problem. Sadly Baptist churches are affected especially by the theft of lead from roofs. Various organisations are encouraging government to tighten the regulation on the sale of metals. Would you like to write to your MP in support of this idea? There is guidance on the Church of England Churchcare website, including the key points to mention. www.churchcare.co.uk/building. php?CDOD

Redeveloping Church Premises – Information for Property Trustees The holding trustees for church property invite churches to provide information about proposed redevelopment of church property or manses before work starts. We want to help churches and to point out some of the potential pitfalls. Much of the information a church needs to consider is in our leaflet B04 Redeveloping or Altering Church Premises.

There is a list of our requirements on pages 3 & 4.

We have normally requested paper copies of plans, copy planning permissions, budgets and other details, but if churches would prefer to send the information by email, this is acceptable.

BUC Guideline Leaflets Guideline leaflet C28 Registering as a Charity – Postal Applications has been withdrawn because it is no longer possible to register with the Charity Commission by post. All applications must be made online. Guideline leaflet C27 Registering as a Charity Online has been updated to reflect changes that the Commission have made recently to the online application process.

Guidance on security measures is available on the Baptist Insurance website: ‘A new era in the fight against metal theft’.

There is also useful guidance from English Heritage – but remember if your building is listed and lead or other metalwork is stolen substitute materials cannot be used without specific consent. The English Heritage guidance is called ‘Theft of Metal from Church Buildings’.

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Safeguarding Alan Elson Safeguarding Administrator

Introduction This is my last Transform ‘slot’ because I retire at the end of April. I hope you have found it helpful – it is certainly a challenge to produce a digest of quite complex issues without losing the main point. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who undertake those vital jobs that aim to protect the most vulnerable people in our churches.

Please note that from the date of my retirement my email address will close down – the new address is safeguarding@baptist.org.uk I will be temporarily replaced by Mave Whitchurch; Mave will not be able to work full time because she will continue with her present job in the South Eastern Baptist Association. It is important that all safeguarding issues and questions are initially directed to your regional minister who may be able to help you before making a decision about referring to the office here in Didcot.

Protection of Freedoms Bill You will all be aware that we are now in a time of change over the legislation – at the moment we have no new guidance to offer you but please keep an eye on future editions of Transform. It is especially important that those who are not on the mailing list for this magazine receive a copy of this page, otherwise your church will be following out of date rules and procedures. Please advise them to go to www.baptist.org.uk/transform where they can read Transform online as well print copies for reference. You may find it helpful to log on to this website to keep up to date with Government information www.isa.homeoffice. gov.uk/default.aspx?page=299 Portability/Continuous Monitoring The CRB have been consulting about the shape of the proposed portability arrangements.

These will allow employers to access a central database to check if an applicant’s Disclosure has changed since it was issued. Details of

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how the new system will operate will not be known until the Act is passed and guidance is issued. The proposed system will be largely electronically-based but if people do not have email or, for other reasons, do not want to use an electronic system, the present paper based system will continue.

CAS Form A new version of this form which must accompany every application for a Disclosure that is being submitted through the Churches Agency for Safeguarding is now available on the BUGB website. It is printed on both sides – the back has tick boxes that relate to eligibility for a Disclosure. Please start to use this as soon as possible. There are also revised guidance notes for verifiers and applicants.

Training We are producing a DVD for your church to use; the DVD is level 1 of a three-level programme of training in child safeguarding. The DVD is aimed at the whole congregation so that everyone is aware that safeguarding is everyone’s business.

Levels 2 and 3 of the training will be available to you through your regional minister. People will have to undertake all the training levels if they are in ministerial, or other leadership or trustee roles. The programme is designed as a progressive course so one should not attempt to ‘skip’ levels.

Safe To Grow website Work is still progressing on this development and we hope to have the site available later this year.

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Events National Mission 22-23 May: Youth and Children’s Workers’ Residential. King’s Park Conference Centre, Northampton.

Cost: £90 per person, including all meals and overnight accommodation in en-suite rooms.

Theme: A space for Allsorts: Rediscovering the Church for all ages.

Speakers: Mark Griffiths and Sian Hancock

For more information and to book, see www.baptist.org.uk/events.html or contact the Mission Department on mission@baptist.org.uk or 01235 517713 Please book early - this helps us with our planning, prevents us from making unnecessary cancellations, and saves the Union from incurring last minute expenses. We appreciate your help and look forward to receiving your bookings!

Please note - some venues have limited space, and places may fill up before the closing date listed.

Regional Central

30 June: Association Assembly at Loughton Baptist church, Milton Keynes. Main speaker is the Revd Dr Nigel Wright of Spurgeon’s College on ‘Living Well in a Universe with Meaning’.

15-17 October: Annual Ministers Conference, High Leigh. Ian Randall to lead a Quiet Day on the Tuesday; additional guests speakers will be Steve Chalke & Sheila Martin.

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Eastern A pilot Core Leaders’ training takes place in the Spring.

16 June: Youth Activity day for 11-13 year olds at St Mark’s College, Audley End. Contact daniel.beckett@godmanchesterbaptist.org or secretary@easternbaptist.org

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23 June: EBA Assembly at Hadleigh, Essex. See website for further details www.easternbaptist.org.uk

East Midlands 21 April: Association Day & AGM at Retford BC, Nottinghamshire. Keynote speaker: Revd Glen Marshall (Tutor at NBLC).

28 April: EMBA Safeguarding Training Day at New BC, Burton upon Trent (10:0016:15 with arrival from 09:30).

25-28 May: ‘Big Hearted Evangelism Tour’ in EMBA with Chris Duffett. For further details please see the EMBA website www.embaptists.co.uk 16 June: INSPIRE at Osmaston Road BC, Derby (18:30-21:30). Event run by 18-30’s to inspire and encourage 18-30’s in EMBA churches.

Heart of England The coming months will see our Regional Ministers leading strategic Conversations for groups of churches in Cannock (17 April) and Ross-on-Wye (24 May), as well as Sunday night Celebrations in Leamington Spa (24 June) and Dawley (2 September).

16 June: HEBA’s AGM & Gathering will be spending time reflecting on the larger ‘Futures’ discussion ahead of the BUGB Council meeting at the end of that month.

Northern

26 May: NBA Assembly at Stockton

Tabernacle with Revd John Boyers (Chaplain to Manchester United and Sports Ambassador Chaplain to SCORE).

North Western 14 June: AGM, The Resource Centre, Wigan.

16 June: One Summer Knight, Camelot Theme Park, Lancs. Young people’s event (8-14 years).

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14-16 September: Impact Young Peoples Activity Weekend, Quinta, Shropshire.

South Wales 15-16 June: Momentum – running the race. The Baptist Assembly in Wales will be held in Carmarthen. The South Wales Baptist Association are part of this Assembly together with the Baptist Union of Wales and BMS World Mission. This is a gathering of Christians from across Wales, to worship, fellowship and share the Word with one another. More information is available on the website: www.baptistassemblyinwales.org West of England 15 March: Leaders of Larger Churches Gathering, Counterslip Baptist Church, (10:0015:00).

16 March: Pastoral Leaders’ Day with Rick Lewis: Mentoring Future Leaders, Clevedon Baptist Church, (10:00-15:30).

26 May: Pastoral Leaders’ Day with Stuart Murray Williams: Simply Church, Horfield Baptist Church.

31 May: WEBA AGM, (14:00), venue tba.

Yorkshire 2012/2013: 7 Deadly Sins of Women in Leadership. Following on from the huge success in Leeds, the programme is running in the Kirklees area during 2012 and 2013. Some financial support is available to folk from YBA churches who wish to book places. Further details and booking information is available at www.on-course.co/7deadlysins.

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The new Baptist Union of Great Britain Directory 2012 is now available to buy from the BUGB Online Store. Price ÂŁ16.

Go to: www.baptist.org.uk/store-admin to order your copy.

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