Diocese of Liverpool
archdeacons’ visitation news Spring 2016 - issue 14
How do we serve the Diocese of Liverpool and make a contribution to every parish’s mission? Our (three new and one experienced) Archdeacons have been grappling with that question as they work through their new roles in our diocese. As they get acquainted with the needs of around 50 or so parishes in their areas, they are looking at how to balance their legal and ecclesiastical duties with a strong desire to make a contribution to the mission of every parish. Roger Preece, Archdeacon of Warrington and St Helens, said: “We want to be Archdeacons who remove obstacles and help solve problems that are blocking
parishes working well in their local mission. We want to think practically and strategically about growth and how the desire to make a bigger difference in terms of community impact can be delivered”. Our Archdeacons need to be involved in many ways – from supporting the crucial area of parish appointments and vacancy to answering questions on PCC rules or Team Councils. They do this supported by St James House staff and working closely with our excellent Area Deans, but ask for patience as they work this role out.
As Pete Spiers, Archdeacon of Sefton and Knowsley, explained: “Every request for advice can be a learning opportunity and we thank you for your patience as we try to respond”. Supporting the leadership role is important. They want to support all ministers, lay leaders, those in teams and those seeking out leadership roles. They want to enable the development of ‘superparishes’, the use of interim ministry and discipleship as our diocese works to be fit for the mission of being a bigger church making a bigger difference. Jennifer McKenzie, Archdeacon of Wigan and West Lancashire, added: “We want to be responsive to the needs of parishes, but also try and ensure some consistency across our areas. We want to be courageous and willing to have difficult conversations when needed and to be encouraging in recognising and celebrating the wonderful work that goes on day in day out in all the parishes of our diocese”. So as they work out what being an Archdeacon fit for the mission of the new and evolving roles means, they all look forward to meeting wardens, clergy and sidespeople at this year’s visitations. As Ricky Panter, Archdeacon of Liverpool, states: “Are we doing a good job? It is too early to judge, but we welcome all ideas and advice as to how we can use our experience to be of support to all our parishes. We look forward to continuing to learn and grow and become more useful as a team as we increase in experience and strengthen our relationships on the ground”.
Produced and printed by
From left to right: The Ven. Pete Spiers – Archdeacon of Knowsley and Sefton, The Ven. Jennifer Mckenzie – Archdeacon of West Lancashire and Wigan, The Ven. Roger Preece – Archdeacon of St Helens and Warrington and The Ven. Ricky Panter – Archdeacon of Liverpool.
www.ecclesiastical.com/church
How safe are your safeguarding practices? In 2016 safeguarding must be high on all our agendas. This is because every diocese in the country is being externally audited to see where our processes need improving. It will be as thorough as any Ofsted inspection and will take place in our diocese in early July. Some dioceses already audited have not come out too well, particularly over how policies are actually implemented at parish level. We all know how easy it is to approve a policy at the PCC and then it gets left in a cabinet somewhere and is not properly implemented.
That is where ‘Safeguarding Matters’ comes in. All parishes received a copy of that diocesan policy document last year. We hope your PCC has examined it thoroughly. We have, in Su, Ruth, Helen and Debbie, a diocesan safeguarding team who are seriously good at assisting parishes to get this right. They have a lot of additional work to do as the Goddard Enquiry gets underway. But if you have any concerns about local practice, please make use of their expertise. Proper recruitment processes must always be followed and training accessed for all clergy and lay volunteers in how to be vigilant in keeping everyone safe. For more information go to www.liverpool.anglican.org/ safeguarding
Every welcoming church must be a safe place where vulnerable children and adults are protected, knowing that they will always be treated with appropriate respect and dignity. Because we are welcoming and open our doors to all comers, it is absolutely essential that we have boundaries in place to minimise risk, especially for the most vulnerable.
Superparishes could make us Fit for Mission
reducing clergy numbers. Many of our existing teams still run on the model of a vicar or part of a vicar caring for a small parish in relative isolation from the neighbouring parishes.
As Archdeacons, we have continued the conversation based on the “Fit for Mission” paper from last year to look at how the ideas could become realities.
Roger added: “We would love to see this change. We know it takes a generosity of spirit and a willingness to look beyond the church building we have been attending for worship as ‘our church’. It will mean pooling financial resources and using them for the best result of the overall new combined parish. We will need to think and pray carefully about this!”
Archdeacon Roger explains: “We would love to see the creation of some larger parishes that can bring together a number of parishes into one structure. A shared leadership team of ordained and lay, paid and unpaid, would work together to lead ministry across the whole of the enlarged parish”. The advantages would be: having a diverse leadership team with different gifts providing potential to develop specialist ministries such as children, youth, business chaplaincy or care for the elderly allowing centralised support for the whole superparish, such as administration enabling skills and other resources to be shared more widely
having care already in place when clergy vacancies come up being able to do more mission activities and develop new congregations. In the past, Team Ministry has not really been about creating teams, it was simply joining separate parishes because of
We want to keep a diversity of worship styles and encourage the creation of new congregations that can bring new people into our churches. In Fit for Mission, Bishop Paul used the example of the way in which cathedrals work, with multiple congregations all being supported from a cathedral chapter of ministers who all work together to share the leadership of the whole community. The new superparishes can work a bit like this. The Archdeacons are working closely with a number of visionary clergy and teams of parishes to explore ideas around how to create these new parishes.
Serving our customers We survey you, our church customers on a regular basis to make sure we are continuing to deliver the service you have come to expect from us.
St. Mary’s, Radcliffe
There when you need us The end of 2015 was a traumatic time for many of our customers in Cumbria, Lancashire and Yorkshire. Extreme bad weather and floodwater caused by Storms Desmond, Eva, and Frank devastated many communities including their churches. In total, 70 churches we insure were badly affected by floodwater, often many feet deep. At times of major incidents like this, our claims team pull out all the stops to provide quick and effective support to affected customers. This includes sending out our specialist claims handlers to meet customers, assess their situation and help with any immediate needs, such as providing emergency funds or securing alternative accommodation. We also use the services of loss adjusters who work closely with us to help churches after major events. In this case we brought in our specialist restoration partners Richfords Fire & Flood who sent in an expert team from Cornwall, more than 400 miles from the affected areas!
A sensitive response to Boxing Day misery St. Mary’s, Radcliffe, Greater Manchester, is a Grade I listed building dating back to the 13th century. On the morning of 26 December 2015, the nearby River Irwell burst its banks,
Recovery after a flood If the worse happens and you are flooded make sure you: contact our claims team on:
0345 603 8381 for specialist advice on drying out, cleaning up and repairs
swamping the church along with hundreds of nearby properties. The flood water, at its peak, was waist high in the church so we sent in our specialist cleaning teams who started work to clear-up the devastation and with the help of our documentation specialists, we removed, for restoration, the delicate books, records and other artefacts that were damaged. According to Rev Hayden: “Everyone (at Ecclesiastical) has been amazing; they’ve taken away a huge amount of the pressure. Ecclesiastical and their partners have gone over and above what I would ever have expected – they’re so sensitive to working in a church building – it’s made our life much easier as a result.” Flooding in your church and associated properties can cause inconvenience and heartache to your church community. It’s impossible to fully flood-proof your church properties, but there are some simple actions you can take to reduce the damage a flood may cause on our website at www.ecclesiastical.com/churchflood
take photographs of flood damage be aware that flood water could be contaminated keep any damaged items until our claims team say it is ok to destroy them. We will work with you to get your building back in use as soon as possible.
If you’ve called Ecclesiastical with a church query you will have spoken to our friendly customer service team. The team only deal with church insurance and are on hand to give you expert support no matter what the question. Out of all the customers we surveyed, we were delighted that 98% (684 responses) were satisfied with our service.
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Of course, how we handle claims is critical for our church customers and we were very pleased to see that satisfaction with our church claims handling in 2015 is now at 99% (393 responses) of all settled claims we surveyed. To back up our customer satisfaction scores, we were also delighted to be awarded Corporate Chartered Insurer status which means that we have been recognised for our professional commitment, service and ethical approach that places clients’ interests at the heart of the service we provide.
The wisdom of crowds Situated in a beautiful rural setting on the Isle of Man, St. Mark’s church needed to raise £9,000 to install an LPG gas boiler and convert an old WC into a disabled toilet and shower room. Alongside traditional fundraising events, the PCC decided to turn to social media, using a crowdfunding website to invite people to pledge a donation. They were unaware just how successful the approach would be, as the crowdfunding not only quickly met its target, but led to a number of other benefits too.
Looking for new fundraising ideas for your church? We were overwhelmed by the number – 424 – and quality of entries to our fundraising competition last year. There were so many great ideas that we wanted to share some of the most innovative with our customers.
For a crowdfunding appeal, charities have to offer something in return to thank their supporters. St. Marks’ offered the ability to use a shared space that would be for everyone, not just the church. The idea caught on with people from beyond the congregation, and during the TT races, the vicar was even interviewed on local TV as the church offered the new space as a refuge for bikers visiting the island. The space is now used by a range of organisations beyond the church, including
local cyclists and motorsports groups, as well as the Isle of Man Post Office, which uses the hall for business meetings. A social media campaign to promote the crowdfunding got St. Marks’ noticed further afield, and the parish is now forging a relationship with the Trustees of St. Omer’s Trust in Liverpool who are keen to provide escape breaks for family groups. It has brought the local population together too, a priceless achievement in such a rural community. The World Wide Web has made all the difference to this global village. Find out about our 2016 Community use of Church Buildings competition and how to enter at www.ecclesiastical.com/ churchcomp
© Peter Killey www.manxscenes.com
We are committed to supporting the churches that are at the heart of so New many communities across the country fundraising and so we have made 25 of these ideas ideas available to read or download on our website. The ideas include the winning entries but also those judged to be most helpful to churches looking for new ideas. Read just one of these ideas opposite. Plus, we have analysed all the entries and picked out the top tips for organising and publicising events. To see all the case studies, please visit www.ecclesiastical.com/ fundraising
Emily Draper, Stonemason Emily originally trained in Fine Art and is an incredibly driven and interesting individual, who does not fit the stereotype of a traditional stonemason.
Emily Draper
She is a stonemason at Worcester Cathedral, where she is in year three of a five-year course. She is employed by the Cathedral and is on a degree course sponsored by Ecclesiastical under the auspices of the Cathedrals’ Workshop Fellowship (CWF).
architecture, archaeology, structural engineering and practical conservation techniques, for just less than two years. Also included is a ‘tailored’ personal development programme, which the course graduates have all found highly valuable.
The partnership between nine cathedrals and the University of Gloucestershire has been supported for the last four years by Ecclesiastical. The students are nominated by their cathedrals and they study a range of work-based subjects, including ornamental carving, stone selection and geometry,
With HRH The Prince of Wales as its patron, and Ecclesiastical’s support, the Fellowship’s immediate future looks positive and thanks to the CWF the nation will continue to produce master stonemasons whose traditions reach back over a thousand years, yet whose eyes are firmly on the future.
Allchurches Trust (ATL) Supporting the Church of England Baptism and Funeral projects ATL provides support to many churches and charities through its grant programmes and also helps support some large special projects. One example of a special grant is for the Church of England funerals and baptisms projects which are aimed at increasing the engagement of the church with these key life events. You can read more about these projects below.
Let’s talk about death GraveTalk, the Church of England’s café space to talk about death, dying and funerals, was launched through the Funerals Project and is making a big impact across the country. It is organised by the local church and can be held in a hall, a home or a real café. At each event, a pack of GraveTalk questions are distributed – there are no answers, just conversation. And it’s open to people of all faiths and doubts. The Rev’d Mark Salmon successfully introduced it in Harlescott and said: “Marking space for people to remember loved ones and talk about death through GraveTalk is becoming part of the life of our parishes – we look forward to making this a part of our long-term pastoral care plan.” Sandra Millar added: “The taboo of talking about death is coming under challenge and the Church of England is well-placed to be part of that momentum.” If you’d like to know more, visit www.churchsupporthub.org/ article/gravetalk
Keeping in touch The birth of a child and the death of someone we love couldn’t be more different in the spectrum of human life experience, yet they’re both significant moments when the ministry of the Church of England can really make a difference. Baptism and funerals have been the focus of two major projects of the Archbishops’ Council, supported by a grant from Allchurches Trust. Extensive, independent research into these life events and offering specially produced resources to support ministry across Church of England parishes lies at the heart of the work. Every year the Church of England conducts over an average of 3,000 funeral ceremonies and 2,000 child baptisms every week. Together with weddings, this offers contact with half a million people each week – a huge opportunity show the welcome of the church and God’s grace and truth, in times of joy and celebration, as well as in moments of sadness and grief. The Rev’d. Canon Dr Sandra Millar, Head of Projects & Developments, and her team have been presenting to dioceses
all over the country, sharing all that’s been learned through the research and explaining how the new resources can help. Sandra said: “Being there for people at every stage of life is at the heart of parish ministry, whether it is discovering the good news of Jesus at the start of a life, or realising the comforting presence of God in times of sorrow. Reflecting on how we approach these core ministries can make a real difference to the local church.” There are two new websites for the general public: www.churchofengland christenings.org, and www.churchofengland funerals.org which offer information and advice to those organising and/or attending a baptism or a funeral. And www.churchsupporthub.org offers churches the research findings, access to customisable printed resources, plus shared ideas and articles, all in one place. There’s even an online reminder system, www.pastoralservicesdiary.org to help churches keep track of services, related finances and to follow up with contacts already made – a key driver of church growth. For more information, and to find an event near you, visit www.churchsupporthub.org
Following a Baptism project presentation in the Diocese of Durham, Curate Bryony Taylor, from Houghton-le-Spring, wanted to share her experiences via the Church Support Hub website. She was inspired to learn that 9/10 people say they welcome contact from the church after their child’s baptism but churches could do better with staying in touch over the longer term. She said: “People do actually want what we’re offering, they do want the good news, but we’ve been hiding our light under a bushel for too long. Keeping in touch need not be complicated or time consuming, so I decided to share some really simple, low-cost things we’d done to keep in touch with families in our parish.” See Bryony’s Article here: www.churchsupporthub.org/ baptisms/articles
To find out more about Allchurches Trust visit www.allchurches.co.uk or call 01452 873189 or email atl@allchurches.co.uk
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Keeping up to date Don’t forget our Church Matters website has a wide range of information, guidance and tools you can use to help you look after your church.
We can also insure your home! Just call us for a quote on 0800 917 3345 or go online at www.ecclesiastical.com/ churchworker
Full of risk management guidance and useful information, you can quickly find out about important topics like health and safety. Many customers also now get regular updates by email – just let us have your email address if you too would like to be updated in this way. For further information:
Our website: www.ecclesiastical.com/church
Customer services: call 0845 777 3322 or email churches@ecclesiastical.com
Claims: call 0845 603 8381 (24-hour service) or email churchclaims@ecclesiastical.com Our customer service lines are normally open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, except for bank holidays. However, claims can be registered at any time during the day or night.
Building Works Made Simple Churches call us all the time for advice about works they are having planned so we have introduced another in our Made Simple guide series to provide help and advice about the insurance implications.
Arson advice for churches from Loyd Grossman OBE We have enlisted the help of Loyd Grossman OBE, Chairman of The Churches Conservation Trust, to present a new video for us on the major disruption that arson can bring to churches and their communities. Arson poses a major security challenge for church communities. Fires can be started deliberately, either by arsonists or thieves concealing their crime and churches are often viewed as a soft target. In the event of a serious fire, a church may take 2-3 years or more to fully restore causing major disruption to services and other church activities. Loyd explores these issues and provides some practical tips to reduce the risk of arson affecting your church. Visit our website at www.ecclesiastical.com/churcharson to find out more and also download our arson checklist.
The guide sets out when you need to contact us and the issues that might arise, such as different types of contract, hot works and scaffolding. Our website also includes simple forms to complete where you need to apply for confirmation of insurance cover to get faculty approval and for you to tell us about more significant building projects. Just visit www.ecclesiastical.com/madesimple where you can view this and the other guides in the series.
website www.hse.gov.uk explains what clients need to do and you can find out more in our Building Works Made Simple Guide.
The Construction (Design and Management) (CDM) Regulations 2015 Don’t forget, if your church is employing a contractor you have duties under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. The Regulations aim to protect the health and safety of people working in construction and others who may be affected by their activities. The Health & Safety Executive (HSE)
Independent Financial Advice Do you need help with your finances? Ecclesiastical Financial Advisory Services can offer you totally independent financial advice on investments, retirement and protection. They can also help parishes who have funds to invest. Please note, the value of investments can fall as well as rise and past performance is not a guide to future performance. For more information call: 0800 107 0190 or email: getadvice@ecclesiastical.com
Leading the way with interim ministry In November 2015, the Church of England enacted a new regulation that allows clergy appointments to be made on an interim basis. The Diocese of Liverpool is pioneering this form of ministry and it is already proving advantageous as the church faces increasing challenges of low numbers in attendance, funding and available clergy. Our ability to take the lead on this initiative and effectively appoint vicars on an interim basis is bolstered by the experience that Archdeacon Jennifer brings from The Episcopal Church
where she has both studied and served in interim ministry roles. We are further helped by a task group that has undertaken practical study of the interim option, basing their work on a report by The Revd. Chris Jones who studied the American model. Consulting with Archdeacon Jennifer, the group has produced a paper for guidance in our diocese as we continue to make interim appointments. This covers ideas around:
When would we appoint an interim priest? Turnaround situations in ‘fig tree’ churches which might go either way Pastoral disruption or breakdown, significant conflict or pastoral trauma Significant change on the horizon such as pastoral reorganisation, viability, Parish Share or building-related issues Following long incumbencies Helping a church to die with dignity
Rediscover what it means to be a disciple of Jesus
The defining characteristics of interim ministry Timescale: typically for 12-18 months F ocus: while attending to the liturgical and pastoral duties of parish ministry, the primary focus is the transition, the neutral zone of a church in vacancy S hared ownership: successful interim ministry depends on shared ownership between the congregation, the interim priest and the diocese P rocess: interim clergy lead the church through a five-stage process of ‘holy conversations’ which typically explore heritage, leadership, connections, mission and future Outcomes: the interim minister thinks and works backwards, his or her ministry being informed by some established outcomes and working to realise those goals. There are a few churches currently served by interim clergy; others might also benefit from such an appointment. Our greatest challenge in making interim appointments is a lack of available trained interim clergy, a challenge we are facing by developing training modules and recruiting potential candidates for this specialised ministry. We believe that this is not a stopgap but a vitally important ministry that helps churches and parishes discern the right future for them under God.
looking after the building, caring for those in need, developing a programme for young and old and ensuring we have enough money coming in to achieve all this. This requires a lot of effort, usually by a small group of people, and can consume all our energies to keep the show on the road. We have forgotten that our role is to make disciples. The plural of disciple is church. The biggest challenge facing our churches at the moment is to reach those who don’t yet know Jesus for themselves. We will only do this when we all accept the call to live out our Christian faith so that we will make a difference in our homes, workplaces and communities. Jesus is calling us to love God with everything we have and to love our neighbours as ourselves.
Soon after Jesus began his ministry, he began to call people to follow him. People like Andrew and his brother Peter. They became his disciples and watched how Jesus dealt with people, listened to his teaching and parables, experienced the ups and downs of his life and got to know him very well. After his resurrection, he sent them to share all that they had seen and heard with all peoples.
The call to follow Jesus as his disciples remains today. This is not supposed to be an extra activity, but an essential component of being a Christian. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus says that He will build His church on Peter, and then soon after says that if any want to be his followers, they should deny themselves, take up their cross and follow him. Instead, all too often, we have tried to build the church by planning worship services,
All too often, someone comes to faith in Jesus but doesn’t grow as a disciple. We find them a job to do in the church rather than a ministry in the world. We rightly invest lots of resources into ordained ministry, but not nearly enough into laity. We forget that every Christian is in full-time Christian ministry! We know that churches grow when they are intentional in making disciples. If we want to be a bigger church so that we can make a bigger difference, we will need to re-discover what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.
“The conference parishes needed” Has your parish signed up for the Parish Giving Scheme? This modern, tax-efficient way of managing giving to your church is tried and tested by several dioceses. It will: d ramatically reduce the time your Treasurers and Gift Aid Secretaries need to devote to administration give you regular and speedy payments and returns from Gift Aid offer an easy way to tackle static giving. The Parish Giving Scheme allows all who currently give by standing order, envelopes or loose on the offering plate to plan and manage their giving through a Direct Debit. Interested? Then go to www.liverpool.anglican.org/ parishgivingscheme for full details.
More than 250 delegates from across our diocese packed into the Select Stadium in Halton for our Making it Easier Day 2016. Participants included churchwardens, PCC Secretaries, Treasurers, Gift Aid Secretaries and other current or potential PCC members who took the opportunity to access the experts from St James House and get up to date on what we can offer to Make it Easier to run your parish. Bishop Paul opened the event by reflecting on his experience as a churchwarden’s son, emphasising how these roles are all ways in which we can make a bigger difference. Around thirty diocesan staff took part, alongside guest speakers Luke Tatum and Stephen Borton from Diocesan Registry in London, and Neil Pugmire, Communications Adviser to the Diocese of Portsmouth and author of the recently updated book 100 Ways to Get Your Church Noticed. Between them they ran 33 well-attended workshop sessions throughout the day on themes ranging from welcome to working with children and young people, from getting
your church noticed to safer recruitment, and getting the best from your buildings to managing finances and legal basics. There was a great buzz on the day, and our team gathered first impressions that people felt the event was informative, with delicious food and friendly staff at the venue. Peter Gladney, a Reader at St Peter’s Birkdale, wrote after the event: “Just to say a huge thank you to all who organised the Making It Easier conference. Excellent input, excellent organisation and excellent food! This is just the sort of conference that parishes need – hope you will repeat it in the future”.
It’s easy to set up and manage. All the PCC needs to do is pass a resolution to start the scheme and show leadership by joining and encouraging others to join.
Keep up to speed Knowing what’s going on in this busy world is vitally important. Stay on top of the news by signing up to the weekly bulletin. Go to the website: www.liverpool.anglican.org to add your name to our list of over 3,500 subscribers.
Whilst Ecclesiastical has used reasonable endeavours to ensure that the information in this newsletter is correct at the time of publication, please note: (a) the information is not intended to constitute a definitive or complete statement of the law on any subject, (b) the information may over the course of time become incorrect or out of date; and (c) neither Ecclesiastical Insurance Office plc. nor its subsidiaries can accept any responsibility or liability for action taken or losses suffered as a result of reliance placed on the information provided in this newsletter.
For more information call 0345 777 3322 email churches@ecclesiastical.com visit www.ecclesiastical.com/church
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