St Mary and St Nicholas with All Saints, Leatherhead MEETING OF

St Mary and St Nicholas with All Saints, Leatherhead
MEETING OF PARISHIONERS
and
ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING
Wednesday 29 April 2015
7.45pm for 8.00pm
in the Parish Church Hall
AGENDA
7.45
Coffee will be served
8.00
Meeting of Parishioners
1. Prayers
2. Apologies
3. Election of Churchwardens
Annual Parochial Church Meeting
1. To confirm Minutes of the last Annual Parochial
Church Meeting on 30 April 2014 (available at the
end of this booklet)
2. a) Report on the Financial Affairs of the Parish and
Appointment of Independent Examiners
b) Outward Giving Budget Allocation in 2014
3. The Electoral Roll
4. Report on the Fabric, Furnishings, and Ornaments of
the Parish Church and All Saints Church
5. Report on the Proceedings of the Leatherhead
Deanery Synod
6. Report on the Proceedings of the Parochial Church
Council
7. a) Election of Assistant Churchwardens co-opted
on to the PCC
b) Election of Representatives to the Leatherhead
Deanery Synod
c)
Election of Representatives to the Parochial
Church Council
8. Election of Sidesmen
9. Rector’s comments
10. The Grace
REPORTS BY KEY AREA OF MISSION
1 WORSHIP
Music in Church
Choir
Gina Eason has now been our Organist and Choirmaster for over two years and we are enjoying
working with her and I think we have all benefitted from her musical leadership, not least the
many pieces she has composed or adapted to fit our numbers and which we sing regularly
during the communion.
This last year our numbers have been depleted on a number of occasions due to illness, injury,
bereavement, family commitments etc, and it is greatly to the credit of those remaining that we
have been able to keep going. I would particularly like to thank Richard who regularly plays the
organ for Evensong on the first Sunday of the month as well as leading the bass section.
Once again, we combined with singers from the URC and Methodist churches and other guest
singers for the Service of Nine Lessons and Carols and contributed to a memorable service.
We would love to welcome new choir members. We are a very friendly group and enjoy our
singing. If you are interested please speak to Gina or any member of the choir.
Anne Thomson
The Contemporary Worship Bands
During 2014 and 2015 the Worship Bands have continued to provide music at two monthly
services, the All Age Communion service and the ‘New Fire’ service at the Leatherhead
Methodist Church.
The Music Group, with support from Gina Eason on the organ and recorder, has led worship at
the 1st Sunday ‘All Age Communion’ services, mixing contemporary worship music with
traditional hymns. Jay Bristow and the Youth Band have continued to lead ‘New Fire’ providing
contemporary worship on the 4th Sunday evening each month.
Contemporary worship music was also included at the Nine Lessons and Carols service, the Crib
Service and on other special occasions by various members of the worship bands.
The pool of musicians and technicians available to provide the music twice a month remains
small and the worship bands would welcome any new members who might wish to join in
making and leading contemporary worshipful music.
Doug Waters
Bell Ringers
This last year has been dominated by the sad death of Anne Parr. Anne was a good friend, a
loyal and devoted member of our church as well as being a reliable, competent bell ringer for
over 50 years. September saw the Leatherhead ringers visiting Kent, starting at Wye and
following the course of the River Stour finishing at Canterbury, ringing at several churches on
route. We had a great day with good weather. Although we are managing to ring each Sunday
for the 10.30 service with at least 6 bells ringing, we do need more recruits - FOOD FOR
THOUGHT?
This year, we plan to run an "Open Day". 9 May has been decided for this - details will be
posted nearer the date.
I would like to thank all members of our band for their loyalty, specially Ann Steed, and Mike
Todd for arranging & conducting 1/4 peals, and keeping us and the tower "up to scratch".
Peter Ford
Tower Captain
Swan Handbells
The Swan Handbells team continues to enjoy playing music together. We are now in our
fifteenth year. Our aim is to produce programme of music which can be used to entertain
various groups, homes and hospitals in our vicinity. Christmas is our busiest time when we
enjoy playing well-known carols as well as introducing other Christmas music into our
repertoire.
The New year starts with new music – this takes some commitment from each member of the
team as we aim to produce a high enough standard for including into a Summer programme to
play to an audience – this takes time and a lot of practice.
Our team is at full strength as we have been lucky to attract a new member who has fitted in so
well- and can read music!!. We are hoping to invite you to an “open evening” in June, when
you will be able to hear us play.
Beverley Mehta
2 GROWING AS DISCIPLES
Some marks of Christian Discipleship are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Becoming lifelong learners, eg through Bible Study, small groups and other teaching
Exercising faithful stewardship - using our time, talents and treasure for the building up
of God's Kingdom
Developing a fervent prayer life
Being committed members of our Church Family, through faithful and mutual fellowship
Being passionate worshippers
Evangelism: spreading the good news of the Gospel to other people
Small groups are part of our continuing journey of faith and three small groups continue to
flourish in homes around the parish. They provide fellowship and mutual care with the
opportunity to study the Bible, pray together and discuss issues of faith. Sharing our faith
journey is encouraging and helps us to grow both personally and in faith. Small groups have
been meeting weekly on Monday afternoon, Monday evening, and Thursday evening. I am
thankful to the group leaders for their continued commitment to these groups and for using
their gift of leadership to serve in this way and also to the group hosts for their hospitality.
New members have joined the groups during the year and are always welcome – I would
encourage you to consider joining a small home group.
The Ecumenical Lent groups in 2014 were again well attended with participants studying a York
Course followed by a shared a meal during Holy Week. Feedback from course participants
suggested that the ecumenical mix of people in groups was greatly appreciated; it created
interesting discussions with differing perspectives. Also the good leadership enabled an
atmosphere of trust and confidentiality so that everyone felt able to participate and to share
personal experiences. The shared meal was felt to be a good way of rounding off the fellowship
enjoyed in the groups.
At the end of July an Ecumenical group of adults and children joined together to attend New
Wine – a Christian Conference held on the Bath & West Showground in Shepton Mallet,
Somerset. There were many interesting seminars some of which can be found on the New Wine
website www.new-wine.org plus excellent worship, Bible study and prayer. Why not come along
in 2015?
Linda Hauxwell
Children’s Church (Sunday Club) for 3 -13 year olds (flexible)
This has been a year when not everything has gone to plan. We weren’t expecting Lorraine to
not be on our teaching staff for the year. And we weren’t expecting Chris to still be in post after
July 2014. And we thought we might have a Children and Families worker by now.
So . . . God has a plan but it isn’t always clear at the time just what that is or how to arrive at
it.
Thank you to our teachers: Chris Stagg, Carol Bristow, Julian Rickard, Juliet Campbell and
Dani Follett for your creative sessions.
Teaching material it seems went out of the window years ago and now the internet provides a
wealth of ideas in all formats from Youtube to pinterest. We have looked at the Fruit of the
Spirit and the Parables.
Thank you to all our helpers: Di Gale, Patricia Hodgkinson, Ruby Lam, Alex Hearley, Jonny
Follett, Katie Rickard and Katy Hedges.
Janine Stagg continues as the co-ordinator with Di and Katie taking on the Safeguarding Role.
We have an attendance of between 3 (sun shining) and 10 children from our membership of
20.
Some youngsters have moved up to the Youth Group, some have outgrown the system and
choose to stay at home. We have amalgamated the crèche and Children’s Church due to the
babies becoming toddlers so have two groups for under 5s and over 5s. However the unknown
quantity of how many children will turn up and how to teach a 5 and 10 year old at the same
time – remain a challenge.
The children have continued to demonstrate their spirit of giving by bringing food items for the
Foodbank on a weekly basis. (Thanks Mums and Dads!)
The Admission to Communion Course concluded on 6 July 2014 when Liam Potter-Turner,
Frankie Potter-Turner, Maddie Bleackley, Andrew Hearley and Isabella Hedges were admitted to
Communion.
December saw the annual Christingle service and the Crib service as probably the best
attended service of the year with a larger congregation than last year and all ably stewarded by
an effective team. The children decorated a Christmas Tree for the Tower with hand-coloured
baubles displaying alternative names for Jesus such as ‘Rose of Sharon’ and ‘Prince of Peace’ –
decorative and educational.
‘Messy Church’ monthly at the Methodist Church continues to attract around 50 children plus
parents. Dani Follett and Sheila Cole help out on the planning team.
Chris has been able to deliver the talk at some All-age services and Jemima, Kate, Danielle
and Lucy attended a server training day.
We are currently over staffed for the number of children who attend so we are looking
for some creative thinking to present a service pattern which appeals to fringe
attendees.
This year we interviewed three candidates for the position of Children and Families worker
though the one applicant offered the post later declined as she would have found it hard to
nurture her own faith outside the 10.30am service when she would have been ‘working’.
So we are a happy team with a family feel but we now need a big dose of enthusiasm from
everyone for children and family worship which will welcome those who have yet to make
this their spiritual home.
But . . . with God . . . all things are possible.
Chris Stagg
Sunday Club leader
3 EVANGELISTIC OUTREACH and 4 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Outward Giving and World Mission
We are pleased to report that we were able to send £5,000 to local worthy charities.
Jane Summerfield
On behalf of the Outward GivingTeam
The Parish Church Parent & Toddler Group (under 5s with an adult)
Sadly, Ann Vince who has been on the committee since it was formed following Janine and
Jackie's steping down in 2011, has also had to step down due to work commitments. She still
helps out in the background though as she is very fond of the group. She is sorely missed. This
does mean that from a committee of five, it is now just me, although I have a stong team of
helpers. I am happy to continue in this way for the moment but the Parish Council should
consider if they are happy with this arrangement too.
Despite putting the price up last September, the toddler group has inexplicably suddenly gained
drastically in popularity, our largest attendance being 57 (the Christmas special - Jay is an
excellent Santa!) and averaging 40 every week. We have been extremely fortunate that a
number of Mothers’ Union and church members have stepped forward to help with the
refreshments, as, with the increase in numbers, this was causing a problem. We are of course
also indebted to Janine for all her behind the scenes work.
We have started to try to get a newsletter out every half term or thereabouts and we try to
advertise and highlight any activities we think our members may be interested in eg,
Christingle, Messy Church, Children's Church etc. I understand that this has translated into
numbers attending Christingle and Messy Church, whether it will filter through to Children's
Church has yet to be seen.
Katie Rickard
Family & Children’s Work
Messy Church
Attendance dropped slightly in the summer term, but has been very healthy for the last few
months, with numbers of children ranging from 45 to 60 per month. We are seeing a wide age
range, with a lot of under 5s, but still a healthy number of school-age children as well. We meet
new families each month and feedback remains excellent.
Since September, we have been exploring prayer, covering Praying to Say Thank You, Praying
to Say Sorry, Praying to Say Please and Praying to Say Help! We finished the series with a
session on the Lord’s Prayer in February. Our Easter session will be on 19 March, when we will
explore the key events of Holy Week and discover that the cross and the empty tomb are more
important Easter symbols than bunnies and eggs!
There are currently ten team members from Leatherhead Parish Church. We would always
welcome more and at the moment we especially need people who can help in the kitchen (3pm
to 5:30pm) or clearing up (5:30pm to 6:30pm).
Dani Jordan has joined the leadership team and her ideas and enthusiasm are greatly
appreciated. Over the last year, Alex Hearley, Kate Hearley and Danielle Potter-Turner have
joined the team as craft helpers. Carol and Jay Bristow are taking a more active role in leading
the Celebration.
And we all really appreciate Kuhan’s ability to engage in pastoral
conversations while demonstrating that adults can enjoy creativity as well!
All three partner churches have now contributed £400 to our funds. This puts us in a healthy
financial position for the rest of this academic year and next.
I was interviewed recently about our Messy Church for a Guildford Diocese project on Fresh
Expressions - look out for that as and when it is published.
Jane Smith
Christian Aid
Since the May 2014 Christian Aid Week the large URC Christian Aid team has decided to retire,
as no one could be found to be their organiser and many had indicated that after years of
collecting they no longer felt able to continue. Instead they ran a fund raising quiz. In 2015 we
will do what we can door to door and at the station and in the town but we too have had a
dearth of younger volunteers.
Frank Haslam 379341
Christian Aid Leatherhead
Leatherhead Parish Fair Traders
We have had an expanding twelve months since last March. Leatherhead Methodist Church
now has a monthly Fairtrade Stall, and the Parish Church Fairtrade stock is supplying Christ
Church United Reformed Church for their monthly Fairtrade Stall. This means increased sales,
but also increased expenditure. However, we are hoping that by the end of March we shall be
able to send at least £150 to Traidcraft Exchange: the charity which gives advice and support to
farmers and producers throughout the world, investing in people and their communities, giving
them the skills and confidence to trade their way out of poverty to help them grow more, earn
more, and eat more. We shall also send the contents of the collecting boxes on the stalls,
which in previous years have produced about £20, simply from customers asking us to “keep
the change”. In addition, between 4 January and 3 April 2015 the UK government is doubling
every pound given to such charities.
According to the Fairtrade Foundation over 4,500 products, from coffee to flowers to gold, are
Fairtrade certified, so wherever you shop, please look for the FAIRTRADE Mark.
One in three bananas bought in the UK is Fairtrade and it makes a huge difference to thousands
of farmers, workers and their families. British consumers and companies choosing Fairtrade
sugar sent more than £5million in Fairtrade premium back to sugar cane smallholders last year.
In addition to a wide variety of food our stall also sells washing up liquid made with fairly traded
palm oil, and rubber gloves, indoor and outdoor, made in Sri Lanka from fairly traded rubber.
We also sell recycled paper and plastic products such as washing up brushes and kitchen
scourers, and part of the profit is given back to the charity by the manufacturers, so we help to
save the planet at the same time as helping smallholders overseas!
Come and take a catalogue to find out how many products are waiting to be bought: toys,
jewellery, cards, even clothes. And by buying through the stall you will save postage. We look
forward to seeing you.
Margaret Jones
Leatherhead Youth Project Ltd
The 10th year that LYP and its fantastic team of youth workers have continued making a
difference to the young people in our community, as described in the many activities listed
below.
After long discussions and many years of working really closely together LYP and Liquid
Connections agreed to combine their youth work activity under the LYP banner. Whilst this
seamless transition has been hardly noticeable to the young people it has meant that LYP gains
two experienced youth workers in Joe and Jude Crome who have joined LYP as full time
employees.
Lucy Greenland has left LYP to pursue new opportunities and will be missed by many especially
the girls on the Duke of Edinburgh scheme.
Sadly Dr Margaret Birtwistle, a Director of LYP for nearly 10 years, passed away very
unexpectedly just before Christmas. She will be greatly missed by all at LYP for all the help and
support which she provide to the organisation.
AllSaints Coffee: LYP launched the AllSaints Coffe Shop and Sandwich Co. Social Enterprise,
with a full time Manager and 2 apprenticeships in November 2014. Due to the level of demand,
over 2000 cups of coffee served already, the number of apprentices has already been increased
to 3.
Fantastic Support has been given by Exxon Mobile, Wates, Four Gables and the Community
Foundation of Surrey in getting the enterprise established. Please continue to support AllSaints
to get your great coffee and food and at the same time help to make a difference for the young
people.
Freestyle: 46 young people attended Freestyle in 2014 and took part in swimming, skills
workshops such as graffiti and cooking, and other team building activities during the 4 days
away.
Aspire: LYP’s route to work project, has worked with over 50 young people, creating CVs for
each young person, finding jobs or apprenticeships for 18 young people during 2014, and
achieving 15 AQA awards for young people.
Dig-It: Has held working sessions at the allotment every Saturday morning through the year,
helping the young people to grow a selection of vegetable including cucumbers, tomatoes,
potatoes, chillies, salad and herbs. The produce is then used in BFree as part of the 5 a-day
cooking sessions on Fridays.
BFree: the centre of all of LYP’s activities and its youth work, continues to be well attended and
used with up to 1000 visits by the young people each month, with Oli having taken over the day
to day running. 12 young people have taken on the running of AllSaints when BFree is open
being trained as Baristas, in customer service and food hygiene.
Lads Night: attended by over 30 young men and virtually self-running, has started a social
action programme called ‘Making Good’ where 15 of the young men are carrying out projects to
serve the local community.
Duke of Edinburgh Scheme: 8 young people have completed their Silver Award and
collected their certificates at the award ceremony this September.
7 more young people completed their Bronze and have now started their Silver award
and will be completing this year.
Miss Bliss: Miss Bliss girls group has started again for the year. The group currently
targets year 7-year 9, with the first session being about friendship.
Secondary Schools Work: The one-to-one work in Therfield has resumed for the new
term. Jude is currently in school every Friday with her caseload currently around 18
students and she sees 6-8 every week.
Total Football: Total Football is led by Martin who is in his second year of study on a
Youth Work degree course with Oasis College London. Total Football attracts a number
of keen footballers who enter a league and enjoy playing on the Astroturf at Therfield
School.
Triumph AM: Jay and Dave Tearall continue to do a great job hosting Triumph AM
every fortnight. Around 16 young people join in at BFree for fun activities, develop
their faith and always have a delicious hot chocolate!
Tuesday Cell: A weekly cell group on Tuesday nights hosted by Jay and Carol
continues with support from Martin. Many faith topics are covered after enjoying a
meal together and there’s always time for prayer.
Youth Alpha: We have just finished our ten week youth alpha course with the group
of young people who came to Romania in August. For a number of those who attended
this looks to have been an incredible start to a lifelong faith journey.
Early Intervention Mentoring Scheme: A team of 6 ‘coaches’ led by Jay, provide
individual support to a child at Trinity School for one hour a week. The aim is to
provide support for both behavioural and pastoral needs. The school have seen many
benefits from the scheme and are very positive about the intervention offered by LYP
and the committed volunteers from both the Parish and Methodist Church.
Forest School: Jay leads forest school sessions at Trinity School for young people in
years 2 and 5. Forest School offers children the chance to discover and learn in an
outdoor environment, building confidence, resilience and self-esteem.
KIC: This is a Friday night group for Kids at Primary school giving them a safe place to
meet with friends with lots of fun activities. These sessions are held at the Bridge
Youth Club in North Leatherhead.
Awards:
Total Football won the High Sheriff Youth Project of the Year award at Surrey Sports
Awards in December, and was recently showcased at the High Sheriff Awards at
ExxonMobil. It was also awarded a certificate of commendation from the National
Crimebeat Awards for preventing youth crime.
Leatherhead Business Awards – All Saints/LYP, Runner up in the Social Responsibility
Category
Doug Waters (Chair of the Board of Directors)
Leatherhead Youth Project Ltd, Company number 4484589
Registered Charity number 1096397
Jay Bristow
Church Projects Manager
Leatherhead Youth Project Limited
5 PASTORAL CARE
Pastoral Team
The Pastoral Care Team are busy behind the scenes. Services on a regular basis happen in the
Beeches, Dorincourt and Seeability. Our housebound members have Communion, visits or
phone calls and they receive Christmas and Easter cards from the Parish.
The lunches are still happening on the 2nd Sunday for those who are on their own.
Please let any of the Team know of anyone who is sick or in Hospital so that we can visit or help
out.
Sheila Cole
Mothers’ Union
This has been another interesting and busy year. Some meetings were serious and others fun.
• We heard about life in a non-Christian Country.
• How much work is involved in being a Church Warden. We also heard about Diocesan
Plans for Community Connections.
• On the fun side we had a lovely outing to see The Millenium Tapestry at Sunbury, thank
you Peter for taking us.
• We have also visited Branches in our Deanery,
• We have raised funds for The Mothers’ Union Relief Fund, The Wheels Appeal, and the
holiday scheme “Away from it all”
• After the refurbishment of The Refuge we answered their appeal for toiletries and dry
goods.
• With the help of the congregation we are able to send 10 filled toiletry bags to Epsom
Hospital, with the remainder going to The Princess Alice Hospice.
• Some members have also volunteered to help with the coffee at the Toddlers Group.
• We have established a link with a Branch in Australia and another in Scotland. So we
are very outward looking.
At our AGM our Rector very kindly attended and we were all able to take Communion.
You will receive a warm welcome if you care to join us in the Parish Hall on the first Wednesday
of the month at 2.30pm.
Evelyn Francis
Branch Secretary
The Diocesan Policy for the Care and Protection of Children and Vulnerable
Adults
In Summer 2014 Edith Wright retired from many years as Safeguarding Officer and it was
decided that this job could be shared.
Katie Rickard has taken on responsibility as validator for the DBS (Disclosure + Barring Service)
checks. She went on a training course for this in July 2014 and now ensures certificates are
current and valid. So far Katie has only had one renewal to do and no new ones. This is partly
due to the efficiency of Edith who made sure everything was up-to-date at hand-over, but also
because the new Diocesan policy requires fewer people needing one. Churchwardens, for
instance, are no longer required to have one automatically; leaders, teachers and helpers of
Children’s Church and the Parent and Toddler Group do.
Diana Gale has taken on the role as Safeguarding Officer. She attended the Level 1 course –
Basic Awareness Safeguarding Children and Young People Training – in December 2014. Sue
Lawrence, senior tutor, explained the excellent support that was available from the Guildford
Diocese, should concerns arise. The many recent scandals in the news remind us that “to do
nothing is not an option”.
Katie and Diana want to thank Edith Wright for her help and advice during the hand-over of this
role. The paperwork was well organised and easily accessible. Edith’s warm and caring
personality always shines through.
Di Gale
Safeguarding Officer
& Katie Rickard
DBS Validator
6 RESOURCES
Churchwardens’ report of the Fabric, Furnishing and Ornaments of the Parish
Church and Churchyard and All Saints, including the Churchyard - January to
December 2014
Faculties
A Faculty was prepared in June last year to allow for the completion of arrangements to open
up All Saints as a community hub and enterprise centre to harness the relationship between the
local community and the business community, and to set up a social enterprise of a coffee shop
and sandwich company.
The Faculty sought approval from the DAC and the Diocesan Chancellor to modify some of the
interior of All Saints to enable LYP to develop the provision it offers to young people by offering
a café and sandwich business open to the public between the hours of 8am and 3pm from
Monday to Saturday. It is a non-profit making ‘social enterprise’ which employs and trains
young people with limited opportunities aged between 17 and 25. The BFree youth café and
other activities of the Leatherhead Youth Project will continue to take place each weekday after
3pm as now.
The modifications made were:
-
Laying a new floor in the present café area to replace the existing carpeted area
previously installed when this area was part of the church.
Converting a room currently used as an office into a food preparation room.
The replacement of the coffee preparation cupboard and worktops with newer equivalent
furniture.
The upgrading of the electrical supply to the food preparation area end of the building.
This involved rewiring the coffee shop and offices into the new electrical spur that was
put into this side of the building in the last faculty. This also involved replacing the
lighting in the main café area.
Appropriate permissions were sought from Mole Valley District Council for food preparation and
storage. No additional planning permission was required for ‘change of use’ for this new
venture. Ecclesiastical Insurance was notified of the work to be done.
The Faculty was granted in mid August, the work completed and the new social enterprise
launched.
Repairs
We are legally obliged to carry out a regular – every five years – and detailed inspection of the
church building. This was done for the Parish Church in 2013 and the repair work began in
November 2014 and was completed in January 2015. This was managed by John Bailey, our
inspecting architect, and the work done by Pierra Restoration, following a competitive tendering
process. The costs were shared between the Friends of Leatherhead Parish Church (FLPC)
(£14,458.17) and the PCC (£3,737.60). It has been possible to reclaim £2,891.63 of the VAT
payment.
Additional repairs have included the chancel floor by the entrance to the Lady Chapel, which
was also funded by the FLPC. The work was done by Homefix and a Faculty was not required.
Other small repairs were also carried out.
More serious was the discovery by Revd Dr Kuhan Satkunanayagam of a fire in the vestment
cupboard of the Lower Vestry on the morning of 8 August. No-one was injured but it appears
that the fire may have been started deliberately. Without it being discovered when it was – and
the subsequent prompt action taken – it could have caused serious damage. The police
recorded it as an incident of arson. A new lock was fitted to the vestry in case one of the
existing keys had fallen into the wrong hands. The Fire Service recommended that various fire
prevention measures should be taken and
recommendations remain to be implemented.
fire
evacuation
drills
introduced.
These
In the churchyard a damaged and diseased ash tree was removed and some preliminary work
begun to survey and record the state of all of the churchyard’s trees. Some new fencing was
erected in the far south-eastern corner of the churchyard.
Donald Yeates & Sue Roberts
Churchwardens
Church Watch
It is becoming increasingly difficult to find people willing to do a short stint of Church Watch. In
2014 we had no cover at all on one of the days and eight people doing Church Watch on their
own. So basically we were short of around a dozen people. I am at a loss as to how to
encourage more of the slightly younger members of the community to give their time. Any
ideas?
Carole Neeser
Parish Hall Committee
Following on from my long-term service to the Hall Committee I now find myself as Chair
Person with hopefully a steady course to keep all in place till the new Hall is built! We continue
to be supported by our small but dedicated band of committee members.
Over the past year we have tried to de-clutter the Hall as well as make running repairs where
necessary such as the odd broken window etc. However we have not carried out any major
works or decorations. Yes it would be lovely to have a fully repaired and decorated Hall but
would this represent well spent value if it is to be replaced?
One thing we have focused on is to replace the majority, if not all, of the stackable chairs. The
current stocks of ‘conference’ chairs are in a bad way with staining to the upholstery and the
plastic ferrules on the legs disappearing fast. This is causing rapid wear to the Hall floor which
eventually will be damaged beyond economic repair. I would like to discuss our options on this
topic having made our selection and recommend we go ahead with this purchase without delay.
This would be a moveable asset should the need arise.
Another major topic I would like to query is our funding and where we stand. As a committee
we have no great view of what is potentially available and what we can plan. Since the
amalgamation of the accounts this has all but seemingly disappeared, could we encourage some
support from the PCC in this direction please?
Looking forward, we hope you all enjoy this precious resource of the Hall and continue to keep
it as you would your own.
Nick de Boer
Chairman
Churchyard Working Parties (first Saturdays 9am)
We usually turn out for about two hours from 9am on the first Saturday of the month, weather
permitting. We clear the bins, deal with any growth that may snag users of the paths and,
above all, clear growth from the worst affected headstones and seek out hitherto concealed
inscriptions. A major clearance has been achieved along the Park Gardens wall. Our stalwarts
are Dave Jones and Steve Gibson and we have recently welcomed Dave Sinclair. Our thanks go
to Sue Roberts for her behind the scenes help. Ladies and gentlemen who have at least a pair
of secateurs are welcome to add to our numbers for whatever time you can spare.
Frank Haslam
Church Archives
Frank Haslam assisted by Brian Hennegan has been able to assist on some archive related
queries. The Parish Office is aware of the need to file special event items such as Orders of
Service for historic occasions. The bound issues of WWI period magazines are being borrowed
by Frank Haslam from Surrey History Centre to enable extracts to be published in the current
parish magazine and in the archive section of our parish website and in the Leatherhead War
Memorial website.
The 'Archive' section of the parish website is kept maintained and kept up to date by me and is
searchable. For example all 'Parish Matters' reports can be found there. It has the following
main sections: Archive, History, Key Events, Music & Bells, People, Miscellany. It can be found
via http://www.parishchurch.leatherheadweb.org.uk
Frank Haslam
Parish Archivist
Parish Website and Social Media
The website has had quite a quiet year - usage figures are always a bit suspect but it looks like
most vistors use the calendar and the weekly parish news sheets. The other pages describing
Church life are visited much less frequently. The parish archive site run by Frank Haslam
continues to amass a record of our Church life, and there appears to be a regular flow of visitors
between the two sites.
We have started making limited use of the Church Twitter and Facebook accounts. I am
extremely grateful to those members of the Church who use social media (more than I
thought!) who have 'liked' and otherwise interacted with these pages. At present this is
basically an experiment and we will try to see what works and what doesn't, and what is most
useful.
I would also like to thank all those who have pointed out corrections, alterations, updates and
contributed material, especially pictures of church events. Such contributions are always
welcome, even if it is just to point out something that you found useful.
Julian Rickard
Website editor
Church Cleaning Teams
It continues to be extremely difficult to recruit new, younger people to help on the Church
cleaning rota. However, sterling bands of willing regulars work hard to keep the Church looking
clean and tidy and this is boosted by the now traditional Spring Clean. We are hugely grateful to
the extra helpers who joined us on Saturday 14 March and the result is a gleaming building fit
for the Easter Services.
Sue Roberts
7 ECUMENICAL LINKS
The Bishop of Guildford’s Foundation
The Bishop of Guildford’s Foundation’s key focus is to raise funds to support faith-linked
projects and groups within the area of the Diocese of Guildford. Its work is open to all, and it
gives priority to those who are most vulnerable or excluded. Further information about the
Foundation and the type of projects and organisations it helps can be found on the Diocesan
website www.cofeguildford.org.uk or www.bgf.org.uk
Cathedral Link
It has been an eventful year for the Cathedral with the Make Your Mark Campaign to raise funds
for the repairs to the fabric of the building and the organ restoration, which has largely been
achieved so far, amounting to £6.6m. The other significant event has been the recent
inauguration of the Rt Revd Andrew Watson as the new bishop of the Diocese of Guildford.
Dee Lawrence
Leatherhead Deanery Synod
The theme for our Deanery Synod in 2014 was “Community Engagement”. Andrew Mackenzie,
Vicar of Effingham and Little Bookham, who hosted the session, gave a snapshot of his two
parishes, detailing activities such as Messy Church, Fresh Expressions Café Church and the
merging of services between his two churches.
Our first visiting speaker on the subject was the Revd Johnny Douglas, an associate of the
Institute of Contemporary Christianity who had also been a minister at Christ Church
Spitalfields. Johnny Douglas’ approach to Community Engagement was that we should resist
isolation and inward looking, self preserving attitudes, create an ethos of involvement, serving
God’s world and finally encourage a concern for justice, respect and right living in our
communities. These themes were further examined in the following question and answer
session.
Our second meeting of the year took place in Leatherhead in June when Kuhan gave his
snapshot of the parish identifying community engagement and social outreach being done in
conjunction with Churches Together in Leatherhead. Particular emphasis was made on the
BFree Café and work of B@titude where a house church operates.
Our speaker that evening was the Cathedral Dean, the Very Revd Dianna Gwilliams, who
explained that Guildford, unlike some of its counterparts had no parishes attached to it. As a
result it works closely with some local parishes helping with activities such as Credit Unions and
food banks. The Cathedral enjoyed a 9% growth in attendance from the previous year and tries
to discover where the new people are based before encouraging them to join their own local
congregations. As Dean, Dianna has access to various community events where she meets
people whom a parish sometimes finds difficult to reach. She is then able to offer these contacts
to parishes where appropriate. After mentioning the Cathedral’s fundraising activities, she
commended the work done by their Community Engagement Team and the Bishop of
Guildford’s Foundation. She then challenged us on how the Cathedral could perform our parish
mission where we lacked the resources needed for the task.
Our final meeting was in September at Cobham where Robert Jenkins highlighted the parish
activities such as developing discipleship groups and the reformed Sunday Youth Club. In
addition parish involvement in a new library and community centre was part of Cobham’s
Community Engagement.
Paul Bryer, the new Archdeacon of Dorking led this final meeting of 2014. He emphasised the
importance of stepping outside our comfort zone and used Luke 5: 1-11 as an example of the
rewards achieved by doing so. The calling of the first disciples was highlighted by the
miraculous catch of fish when the fishermen put their trust in Jesus after the initial period of
failure on their own. Paul stressed the component parts of the “Common Purpose” of the
Diocese as Numerical Growth, Community Engagement and Spiritual Maturity spread over three
years. He further emphasised the value of a) a culture of mutual support and encouragement
within the diocese, b) the value of clergy working in the parishes in creating and sustaining our
vision and c) the importance of safeguarding children and vulnerable adults in the community.
The three talks in 2014 on Community Engagement have given us all a lot to ponder in the
future.
Roger Lynch
Leatherhead Deanery Synod Representative
Present:
Apologies:
St Mary and St Nicholas with All Saints, Leatherhead
Minutes of the Meeting of Parishioners and
Annual Parochial Church Meeting
30 April 2014
Revd G Osborne
Revd Dr K Satkunanayagam
Mr M Cole
Dr D Yeates
50 Parishioners
18 Parishioners
Meeting of Parishioners
The Meeting opened in prayer.
Election of Churchwardens
Martin Cole had decided to stand down after a total of 4 years as churchwarden and assistant
warden.
Two valid nominations had been received for the office of churchwarden in respect of Dr Donald
Yeates and Mrs Sue Roberts. In the absence of other candidates they were elected by
acclamation.
Annual Parochial Church Meeting
1.
Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting on 17 April 2013
The Minutes of the last APCM, printed in the booklet of reports, were approved as a correct
record.
2.
a) Report on the Financial Affairs of the Parish and Appointment of Independent
Examiner
The summary booklet issued to all attending the meeting included an abbreviated statement of
accounts. The full accounts had been displayed in church for the last two weeks and were
available on the parish website www.leatherheadparish.com or by application to the Parish
Office.
The abbreviated statement drew attention to the shortfall of regular giving against expenditure
on the running costs of the church and Parish Share to the Diocese. For every 46p given, £1
was spent. We were fortunate that the giving shortfall of £94,642 had been offset by income
from a number of sources including rents, investments, fees and legacies.
There was one question from Frank Haslam about the cost of the new website. The Rector said
that the cost had been very reasonable and he would inform Mr Haslam of the amount.
The Rector proposed from the Chair that the accounts be accepted. This was agreed
unanimously. The Rector thanked Brenda Peetz, Martin Cole and Charles Milner for their work
on the accounts and Alan Fleming for his work on planned giving and reclaiming tax under Gift
Aid.
This year, for the first time, we had appointed a professional accountant, Andrew Skilton, ACA
of Brewers Chartered Accountants, as Independent Examiner. The Rector proposed that
Brewers should be re-appointed as Independent Examiners for the coming year. This was
agreed.
b) Outward Giving Budget Allocation in 2013
The principle had been established that the outward giving budget should be 10% of income
from giving, excluding tax recovered, in the previous year. The meeting was asked to approve
the principle of 10% of giving. This was agreed.
3.
The Electoral Roll
Frank Haslam reported that the number of parishioners on the Electoral Roll now stood at 186.
4.
Report on the Fabric, Furnishings and Ornaments of the Parish Church and All
Saints Church
The Rector drew attention to the Churchwardens’ report in the booklet of activity reports. There
were no questions.
The Rector thanked the Churchwardens for their work during the year.
5.
Report on the Proceedings of the Leatherhead Deanery Synod
A report by Roger Lynch was included in the booklet of activity reports. There were no
questions.
6.
Report on the Proceedings of the Parochial Church Council
A report by the PCC Secretary was included in the Annual Report. There were no questions.
7.
a) Election of Assistant Churchwardens co-opted onto the PCC
Two nominations had been received in respect of Sheila Sutherland and William Peetz. They
were declared elected.
b) Election of Representatives to the Leatherhead Deanery Synod
Three nominations had been received for the three vacancies for the next three years in respect
of Sheila Cole, Roger Lynch and Donald Yeates. They were declared elected.
c) Election of Representatives to the Parochial Church Council
Four members retired in year in rotation. Members retiring at the end of their three year tenure
were Brenda Peetz, William Peetz, Anne Thomson and Edith Wright. Linda Hauxwell, who had
been co-opted during the year, also retired. Four nominations had been received for the four
vacancies in respect of Alison Draper, Linda Hauxwell, Brenda Peetz and Anne Thomson. In the
absence of other nominations they were declared elected.
8.
Election of Sidesmen
Navin Mehta, the Chief Sidesman, read out a list of sidesmen who were willing to continue to
serve:
Alan Acott
Angela Rive
Bill Peetz
Edith Wright
Frank Haslam
Alan Fleming
Howard Beales
Joan Leach
John Hampton
Juliet Campbell
Kay Morris
Lesley Knox
Linda Roberts
Linda Shepherd
Mike Lewis
Margaret Pickard
Navin Mehta
Pat Weetman
Patricia Hodgkinson
John Hodgkinson
Peter Humphries
Roger Lynch
Steve Whiting
Susan Beales
Veronica Kay
It was agreed that they should be re-elected.
9.
Rector’s Comments
The Rector said that the APCM provided an opportunity to look backwards over the past year
and forwards to the future.
After reviewing the events of the past year, he paid tribute to Edith Wright who had decided to
retire from the PCC after many years of dedicated service and was also looking to pass on the
role of Parish Safeguarding Officer. Edith was unable to attend the meeting but a bouquet of
flowers was being sent to her.
He also thanked Martin Cole for all his work as warden and as chairman of the Hall Committee
and presented him with gifts as a token of appreciation.
He also thanked the Friends of Leatherhead Parish Church and all who contribute in any way to
church life.
Looking to the future, the Rector outlined a five-point vision, based on the Key Areas of
Mission:
Worship
– Developing music in both traditional and contemporary idioms that is truly inspiring and
draws us closer to God.
Growing as Disciples
- Being or becoming intentionally prayerful, living out our vision and values.
Evangelistic Outreach
- Need illustrated by front-page article in the Wey, ‘Demographic Timebomb ticking’, for focus
on children and families. The PCC had resolved to recruit a full time Children and Families
Worker.
Community Engagement
- The Leatherhead Youth Project (LYP) had an established reputation for its work with
young people, especially with children at risk of becoming NEETs (Not in Education,
Employment or Training). LYP was planning to extend its activities by setting up a
separate company that would operate a full-time coffee and sandwich business, offering
apprenticeships to young people as well as being open to the wider community.
- Following Pat Weetman’s retirement as controller of the Country Market, Janine Stagg
had volunteered to run it as a community market under the aegis of the church.
-
Resources
- Concept plans had been drawn up to re-order the church and church hall to enable
these activities to be delivered. The plans would be examined by the DAC in May, and a
parish meeting had been arranged for 4pm on Saturday 7 June when the architect, John
Bailey, would be available to present the plans and answer questions.
10. Donald Yeates thanked the Rector for his ministry and leadership over the last year. The
meeting concluded with The Grace.