March PCC Meeting

Our meeting opened with a prayer from Angela, thanking God for the church and asking for his wisdom to help guide us to good decisions. It’s always good to start by remembering that it is His church, not ours!

We started our substantive business by reviewing the changes to the Mission Action Plan (MAP) that have come about as a result of the PCC strategy day in January. We agreed that these changes were a good summary of where we felt the Spirit had been leading us, and also discussed the fact that some of the “Who” boxes remained blank. We agreed that we were happy with this, seeing it as an opportunity to encourage others to serve. Watch this space!

We then looked at a proposal to turn the room that previously was used by the Fairtrade shop into storage space for our children’s ministries. This would then free up space at the back of church for orders of service, which currently need a ladder to access. We agreed that this change seemed in line with our vision and MAP, and would be a good use of the space.

Jo Newton gave an update on Safeguarding. This included that the focus groups happening after the 10am service on a Sunday had started well, and that she would report back the findings to PCC in April. We also welcomed the addition of Graham Tysoe to the team.

Lionel’s finance report focused on our long-term planning for anticipated deficits in future years. The funding from the Hall Trust has plateaued, but, understandably and necessarily, staffing costs continue to rise. We are blessed as a church with substantial reserves, so there is no panic. However, we do need to make wise decisions in the near future to safeguard the long-term financial health of the church, as well as ensuring that any “spare” money is invested in ways that align with the vision and values of the PCC. It was agreed that further research was required, and that Finance Committee would therefore look at various ways forward before bringing proposals back to the PCC for discussion at a later date.

The major decision point arising from the report from our Mission & Outreach Team (MOT) was whether or not to become an official Home for Good church. Most of the requirements for this mutual commitment (such as having a designated “champion” and engaging in regular prayer and financial support) are things that we already have planned or in place. This looked to be a framework that very closely mapped to the sort of relationship that we seek with our charitable partners. PCC was thus glad to unanimously agree to become an official Home for Good church.

Other business conducted included the official receipt of the Terrier (the list of the church’s fixtures and fittings), and the noting that Stephen Rogers has agreed to become Verger-in-Training, and has already been admitted to the Guild of Vergers.

Finally, our any-other-business included a note of thanks from the Office for the implementation of the new working hours arrangement. This has considerably reduced stress levels. With my churchwarden hat on, I would therefore like to say a big “thank you” to all of you who have embraced this change and enabled our office team to work in a more structured and organized way.

Ian Riches