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Pastoral and Fellowship Working Group and Visiting Team –
Norman Shave
The Pastoral Group is split into
three parts: The bereavement programme, the home communion team and
the home visiting team.
Bereavement Programme (Eleaner
Milne) - About
two years ago Barbara Sherlock suggested that I might like to help
her extend a scheme that already existed, to extend our mission “to
the wider community” and help people who have had to come to terms
with a death.
Whichever member of the clergy takes the funeral, advises me of the
details of that funeral. About a month after the funeral, a member
of the clergy or a member of the bereavement follow-up group will
contact the family, (when possible) to just check that they are
coping. Most people respond by saying that they are. Several are
grateful that someone from the church has thought about them.
Occasionally, there are people who are struggling with the death. In
those cases, someone else will arrange to meet up with the bereaved
person and give them extra support.T
Twice
a year, (usually May and November) invitations are sent out to the
close relatives of those who have died within that period. The
services are held on a Sunday evening and there are usually people
available after those services to talk to, if needed. Again these
services are often well attended, and frequently people express
gratitude for this opportunity.
By the
time you read this report, the final part of this follow-up should
be in place. A card has been designed to send out, on the first
anniversary, to let relatives know that we are thinking of and
praying for them. As a result of this, regular members of the 10am
service at St Mary’s will notice, that from April 2008, whoever is
leading the intercessions will include the names of people who died
(in that week) a year before. Cards will be sent to the nearest
relative of those who died in April 2007 onwards.
This
scheme is now being introduced by other members of the Epiphany
locality.
Home Communion Team (Jean Mathie):
Our
team of four have worked over the year to bring Holy Communion to
people who are no longer able to come to St Mary’s for services. We
have 16 housebound people on our visiting list at the moment. Sadly
we have lost a few of our ladies but are still adding more souls
onto the list.
Hopefully we shall soon be recruiting more people into the team, who
after training will be able to go out with communion to our friends
in the community. This service is very worthwhile, is appreciated by
the people we see and is also enjoyed by ourselves. If you know of
anyone who would like to receive communion at home please tell
Norman who will pass on their name to the team.
Home Visiting Team (Joan
Seymour):
There
are eight people in the pastoral and fellowship visiting team who
visit housebound parishioners. We have not met recently however,
after speaking to each of the visitors separately it was felt that
the scheme was working well and there were no concerns. Currently
seven people are visited, with each person being visited at least
once a month. It is felt to be a vital outreach link between St
Mary’s and the housebound. Sadly during 2007 two people on our list
of those to be visited have died.
If you know of anyone who is housebound
that would welcome a visit let Norman know and their name will be
passed on. Likewise if you would like to be a visitor please let
Norman know.
Social Group –
Sue Matthews
The Church Social Group had a full
social calendar in 2007 starting with a quiz night in March, in The
Parish hall, which was well attended. This was followed in June by a
very enjoyable “afternoon tea” with entertainment from “Pieces of
Eight” in The Parish Hall. In November a dance night was held in the
Cricket Club and this turned out to be a great evening and after a
few drinks nearly everyone seemed to develop “Dutch Courage” and had
a go!
The
Holly Fare took place in November and was very successful producing
approximately £780.00. towards Church funds. Two musical evenings
and a bridal gown exhibition were held in Church and monies raised
from these events were donated to Church funds and designated
charities.
All of these events would not have
been possible without the help, ideas and generosity from
enthusiastic members of the group, their families and of course the
congregation and community. Our thanks go to all who supported these
events and in doing so have helped to develop and nurture the
fellowship of our Church. Thank you to you all.
Events
for 2008 include an afternoon soirée in the Parish Hall planned for
May and an afternoon high tea planned for June.
Please keep your eyes open for
dates and times of these events in the Pew Leaflet and Magazine.
Production
Group – Sue Matthews
The
Production Group staged their annual performance in October 2007;
this years pantomime was Goldilocks and the Three Bears. The Group
started their rehearsals in September and met twice a week for an
enjoyable but challenging six weeks before the three performances in
October.
There
was an evening performance on Friday 26th and Saturday
27th. These performances were well attended by members of the Church
and also many people from the local community. On Saturday afternoon
The Group performed a special charity matinee performance and this
was aimed at those unable to travel at night and local care home
residents who have special transport and assistance needs. Again,
this was well attended and the care home residents were delighted
with the invitation and thoroughly enjoyed the panto. The profit
from the ticket sales went to church funds with the exception of
£100 which was allocated to “Seeds for Africa”.
The
Group believes that these performances provide fulfilment of our
mission statement and a window through which members of the
community can gain an insight into the heart and fellowship of St.
Mary’s.
I would
take this opportunity to thank all members and supporters of the
Group for their hard work and dedication and to encourage those who
are not members but are secretly dying to tread those boards, to
come and join the fun and friendship. If you don’t want to be on
stage then there is still a place for you with lots to do. We are
currently planning this years panto, Babes in the Wood so NOW’s the
time to join us. Contact either Angela Hare on 892762, Sue Matthews
on 650606 or any member of The Production Group.
The
Group would also like to thank Blakeston School and in particular
the Head Georgiana Sale for the special rates, help and assistance
they provided. This is another great example of community
organisations working together.
Mothers’
Union – Joan Maxfield
St Mary’s Mothers’ Union is a
small part of an organisation of over 3.6 million women and men
living in 77 countries who believe in the importance of families.
Besides encouraging and supporting families and marriage the members
reach out to those who are isolated, or in trouble, or in need of
help.
The 33
members of St Mary’s MU plan events which raise awareness of some of
these needs and the MU projects which our fundraising supports.
During 2007 we were able to donate £395, some of it for projects
within the diocese such as the ‘Away from it all’ holiday scheme for
the needy; and some for projects such as Literacy and Development
which transforms the lives of mothers and their families. Also,
through the MU Relief fund, money sent directly from London to an
established MU in the area of a disaster allows the purchase of
necessities more wisely and speedily.
Locally
we continue to reach out to the community –
-
North Tees Hospital: emergency toiletry packs for those arriving
unexpectedly;
-
Stockton’s homeless adults at Bridge Road men’s hostel and the
Corner House Youth Project: Christmas parcels;
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St
Mary’s Parent & Toddler group: organised by two MU members;
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Holme House Prison: one member helps Chaplaincy in discussion
groups.
We
enjoy fellowship and meet twice monthly except for summer and
Christmas breaks, and are fortunate to have many interesting
speakers to inform and inspire. Visitors are always welcome.
Additionally we meet up with ladies from other local churches.
We are
not isolated as a branch: members are able to take part in diocesan
or national events and services, widening our fellowship and
developing spirituality. All diocese, MU leaders and workers are
remembered in a cycle of prayer.
Discipleship Working Group –
Mike Rawson
At this present time the
discipleship group is an idea and an intention. Several people have
expressed an interest but the group has not been convened.
Therefore, at the moment, there is nothing more to report.
Sunday School -
Ruth Langford
Sunday
school continues to flourish and at present it is divided into a
younger group (school year 4) called Sunday school, and an older
group (school year 5) called Rock Solid. The Sunday school group
has 6 leaders working in 3 pairs rotating on a monthly basis. The
pairs are as follows:
Sue
Waller and Susanne Gardener, Karen Highfield and Carol Lumley, Ruth
Langford and Linda Harrington.
Sunday
school runs every Sunday from 10.00am except for the main school
holidays of summer, Christmas and Easter and from 9.00am on the
first Sunday of the month. During the past year there have been 35
Sunday school sessions and a total of 18 children in the under 8
years have registered (consent forms received). The average
attendance is 6 and we have a ‘core’ group of 10 children attending
more than 10 sessions and 13 have attended more than 5 sessions.
During the sessions we have used a scheme from Scripture Union which
provides a framework for us to follow using Bible stories and
introducing simple prayers and sometimes songs. There is a related
craft activity each week which the children can take home and from
time to time we display work on the notice board at the back of
Church. We have also had 2 joint parties with Rock Solid July 2007
and Dec 2007. Both proved popular with around 40 children attending
and enjoying party games, food and a bouncy castle.
Unfortunately one leader has been unable to carry on with the Sunday
School due to ill health and has recently tendered her resignation
after a run of 18 years. We are indebted to Carol for all her
efforts on behalf of Sunday school and wish to record our thanks
formally for all she has done. We also wish Carol a full return to
health in the near future. Carol’s place has been covered on a
temporary basis by all of the other leaders filling in when
available and I wish to thank all of them for volunteering and
helping out so readily. We have yet to discuss the task of replacing
Carol but hope that a more permanent arrangement will be in place by
the next academic year.
Sue Waller has stepped down as
convenor during the year and Ruth Langford has assumed this role. I
would like to thank Sue for all her work over the past 3 years as
convenor, Sue remains as a leader.
Rock Solid - Ben Shaw
In the
Rock Solid club this year we have had a good number of people
attending, our highest number has been 15 with our lowest being 4,
altogether we get an average of about 6/7 people a week. Like the
Sunday school we meet at the same time (10am) but not the first
Sunday due to the young people attending the monthly
1@11 service instead. We have a good age range with our oldest
attendee being 14 and our youngest around 10 years old. The leaders
use a resource called Rock Solid (hence the name of the club). This
is a great material, which gives us subjects that are relevant to
young people and a plan of the session. All the subjects are
biblical based, most of them with a theme or ‘life lesson’ and
sometimes some material to take home to remind people of what they
have learnt. This year we managed to take 13 young people away for
a couple of days to give them a bit of focused learning, 11 of them
came from the Rock Solid club that we run. This year we have seen
an increase in regular attendance by young people and it has shown,
we have also had new people attending.
Overall
we are pleased with how Rock Solid is going and it has a bright
future with the young people regularly attending and also some
bringing friends.
School
Connections - Norman Shave
We now
have good contact with all the main stream local schools. Julie and
I now are welcomed to do school assemblies in all the primary
schools in the two parishes. Perhaps the most significant
development since last year has been our growing relationship with
Frederick Nattrass Primary school in Norton. We have started doing
regular assemblies in the school and the new head teacher has
encouraged the school to come to St Mary’s for a Christmas service
and an Easter service. Each school has slightly different
characteristics and we adapt our approach to the particular school.
Some schools visit the Churches for educational visits linked with
the national curriculum, some like to come to Church for particular
events and some ask us to go in to join their celebrations say for
harvest. We also occasionally help with lessons.
Additionally I am really encouraged that several members of St
Mary’s continue to be involved in education as School Governors.
Sometimes governor’s meetings can be frustrating and tedious but
under current legislation governors have a really significant role.
This is one of a number of ways that we can make a contribution to
the wider community.
Norton
Churches Together and Youth Team – Ben Shaw/Sophie Yates
In
September Ben Shaw was joined by a volunteer Sophie to form a small
Churches Together Youth Team. The work with the young people of the
area is going well and has been for the last 6/7 months. The Norton
Churches together youth team has been into Red house School around
Christmas to run their year 5 Christmas assembly, both of which went
well and was great fun with all the kids involved.
We have
also continued to run both the CU and ‘Mettle’ groups in Ian Ramsey
School both with regular attendance and a good number coming to the
lunchtime CU, the highest number being 23, mostly girls but there
have been at least 2 boys. We are taking 9 of the young people away
to a Christian residential activity weekend in Kidderminster in
June. The team is really excited about the prospect of taking young
people deeper in their Christian lives and giving them a chance to
ask questions away in a more relaxed environment. We also help with
basketball at Ian Ramsey on a Tuesday afternoon with a regular
attendance of 8 and we have even set up a staff match for near the
end of next term. We help in lessons every week, again, taking some
and it is also planned to take some more just after the Easter
break. Perhaps one of the best things that has happened so far
(apart from the planned weekend away) is when we had a YFC outreach
sports team in for the day. They are a team which has a 12 foot
sports ‘cage’ and has mini football tournaments in. It went down
well with both teachers and pupils and helped with our relationships
too as we saw many of the young people we work with.
We also
work in Norton Comprehensive School. This year our relationships
have developed with both the staff and young people. We have
managed to run a few lessons over the first half of the school year
and some of the younger students have shown interest in coming to
our youth clubs. The lessons that we help in often turn into
questions about Christianity and our input is valued. We also help
out with the lunchtime basketball club as well as see lots of the
young people at break times when we are on ‘duty’. Overall we are
pleased with all of our progress in the schools and with the young
people that attend them there.
One
thing that has been a massive success this year are the youth clubs
the team run and also help with. Perhaps the best example of this
is the club that we started on a Sunday night once a fortnight which
is called ‘The Forge’ (because of where we meet). It is an open
youth club to anyone aged 11+ with computer games, card games and
general chatter happening. We have a core group of about 11 young
people who come, both boys and girls, and has proved very popular.
The other club we help with is on a Friday night and is called J.A.M
(Jesus and me). Again there is a group of about 20 young people
that come every week from different schools, churches and the
community. It was also good to see that the young people have
started inviting their friends to our clubs. We have looked at
various things at the clubs, mainly different books of the Bible and
focusing on different characters (like Job, Moses etc). We also
managed to take 13 young people away during the Feb half term to a
youth hostel in a place called Lockton. We spent a couple of days
with them giving them focused Bible teaching and also getting them
to know each other better so they can gain a support group of their
own age. We had a fun time and everybody chipped in with the
running of the weekend – cooking, washing up etc.
The
work this year has gone well, we have got to know many different
young people, started to run some new clubs and continued with the
old. The church work in St Mary’s is just as popular with some new
faces turning up at Rock Solid and again we led a confirmation
course for 4 young people. We have run lessons in both schools,
have run one weekend away with another one coming up and covered
many Christian lessons on the Bible and different characters/life
lessons in it. As a team we would like to thank you for your
continuing support and prayers over the past 6 months. As always if
you would like the monthly newsletter please let us know your e-mail
address or talk to one of us if you see us around.
Toddler Group –
Julie Shave
St
Mary’s Toddler Group continues to meet in the Parish Hall on
Wednesday afternoons from 1-3 pm. We will reach our third
anniversary in May. Some of our members have been with us from the
beginning. It has been lovely to see relationships deepening with
these adults and children. Many of our youngsters have moved on to
nursery and school during this time. This term we have been pleased
to welcome several new families including some small babies and our
numbers have grown which has been very encouraging.
We have
recently moved the craft area into the servery and Angela prepares
and oversees two craft activities in there leaving more space to
play and chat in the main hall. We continue to share a snack time
together and to finish the session with a story and songs.
It is a joy to be a part of this
ministry reaching out to families in our neighbourhood.
Emmaus and
Home Discussion Groups - Norman Shave
In
November after the autumn half term Julie and I began hosting our
third ‘Emmaus Explore Group’. Each group has different
characteristics but I never cease to be amazed at the way in which
the groups come together to learn more about the Christian faith. As
ever the group is formed from some long standing members of the
Church congregation and some who have only recently become part of
our church community. Three members of this group were confirmed in
February at St Aiden’s, Billingham.
The
present Emmaus course will continue until the summer. After that we
will be considering the best way forward. I anticipate that as a
church we will run a group for those interested in exploring faith
and something more like a fellowship group for those that are
interested. Both these groups will need members of the congregation
to help with leadership. If you are interested in either of these
options or if you have other thoughts please do have a chat with me.
Parish
Hall – John Matthews
Over the past year the Hall has
continued to thrive, with a total of 26 regular and varied user
groups and the number of occasional users is growing rapidly: in
January the Hall was booked for sixty sessions. The Group continues
to work closely with the community and Ruth Benson in particular;
Ruth works with the Stockton Parent Support Group and Stockton
Disability Youth Forum. She has also been engaged by the St.John`s
Living Well project and it is hoped that we can work more closely
and create more interaction between the groups.
Finance-:
The latest accounts for 2006 to 2007 show that there was a 19.6%
reduction in received hire fees compared with the previous year.
However, operating costs were down by 29% over the previous year
which in real terms means that the operating ratio was better and in
accountancy terms 2007 was actually a better financial year than
2006.
It has
come to light that a number of groups hiring the hall have been
claiming charitable status to which they are not entitled;
therefore, The Group has decided to clarify the conditions of hire
and monitor the booking forms more closely.
A 5%
increase in hire charges was implemented on January 1st.2008,
but this increase has been somewhat negated by the dramatic and
unexpected rises in energy costs. Therefore, The Group are
deliberating over the possibility of an energy surcharge which may
have to come into effect later this year.
The
insurance claim for the cost of the repairs and replacements
following the break in and vandalism to The Hall last year has now
been settled, our thanks go to Ken Baker for dealing with this
matter. In order to improve efficiency and control, a new system of
duplicate invoicing, cross referencing to hire periods and direct
payments by cheque to the treasurer has been introduced.
Advertising-:
In
order to encourage greater usage of The Hall, The Group have been
trialling several different forms of advertising. A Parish Hall
leaflet has been produced, courtesy of Ian Saul and his employer,
and has been distributed to all magazine subscribers and points of
distribution and a reminder is being placed in the pew leaflet
whenever time and space permit. Eric Collins has done some sterling
work in producing some A3 laminated sized posters for The Forge
window and also the local libraries, he has also created space to
promote The Hall on The Church web site. The bookings secretary and
the treasurer have reported that there has been a significant
increase in enquiries and bookings for the first quarter of 2008 as
a result of this campaign.
Building Fabric-:
The retention works following the refurbishment of The Hall have
been completed to the architect’s satisfaction and the contractors
account for the works has been settled from the allocated Church
fund. We now believe that this completes our rather protracted
commitment to the contractor.
Since the refurbishment of The
Hall a number of areas of damp ingress have slowly emerged and this
has resulted in the peeling of paint in many areas of the lower
walls giving The Hall an uncared and neglected appearance. The Group
are in the process of engaging a specialist company to deal with the
problem which appears to be caused by a number of different faults:
rising damp, unused open air bricks and blocked outside drains which
run to “soakaways” on The Green. It is hoped that the works will be
completed during the Spring and following some localised
redecoration The Hall should look fresh again by the Summer. It is
also intended that some protection to the plasterwork against chairs
and table storage can be fitted.
Health
and Safety-:
There were a number of reported tripping incidents and injuries to
Hall users caused by the ramp outside The Forge fire exit. The
Buildings Group have now had the ramp removed and the road surface
made good in this area. The Group would like to thank the Buildings
Group for their co-operation in dealing with this matter.
Following complaints from a number of Hall user groups concerning
the illumination of the outside of The Hall, the Group have
installed three, exterior dusk to dawn sodium vapour floodlights.
This project has provided a much safer access and egress for the
building during the hours of darkness. It is also apparent that it
has contributed to the reduction in the level and activity of
vandalism.
Parking-:
Parking
and access at peek times has improved slightly after notices were
placed on offending vehicles. Whilst the situation is not ideal it
appears that there is little more we can legally do to improve the
situation other than to engage a parking control company to clamp
offending vehicles.
Hall
and Localities-:
The
response to enquires as to whether The Hall should apply for
charitable status indicated that there would be no significant
benefits to The Hall if it continues to be indirectly managed by the
Church through the P.C.C and the elected management group.
The
results of initial discussions with St.John`s Living Well on the
subject of integration or amalgamation of the two groups suggest
that this is probably not feasible. This is due mainly to the fact
that the St.John`s project is set up as a trust and as such is
controlled by a board of trustees and not controlled wholly by the
Church, as is the case with the Parish Hall. A union of the two
groups would create a conflict with the source and method of funding
for the St.John`s Living Well project. However, a decision of mutual
co-operation was agreed and it is hoped that this will lead to some
interaction between the two groups.
Cleaner/Caretaker-:
Due to
her pregnancy Nerys Blanckley has had to resign from her position as
Hall cleaner. We would wish to take this opportunity to thank Nerys
for her commitment and service to The Hall.
The
Group has now engaged a firm of contract cleaners on a trial basis
and this is ongoing. We have had several complaints that on
occasions The Hall has not been as clean as it could be. The Group
believe that this is partly caused by the heavy usage of The Hall
and the contract cleaners being unable to gain access at their
contracted times. The Group are discussing the situation with the
contractors and are also reviewing and considering other options.
Hall
Group-:
The Hall Group meets on a regular basis and the meetings are well
attended; minutes are produced and distributed to all interested
parties, including the P.C.C.
As
mentioned in our last report Wendy Booth has now resigned from her
position as Bookings Secretary, and Sue Matthews has filled this
role on a temporary basis. Our thanks go to Wendy for all her hard
work during her period as Bookings Secretary. Wendy has now stepped
into the role of Secretary to The Group to replace Eleanor Milne who
joined us for a short period but has had to resign for personal
reasons. The Group wish to thank Eleanor Milne for her work during
her time with The Group. As stated in our last report John Matthews
has now stood down as chairman and is succeeded by Bill Ferguson.
The Group wish to express their appreciation to John for his service
during his term of office.
I would
like to take this opportunity to thank all members of The Hall Group
for their hard work and commitment and also to the many supporters
and users of The Hall.
Norton Roundabout
(the Parish Magazine) - Eric Collins
Sales of The “Norton Roundabout”
have slightly declined over the past few months, leading to the
decision to reduce the number of copies printed from 320 to 300 per
month. The group will be closely monitoring this trend. Although
sales via our distributors have held up well, the biggest reduction
in sales is of those magazines sold through church. Copies also go
for sale in local outlets and for free distribution to local
libraries, schools etc. Our team of distributors works hard to
ensure that the magazine is delivered to those who are unable to get
to church, and we post out 10 copies per month to readers around the
country. The magazine provides a mixture of church and community
news, information and articles. The group meets monthly, just after
the publication date of each magazine, to review the current
magazine and plan the next edition. Although several appeals to
recruit new members to the group have been made, no one has come
forward. This is a concern for the future of the magazine in its
present form. As the Roundabout editor I would like to record my
thanks to all the members of the group for their ongoing support and
to the army of distributors who deliver the magazine across the
parish. Thank-you all.
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