OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2020-12-31-accounts

CHURCH OF SAINT LAWRENCE HATFIELD

ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING

to be held at St Lawrence Church, Hatfield on Wednesday 21[st] July 2021 at 19.30 with welcome and prayers at 19.15

St. Lawrence Hatfield PCC Registered Charity Number 1127942

“The Diocese of Sheffield is called to grow a sustainable network of Christ like, lively and diverse Christian communities in every place which are effective in making disciples and transforming our society and God’s world”

----- Start of picture text -----
1
----- End of picture text -----

ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING

Wednesday 21[st] July, 2021

AGENDA

Welcome and Prayers at 19.15

ANNUAL MEETING OF PARISHIONERS 19.30

  1. Election of Churchwardens

ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING

  1. Apologies

  2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting – Wednesday 28[th] October, 2020

  3. Matters Arising

  4. Annual Reports 2020 - 2021

  5. a) Electoral Roll report since the last Annual Meeting

  6. b) Annual Report on the proceedings of the PCC

  7. c) Safeguarding Report

  8. d) Financial Statements of the PCC for the year ending Dec.2020

  9. e) Annual Fabric Report

  10. f) Deanery Synod

  11. g) Activities of the Parish

  12. h) Training log

  13. i) Churchwardens’ Report

  14. j) Ministry, Worship, Discipleship, Pastoral Care

  15. k) Centenary Project Worker report

  16. l) Project Manager report

  17. m) Communications and Admin

page 10 pages 11 - 13 page 14 pages 15 - 22 pages 23 - 38 page 39 page 40 page 41 page 42 page 43 pages 44 - 46 pages 47 - 48 pages 49 - 50

5. Elections and Appointments 2021/2022

7. Any further Questions or Comments

8. Dates to note

9. Closing Prayer

2

ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING 2020

Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting held at 19:30 on

Wednesday 28[th] October 2020 on Zoom

Present

Rev’d Canon Liz Turner-Loisel, Rev’d Joyce Barker, Rev’d Gill Salter, Vera Owen, Viv Stubbs, Beryl Adamson, Carol Rashid, Dianne Fox, Colin Grimsey, Chrissy Grindle, Julia Halls, Anita Jepson, Amanda Marks, Jill McGarvie, Rosh Milner, Terry Raper, Anne Render, Susan Spencer, Gill Atkinson, Emily Grimsey, Glenys Mashford, Coralie May, Tim Sweed, Philippe Turner-Loisel.

Annual Meeting of Parishioners

1. Welcome and prayers

2. Election of churchwardens

There were two nominations:

Vera Owen proposed by Rosh Milner, seconded by Carol Rashid.

Viv Stubbs proposed by Rosh Milner, seconded by Carol Rashid.

As there was no vote to be had Rev’d Liz had pleasure in announcing that Vera and Viv would serve their fifth term of office.

There was a unanimous wave with audible agreement from each person not on video.

Rev’d Liz thanked them for their support and all the work they do.

Gill Atkinson left the meeting here.

Annual Parochial Church Meeting

1. Apologies

There were apologies from Rachel Ridler, our Centenary Project Worker, who is on holiday.

2. Minutes of the Previous Annual Meeting: Wednesday 10th April

These minutes were agreed to be correct by all those present

3. Matters Arising

There were no matters arising.

3

4. Annual Reports 2019 – 2020

Rev’d Liz explained she would go through the annual reports briskly but anyone present was welcome to add any comment.

Reports numbered 4a) to 4h) inclusive and 4aa) are reports which must be included.

Only reports which were commented on are included here.

Reports 4i) to 4y) are reports of what activities are taking place in church. It is a good showcase of our activities.

Reports 4q) to 4t) inclusive are major fund-raising activities.

4

A comment from the floor was that the church has showcased itself really well, particularly in contacts with the community, there is a great breadth of things that go on.

Thanks were given to the Parish Administration Team, Jill McGarvie, Stuart Watson, Chrissy Grindle, and they are now joined by Emily Grimsey, here on work placement for a few hours each week. “They keep the show on the road.” Thanks be to God for Jill’s recovery after recent surgery.

Bex Turner-Loisel came off the roll due to moving house.

Five names were added making the roll 149.

However there have been five more deaths since April and the archdeacon was asked whether these could be removed too, in respect for the bereaved, and he said yes.

Rev Gill Salter has been removed from the electoral roll now that she has been ordained.

So the number of names on the electoral roll is now 143.

We remember and give thanks for Ted Layhe, Jean Reynolds, Bessie and Wilf Snowdin, Cath Chaplin, Eddie Durdy, Bernard Halls, Dick Neale, and Stan Thompson. We also remember with thanks Rev’d Tony Sophianou, and Rev’d David Benson.

The Electoral Roll is displayed without addresses as GDPR demands, but addresses are held securely.

4aa) Parish Statistics: These numbers are given without reasons for changes from last year, but the congregation from St Edwin’s Dunscroft have joined us. The 2019 number of worshipping community has gone up as Travis St Lawrence C of E Primary School is now included.

5. Financial Statements for the year ended 31[st] December 2019

Congratulations and thanks were given to Rev’d Joyce for presenting such easy to follow reports. She was congratulated by the independent examiner for clarity and accessibility.

5

Rev’d Joyce reported:

“Although this meeting is open to brief questions, if you do have any real queries and notice discrepancies then you may contact me by email, text or phone.

One such query I’ve already received I’ll use as an example:

It appears from our individual reports that there is a large discrepancy between the Barn Regen account in the amount of profit from the Christmas Tree festival and my accounts.

There are two reasons for this:

Firstly, I submit the simplified receipts and payments form of balance sheet rather than the more complex accruals account. This means only the receipts banked in December appear in 2019 figures. A considerable sum was banked in January of this year, which will appear in the 2020 figures.

Secondly, I present to you only a simplified form of my accounting to make the figures digestible (the cashbook figures are available if anyone would like to see them). In my report, some of the items that the Barn Regen committee considers were specifically raised for/at the Festival I have placed under coffee mornings and/or fundraising events.

So when I adjusted these my total profit for the Christmas Tree festival came to £4,069, but some of this will be seen in 2020 figures.

This report was originally compiled pre-lockdown. A lot has happened since then. The 2020 figures will be very different from what is normally seen. When the churches closed, the means of giving was severely affected. There were no fees from occasional offices or the collections at such events. With no-one able to attend regular services they were prevented from bringing their offerings including regular envelopes. I want to say thank you to those who found some means of still bringing the offerings either the envelopes themselves or donations in lieu of them.

Looking into the future we can see reduced income for one reason or another. We have sadly lost some generous givers over this last year. I ask those who are able, to consider increasing their regular offering.

I also ask as many as possible to consider regular giving through a bank standing order. This is easily done if you use internet banking but the internet is not essential. After all we set up such things long before the internet was part of our lives.

However, one change will be the use of the internet in the life of the church not just in banking. We are looking at regular streaming of services. This will require capital outlay for set-up costs as well as running costs. We will be looking for suitable grants for which we are eligible, to cover this.

Such grants have made it possible not only to continue the regular work and commitments of Hatfield church over the summer, but also to advance in such areas as Messy Church and children’s and family outreach, hopefully continuing them into the future, led by our CPW, Rachel, who has fundraised and acquired grants to cover these extra costs.”

6

A reminder from the floor that Messy Church and other new activities must keep a good paper trail to account for income and expenditure. A reminder from Rev’d Joyce that these are 2019 figures.

We will need to look again at children’s work, Rev’d Liz explained, in preparation for a funding campaign.

Sometimes Rachel’s expenses are not simple in that they cover a variety of activities.

Rev’d Joyce again asked us to claim for any expenses, and if we want to give to the church to gift aid that amount.

There was a virtual clap for all Joyce’s work, and many thanks.

6. Elections and appointments 2020-2021.

The APCM no longer appoints sidespeople according to the Church Representation Rules 2020. They will be appointed at the first PCC meeting.

Deanery synod representatives.

Rev’d Gill will now be able to attend Deanery synod meetings from the House of Clergy, which leaves a vacancy for three years. Chrissy Grindle is willing to stand for a further, and therefore final, three years.

Glenys Mashford proposed by Viv Stubbs seconded by Chrissy Grindle. Chrissy Grindle proposed by Anne Render seconded by Glenys Mashford.

Parochial Church Council Representatives

There are four vacancies on the PCC. Three people are willing to stand:

Susan Spencer proposed by Viv Stubbs, seconded by Vera Owen. Stephen Rivers proposed by Vera Owen, seconded by Viv Stubbs. Amanda Marks proposed by Tim Sweed, seconded by Rosh Milner

Appointment of Independent Examiner

The independent examiner’s report to “sign-off” the accounts has only just been received by Rev’d Joyce, and will be accepted by the first meeting of the PCC.

Faith Star was formally re-appointed as the Independent Examiner for 2020-2021, all agreed.

7

7. Address: Rev’d Canon Liz Turner-Loisel

We’ve had a difficult time, with a lot of people still ill, Julia, Janet now back in the hospice, Charlotte, all with Covid. We have also lost Rev’d Tony and Rev’d David.

But we have not stood still.

8

Recap of Diocesan Vision.

The four-headed beast was comprised of Attendance, Budgets, Church buildings, Demographics, and we can congratulate ourselves on all of those.

Renewed, released, rejuvenated, we all need these at present.

There won’t be a return to normal, and a word of caution, there won’t be a new normal. But we will move forward.

All our projects must be where God is leading, and if they are then we will succeed.

From the floor came thanks to everyone for all their work and prayer.

Thanks from Rev’d Liz to everyone, and a reminder that we are all ministers of the church.

From the floor came the unconfirmed news that Alex Prior, father of our former Independent Examiner has died. That will be checked with Stuart Watson and a card sent to his family.

Dates to note

Saturday 31[st] October PCC on Zoom at 9:30, a limited agenda.

Monday 16[th] November first PCC at 19:00 on Zoom.

Monday 2[nd] November Archdeacon’s visitation on Zoom, but only Viv and Vera attending.

Wednesday 19[th] May 2021 Annual Parochial Church Meeting 19:30 tbc.

This was suspended until July and permission sought and given by the Bishop of Sheffield.

The meeting ended at 21:33 with the Diocesan Vision Prayer, and a prayer on screen from Rev’d Gill.

9

a) Electoral Roll report since the last Annual Meeting

There were 143 names on the revised Electoral Roll – 28[th] October 2020.

Those deleted since last year are:

The new roll (146 members) will be on display at the back of church for at least 14 days prior to the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) to be held on Wednesday 21[st] July 2021.

Julia Halls, Electoral Roll Officer

10

b) Annual report on the proceedings of the PCC – 2020/2021

Introduction

In July 1997, the General Synod accepted Church Accounting Regulations which included the requirement that an Annual Report should be presented to the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM). This document was to inform parishioners of the proceedings of the Parochial Church Council (PCC) and the activities of the Parish generally, and was to be quite separate from the Statement or Address the Incumbent may wish to make to the meeting. The PCC must adopt the report before it is presented to the APCM and the Independent Examiner must see a copy before he/she can sign the Accounts.

Legal matters:

The Church of Saint Lawrence is situated in the town of HATFIELD in the Ecclesiastical Parish of HATFIELD in SOUTH YORKSHIRE and is in the Deanery of Snaith and Hatfield. The situation of the Church is on Station Rd, Hatfield, Doncaster, DN7 6RX. UPRN 10006617569 The correspondence address is The Parish Office, 3 Vicarage Close, Hatfield, Doncaster, DN7 6HN.

The following people were members of the PCC during the year April 2020 - 2021 and, as such, were therefore Trustees of the PCC:

Rev Liz Turner-Loisel ex-officio Priest-in-Charge
Rev Joyce Barker co-opted Treasurer and Giving Secretary
Rev Gill Salter ex-officio Curate
Mrs Viv Stubbs ex-officio Church Warden, Reader + Deputy Safeguarding
Mrs Vera Owen ex-officio Church Warden, Safeguarding Officer + Lay Chair
Mrs Beryl Adamson ex-officio Reader
Mrs Chrissy Grindle ex-officio Deanery Synod (2020 - 2023) + Minuting Secretary
Mrs Glenys Mashford ex-officio Deanery Synod (2020 – 2023)
Mrs Carol Rashid ex-officio Reader + Diocesan Synod (2018 - 2021)

Elected lay representatives

Term of office ends 2021 Mr Colin Grimsey Assistant Warden Mr Terry Raper Buildings Officer Mrs Rosh Milner Mr Andy Green Term of office ends 2022 Mrs Julia Halls Secretary + Electoral Roll Officer Mrs Anne Render Assistant Treasurer Mrs Dianne Fox Mrs Anita Jepson Term of office ends 2023

Mrs Susan Spencer Mrs Amanda Marks (up to May 2021) Mr Stephen Rivers (up to Jan 2021)

11

The PCC met 6 times and standing committee once – due to Covid Restrictions all PCC meetings have taken place on Zoom.

Minutes are kept at all meetings and for these our thanks go to Chrissy Grindle, our minuting secretary. Once approved by the PCC at the next meeting, the minutes are available to view in the Parish Office.

The agenda has varied at each meeting and topics discussed have included:

16[th] Nov 2020:

11[th] Jan 2021:

1[st] Feb 2021:

Part One – Oversight and Focal Ministry

Part 2 – Limited Agenda Meeting

12

8[th] March 2021

19[th] April 2021

Events and Fundraising

Unfortunately this year, due to Covid Restrictions, most of our usual major fundraising

events did not take place. However, some fundraising has been done in a different way:

Julia Halls, PCC Secretary

13

c) SAFEGUARDING REPORT

I am delighted to report there is nothing to report! We had already sent in our report to the National Safeguarding investigation in which the Diocese was taking part (Past Cases Review 2) Safeguarding training has continued on Zoom and we are up to date in that respect. We have enough people D.B.S. checked to provide a second person to help Rachel with her online centenary project work with our young people.

I am about to do our annual review and will be taking a revised policy to P.C.C. in line with the latest guidelines.

As soon as it is possible, we will put the safeguarding details back up in the porch. In the meantime, if you have any concerns, please contact myself 01302 840250 or Revd Liz 01302 459110 or ChildLine 0800 1111

Vera Owen – Safeguarding Officer

14

d) Treasurer’s Report for 2020 Accounts St Lawrence Hatfield

One could say 2020 was an interesting year as far as the accounts were concerned. As soon as churches and church halls closed their doors in March, much of our regular income dried up. No church collections, or opportunity to bring regular Giving Envelopes. The occasional offices were not possible, so collections for these events and fees for funerals and weddings were not raised. Then as the summer progressed and no opportunity for large fundraising events, it looked like we would have a very lean year, as running and building maintenance costs still had to be paid.

But many of the church family responded to the occasion, in some way or other. Thank you to those who sought ways to hand in their envelopes or made generous donations. Thank you to those who continued fundraising where possible.

And thank you for the grants from the Building Trust and the Endowment Trust as well as DMBC, enabling us to pay our expenses and continue our mission activities so that, in fact, we ended the year with a small increase.

Balances at the end of 2020

St Lawrence Hatfield PCC Account 31267655

Bank Statement as at December 31st2020
Outstanding cheques and Direct Debits
Reconciled Balance
of which designated/restricted
Available for general PCC use
Barn Account 41545140
Bank Statement as at December 31st2020
Outstanding cheques/direct debits
Reconciled Balance
comprising: Designated Barn Management
Restricted Barn Regeneration Fund		 £23,094
£ 1,754
£21,340
£ 6,585
£ 14,755
£39,829
£ 116
£39,713
£ 9,829
£29,884.

If you look on the Barn Spreadsheet, you might think the Insurance fee has been reduced. This is not the case. I opted to pay in equal monthly instalments (at no extra cost) in order to avoid paying out the large annual sum when we did not have the funds at that time.

15

We are thankful for the Community Halls grant from Doncaster MBC of £10,000 which supported the ongoing costs during 2020 and will be utilised in the running of the Barn once we are able to reopen.

CCLA Designated Account for Barn Regeneration

Balance as at December 31[st] 2020 £139,908.58

St Lawrence Hatfield PCC Organ Fund Account 51267825 Balance as at December 31[st] 2020 £1,969

I trust the spreadsheets I produce are self-explanatory.

Two points:

The Designated spreadsheet contains Action Aid accounts and separate Children’s and Messy church accounts.

Action Aid I have moved to ‘charities we fundraise for’.

Children’s and Messy . I have combined as one fund under ‘Family and Children’s Ministry’.

Endowment Trust

Apart from a £10,000 grant towards general running costs of the church, income from the Endowment Trust is towards the running of the Parish Office.

Now that we are well into 2021, we are still in the same position as 2020. We have limited opportunities for regular church services and have no certainty that we shall be able to hold any of the fundraising events, even in a reduced form.

One of my favourite hymns (and the shortest in the hymnbook), ‘How Good is the God we adore’ has the last two lines:

“We’ll praise him for all that is past and trust him for all that’s to come.”

We face 2021 trusting God will bring us through the coming year as he has the last.

Rev Joyce Barker – Treasurer and Giving Director

16

St Lawrence Hatfield INCOME 2020
Sub Total
Regular Giving 2020 2019
Banker's Orders 21,032.00 19,105.00
Weeklyenvelopes 8,684.00 9,736.00
Cash collections 2,240.00 5,407.00
Funeral etc collections 1,036.00 4,455.00
Donations 4,645.00 1,173.00
**37,637.00 ** 39,876.00
Fees
to PCC 2,598.00 2,598.00 8,372.00
Grants
HC BuildingTrust 8,537.00 500.00
Endowment Trust 10,938.00 5,775.00
Hatfield Town Council 200.00
Robert Foster 300.00
19,675.00 6,575.00
Fund Raising
Plant Sale(2020 Sale ofplants) 1,073.00 1,479.00
Garden Party (ind. Contributn) 350.00 2,385.00
StrawberryTea
Cabaret
Christmas/Autumn Fayre 1,520.00
Sale of buns/refreshments 346.00 1,457.00
concert 507.00
diaries/cards 8.00 51.00
1,777.00 7,399.00
Gift Aid reclaimpreviousyear 6,610.00 6,610.00 5,706.00
Misc2020 see breakdown 371.00 371.00 83.00
Magazine Gross Income 1,393.00 1,393.00 1,607.00
Designatedaltar cloth 500.00 500.00
Children & familyministry 5,185.00 5,185.00 1,307.00
TOTAL ACTUAL INCOME 75,746.00 **75,746.00 ** 64,850.00
Fees forpassingon 6,300.00 6,300.00 13,268.00
OTHERS Charities
Through fundraising 1,335.00 1,335.00 3,134.00
From Wedd/Fun collections 827.00 827.00 4,973.00
Restricted Flood appeal 8,609.00 8,609.00 2,725.00
TOTAL INCOME banked 92,817.00 **92,817.00 ** 88,950.00

17

St Lawrence Hatfield EXPENDITURE 2020 Miscellaneous Expenditure
Sub Total Parish Office cupboards(expectin
2020 2019 grant from Endowment trust) 150.00
Common Fund 43,824.00 42,960.00 Wheelchair + cushion 180.00
Utilities 2,718.00 5,174.00 TOTAL 330.00
Insurance 6,741.00 6,913.00
53,283.00 55,047.00 Miscellaneous Income
Church Services From Organ fund For service 296.00
materials 323.00 194.00 Barn contribution to PAT and firex
75.00
personnel TOTAL 371.00
refreshments 100.00
Copyright Licence 655.00 576.00
978.00 870.00
Ministry & Mission
Materials 104.00 152.00
Children + Family 4,422.00 30.00
Curate Expenses 92.00
CPW Expenses 766.00
5,384.00 182.00
Fabric & maintenance
building 412.00 308.00
Architectquinquenium 1,123.00
churchyard 88.00 1,610.00
security 1,748.00 1,003.00
organ/piano 296.00 274.00
heating (maint & repair) 760.00 772.00
materials 396.00 139.00
3,700.00 5,229.00
Administration
External Examiner Fees 350.00 350.00
Parish Office Rent 850.00 850.00
Online set-up 421.00
materials 60.00 347.00
1,681.00 1,547.00
Designated 180.00
Vicarage 504.00 504.00 484.00
Gift Aidportion to Barn
53.00		 53.00
Magazine costs 1,588.00 1,588.00 1,865.00
Fundraising 20.00 20.00 414.00
Misc Expenditure 330.00 330.00 300.00
Total Actual Expenditure 67,521.00 67,521.00 66,118.00
Fees
SDBF + Personnel 6,946.00 6,946.00 12,329.00
Other charities
From Fundraising 3,648.00 3,648.00 952.00
Flood Appeal 11,334.00 11,334.00
From wedding/funerals 1,608.00 1,608.00 3,756.00
TOTAL PAID OUT 91,057.00 91,057.00 83,155.00

18

31.12.20 10.12.20 25.11.20 09.11.20 03.11.20 12.10.20 08.09.20 06.08.20 15.07.20 09.07.20 09.04.20 05.06.20 16.03.20 16.03.20 29.02.20 20.02.20 B/F B/F
Carried Forward TOTALS CW Purchases CW Xmas Purchases Ticket lab sweaters CW Purchases DMBC Grant Grant from DMBC CWpurchases CWpurchases Ticket Labpayments CW Purchases CWpurchases Portiongrant DMBC Godly playmaterials IKEA Materials Coffee Morning Godly playmaterials Brought Forward CHILDREN'S Carried Forward Brought forward SOCIAL COMMITTEE VARIOUS DESIGNATED FUNDS 2020
2,166.66 4,075.90 260.00 500.00 2,000.00 381.30 700.00 234.60 1,530.32 In 457.87 457.87 In
3,439.56 123.95 820.04 678.78 30.88 1,046.00 37.18 62.99 25.00 248.00 366.74 Out Out
21.12.20 10.07.20 11.06.20 B/F
Carried forward TOTALS Annual support Donation Donations Brought forward ACTION AID
20.11 62.00 12.00 50.00 138.11 In
ITEMISED RESTRICTED FUNDS 180.00 180 Out
30.08.20 3.12.18 20.11.18 28.10.18 c/f from 2017 for retreat 31.12.20 10.12.20 Dec Dec 9.11.20 10.11.20 25.10.20 12.10.20 10.10.20 06.08.20 09.07.20 23.07.20 10.07.20 Jun-20 28.06.20 05.06.20 13.06.20 26.05.20 11.05.20 24.05.20 22.04.20 09.04.20 B/F
Carried Forward Chaplin Altar cloth Blanshard memorial memorial candle stand heaters in Barn Carried Forward TOTALS CW Purchases CWpurchases for Xmas Various crowdfunding ?Donation CWpurchases Crowdfundingonline donations Crowdfundingonline CWpurchases CWpurchases CWpurchases Crowdfundingonline Donation Crowdfunding online Donation Portion of grant from DMBC Various items to RR Donation Crowdfundingonline Crowdfundingonline MESSY CHURCH
2,990.71 500.00 632.21 558.50 300.00 1,000.00 949.69 1,109.13 108.76 79.00 30.00 112.43 35.00 70.00 20.00 37.00 50.00 300.00 10.00 59.00 197.94 822.68 In
982.12 120.90 128.29 58.14 80.27 111.92 173.49 143.10 118.99 47.02 Out

19

Balance Carried Forward 9,829 Income over expenditure 8,920 TOTALIncome DMBC Grant Donations Rents Brought forward IN BARN MANAGEMENT
10,936.60 10,000.00 568.60 368.00 909.00
Reconciled Amount in HSBC A/C 39,713 TOTAL Insurance PATtest/Fire app Alarm Utilities OUT Annual Accounts BARN ACCOUNT 2020
2,016.93 457.90 75.00 122.57 1,361.46
Balance Carried Forward 29,884 Income over expenditure 3,118 TOTAL Donations SYPB(Dec 2019 Trees) Coffee mornings Gift Aid 2018 +2019 Xmas Tree 2019 100 Club Brought forward IN BARN REGENERATION (Restricted)
3,117.75 195.00 1,018.00 239.00 53.75 280.00 1,332.00 26,766.00
OUT

20

List of donors to Fishlake flood appeal 2019

Through Bank

17/11
100.00
19/11
150.00		 17/11
100.00
19/11
150.00
20/11
 20.00
21/11
 200.00
30/11
 30.00
10/12
 20.00
18/12
 500.00
20/12
 420.00
20/12
 150.00
22/12
 100.00
24/12
 685.30
31/12

One cheque in church collection
 300.00
2,675.00
50.00

Total held in PCC Account Dec 31[st] 2019 2,725.00

2020

28/1 50.00 6/4 8,359.14 (£8,859.14 in cheques collected by Revd Liz less cancelled cheque of £500) 14/4 100 10/7 100 TOTAL 8,609

Cheque for £11,334 sent to St Cuthbert Parish Church July 2020 Hatfield Account closed

21

THE PARIKHIALCHURCH COUNCILOFTHE ECCLESILSTICAL PARISHOF ST.LAWRKNCI'& HATFIELD STAThMINT OFFINANCIAL ACTJvm&sAS AT31SYDECEMBER 21M ua Th¢Re￿J. Patr*er Tre41urrr tbk.. 2L . ob- 2ozi 22

e) Annual Fabric Report – 2020.

Church - Routine Maintenance & Cleaning

Routine maintenance has been carried out on the Clock (July), Fire Extinguishers (August) and Roof Alarm (June). The Church Intruder Alarm has not been serviced since September 2019. Neither the Piano nor the Organ have been tuned since (February & June + December 2019 respectively). The Lightening Conductor Testing was last done in August 2018 and was due January 2021. This was initially delayed due to the Post-Christmas Lockdown, but was eventually carried out on 22[nd] March. All portable items of electrical equipment were Portable Appliance Tested in January 2020. The re-test is again overdue and will be booked shortly. The Quinquennial Fixed Electrical Inspection was carried out in April 2018 for both the Church and the Barn, and therefore is not due until April 2023. In lieu of an Annual Maintenance Contract, church members have carried out some work themselves, inspecting and cleaning roofs, gutters and drainage pipes, also emptying silt traps and cleaning underground drains and gullies, work that was previously carried out by contractors before 2018.

We had a visit from our Insurers (Ecclesiastical Insurance) in January this year, re-assessing our insurance level. The agent was met by Vera, who answered all his questions. We received the report in February and nothing was noted as needing attention or review. The new insurance value has however risen to £16,375,000.00, which takes effect immediately. For your information, this value is not the cost to fully re-build our church should it burn / fall down. The assumption is that this figure would provide enough to replace the roofs, the windows (glass), the interior fittings and doors, and to re-build the top 2 ft of the walls, at eaves level, should we be unfortunate enough to be destroyed by fire. It is assumed that most of the stone structure will survive and require only minor repair. To fund this valuation, E.I have given us an “indication” that our revised premium will rise to £6899.64; though this will not take effect until 2022, as we have only just renewed our policy for 2021. This “indication” suggests a rise of £150.00 over our current renewal figure, which is around £6750.00 for 2021. This means that our Building & Contents Insurance policy alone, currently costs us £562.00 per month!

Unfortunately, our regular, fortnightly interior cleaning has not really taken place this year, due to social distancing & the obvious restrictions on our movements through lock-downs etc. Coupled with that, the heating has not been on much over the winter months, as our public services have been suspended. As a result, our church has started to suffer. Some cleaning has taken place, on an ad-hoc basis, and this has been borne largely by our Churchwardens working alone as teams were banned.

Our grateful thanks need to go to them for trying to keep on top of things.

As and when we come out of lockdown and return fully to church for our services, the cleaning rota will need to be revived. Current teams are made up of 2, 3 & 4 members, each team expecting to clean the whole church 6 times per year. We are still desperate for more help as we all get older, and I would therefore like to appeal yet again for new members to join the group and expand what is still a relatively small but hardworking and dedicated few teams.

23

If anyone feels they could raise an additional team, this would be greatly appreciated, and would make the task less frequent and thus easier on all the existing teams. Please contact either of your Churchwardens. When we do get back into church, please help us by helping to clean up any spillages / food as soon as possible, also important towards discouraging mice from entering and staying in our church.

Vandalism, General Repairs & Minor works

Fortunately, we have had NO known, serious incidents of vandalism to the Church or the Churchyard again this year. The Barn, its garages, and the Parish Office have also escaped any malicious acts of theft and damage this year too. The only thing I could report, was a possible theft attempt on one of the Lightening Conductor Down Tapes, which Philippe discovered had been pulled away from the wall a little. This took place, at the end of February 2021. The damage wasn’t thought to be serious, the conductor was pushed back into position, and the recent test result didn’t suggest a problem.

Items receiving general / minor repairs in 2020 included the following: -

In February, Philippe re-fixed the electric socket to the wall which was loose (nearest to the South Door), and swapped the double socket (North Aisle, adjacent to the Transept) where one of the sockets had stopped working.

Most of the items I usually put in here have not really taken place this year, as they have not been needed. These would include general lighting / lamp replacements, woodworm monitoring, vacuum cleaners cleaning, repairs etc.

Quinquennial Inspection (Q.I.) and Next Steps

I reported last year that we had appointed a new architect, Mr. Andrew Boyce, of Ferry & Mennim Architects of York; and I gave you a reasonably detailed account of how we had chosen from 34, interviewed 5, and finally made our choice. I also reported that our Quinquennial Inspection had been completed on 21[st] August 2019, that we received a Summary Report on 5[th] November, and a full Q.I. Report on 18[th] November. I also gave you a detailed summary of how this report was written and organised, listing some of the major statistics, the recommendations, suggested repairs, and their respective priorities. If anyone would like to see a copy of this comprehensive document, please ask.

The report was shared with the sub-committee, and shown to the PCC in January 2020. However, the next step was really to have a joint meeting between the Architect, and the Architect Liaison Steering Group (which we considered would probably be extended to include other interested parties from the PCC, the Hatfield Church Building Trust, and the Friends of the Hatfield Church Building Trust). As I write, for the APCM in 2021, this meeting never really happened in the way it was intended. Covid 19 raised its head, travel and meetings were all banned, and everyone’s priorities changed.

The original small group from the Architect Liaison Steering Group eventually held a Zoom meeting with the Architect, where we discussed the report and its findings, and we tried to establish what we believed to be our priorities; and what was potentially achievable in the uncertain position which the Pandemic had left us in. The meeting had been deliberately arranged to be 90 mins before the November PCC meeting, enabling the Architect to be introduced to the remainder of the PCC, and us to share our thoughts and plans with the PCC so that they too could ask questions of us and the Architect about these plans.

24

Following this meeting, we have started to get on with a few things, although we are now quite a bit behind our original intended schedule. Firstly then, we drew up a Project Plan to list some of the actions and priority tasks we had decided upon. Some of these tasks were relatively easy to close out, such as seeking confirmation and dates of the Asbestos Survey, Tree Surveys, Fixed Electrical Inspections etc. Then we had decided that we needed to commission a full Glazing Survey for the Church, to determine the condition and priority of each of our windows, so that we could push that forward as an acceptable project. Further down on the plan (not necessarily in importance but certainly in achievability right now), there were some inspections and potential repairs to some roofs, re-seating of the Flagpole, modifications to the Flagpole fixings, and repairs to the Belfry Window Guards. At the same time as creating the Project Plan, we also created a list of Church Contractors. This list still needs to be updated with any revised details for our current and previous contractors, as well as to include some additional / alternative accredited Contractors. It is a work in progress, and we are actively seeking to add to the list using suggestions from our Architect.

The first real project we have begun then, is the Glazing Survey. In order to commission a survey, we needed some accredited contractors and a quotation from each for carrying out that survey. We requested the list of accredited, semi-local Glaziers from our Architect. To get comparable quotations, we needed to provide a detailed plan showing each window. Apparently, there is an Industry Standard Notation for Numbering / Identifying windows, and we needed a plan drawn up in this manner. We requested and received information about the numbering system from the Architect, and I created the plan over Christmas. The plan is made up of a Ground Floor plan of the Church, plus Side and End Elevation views, on which each individual window is shown, numbered and has a small line drawing showing the shape and make-up of the window. At the same time as doing the plan, I have also created an individual record card for each window. This again shows a rough location and gives the appointed number of that window. It shows a line drawing and a photograph of that window, and gives spaces to write notes about the condition of the glass, leadwork, stone work and window guards etc., and also gives places where we can record Inscriptions / Dedications, and any other known information, such as artist and installation date etc. This plan is complete then and, as I write, Rosh is about to send it off to 3 Glaziers to request a quotation. When these come back, we will need to choose one and get the survey completed. With the results of the survey, we will be able to establish the urgency and respective priorities of each window and to draw up a programme of repairs. Obviously, we would like to be able to get on with the repairs as soon as is practically possible. This coming year then, we will need to re-double our efforts in getting the appropriate specifications, quotations and faculty approvals in order to do this.

The Hatfield Church Building Trust kindly informed us in 2019 that approximately £30,000 was “available” for us to spend on projects that year. Presumably this is still available to use when those projects are finalised! I again need to mention the work of the Hatfield Church Building Trust and of the Friends of the Hatfield Church Building Trust, who work so tirelessly to raise money to fund most of our major project expenses. I should again like to pay tribute to so many members of our church, and those from the General Public, who continually support their fundraising efforts throughout the years. Without their help, it is unlikely that we would be able to achieve half of what we do to improve and maintain our magnificent building.

25

Following on from here then, we shall probably try to do a similar plan of all our wall mounted monuments, so that we can commission a survey of those, and thus prioritise the work needed there.

We would also like to get some actual repairs done, like the Belfry Window Guards and the cleaning and inspecting of the roofs. All of these we may be able to begin during the summer months, but so far they have been largely hampered by Social Distancing Restrictions, as they are not really safe tasks for an individual, but more suited to a small team.

Bridgett Conservation Church Maintenance Programme

Some of you may remember that in between 2014 and 2017, we employed Bridgett Conservation (Building Restoration) Ltd from Tickhill, to carry out an annual inspection of our roofs, eaves and parapets, roofing gutters, fall pipes, gullies and underground drainage pipes, and to clean / clear them of any leaves & other debris. The programme did cost around £300.00 + vat per year. You may also remember that we did not re-employ them since 2018, because of the problems we had faced in 2016/2017 with some of the repairs, and the lack of availability of Bridgett’s who had seemed extremely busy during those years and we had found them difficult to contact.

Since 2018 then, we have carried out some of this work ourselves and have cleaned and examined some of the roofs and gutters of the church. This task was partially completed again in 2020, despite the challenges of lockdown and social distancing, thanks to Philippe who took the opportunity to clear the gutters and inspect the roofs on the south side and Nave, whilst the Roof Alarm contractor was servicing our roof alarm. Another visit is required to clear the North Side gutters and fall pipes, which will require a small team, but has so far been delayed by Covid restrictions. We are hoping to be able to repeat and complete this task again in the coming year. The silt traps and underground drainage pipes and gullies have also been cleaned out a couple of times by the Churchyard Maintenance Team. The Architect Liaison Group had intended to discuss at length with our new Architect whether to try to renew the Maintenance Contract with Bridgetts, or to go with an alternative. However this too hasn’t happened as yet, as our first real meeting with our Architect was also delayed by Covid restrictions.

Microphones, Sound System, Hearing Loop and Digital Broadcast

The PA system has continued to work well this year, though it hasn’t seen full use for most of the year. As you are aware, we had “Normal” services until March, followed by a couple of Lockdowns in 2020, with a break in the summer months during which we could only hold restricted services. There have been no Weddings or Funerals held in church, and no large / festival services to use the system properly. The “restricted” services tended to use only one or 2 microphones, and the item which saw the biggest use has been our CD player whilst congregational singing has been banned throughout all services.

When all service restrictions have been lifted, and we are able to go back to fuller services within our building, we are likely to see some changes in the way these services are presented. Lockdown has pushed us, rather than led us into more recorded and on-line services.

26

We have seen the potential, and the successes that we have already had with these types of service, largely recorded on mobile phones. In the future we will want to go bigger and better in that direction, as well as maintaining what we used to do. The Diocese and the wider church have been encouraging us all in this too; and have backed this with grants to fund digital recording and transmission equipment. We (Liz) applied, and we have been granted £500.00 towards buying any extra equipment we need. This has now been spent, but we are also drawing up a list of what we think we will need as we agreed to match fund the grant amount. One of the biggest things we will need is a team to operate this technical equipment properly for us. If you or someone you know would like to join this new team to record and broadcast our services for us, then please contact Liz or the Churchwardens.

The Church Clock

Our Church Clock is annually maintained, and generally runs trouble free. It was serviced again on 13/07/2020, and indeed has caused no trouble at all this last year as we have seen no repeat of the regular power cuts of 2019. Our clock has been maintained for a long time by a company called Smith of Derby, since they took over the company William Potts of Guildford, who installed it in 1956.

We have recently been contacted by another company, Time Assured, from Mansfield; who have offered to maintain our clock a little cheaper than the current contractor. This quote however was a little confusing, as it seemed to describe a clock with two faces, and more complicated workings than ours. Whilst we are in no hurry to change from our current contractor, because they have always been very reliable; we do intend to look further into this, get a proper quote from Time Assured and try to seek a reduction from Smith of Derby. Whilst clock maintenance is a specialised task, the annual maintenance of our clock usually consists of an examination, a light clean and oil, and little else.

We shall see what they both offer and make our decision. The next service is not due till July 2021.

The Church Organ

Our Church Organ is supposed to be bi-annually maintained by Malcolm Spink of Leeds.

The two services are planned to occur in June / July and again in December. Neither of these services occurred in 2020. Like our PA system, our Church Organ has seen no use at all during the periods of Lockdown, and little use during the periods of restricted services. All the way through the year, despite a long-term hope, the prospect of re-opening the church to bigger and public services never really got any closer to reality. Because of this, and the fact that our Organ is susceptible to temperature and damp, it didn’t seem sensible to spend money to maintain & tune the organ if the church would then be left unused and unheated during the winter months. Any tuning would be lost within a couple of weeks. It was therefore decided to postpone any organ tuning until we have a more definite idea of when we can return to larger services and congregational singing etc.

Despite the above, the organ was used a little prior to lockdown 2, and suffered an episode where a pipe stuck on and played through-out the service. This was looked at by Vernon and Philippe at the end of the service, who together managed to free the sticking valve.

27

Heating.

In my report last year, I stated that the heating system was struggling to start reliably. It was serviced again on 17/12/2019. At that time the Pilot Light Solenoid Valve was changed, also the Transformer which fed this valve which when tested was producing a lower power output than was required. The Engineer also widened the gap between the ignition probes to produce a larger spark on starting. Following these changes, the heating seemed to work perfectly for the next couple of weeks, and thankfully we had no problems over Christmas. Unfortunately, in the middle of January the heating was again playing up and switching to low heat when it thought it had reached its set point, although in fact it was not even close. The data cable being the only suspect, Bill the engineer dropped a screened data cable off on 14/01/2020, and Philippe and Brian replaced the cable on the 16[th] .

Overall the system still seemed to work reasonably well when the temperature was reasonable, but struggled a little when it is colder, as it did before. There were still several problems occurring which we did not understand why they occurred, but hopefully time will tell that they have been rectified by the new screened control cable. The visualisation on our control panel of the various temperature readings within the system is very useful, as is the fault log when trying to work out what is happening (or not happening), though this too was seen to sometimes show misleading information / different values to static thermometers in church. Bill the engineer then decided to temporarily fit a modem, so that he could dial in and see first-hand the values recorded as the system mis-behaves, and work out whether there is a software problem that needs to be rectified. We had hoped to be able to use the modem installed for the roof alarm and piggy-back off it, (already conveniently situated in the belfry), but this was unfortunately not possible. During this period, Philippe kept a close eye on the system and kept a log of the various readings and fault codes displayed, as well as external indications such as the stand alone thermometer readings etc. all of which he shared with the engineer trying to resolve our problems. At that point of course, we went into lock-down, and all urgency to resolve the issues disappeared.

During the period between lockdowns, when we were doing restricted small services in church, and as we approached the period when heating was required, concern was expressed as to whether we could use a heating system that moved air around when Covid 19 was obviously an airborne risk. We were however re-assured that it was as safe as any other system as none of the air is recycled. All the air is “fresh” as it is drawn in through the belfry, then warmed before being blown down to us. The risk of infection comes from being too close to others and breathing their air in, thus social distancing and masks are the key to keeping us safe.

Plans were made to install the Modem and re-service the heating system in October, but this was then delayed again and eventually happened on 25/11/2020. The modem was installed and another cable was run from the Main Control Panel in the Ringing Room down to the User Control Panel at the bottom of the stairs. Notably, the digital sensor within the church (North Wall) was found to be about 6 degrees out of calibration and so was adjusted to correct this. Maybe this will solve some of our running faults.

28

The engineer also stated that problems with starting may be largely due to damp electrodes, which could possibly go away after a few start-up attempts or could be remedied by warming them with a hair dryer! This of course would be rather a nuisance but hopefully not a regular occurrence.

The heating was used a few times just before Christmas, but not many. When in use it did seem to perform reasonably, but we would have preferred more opportunity to gather more data. Nevertheless since Christmas we have been in lock-down again and the heating has seen little / no use. Towards the end of January, the Engineer asked Philippe if he could remove the modem and its interconnecting cable for him to collect and use elsewhere. This Philippe did on 22/01/2021. During this period, the engineer did make a couple of changes to the program. One of these was to the System Run Time - the total no of hours that the system has been running - which had been calculating and showing an incorrect value. More importantly he changed the program, such that the system should automatically reset itself twice, following a burner fault where the main burner had failed to start, and would then attempt another re-start. This would prevent us having to reset it. We would still have to re-set it manually after a third failure to start.

There have been a couple of further discussions about options to improve the reliability of the start-up: these have included the use of the hair dryer method after the third failed start and before the manual re-set; putting the heating on to run for a period every night to try to raise the temperature slightly and to dry out the igniter probes. (This may have the added advantage of reducing the effect of temperature extremes on the stonework). Lastly, we could install some equipment to automatically heat the ignition probes before start-up. No fixed decisions have been made as yet. We could do with more data on how reliable the system is at present, and of course we are not using it! As we come out of lockdown 3, we are also heading out of the heating season, so I guess we will see what happens in the Autumn of 2021.

The Christmas Lights

The Christmas Lights worked well on the top of our tower again this year. Almost one of the only “normal” things we recognised about Christmas this year. Many thanks to James Scott for helping me with the installation. As I speak, we have yet to remove them which we hope to do shortly after this lockdown is lifted. I am pleased to say that there were no problems yet again, 6 years after purchase, and still not a single lamp lost yet. (We used to replace about 80 of the old lamps per year). These lights are much loved and often mentioned by many of our locals and visitors alike, possibly even more so this last year. They serve as a welcome home beacon for many local travellers at Christmas, making our church visible from miles around in all directions!

The Church Armour

Some of you may remember that our church used to have some pieces of Church Armour on display. For many years now, this armour has been in the care of the Royal Armouries at Leeds. It is currently on display there, and in the past has been on display in the Tower of London. Essentially the term of the loan agreement was up, and they required us to re-sign a new agreement in March 2020, to enable us to leave the items there.

29

Whilst there, most of the items are covered by their blanket insurance policy. If we chose to bring them back here, we would need to arrange our own insurance and place of safekeeping. Also, whilst there, they had some conservation work done to them in 2014, and they are continually kept in a “controlled and friendly” environment. The PCC obviously agreed to re-sign the Loan Agreement, and the items were kept on display at Leeds. For anyone interested, I would recommend you visit the Armouries and look out for our Armour (when Covid restrictions allow).

The Barn

Unfortunately, the Barn has been hardly used this year because of lockdowns and restrictions on social distancing and mixing indoors. Some general maintenance has continued at the Barn, though this has also been at a reduced level because of the restrictions and lack of use. Most of this has been carried out by Philippe and / or Gordon Troope. Thank you to them for their dedication in this matter. Thanks also to the team of gardeners and helpers who have cut and cleared the grass on the Barn Field and to those who keep the weeds and nettles down around the outside. Since the grass became very long last year, the Town Council have been cutting it for us.

The Quinquennial (5 yearly) Fixed Electrical Inspection was carried out by Fowlers Electricians in April 2018, and therefore is not due until April 2023. The Portable Appliance (PAT) Testing was carried out on 15[th] January, along with the Church and Parish Office. There were no failures as such, however, the opportunity was taken to dispose of some of the redundant electrical equipment stored in the cupboard, such as the old television, video player and overhead projector which have not been used for years. The Fire Extinguishers and Burglar Alarm were serviced in August and October respectively. Recently, Philippe reported that the Alarm keypad was difficult to operate, possibly affected by damp as the building has not been used or heated for a year. If difficulty persists into the warmer months, then we may have to get it cleaned internally or replaced.

You may remember that I told you last year, that the committee had been considering alternative forms of heating within the Barn because the current heaters can be noisy at meetings and the temperature falls quickly if they are turned off. We were favouring installing some Quartz Infra Red wall heaters which could be used in place of the existing heaters and these would be silent to run. This type of heater is designed to heat bodies rather than the air and is thus far more efficient. The PCC granted permission to go ahead with the purchase and fitment last year. Unfortunately, this work has not yet been carried out, mainly because it fell off our radar amongst other priorities and the Barn has not been in use for most of the year. The problem remains, and our views may now have changed, so we should re-consider the options and try to get a scheme completed as soon as possible.

Last year I wrote that the area of the Barn Field where the soak-away had been positioned had been re-levelled and re-seeded prior to our summer events. I also said that the Inspection Chamber lid and housing was unfortunately not seated correctly and was sitting loosely a few inches above the grass. This has now been re-seated in concrete, which has removed this potential trip hazard. This work was completed in August by the contractor who originally installed both the soakaway and the chamber.

30

I also told you last year that in January 2019 the Barn Regeneration Steering Group had commissioned a Tree Survey of the Barn Field to assess the health and the condition of each tree and recommend any pruning / remedial action necessary. I also told you that in line with the report received some of the work that we could do ourselves had been done by the Churchyard maintenance team, and that there were other, larger tasks requiring a professional that were still to do over the next couple of years. This is still the case, and we shall have to re-look to see what needs to be dealt with this year, and to work this in parallel with the Churchyard which was similarly surveyed in 2019.

In the strong winds at the end of February 2020, the fence between the Barn and No. 7 Vicarage Close was partially blown down (about 6 panels). Whilst Philippe was trying to organise a team to affect a repair, the Tenant from No. 7 repaired the fence himself, by adding extra posts from his side, because it was impossible to get to our side of the fence through the jungle of brambles and nettles. Despite the repair being already complete, our team as organised did meet on the Sunday morning 30/02/20. We managed quite a sizable team, about a dozen in all, and spent the morning removing all the brambles, nettles, ivy and rubbish from the east end of the Barn, and the back behind the fence. We also removed the ivy climbing the south west corner of the Barn. It was hard work made all the easier by the size of team and the effort everyone put in. My thanks to all who helped in this.

During August, Vera decided to do some serious “spring” cleaning in the Barn, which through lack of use was beginning to smell a bit fusty. When she got to the cupboards at the end, particularly the left hand one, she called in some extra hands. Myself, Brian and Vera, maintaining our social distance, carefully emptied the cupboard of all of its contents, and thoroughly cleaned it out. Most of the contents didn’t go back in! Whilst this was happening, Philippe had removed the existing door from the Barn, and was replacing it with another more solid door donated by a parishioner. Doing this involved quite a bit of work, trimming the bottom and side to make the door fit the opening, then transferring the lock, handle & hinges and lining up the striker plate, and finally the detector for the alarm. Because the door was heavy, and frequent movement was required for measuring and checking, sawing and planing, this was a two-man operation again carried out very carefully with the obligatory social distancing.

A couple of days later, Philippe returned to remove the letter box fittings from this door and to fill in the opening.

Early last year, an Electric Instantaneous Water Heater was fitted into the Barn to provide water for handwashing and dishwashing. Following its installation, a small leak developed which was thought to be coming from the sink but was found to be coming from the water meter connection. After a couple of attempts to tighten it, the water meter was disconnected and taken out of circuit temporarily. The situation has not been rectified yet whilst the Barn has been out of action. During this early part of the year, there were a few complaints that the heater was not big enough to provide sufficient hot water for dish washing. Around June, we discussed this, and gave Philippe permission to remove this heater and re-fit it into the Parish Office, where it would be adequate for low levels of washing up after meetings etc. A new 6 litre, 1.5KW storage type heater was purchased and will be installed into the Barn in its place, following rectification of the Water Meter connections. This should then give the desired performance when needed.

31

Further discussions this year have seen a suggestion that we should fit a Boost Timer into the electric circuits for the storage heaters in the Barn and the Church. This is a low-cost timer (less than £20), to control the heating period. In this way they would not be constantly turning on and off to maintain their capacity of hot water, (which is costing us money). The timer / heater would need to be turned on for a fixed period of 15mins/30mins/1 hr/2hrs depending on our expectation of forthcoming usage period. The dis-advantage is that when you first go in there is no hot water for the first few minutes, and you must remember to turn it on! The March PCC has agreed to try this suggestion, and these timers should be fitted shortly. We hope to save around £75.00 per year in both the Church and Barn locations.

Recently in February of this year, Philippe struggled to open the Barn door which was sticking badly. It has not been opened for a while. He has sanded it down to get it to close again and will re-assess what further work may be required as necessary.

The Parish Office, Vicarage & Flat.

The Parish Office fixed electrical Inspection was carried out in January 2017 and therefore is not due until Jan 2022. PAT Testing was carried out on 15[th] January 2020 along with the Church and Barn, and a re-test is therefore due. This will be booked shortly. The Burglar alarm developed a fault which was quickly repaired in September.

As many of you will remember, during the floods which affected Fishlake, Doncaster, and other areas of the Country in November 2019; our Vicarage also suffered a devastating flood caused by water overwhelming the drain from the central valley of the roof. The water backed up in the valley until it overflowed into the property causing much damage to ceilings, walls and floors (not forgetting fixtures and fittings) on all levels. Fortunately, this level of damage did not appear to affect the Parish Office, or the rented flat above it! The Vicarage, Parish Office and the Flat all received their Quinquennial Inspection (5 yearly) from the Diocese on February 13[th] . The results of these inspections coupled with the flood damage comprised the scope of the repairs and redecorations within these buildings.

Thankfully, after many months, the repairs to the Vicarage are now completed, as is the decoration.

In Fabric Committee terms, the Vicarage and Flat, and the repairs to them, were not ours to worry about. These were handled by the Diocese and the Insurers. However, the upset, the organisation of it all and the sheer disturbance to their working (and sleeping) routines, have been enormous on Liz and Phillippe for those many months.

In the same way, major repairs to the Parish Office should also be covered by the Diocese. However as users we are responsible for minor repairs and decoration. The Office has previously been affected by a faulty shower in the flat above. This was repaired following the Q.I, and the insurance covered the re-decoration of the Kitchen and Hallway. The PCC decided to instigate some re-decoration of the main office room, enhancements to the storage cupboards, and toilet re-decoration etc at the same time. Unfortunately, as the work was ongoing, carpet moths were discovered under the office carpet, and some damp on one of the walls, which meant more work and a slightly extended duration for the repairs.

32

Never-the-less it was all completed in early June, and with some carpet tiles replaced and a new window blind too it will soon look much brighter. The Endowment trust kindly agreed to pay for these improvements. The Porch outside the Office was demolished as it was unsafe and not replaced following the Q.I, and the remaining door, (now the Office’s outside door) was replaced by a more secure UPVC door in July.

Philippe also completed some minor repairs. In February 2020, he replaced the plug and a Quartz heater element for the heater in the main office room and changed a fluorescent lighting tube.

In July he removed the instantaneous electric water heater from the Barn and installed that in the Parish Office as a cost saving measure, which also enabled a new replacement storage type water heater to be fitted in the Barn. In January of this year, Philippe has changed two of the outside flood-lights to the west and north sides of the office to be PIR controlled LED Flood-lights. The old one on the West had been permanently on for some time! He similarly changed the light above the Vicarage back door. He has changed another 6 ft. fluorescent tube and some starters within the office and replaced the entrance light. He has also made and fitted a polystyrene box and some pipe insulation to protect the outside water tap; and finally (I think) fitted a new high security lock the UPVC Office door, and a letter box on the wall which is suitable for taking A3 sized mail.

Fire Risk / Health & Safety Policy/ General Risk Assessments etc.

As mentioned last year, the Fire Risk Assessment, General Risk Assessment and the Health and Safety Policy were all updated for 2019 following the Ecclesiastical Insurance templates. These procedures as such have not been reviewed during 2020. You will appreciate however, that during this last year, different rules, regulations and guidance have come out which have amended what we were able to do and how we have done things. These have been repeatedly reviewed and risk assessed from the Bishops down, but locally by Rev’d Liz, our Churchwardens, Ministry Team and PCC. Compliance has been difficult but essential to protecting ourselves and each other from the virus. As I write we are still unsure as to when we will be able to leave these restrictions totally behind us and go back to the “old rules”. We hope that with the progress of the vaccination programme we are at least heading in the right direction now, though some restrictions may be with us for some time yet.

The Church Intruder Alarm / Roof Alarm.

The Church Intruder Alarm has not been serviced since September 2019, so was over-due. The Roof Alarm system was however serviced on 22/06/2020. Nevertheless, it has caused no problems during the year, until just recently. The proximity detector contact on the South Door (the one we all use) appears to be sticking and as such does not register the open door and begin the timed audible warning period during which we are to disable the alarm. This can catch you out if you think the alarm is not on, but then you suddenly set off a full-blown alarm when you pass and activate one of the PIR sensors. Philippe partially rectified the problem (with a sharp tap against the contact) and thus freed it, but this may need proper attention at the forthcoming service. We did consider changing the alarm codes during the first lockdown when no-one was allowed in church and with the need to thoroughly clean-up after anyone went in. We decided it wasn’t worth it and key-holders could be trusted to not go in unnecessarily.

33

Prior to the service (in April), we received an email to say that E. Bound AVX (the service company) had enhanced their response to mains failures, such that if there was a power failure, we should receive an email to that effect, and should be further informed when power is restored. Following on from that, in June we were informed that we might have issues, and that the system’s back-up batteries appeared to be failing. We were asked to check the voltage from the batteries, which Philippe and I did. The news was not good, the batteries were swollen and not working correctly. The Engineer then came out on 22/06/2020 and replaced the batteries, the Main Panel Circuit Board (upgraded) and two of the sensor protective shells. (Note these were over and above the regular change out of all the sensor batteries which get changed at each service). The service this year then cost us £345 for labour, and £734 in parts.

Later, in October we were invited to join an “Extended Warranty Plan”, which would cost £195 per year for a minimum of three years; and would supposedly cover us for major material outlays during the services. We investigated this in light of the bill we had just paid, but in the end we decided against it, as the batteries weren’t included, the main panel had been changed as an upgrade – not as faulty, (and it was now new). All other materials covered on the plan were relatively inexpensive, and we have needed very few replacements over the last 10 years since the system installation in 2011.

On 14/12/2020, the roof alarm was apparently triggered at 20:10. The Night Guard came out just after 9:00 but found nothing to report. At 20:20 Philippe noticed the blue light flashing in the Tower, and walked around the church to check for problems then and again at around 12:00. In the morning he enquired of Ebound as to why we had not been informed about the incident and to ask why the call out had taken more than 50 minutes, when they should have been here in less than 20 mins. This call out was going to cost us another £60.00. We have decided, at the moment, to dispense with the Night Guard call out service so that in future, when the alarm is triggered during the hours of darkness, they will call those of us on the register to investigate. Obviously in this case, our first priority when investigating following a call will have to be our own safety. As soon as we suspected foul play, we would stop and call the police.

Churchyard

The Churchyard Maintenance Team has had a difficult year of mixed effectiveness.

During Lockdown 1, all activity was banned, the churchyard grass etc. was not cut and began to run wild. In between the lockdowns, they were able to operate, but in a socially distanced manner, which often led to them working alone rather than as a team. To get the Churchyard and Barn grasses tidy again, I’m sure was quite a challenge but one that they rose to and succeeded at. There have been no summer events to prepare for, and thus no larger Maintenance Team efforts other than the one that took place at the end of February and mentioned under the Barn. A big thank you then is due to all those volunteers who continue to work so hard keeping the grass cut, and the paths and graves clean. Also, to those who tidy up the cans and bottles and chocolate wrappers etc., which regularly appear.

Once again, anyone able to offer any help in this task going forward, please contact either Churchwarden or speak to those dedicated few gardeners.

34

The Annual Churchyard Survey to check the stability of the gravestones within the churchyard has not been completed since October 2019, and as such is overdue. We have received no notification however from our maintenance teams that there are any grave stones which they consider to be more unstable or in need of any particular maintenance other than the South Path pointing and the path between the South Porch and the Car-Park which were noted within this survey for the last couple of years. There has been no significant change in their condition since then.

I told you last year that Liz had re-opened discussions with the Town Council about them taking over the maintenance of our Churchyard, and that this had previously been discussed during Rev’d Paul Wilson’s time in 2007 when we were re-laying the South Path. Our Churchyard is designated as a “Closed” churchyard, (meaning it is closed for new burials), and it has been since 1888! Maintenance of Closed Churchyards is legally the responsibility of the Town Council however they must formally accept this responsibility, and before lockdown the Town Council did agree to take it over but with the absence of a Diocesan Registrar no further progress could be made and then we were hit by lockdowns. The baton has now been passed to our Project Manager who is now leading the discussions from our side. Progress may be slow, as all the legalities are checked and double checked, but Rosh is confident of eventual success and is hopeful that we might get this sorted before too long. Before the Council takes on this responsibility, the Churchyard may need to be in good order. Therefore, the above surveys and any remedial work arising from them may need to be carried out before we can transfer the maintenance of our Churchyard. We intend to continue with the occasional grass cutting ourselves during the summer months for as long as our team is able, since they do such a good job of keeping it looking tidy for weddings etc.

You may remember that last year I reported that branches had fallen from some of our trees within the Churchyard, that they had been promptly cleared away, and that we had instigated a full Churchyard (and a Barn) Tree survey to be conducted in line with BS 5837 to assess the current health and condition of each tree. Having received the report in June 2019, it was important that the PCC should act on its recommendations, which we did. Those trees which we were advised to fell within the year were felled in 2019, some additional Branch removals were carried out at the same time as directed by the survey. Further removals of some self-set small trees were handled by our own Maintenance Team.

On 20/03/2020, another big branch of the Yew Tree (T163 - South West corner) fell onto the Church yard and foot path. Nobody was injured and the incident was reported to us by a witness at “The Nail Bar”. Andy Green responded and came to cut it up and clear the path within the hour. (This tree was reported as having no significant issues). As 2020 has passed, there is probably more work to do and some of the trees which were advised to have work done within 3 years will now be becoming due. We shall have to re-look through both of our surveys and may decide on a new programme of works for this coming year.

You may remember I told you about a couple of on-going projects within the Churchyard. One of these being the damage caused to the Iron Gates at the end of Church Walk (which are Grade II Listed), following the laying of the new tarmac on Church Walk (done in August 2018).

The other item is the levelling of the path between the Car Park and the South Porch.

35

So far there has been no progress on either of these. Initially both were on hold pending the appointment of our new architect. Since then, we have been delayed by a lack of meetings and visitations due to Covid restrictions. As we move into 2021 the committee would like to be able to re-start these projects as soon as possible: the South Path in particular, as the raised edges of the current gravestones seem more pronounced this year; and thus, more of a trip hazard. It is also significant that this item appears as a priority 1, (urgent) job within our new Q.I. Report, and is a potential delaying factor in our plan to get the Council to take on the Maintenance of the Churchyard.

Additional minor works that have taken place in the Churchyard include the following:

In March, Philippe removed vegetation from the bottom, and more vegetation and ivy from the top of the wall along Cuckoo Lane; running between the church entrance and the school gate. In July, Philippe and Pete repaired and modified the Church Notice Board. It will now accept additional notices underneath the main body of the notice board, up to A3 in size, and either vertically or horizontally orientated. They also added a second A3 Poster frame to the back of the notice board. The notice board modification enabled the fitment and display of the Nativity Panel, designed by Carol, which we saw at Christmas.

The door to the Gas Meter enclosure had become difficult to open to read the meter, the hinges were rusty and sticking. These were exchanged and the door made easier to open in February. Also, in February, Yorkshire Water informed us that they were going to install a Water Meter to cover our Church. Up until that point, we had been paying water rates at an extremely low rate and we might be dis-advantaged by going onto a meter, even when on the lowest tariff. We shall have to wait and see whether our bill changes, but certainly this is not a change that we requested.

The Committee

I told you last year that going forwards we had decided to re-organise the Fabric Committee after we got our new architect. We planned to have an “Architect Liaison Committee”, who would contact the architect, and agree specs and priorities, and co-ordinate with external contractors etc. As stated within the Q.I. section of this report, we had intended to ask additional members to join and give us the benefit of their experience / opinions. This wider committee still needs to be officially initiated, which has been delayed throughout 2020 by the restrictions on meetings, by our priorities, and an overview which suggested little progress was likely during the period. As previously stated, the smaller existing Architect Liaison Steering Group has kicked things off with the Zoom meeting with the Architect, the formulation of the Project Plan and the decision and progression of the plan to commission a Glazing Survey of our Church. We would still like to widen the membership as originally planned, as soon as practically possible, and would probably include interested parties from the PCC, the Hatfield Church Building Trust, and the Friends of the Hatfield Church Building Trust. This does not however preclude any other technically minded or even interested parties from asking to join the group.

I also told you last year, that we were considering appointing a project manager for any large projects / re-ordering etc. as the cost of this could potentially be claimed back through funding applications.

36

I am pleased to say that the PCC did seek and appoint a Project Manager to help us with our workload. The appointment took place at a Special, Limited Agenda Meeting of the PCC on Saturday 31/10/2020.

I am also happy to say that Rosh Milner was appointed to this position, bringing with her a wealth of experience managing specific projects, also general management and running of various Charity Organisations. The other thing which she brings of course is a local and personal interest in the outcomes. The roll is not 100% Fabric oriented (she is also looking after our Centenary Project Worker, Rachel, and has been instrumental in sorting out Online Banking and options for Digital Giving / Payment within our Church). Many of her current tasks are however, heavily to do with the fabric of our Church. One of the first tasks she is hoping to complete is the hand-over of the Churchyard to the Town Council, as already covered under Churchyard. She is also currently trying to organise the Window Survey, as previously discussed. I have to say, that I am convinced that this appointment is a good move. The current team are like minded and work well together. We have seen good progress in the last few months, largely through the efforts that Rosh has put in, but also through her leadership quality of being able to push and prod, with just the right balance of “leaving you to it’ but keeping an eye on the delays to maintain the momentum. I feel sure that 2020 will be the last year to pass with no major project completed.

We also said last year that we would like to create a maintenance group of “do-ers – not talkers” for regular maintenance chores. This group has already been unofficially keeping an eye on the regular and minor maintenance tasks, and has just undertaken them as individuals or in small groups as they came up. The group exists then, though it has no official leader, no official members and has had no formal meetings. The informal approach of a collection of volunteers is in many instances fine, and currently any tasks have been on the instruction of the PCC / Churchwardens and /or members of the old Fabric Committee. There will, however, be times when a co-ordinated approach will be needed, and specific instructions will need to be communicated to any volunteers and then followed. To this end, we could do with a volunteer willing to stand as a Team Leader / Co-ordinator through whom tasks can be planned and added to a list, jobs allocated to appropriately competent individuals / groups, and progress monitored. Someone who will ask appropriate questions and seek the answers, and report back any problems. If anybody would like to offer themselves for this co-ordinating role or would just like to help with some of the maintenance tasks please see myself, the Churchwardens or Liz, or anyone you know already involved in this type of work. We would love to bring you on board.

Many thanks to the other members of the old Fabric Committee for their support, and for all the work they still do to keep the church running, in the practical roles they each fulfil. Thanks especially to Philippe, Brian, Viv and Vera, the Parish Office staff, and all the others who contact, and meet the various contractors. Thanks also to all the willing volunteers who have helped us to accomplish some of the minor maintenance tasks throughout the year.

We, on the Fabric Committee and also the PCC, are aware that the Hatfield Church Building Trust, and indeed “The Friends” are keen to see a new project started such that they can donate some of their funds towards it, and thus maintain the enthusiasm of their members who support them. Unfortunately, they have seen no significant work completed in recent years.

37

We were pleased to have taken a couple of large steps forwards in 2019 in our appointment of our new architect and in having received the new Q.I. Report. I ask you all to bear with us then, as we have again been delayed through 2020, this time by the Pandemic and its restrictions, in completing any of our bigger plans. I must also repeat that none are more frustrated by the apparent lack of progress than those of us who are involved with Fabric issues. The workload, especially in an Ancient and Listed Building such as ours, is extremely large; each item is complicated and needs careful consideration and discussion, which has obviously been more difficult this year.

Also significant in causing delay, is the fact that we are asked to try to consider doing many things at once, in a grand scheme, as the DAC (and prospective funding bodies themselves) would apparently have us do, instead of doing smaller repairs individually. It sometimes seems to me to be overly complicated, a little unfair, and to be much harder to do anything. However we can’t just do what we want even when we know what we would like to do. Certainly, for any larger schemes where we hope to obtain outside funding, then we must comply with the wishes of the funding bodies as well as the DAC, and we always must operate within the current Faculty Rules etc. Looking on the bright side, the Diocese and the Church of England have taken more steps this year to simplify the Faculty Process to relieve us of some of the difficulties and restrictions these rules impose upon us. The new Faculty Jurisdiction Rules came into effect on 1[st] April 2020. These have revised the listings of items which require Faculty Approval, and the Diocese has now also enabled us to apply on-line. Going forwards the Diocese (as part of its new Strategy and Transformation), is about to appoint some Buildings Officers to help the parishes in this work, so hopefully all of this will help us move forward. It is becoming increasingly important that our churches can modernise and become useful spaces, otherwise they might eventually become unusable, dis-used, and eventually fall down!

In Summary

As you can see, 2020 saw the Committee and several individuals again busy and involved with many minor repairs and general maintenance activities. There was some real planning for future projects, our concentration being on preparing for some additional surveys, to supplement our Q.I. Inspection Report. We still have several outstanding jobs which were started a few years ago and remain uncompleted, but we carry forward into 2021 a desire to make some real progress on these, especially as they are now priority repairs detailed within our Q.I. Report. We look forward to cementing a fruitful partnership with our new Architect, which has begun. We again hope to use this “new start”, though recently delayed, to rejuvenate the new committee and to re-enthuse the Hatfield Church Building Trust and the Friends for the future benefit of our Church Building and our Community. k

Terry Raper – Buildings Officer.

38

f) Deanery Synod

Hatfield representatives are Reverends Liz and Gill as they are clergy, Carol Rashid as a member of Diocesan Synod, Glenys Mashford and Chrissy Grindle as elected reps.

The Deanery Synod met again almost exactly a year after the face-to-face in March 2021. There had been very little happening in that time as far as we all had to be involved, although the standing committee had met. This meeting on Zoom was a re-establishment, with discussion of:

The Deanery Synod meets three times a year, and we were so comfortable -by now- with Zoom that we might continue winter meetings by Zoom. As always, we opened and closed with prayerful worship. It was so very good to see familiar local faces, even on a screen!

Chrissy Grindle – Deanery Synod Rep

39

g) Activities of the Parish

This is the part of the report where we would normally describe the different groups and activities operating in the parish but sadly these have mostly had to grind to a halt due to the pandemic, lockdowns and restrictions so this section is very empty!

However, things are beginning to pick up and some are starting up again.

Rachel Ridler organised a Yard Sale to try to provide a safe community event and raise some money for the church; and this went so well we will be repeating it on August Bank Holiday Monday! A take away strawberry tea on the day of the men’s Wimbledon final will also lift our spirits!

Most of the activities which have continued have centred round children’s work and some other groups are now meeting in person again.

Our finances have been badly hit as we haven’t been able to hold our regular big fundraising events which have also been missed as they are community events too.

When we reach the next stage of coming out of lockdown we will be looking at restarting coffee mornings as soon as possible as people have clearly missed these.

Revd Liz

40

h) Training Log 2020/2021

The following training has been undertaken during 2020/21:

41

i) Churchwardens’ Report

What have your Wardens done this year?

Prayed, cleaned and let contractors into Church for essential maintenance. We risk assessed the building and made it Covid compliant.

Viv did the chalk trail inside Church to keep us socially distant, we removed as much paper as possible and soft furnishings were put away, allowing us to clean Church more easily. We have visited regularly, cleaned up a million flies but thankfully no mice. Each time the rules changed we reviewed our risk assessment to ensure we remain compliant.

When we were able to return, we joyfully took up our usual roles and also became expert hand sanitiser squirters. We are so grateful that our congregation joined in with the new rules with a good heart, sat where we asked them, wore their masks and managed not to hug each other. We know that our Church family kept in touch with each other and helped each other through this difficult time. We learnt how to zoom and soon found out it was not as dreadful as anticipated. Into the future we do not know what the new way will be but we trust God to lead us forward to a brave new world where we learn to live with Covid and its variants.

When it is safe to do so we will be encouraging sides people to take up their roles again, we need to restart cleaning teams and are looking for additional cleaners. It may not appear to be the most useful job in Church but believe me it is very necessary and the bonus is you get to go into Church when it is quiet, with friends and talk to God in your own special way. I am sure he laughs at me waltzing around with Henry (the vacuum).

Many of you will know Viv and I came to be Wardens following a bit of heavenly nudging while we were at Spring Harvest. We are now starting year 6 and really need to do some succession planning so if you are having a nudge, please talk to us no-one could have been more surprised than me to find myself in this position, as the slogan goes "it could be you".

Looking forward to meeting you all in Church as we reopen. Please be confident we will follow every guideline given to us to keep you safe, praying that we will all be courageous in our faith as we go forward.

Vera Owen and Viv Stubbs - Churchwardens

42

j) Ministry, Worship, Discipleship, Pastoral Care Revd Liz Turner-Loisel

Ministry is the work of the whole body of the people of Christ to which we are called at our baptism; and Covid has certainly stretched us in our understanding of what that means and how it happens.

I know that out there people have been loved and helped and encouraged when they have been in need. I know that phone calls have been made to check up on friends, that shopping has been done, prescriptions collected…..They call it neighbouring!

Health care workers, school staff, carers, essential workers, shop assistants, refuse collectors…the list of public services without which it is hard to survive is a long one. They call it dedication, vocation …..

Dedication, vocation, neighbouring, caring, listening, pastoral care….all these things are part of ministry, they are all about being Lights for Christ in a troubled, confused, scared world. Church may have been closed but the work of the church has continued in so many different ways and the Light of Christ has shone through the darkness of the pandemic.

Thank You for being Lights for Christ.

Worship in church has been interrupted and reduced and changed. But thanks to technology we have been able to stay in touch by other means with online services, bible studies, group meetings, emails, thoughts for the day on the church doors, poppies and flowers…..In these ways we have brought worship more into the public arena and reached more people than just meeting in church would ever have done - but of course we have missed it. We have missed the fellowship, the singing, the sharing, yes even the cleaning! Yet the links between the church and community are stronger than ever. Sadly baptisms and weddings have not been able to take place although they are beginning now; funerals for short time couldn’t be held in church, legal and safe limits for those attending had to be kept low, and yet we sought other ways to help those mourning loved ones. The worship and care which has poured out from service leaders, pastoral workers, children’s workers, gardeners, members of the public and church…….and the list goes on….all that has been pleasing to God - but still we wish we could have done more. Nevertheless thank you for being Lights for Christ.

As we look at how to reopen fully, we look into an unknown future. We are tasked with drawing up another Mission Action Plan – no 4! But this won’t be just an exercise it will help us discern how God wants us to move on with him and for him.

We are tasked with becoming a Mission Area with Oversight Ministers – this may be daunting but it is also exciting as we seek how to serve God, each other and our communities in old ways and new, all of which let the Light of Christ shine more brightly in our towns and villages.

Covid has reminded us all that we are frail human beings and life around us is sometimes insecure. We have been reminded of our mortality, that our time on earth is limited and unknown. Yet we have also learned that in the depths of fear, isolation and loneliness, we are deeply loved and kept safe on an eternal scale by Him. Our lives are fleeting, our days are numbered so how should we live them? As cracked pots, imperfect vessels through which the light of Christ can shine brightly as we emerge to face a different and unknown future but a future full of God’s love.

Together, may we walk in the Light and reflect the Light every moment of every new day. Amen.

43

k) Centenary Project Worker Report

From March 2020 - March 2021 we have had a very different year for Children’s ministry. With the arrival of lockdown, all of the activities moved online and then returned in socially distanced forms. I am very thankful for a supportive congregation, volunteer team and PCC who have let me work freely from home during this time whilst having to home-school my two boys, and who have given me freedom to take the ministry where I have felt God leading. This has led to an abundant increase in contacts with local schools, families and children. I have been supported by the central Centenary Project Team and been honoured to be invited to speak to the SDF about my work, present a workshop at the Joined Up Conference and Webinars for the Diocese on online children’s work.

I still feel very privileged to have the role of Youth, Children’s and Families worker here at St Lawrence Church and to head up the team of amazing volunteers. Even though we haven’t been able to physically be a team together much this year, their prayers and willingness to serve have been very much valued. Here is a summary of the main activities from this past year.

Messy Church – we now have over 100 in the Messy Church Facebook Group and have delivered craft packs each month (excluding Sept and Jan) for the last year. Funding was secured for these from council pots, and Facebook LIVE videos were created to accompany these. There are 190 names on our register, with 65 families now signed up to receive monthly craft packs. Highlights included our Scarecrow trail around the churchyard, socially distanced picnic on the Barn Field and Glow Stick Trail. We will continue online until the summer, with the hope to return to in person Messy Church later in the year. Our core team are now meeting monthly on zoom to contribute to this.

44

Youth – 5 advent packs were sent out to youth connected to the church.

Summer Holiday Club – 50 children took part in our Socially Distant Staycation Summer Club, with craft packs, trails, videos and socially distanced activities taking place across the whole 6 weeks. Many of these are now linking in with Messy Church. Highlights included the chalk prayer path around the church that was enjoyed by many and shared across the globe on Facebook, inspiring many other churches to copy. The flag trail was also enjoyed by young and old alike, and a huge thank you goes to the congregation members who volunteered their gardens.

Schools – Pre-recorded videos were sent to all local primary schools during the first lockdown, with “Lockdown Parables” themed around stories from this year went down really well. From September onwards I have been delivering Zoom/Teams collective worship sessions at local schools for World Peace Day/Harvest/Advent/Christmas/Easter. I have been able to engage with all 5 local primary schools in some way, building strong foundations for future ministry opportunities.

Special Occasions – For Christmas we ran a very successful sheep trail around DN7 with over 150 children coming to pick up prizes from us at the back of church. The online services and activities provided a great community feel, as many children filmed parts for the virtual nativity (written and supported by Helen Green), joined in with Christingle at home (98 took part on zoom) and baked along with us for Messy Church. We ran a Valentine’s Window Decorating competition which was won by Crookesbroom Primary Academy keyworker children.

Toddlers – In January we launched “Little Lions”, activities specifically to target babies and toddlers and their parents. This included a free toy library (6 families are currently accessing this) and zoom sessions. We currently have 5 mums and 5 babies under 1 accessing zoom weekly for the bumps and babes sessions. We also have connected with 2 others mums and 2 grandmas with toddlers. Many more are excited to join in when we can meet back in person. Huge thanks to Susan for volunteering on this team and learning to sing nursery rhymes over zoom!

45

Lego Club – 30 children signed up for our online zoom Lego club, exploring bible stories through Lego. About 15 of these children have regularly attended over the 10 weeks it has run, with some accessing it from further afield. There have been some great discussions with the children about these stories. Thanks to Glenys for joining me on these calls and leading some of the story times.

Uniform Bank – Off the back of the schools being closed for month, I reacted to the need for families to be able to afford new uniform and also an influx in unworn good quality uniform by launching a uniform bank. This received some grant funding from the council for set up costs, and since launching in September we have given out 25 uniform packs to vulnerable, keyworker and other families who have requested uniform from us. We also have 2 volunteers linked to this project, and hope and pray that it will expand once lockdown is eased and be well accessed by local families.

Rachel.ridler@centenaryproject.org.uk

07851 991286

Befriend me on Facebook for regular updates on my work “Rachel Youthworker”

Rachel Ridler – Centenary Project Worker

46

l) Project Manager Report

I have been spending 9 hours per week since November 2020 engaged on behalf of the PCC on project managing various pieces of work. This has been rewarding, interesting and at times challenging but at all times the sense of openness, partnership and common vision has been present as we seek to further the Lord’s work here at St Lawrence.

Introduction

The first few weeks were spent very much getting to grips with current practices, observing and understanding what happens currently and beginning to look at ways to improve and develop systems and procedures in general as well as progress set projects agreed initially:-

Line Management of our CPW is a standing project throughout my engagement.

Progress to date on each project is outlined below:-

Centenary Project

Line Management of CPW, including processing expenses, fundraising and networking emails and phone calls and supervision. Rachel and her support group all enjoyed the network day in February. Following that we met and agreed an action plan for the year.

Securing ongoing funding for the year ahead is a key priority for Rachel and myself and we have spent time looking at funding opportunities and working together to produce our 3 year funding plan.

Applications have been made to various grant funders as well.

Our plan going forward is to work together in the Parish Office for a few hours every Monday or Tuesday depending on diaries.

Finance

All following PCC guidance I have:

47

Churchyard

Research and steady progress on the handover of our closed churchyard to the Town Council for maintenance. A great deal of reading , associated emails and helpful guidance from the Diocesan Advisory Committee, Registrar and our Architect gives me hope that this will be resolved in partnership with the Town Clerk and Council within a few months.

Quinquennial Inspection and Architect

Took the lead on our meetings with Architect and produced project plan focussed on Priority 1 items from our QI report. With Terry’s help we now have a detailed plan of windows and glazing condition ready to engage a specialist glazing firm to survey.

I have obtained a UPRN (unique property reference number) 10006617569 for the church itself which should help in any future applications for service (as we don’t have an actual letter box on the building!).

Conclusion

I continue to enjoy the challenges raised and remain encouraged by the support and optimism for positive change I have encountered from all quarters!

Priorities moving forward:

Rosh Milner – Project Manager

48

m) Communications and Admin

Magazine

The magazine is more successful than ever and with the introduction of the magazine being sent out electronically we have welcomed new readers. We would like to thank all those who have helped with the costs of postage so we are still able to reach those who do not have access to the electronic copy. These kind donations are made by generous people who would not let electronic connections get in the way of people receiving the magazine. We would like to give a big thank you to Jill McGarvie in the parish office for her amazing work posting these out.

The short story competition uncovered hidden talents hiding in our community, so a big thank you to all who took part either by entering a piece or judging. This short competition will hopefully inspire future challenges within the magazine.

We ask those who read the magazine to pass on their copies to family members, friends or neighbours. We would also appreciate any feedback or suggestions which can be emailed to maghatfieldchurch@gmail.com.

Chrissy Grindle and Emily Grimsey, editors

Parish Office

The Parish Office is a vital part of church life and organisation. Over the last few years the team has changed and diminished, and with the impact of Covid it was impacted still further because of the need for social distancing and members of the team having to stay away because of vulnerability and pre-existing conditions. This meant that we lost our Wednesday team of Stuart Watson and Karen Hall and our Friday team and cleaners – Janet Hoffman and Barbara Riggott, and Pat Knight who had begun to help Jill with some of her work also had to stop coming as she was isolating

We decided that, as few calls now go to the Parish Office, that we didn’t need to staff it as regularly as we used to and this paved the way for its use by our Centenary Project Worker and Project Manager, as well as its continued use by Jill McGarvie and Chrissy as well as the wardens, treasurers, PCC secretary etc. Clergy and Readers have also used the office to book and prepare weddings and meet with funeral families so as you can see it is a hive of activity and still absolutely essential to the work of the parish.

A huge thanks must go to Jill McGarvie who really keeps the show on the road and is always ready to go the extra mile and help wherever she can as well as doing her regular work. She is also ably assisted by her Saturday Girl, Chrissy!

Can I please put out an appeal for a cleaner or two for the Parish Office, doing a couple of hours a week to keep it spick and span. It would be a real help to us. If you think you might be able to do this, please talk to Jill McGarvie or me.

Revd Liz

49

Online Presence and Communication

One of the good things about the pandemic – yes there are some – is that it has forced us to look with new eyes at how we contact and stay in touch with people both churchgoers and those who live in our communities. What an adventure this has been!

So the platforms we are now using are:

A Church Near You - which lists every church in the country and people can find out which parish they belong to. Services and events are displayed there, together with our contact details.

Our Facebook Page – which advertises all our services, events, groups…….and has a messaging facility through which we get quite a number of wedding, baptism and other enquiries. Our CPW Rachel uses this extensively and has used it for live streamed Messy Church and children’s activities… Revd Gill also uses it for Morning Prayer three times a week and Night Prayer on Saturdays; both of which draw regular listeners and reach beyond our usual church congregation as well.

Our Website – we are really grateful to Rachel for getting this off the ground for us and, while it is still underdevelopment, it is extremely useful for putting on more detailed information and again people contact us through it.

Our YouTube Channel – through which we have been able to broadcast live and pre-recorded services during lockdown. The Memorial Service in November 2020 drew huge numbers and we had people joining us from across the country and even from abroad.

Zoom – kept us going with services when we weren’t in church and we have also used it for Bible Studies, Advent and Easter courses, funeral planning, attending courses and numerous meetings! PCC attendance has never been as good!! We are now looking at baptism prep on Zoom so couples don’t have to get babysitters!

WhatsApp – a quick messaging service and Rachel uses this with her support group to ask for prayer, keep us informed…

However, having listed all that, we do of course still have a weekly newsletter both printed and sent out by email and a church magazine again printed, delivered and sent by email, as well as an extensive church email list of over 150 people which is used to send out information, readings, prayers, reflections and generally to keep in touch with people. (We did try MailChimp but most of us found it too complicated.) However we do need to find a better tool than email so that is on the ‘to do’ list. And lastly, what we do without a good old fashioned telephone or a flashier mobile phone which does everything except cook dinner! All of these methods have helped us keep in touch with people when we and they have needed it.

Revd Liz

50