## **St Wilfrid's Church, Calverley Annual Report and Financial Statements of the** ## **Parochial Church Council** ## **for the year ended 31 December 2023** Prepared for the Annual Parochial Church Meeting Monday 20[th] May 2024 ## **Vicar** Reverend Rob Denton ## **Bankers** National Westminster Bank plc 1 Market Street Bradford BD1 1EG C C L A Investment Management Ltd The C B F Church of England Fund 80 Cheapside London EC2V 6DZ ## **Independent Examiner** A Whalley FCA Azets Audit Services Ltd Carlton House, Grammar School Street, Bradford BD1 4 NS ## **Registered Charity Number 1130921** 1 ## **ST. WILFRID’S PARISH CHURCH CALVERLEY** ## ANNUAL REPORT FOR 2023 Background St Wilfrid’s, Calverley P.C.C. has the responsibility of co-operating with the Incumbent, in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical. When planning our activities for the year, the incumbent and the PCC have considered the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit and the specific guidance on charities for the advancement of religion. We try to enable ordinary people to live out their faith as part of our parish community through: Worship and prayer, learning about the Gospel; and developing their knowledge and trust in Jesus. Provision of pastoral care for people living in the parish. Missionary and outreach work. To facilitate this work, it is important that we maintain the fabric of St. Wilfrid’s Church and The Barn. 2 ## **Structure Governance and Management** St Wilfrid’s Parish Church is situated in Calverley, Pudsey. It is part of the Diocese of Leeds within the Church of England. It is a corporate body established by the Church of England. It is a registered charity, number 1130921. The correspondence address is: Parish Office, St Wilfrid’s Parish Church, Town Gate, Calverley, Pudsey, LS28 5NF. ## **Membership** Membership of the P.C.C. are either ex-officio or elected by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) in accordance with the Church Representation Rules. |_Incumbent:_|Rev. Rob Denton (Chairperson)||10/10| |---|---|---|---| |_Elected Members:_|Mrs Sandra Tempest (Vice Chairperson)|(to 2026)|10/10| ||Mr Dan Cohen|(to 2026)|8/10| |_Secretary_|Mrs Fiona Hainsworth|(to 2026)|6/10| ||Mr Richard Jobes|(to 2024)|8/10| |_Treasurer_|Mrs Nicola Lightfoot|(to 2026)|8/10| ||Mr David Williams|(to 2025)|4/10| ||Mr Jonathan Lacey|(to 2025)|8/10| ||Mrs Olivia Gaunt|(to 2025)|9/10| |_Co-opted & Parish Rep._|Mrs Brenda Pickard|(to 2024)|10/10| ||Mrs Kim Raja|(to 2024)|8/10| |_Deanery Synod Rep:_|Mrs Brenda Pickard (to 2025)||10/10| ||Mr David Edwards (to 2027)||4/6| |_Safeguarding (non-voting)_|Mrs June Hopkinson||2| |**_(Jan – Apr 2023)_**|Mrs Julie Horan|(to 2023)|3/4| ||Mrs Susan Jubb|(to 2023)|2/4| ||Mrs Rachel Marcus|(to 2023)|4/4| ||Mrs Rachel Rudman|(to 2023)|4/4| ||Mr Geoff Simpson|(to 2023)|2/4| |**_(May – Dec 2023)_**|Mrs Kim Pollard|(to 2026)|6/6| ||Mrs Naomi Simkins|(to 2026)|6/6| ||Mr David Edwards|(to 2026)|4/6| |(**July****_– Dec 2023)_**|Lizzie Reynolds (Curate)||4/4| ## **Committees** The P.C.C. operates through Standing Committee between full meetings of the P.C.C. if needed. 3 ## **Chairman’s Address** ## **Vicar’s Report, St Wilfrid’s Calverley, 2023** 2023, my second full calendar year in Calverley, was another busy year for all here at St Wilfrid’s. This report gives a flavour of church life in that period. . ## **Events and Worship** Sunday worship remained in it’s now established post-covid pattern, with consistent numbers at both services (see Numbers section below); The 9:15 for robes and hymns, which is always Eucharistic, and The 11 for contemporary music, and AllAge feel where we have Kids’ Church most weeks, and communion alternate weeks. Our joint service All-In at 10 is for major festivals, 5[th] Sundays and the summer holidays. To this we have added termly our Go Deeper Live evening service, with a slightly longer talk and an extended period of sung worship and prayer ministry. The sermon slot is filled at least termly by an Ask Me Anything slot, which is often the springboard for future sermons. We are richly blessed to have had services led and sermons preached by a great breadth of voices beyond mine – our retired resident priests Sue and Paul, our Licenced Lay Minister John, Kim– our LLM in training, Naomi, Val, Richard, Dave, and now Lizzie. We have had services led by TAG, and now by members of the Youth Drop-In. Are you called to be part of this growing team? Olivia has taken over leading Kids Church. This is going really well, although the more people who feel called to participate in this the richer it is for the kids and the adults. It would be great to start offering this teaching time to two groups of older and younger kids – are you called to be part of that? Our current pattern sees our young people stay with us for the whole service about 40% of the time too – talking to our young people it is clear that they like going out, and that it is good to have them in too. This intergenerational worship is still finding it’s form and was much helped by a whole day of training several of us attended. As we work to make this truly enriching worship for everyone in the room, a chance for all to connect with God and with each other, we are looking for a wider team here too. Easter was a delight again – Palm Sunday marked by the reading of The Passion, Messy Easter, our Maundy Thursday Supper, the hour at the cross, and then services at Dawn and 10 on Easter Sunday. Summer saw our 2[nd] Pride drop-in service, a space for thanksgiving, prayer and reflection, and a safe welcome space for the LGBTQ+ community and allies. In Autumn Marcus Green returned as a guest speaker, opening our series looking at Exodus which was also an opportunity to explore the full agenda of Inclusive Church, an organisation we are considering joining as part of our commitment to be welcoming to all, regardless of age, race, class, disability, gender or sexuality. 4 Highlights toward the end of the year included Remembrance Day, as ever a full church, and the first Choral Evensong of my tenure. Advent and Christmas was as usual a busy and joyous time, punctuated with quiet moments such as the advent bereavement service and louder ones such as the three Christingles. Events included the 2[nd] Annual Calverley Beer Festival, which filed the church again with members of the community and raised a few pounds too. There were tombolas, clothes swaps, weekly coffee shops... so many events, some raising money, some serving the community; all a chance to Love Calverley. ## **Numbers** Sunday attendance figures remain steady. Growing Together is rightly part of our vision statement – numbers matter, not as a statistic, but because numbers are people, individuals for whom our hope and prayer is that they get to know the joy of life in all its fullness we have found in Christ. The C of E asks us to count in two different ways, which give different perspectives. Our total worshipping community figures are below (Those who worship with us once a month or more, or who would if not prevented by illness). |**2023**||| |---|---|---| |Total|**249**|**(+16%)**| |Children (Age 0-10)|67|(45%)| |Young People (Age 11-17)|16|(+33%)| |Adults (Age 18-69)|104|(+9%)| |Adults (Age 70+)|62|(=)| |**2022**||| |Total|**215**|**(+25%)**| |Children (Age 0-10)|46|(+84%)| |Young People (Age 11-17)|12|(+71%)| |Adults (Age 18-69)|95|(-9.5%)| |Adults (Age 70+)|62|(+77%)| ## **2021** |**2021**|| |---|---| |Total|**172**| |Children (Age 0-10)|25| |Young People (Age 11-17)|7| |Adults (Age 18-69)|105| |Adults (Age 70+)|35| ## **Average Sunday Attendance** This is measured by the October count – regular attendance in a representative month which includes no major festivals or holidays. - Adults (16 years old and over) 74 (last year 77, 4%) - Children and young people (under 16 years old) 17 (on last year 23, 26%) 5 ## **What does that mean?** Broadly, it looks like more people are worshipping with us, but many of them less often. We see a lot of people monthly, and fewer people weekly. Should our focus for the next season be not just to bring the good news to more people outside the church, but also encourage more people already at church to keep exploring their commitment to God, and to his community? Do we have to accept a tendency for some people to come less often; a weekly bum on a seat is crude measure of commitment, what does commitment look like? ## **Occasional offices** These are in the heart of our calling as a parish church, something we offer to the whole community. In 2023 we were initially ably served by Kath (funerals), Sylvia (weddings) and Claire (baptisms) who oversaw admin in these areas. During the year Kath handed on funeral verging duties to Sandra, and Sylvia handed on weddings to Claire. I am enormously grateful to all of them for their time and their administrative diligence. John Corbin’s ministry in taking funerals is a great blessing to us all and to the families he supports, and Lizzie has stepped into this ministry with a wealth of experience and expertise too. |Funerals in church:|11| |---|---| |Funeral at crematoria by clergy or LLMs:|12| |Interments of ashes:|8| |Burials:|3| |Baptisms:|8| |Weddings:|3| ## **Mission** As mentioned above, Growing Together is in our vision statement, and we often pray the LYCIG prayer for growth in our services: _God of Mission Who alone brings growth to your Church, Send your Holy Spirit to give Vision to our planning, Wisdom to our actions, Joy to our worship, And power to our witness. Help our church to grow in numbers, In spiritual commitment to you, And in service to our local community, Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen._ Several of us attend a bimonthly LYCIG growth group, which helps keep our eye on the mission agenda. It has prompted us to pay attention to Sunday worship and making the most of the big festivals, to schedule more evangelistic talks and events such as 2024’s Burns Night and Pie and Peas, to keep a focus on kids, youth and intergenerational worship, and discipleship. 6 Our ongoing mission beyond church continues, connecting to the community through activities such as Coffeeshop and Barn Babies (which is filling up rapidly!). Our links with both schools such as Open the Book assemblies, What’s the Story and Heritage days in church remain strong, and collaboration with C of E is strengthening under new head Mrs Cameron. TAG remains vibrant, welcoming a generally older crowd to a fortnightly(ish) session of connection and fellowship with some exploration of faith. The Easter trail engaged the wider community too. We have run another successful START course as preparation for baptism and confirmation for adults. Youth Drop-In started on Wednesdays after school until 4:30, with an extra ½ hour faith slot starting in advent, and members of the group have led services in church. Individuals continue to explore their vocation, within and beyond church: one of our number began ordination training (every blessing, Dave!), and we gained a trainee LLM in the shape of Kim Pollard. Go Deeper continues to find its shape – now notes for sermons, a termly live event with a speaker, and another termly evening called Sunday School for Grown Ups, a café church style evening. It was clear from before my appointment that St Wilfrid’s sought to be a welcoming church, so after the Living Love and Faith course I asked this year’s PCC to explore and decide whether we should join the organisation Inclusive Church. We hope to finalise this decision before APCM 20204. This prompted that series on Exodus and has also regularly featured on the PCC agenda. PCC also recognised a calling to engage with domestic violence and mental health and is exploring hosting a child contact centre. ## **Structures** Behind the scenes we continue to put in place or refine our structures. Our paid staff continue to get at least the National Living Wage. Sally left us as administrator, and Carol has stepped in to her shoes (getting up to speed remarkable quickly in a busy advent season). Toby continues to serve ably as tech-master, and we are reviewing cand clarifying his role. Lizzie joined us as curate and by the end of 2023 was already a blessing to us all. Dan and Sandra stepped down after years of faithful service as wardens, and many of their day-to-day and week-to-week tasks have been taken up by Team Warden, a growing number of the congregation who help keep everything ticking along. Church suite has been rolled out too, a tech solution allowing us to keep everyone’s data securely, to contact them when we need to if there’s a pastoral need, or to coordinate rotas. ## **Finally** Looking back, I learned a lot about faith last year. As people stepped down from key roles, I was sometimes a bit worried – how is this all going to work our Lord? Every time things worked out just fine. New appointments were made to key roles, or if not, another solution was found; in the face of the gap left by wardens we created Team Warden. As Rowan Williams says, God gives the Church all the gifts the Church needs to be the Church. That said, we are always called to seek our vocations. Who is called to do what next? If we are to pursue our vision, we need a few people to step into roles. The team who leads Youth would be blessed by a few extra folk, both on Wednesdays and Sundays. Our AV team is growing; David and Toby have been joined by Matt, 7 but a few more would be good. Team Warden is great, but it can’t do the full role of a Warden, it would be a blessing to have wardens with whom to share the legal responsibility for the buildings and spiritual responsibility for the church. Now that many of the traditional tasks of the wardens are in hand, I pray that one or two feel called to share this oversight with me. And of course, we are always looking to see people step into whatever God is calling them to – leading and preaching, running or joining a small group, worship music, marriage, families and parenting, dementia work, mental health... Whatever this Church is called to be will defined by God’s people faithfully discerning their roles and working out their passion. What else is next? 2024 will see a decision on Inclusive Church, either way our mission remains to welcome all and challenge injustice. We plan to look at how we welcome and host, starting a team for this. We will also start a team to consolidate our Intergenerational worship. We are exploring running a contact centre for kids to connect with non-resident parents. There are books to balance and a building to maintain, and always our Diocesan challenge to grow faithful disciples echoes Christ’s call. There is, as ever, plenty to do! I end as I often begin – with gratitude. There is still a sense of togetherness here; a willingness to work together and a shared joy when we do. There is growth. There is deep sense of connection and love with the village. St Wilfrid’s is still called to Love God, Love Calverley, and Grow Together, and it remains a pleasure and privilege to be part of that call. Your grateful vicar, Rob ## **Standing Committee** This is the only committee required by law. It has the power of the PCC between meetings, subject to any directions given by council. (Full Terms of Reference & Procedures available on request) It met during the year. ## **The Parochial Church Council** The P.C.C. met in-person on 10 occasions. ## **Major areas of Parochial, Deanery and Diocesan concern addressed by PCC:** Systems and structures – employment contracts and pay for our employees, including recruiting a Missional Buildings and Events Manager. Creating and implementing the License Agreement with Play Academy for the Barn. Safer recruitment structures and planning. Mission and worship – Engaging with the Living in Love and Faith course, addressing issues in human sexuality, gender and relationships, and considering our inclusivity. Consolidating our pattern of worship. LYCIG, church growth, creating and implementing a strategy. Running a beer festival to raise money and connect with Calverley. ## **Rev. Rob Denton** 8 ## **Staffing** Toby is paid for 2 ½ hours for the work he does in updating the website and producing our morning prayer for You Tube (and many other things). Susan Jubb is paid for 2 hours a week to clean the office, vestry, toilets and server. Carol Cowling our Church administrator is paid for 12 hours, and Claire Tular our Church and Barn Events Manager is paid for 5 hours a week. ## **Resources Income** The income from donors by way of regular giving, tax recovery, plate and fundraising was £90,341 (£87,813 in 2022), an increase of 3% on the previous year. The total income was £136,998 (£130,363 in 2022) an increase of 5% on the previous year. ## **Resources Used** The mission giving for the year, to each of the five mission agencies, Overseas Church Mission Society (Azaria Spencer support) £1,628 South American Mission Society (now part of CMS) £3,300 Tearfund £2,152 Home Church Pastoral Aid Society £1,628 Church Army (Sorted) £2,152 Jesus Shaped People £1,200 Total expenditure was £161,235 (£143,830 in 2023) an increase of 8% on the previous year. ## **Reserves Policy** It is PCC policy to try to maintain a balance on free reserves (net current assets) which equates to at least three months unrestricted payments. This is equivalent to £38,000. It is held to smooth out fluctuations in cash flow and to meet emergencies. The balance of the free reserves at the end of the year was £33,746 which is slightly lower than this target. Restricted funds (fabric, graveyard, and youth work) comprise £21,146 of fixed assets and £27,360 of current assets. ## **The Diocesan Share** The share, a proportion of which meets the stipend, pension and housing costs of the clergy, was £68,604 (£62,366 in 2022). The share is allocated on a formula, which has been agreed by the new Diocese. As at 31[st] December 2023 the current years share had an unpaid balance of £30,104, £23,000 of which was paid in January 2024 leaving an unpaid balance of £7,104 for 2023. The previous years Share has an unpaid balance of £20,000, this will be paid if sufficient funds remain after the current years share has been paid. The Trustees Report was approved by the Parochial Church Council on Monday 13[th] May 2024 9 ## R Denton Revd Rob Denton Chairman of the Meeting. 10 Churehcwnel ofStW*th*s C* I rw on ts wAn15 d tho Paoth'a Chun* of St ca￿￿11Y thwthlfortr* 31 De￿￿*￿r2o23. 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Barn babies now only meet on Thursday mornings, term time, numbers were low but are increasing again. Sarah has her belly dancing classes every Thursday evening, again term time only. We had Gabby from Bumble Kids using the barn every Monday morning January to the end of March 2024. Unfortunately, that has now stopped. Calverley choir use the barn every Wednesday evening. We have a new lady, Nicci, who has used the barn on 3 occasions so far for sound bath meditation and she wants to book with us on a more permanent basis going forward. We have had 20 barn hire/party bookings from April 2023 to 2024. From our accounts it shows The Barn income excluding play academy was £3060 for 2023 up from £1415 in 2022. The barn repairs were massively increased due to a new water cylinder costing £1822 and a boiler heating control at £4775,83 they are usually around £2000 for the year. We have had the barn cleaned by Katie Corbin every term time. The barn floor has been re done, which cost £1,500 as it hadn’t been done for numerous years and now each year it can just have a light sand and polish if we keep up to it. Events I have been dealing with are The Beer Festival in October 2023, I’ve not had the final amount taken, and we did two Clothes swap events. I have organised for the barn garden to be dug up and re designed so it looks more attractive to future barn bookings. For 2024, so far, I have taken 20 bookings up to March, so if we keep going with these party bookings, we could possibly triple last year’s income for the barn. **Thanks Claire Tular.** ## **BARN BABIES PARENT & TODDLER GROUP** Now in its 26[th] Year, Barn babies’ parent and toddler group meets in the Barn on a Thursday morning term time only from 9.30-11.15am. After a couple of years of reduced numbers and having dropped from three to one session a week post covid, we have had an increase in interest since September 2023 and are now at full 24 capacity. Sally Littlejohn continues to run it with me with the help of our fabulous refreshment team, all ex-Barn Babies mums of Chloe Cross, Amreen Kapsi-Chawke, Liz Hill, Lisa Dixon, Claire Higham, and Fiona Knowles. Barn Babies aim continues to be, to provide a facility for families to meet others, feel welcomed by the local church and introduce young children to Father God and Jesus through See and Know. ## **Fiona Hainsworth, Barn Babies Co-ordinator** ## **BELL RINGERS** It has been a successful year for the bell ringers with a number of ‘firsts.’ The tower took part in the national ‘Ring for the King’ initiative. This resulted in four newly taught ringers participating in the ringing to mark the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in May. Some rang on eight bells for the first time on this occasion. Rob Denton kindly presented certificates to everyone who rang, and the learners also featured in a Yorkshire Post article with photos of the tower. Other new ringers have since learned and the band has been further enhanced by three ‘returners.’ This means we now have 18 ringers on our books. As a result, we have been able to provide much more reliable ringing for Sunday services and special events. In addition, we no longer have to rely on visiting ringers to enable us to ring for services and weddings. For only the second time this century a full peal was successfully completed on the St Wilfrid’s bells in May 2023. The band included two local ringers and the peal marked the Coronation. For the first time in over ten years an entirely local band was able to ring a quarter peal. This band included one ringer who only started learning in January 2023. The ringers have welcomed visiting ringers from Bristol, Bath, Leeds and also some local towers this year. The Yorkshire Tykes (young ringers) visited in December. One couple included wedding bells as part of their celebrations. The ringers are pleased to record thanks to the vicar, curate and other members of St Wilfrid’s for their support over the year. Anyone interested in finding out more about ringing or the bells should contact: nicola.goode2@virginmedia.com ## **Nicola Goode** ## **CHURCHYARD MAINTENANCE & ANIMALS** The past twelve months have seen the Churchyard Team very busy as usual; whatever the Season, there's always work to be done. If it's not mowing and strimming, weeding, leaf clearing, litter picking, planting and Shrub and Tree pruning, it's helping to prepare for key dates in the Church calendar such as Christmas, Easter and Remembrance Sunday? There's also the work in the cremated remains area preparing plots for ashes interment and separately, de- cluttering to prevent the 25 Section becoming untidy with excess Memorabilia which has been a continuing problem. The work going into all this is very rewarding, particularly in the response from visitors and Locals commenting on how the Grounds are so welcoming and caredfor. And the 2023 Calverley in Bloom Silver Gilt Award for the Churchyard was a satisfying reflection on the way the Judges appreciated the efforts by the Team to meet Eco-diversity and Well Being criteria. On a slightly downbeat note, the surface Water Pipe in the Meadow sourcing water to the adjoining Farm is hampering mowing activities and unsightly. There are plenty of activities in this part of the Churchyard including Scouts to Mums and young children Groups which the pipe could provide a hazard, so the PCC need to be mindful that adequate safety measures are in place in and around the line of the pipe and Manhole. Steps should be taken asap to excavate and get the pipe underground. On a positive note, there's no noticeable vandalism in the Churchyard to speak of . The Team currently comprises a regular group of hardy souls brimming with enthusiasm (albeit tempered with a few creaking joints) so any additional volunteers are always welcome. To this end, there has been discussion with the Yorkshire and Humberside Probation Service to look at providing Work Placement Volunteers to help at busy times in the Churchyard, particularly during the mowing season, also with any large-scale projects in the Churchyard requiring extra help. Talks are ongoing to see where these services are best concentrated, and frequency. Finally, the Team would like to take the opportunity to thank Rob and the PCC in their prompt support in approving funding for much needed new equipment during the year to replace existing equipment beyond economic repair. This is much appreciated, and having this in place is enormously helpful in getting the work done efficiently. ## **Pat Kelly for the Churchyard Team** ## **COMMUNITY COFFEE SHOP** The community coffee shop aims to be open in church every Friday morning during term time from 9 until 11:30 a.m. There are five teams who provide the service and these teams are led by Brenda, Claire, Judith, Sandra and Margaret. We are assisted by a loyal band of helpers, many of whom are sacrificing a day off from their regular jobs to serve. The support received from team members is greatly appreciated and we would welcome anyone who feels they could also help to join us in this service to the community. Please speak to one of the team if you feel this is something you could do. **Margaret Roundhill** 26 ## **DEANERY SYNOD** The Area Forum took place on 27[th] April 2023 at St George’s, Leeds about Climate. The Deanery Synod met on 25[th] May 2023 at St Peter’s, Morley. Topics discussed: Encouragement and Unity, Being Inspired and Equipped, Making a Difference to the Wider Church, Clergy and Lay Together, Men’s Mental Health. Deanery Synod met on 14[th] September 2023 at St Peter’s, Morley. The following members were elected to Deanery Standing Committee: - Stuart Ward (Oulton/Rothwell) - Joint Lay Chair. members of the clergy on the - Standing Committee - Newly elected clergy: - Rev Phil Arnold, Rev Emily Tidball, Rev Sharon Wilkinson, Rev Mark Watson. - • Newly elected lay members: Ian Waterhouse (Beeston) and David Jorysz (Bramley). - No Deanery Secretary was elected. Jemima Parker, Diocesan Environment Officer, then spoke about the Eco-Church Award Scheme. The diocese will offer training and there are funding opportunities that will be released soon that will help parishes to engage with environmental issues. The Area Forum took place on 9[th] November 2023 about Advent Hope. **Brenda Pickard Deanery Synod Representative** ## **FABRIC** In the absence of Churchwardens, this Fabric Report is submitted to the PCC by Brenda Pickard, member of Team warden with oversight of the annual fabric care and maintenance, in accordance with the Care of Churches and the Ecclesiastical jurisdiction measure 1991, which came into force in March 1993. All maintenance checks any necessary repairs to the fabric of the church and Barn have been completed. All the articles and equipment in each building have been serviced and are in good working order. ## **Brenda Pickard on behalf of Team Wardens** ## **FLOWER ARRANGING** As a team we have had the pleasure of decorating Church at Christmas, Easter and Harvest, and Julie created some beautiful displays for Remembrance Sunday. It is a time of fellowship and laughter, as well as the opportunity to learn new skills and explore our creativity. I would like to thank everyone who has given freely of their time, talents and floral contributions, and to those who have allowed us to scour their gardens for hydrangeas and greenery! We are exploring ways of being more environmentally friendly, and so the displays may look a little different in the coming year. If anyone has any ideas, and could help us, that would be amazing. Anyone is welcome to join us – no prior flower arranging skills are necessary! 27 For more information email kim@calverleyparish.church **Kim Pollard for the Church Flower Arranging Team** ## **COMMUNION TABLE FLOWER ROTA** There have been no flowers on the pedestals at the Altar during Lent but the rota will resume on Easter Saturday. The flowers are provided by volunteer parishioners on a fortnightly basis except during the Summer months when it changes to weekly, as due to the warmer weather the flowers do not last a fortnight. Due to people leaving the village and some passing away, the Rota now has several vacant dates for which we need volunteers to fill. It is an ideal way to remember a loved one or a special date. When this happens, a message is usually put on the Church Bulletin asking if any parishioners are willing to take on this task once a year. Should we not get the volunteers needed on certain dates then the silver vases on the pedestals will remain empty! Many Blessings ## **Julie Horan** ## **GIFT AID** My role is to enable people to give to our church in whichever way they choose and to maximise gifts by seeking a recover from HMRC annually. from HMRC. There are many ways to give: ## Parish Giving Scheme Since we launched this scheme nearly 2 years ago 47 people have joined. Many of them are taxpayers and so we now receive an additional monthly amount of about £900 in Gift Aid which is recovered monthly by PGS. In addition to saving me work, for which I am grateful, it means our regular income is boosted throughout the year. ## Standing Orders There are 22 people use the former bank standing order way of giving. I recover the Gift Aid on that giving. Since the introduction of PGS the annual tax recovery has of course reduced, nevertheless we received £6507.84 last year. It will be less this year. ## Envelope scheme As more people have changed to PGS so the number of givers via the weekly envelope system has reduced, although some members of the congregation still prefer to use this system and indeed it does encourage regular weekly giving. ## Payaz Machine We were successful in our bid to receive this free machine and despite its idiosyncrasies it has been a very welcome addition to our giving mechanisms. The 28 additional advantage gained is that any donations via the machine, less than £30, are eligible to be included in the tax recovery as what is called the small donations scheme. The total amount donated by this method to December 2023 was £3800. ## Patronage Scheme Several people have already joined this scheme, and their gifts are eligible for a tax recovery also, boosting the value of their gift to £130. I would encourage everyone who supports our church to commit to regular giving and to review their giving annually to enable our work and mission to continue. **Margaret Roundhill** ## **SMALL GROUPS** There are 2 weekly small groups and 2 fortnightly groups (TAG and Tuesday pm). 1 group drew to a close last year after many years and 1 group now meets independently of St Wilfrid’s. Approximately 40-45 adults attend small groups on a regular basis which is about 1/3 of the adult church goers. All groups meet face-to-face in homes or at church. Groups have autonomy to study a mixture of topics of their choice and some use the Go Deeper notes that accompany each sermon. No new groups formed in 2023. All groups are open to new members. There was a meeting in Q2 2023 attended by representatives of every group to share ideas and encourage other. **Victoria Denton** **Small group co-ordinator** ## **LAY EUCHARISTIC MINISTRY** 2023 saw an increase in Home Communion visits. A new team was formed and following safeguarding checks and training regular visiting began in Holy Week 2023. During 2023 the team has administered 26 communions to 8 people in total. Thank you to our team members Shirley Carson, Fiona Hainsworth, Lisa Meredith, Brenda Pickard, Naomi Simkin, Sandra Tempest, John and Pauline Corbin and we thank our Curate Rev Lizzie Reynolds for helping us when needed. We also thank Sarah Cohen who has acted as chaperone. Sadly, we lost one church member who we had begun to visit – Brenda Cougan. We are still finding it difficult to get back to Champion House but hopefully this will change during 2024. **John and Pauline Corbin** ## **PASTORAL CARE** Formal pastoral care visits seem few although we have visited one or two following bereavements. We do know many church members keep in touch with one another showing how the Body of Christ is working in the community. 29 The church has held two Memorial and Thanksgiving Services for those bereaved one at Easter and one at Christmas, the Christmas service being particularly busy. We think this confirms that the church is seen as a place of comfort to many in our community. ## **John and Pauline Corbin** ## **LICENCED LAY MINISTRY** My duties as a LLM at St. Wilfrid’s have been reduced during the past year purely of my own volition, after meeting with Rob he graciously accepted my decision to step back from regular preaching and helping lead services. In addition, I have reduced my involvement in caring for the sheep, thank you Fiona and Sandra for stepping into the breech, and my involvement working in the churchyard has diminished. My decision was partly driven by age and younger members of our church stepping forward to support Rob and pursue their own ministry and I look forward to seeing Kim, Richard, and Dave blossoming in this regard. My other reason is that Pauline and I have been blessed with two Great Grandchildren, Beau and River and it allows us to be on call for them and their parents i.e. childcare, as and when required. My main ministry now is officiating at Funerals and in the past year I have taken thirteen and six interments and through these I am finding pastoral relationships have developed and I find it rewarding, it’s because of this I am now exploring becoming a Funeral Celebrant, in the hope I can bring a flavour of Jesus into what is fast becoming the norm, ‘a non-Christian celebration of a life’ and it’s a wonderful opportunity to engage with the bereaved with little or no church connections. My present license with the Diocese expires in October 2026 so until then I continue to be available for God in any areas, he can use me, and I thank all those in my family and the church family who have encouraged and supported me. Ad Dei Gloriam ## **John Corbin Licenced Lay Minister** ## **MARRIAGE COURSES** No courses took place in 2023. ## **MESSY CHURCH** Continuing our policy of Festival Messy Church, during 2023, the team held a Messy Harvest in October and a Messy Christmas which were well received. We also held a Messy Easter which was well attended. ## **Brenda Pickard** ## **MISSION PARTNERS** The vital work of financial and prayer support for mission is a core role of our church, taking God’s love to the world. We continue to support: - 30 ## Overseas - CMS partner Azaria Spencer, who is doing an amazing job working with street children in Guatemala City. She is continuing to make strong connections and brig the good news, coordinating the mentoring program at Centro Opp and focusing on discipleship. Pray for her as she explores exciting projects and explores more of a leadership role. We also support CMS in general for their work in South America. - TEARFUND, who offer relief and development in places that are desperate for their support. ## Home - Sorted (Church Army) working with disadvantaged young people in three locations in Bradford. They find creative ways to engage with as many young people as possible, both in term time and holiday. - CPAS who work with young people and in leadership development, as well as managing the 700 CPAS-patronage churches. They do a valuable job, and Rob continues to be blessed by their training. - Jesus Shaped People (JSP) whose material we have pioneered here, and whose good work continues to expand in the UK. ## **Revd Rob Denton** ## **‘OPEN THE BOOK’** The OTB team visit Calverley C of E school assembly on a Tuesday morning alternating with Rev Rob and Rev Lizzie. There we present stories from The Bible by acting (in costume). Each story has a short introduction and is followed by a reflection, a prayer, and a song. Since Christmas we have been telling about the life of Jesus up to Palm Sunday. We are a small team John, Pauline, Sandra, Margaret C and Margaret R. Rev. Lizzie is also a valuable addition when she is able to join us. The school children often participate in varying numbers to create crowd scenes and there is never a shortage of willing participants. We should like to expand this work and visit Parkside school if we were able to recruit more members. The demands of the curriculum in school do not seem to allow for the telling of the Bible stories we grew up hearing. If we do not tell them how will today's children ever hear them? It would be great to welcome new members to the team. No experience or skill necessary, just enthusiasm. ## **Margaret Roundhill** ## **MUSIC REPORT** Worship at St Wilfrid’s has been enhanced with a variety of live music over the past year. The organ has been played at many 9.15 services, some 10am joint services and for festivals such as Christmas and Easter (and Holy Week) and for a few weddings and funerals. The restoration work done to the organ has meant it is now performing well 31 and reliably. It is tuned regularly and has also had the blower serviced. The church band has played/sung at some of the 11am services, some joint 10am services and at the family carol service and are eagerly seeking new members to augment it – both instrumentalists and singers. All are very welcome. Currently we have a keyboard, drums, violin, trumpet, clarinet, saxophone, flute & guitar. The St Wilfrid’s singers were very pleased to get together to sing at the traditional carol service and this was very well received by the congregation and enjoyed by the choir. The choir sang both the congregational carols and also a couple of choir only carols. They also sang earlier in the year on Easter Day. **Jonathan Lacey – Organist** ## **OUTREACH CHILDREN’S WORK** ## **What’s The Story** In March, we invited Yr 5 children from Parkside and the C of E school into church for ‘What’s the Story about Easter?’ and in December, Yrs 1 & 2 children came for ‘What’s the Story about Christmas?’. Our work with our two schools and a new addition of Pudsey Southroyd was extended into RE lessons of Baptism workshops and Books & Stories. We were encouraged by how well the children engaged with the stories and crafts and a great time was had by all. ## **Brenda Pickard & the team** ## **Stained Glass Workshops** Our regular visits during the year were the Stained-Glass workshops for Yr 3 which led to some beautiful stained ‘glass’. Yr 4 groups came for the Heritage Trail; several children enjoyed their fully costumed trip back in time to the extent that they wanted to return to school and even go home still dressed in fashions of several hundred years ago! ## **Brenda Pickard** ## **Safeguarding** _‘The Church of England, its archbishops, bishops, clergy and leaders are committed to safeguarding as an integral part of the life and ministry of the Church.’_ Ensuring the safety of all those who visit our church remains the highest priority and the responsibility of all of us. All those working with children, young people or vulnerable adults and PCC members as trustees are required to complete a DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check and complete Diocesan safeguarding training. We use the Parish Safeguarding Dashboard to monitor and report on all areas of safeguarding within the church. During 2023 no safeguarding incidents or concerns were raised. Anyone who has concerns regarding the safety of others within our church should contact myself or the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor or if the risk or danger is immediate ring the police. Contact details are available on our website. **June Hopkinson, Parish Safeguarding Officer.** 32 ## **Children’s Work** It has been a joy to twice per month, go out with the children of school age to the Barn during the 11am Sunday service, for 20-30-minute-sessions aimed at exploring themes from the service in an age-appropriate way. This is through games, crafts, discussions, and exploring Bible passages, with the support of resources from ‘Energize’, which is produced by Urban Saints. We tend to have a core group of around 15 attendees on a regular basis, with some weeks having as many as 46 – Mother’s Day was quite the turnout! We have been delighted to be joined by a number of our PCC members, who have come out to help and share in this with our young people, and we continue to pray for more DBS’d adults who can support and lead these sessions as part of a wider team. Special thanks to Rachel Rudman who stepped down from leading the Children’s Groups after many years of dedication and service, and also to Nicola Lightfoot who regularly assists in leading the sessions. **Olivia Gaunt** ## **Youth Groups** Begun initially by Rachel Rudman and Rob, as an after school drop in space to come and decompress after school, Youth Drop In is now lead by Lizzie. The group has been ‘staffed’ by a wonderful team including Sarah Cohen, Sally Corbin-Smith, Rachel Marcus, Rob and occasional extra help from Shirley Carson. I am hugely grateful for their ideas, enthusiasm and practical help. On Wednesday afternoons after school from 3.30pm a group of young people from Y7 to Y11 gather for toast (or toasted bagels!), chat, games and crafts, with a short space for something more thoughtful at 4.20 before those who would like to stay on until 5pm for a teen “equivalent” of a small group. This term we have been using that space to think about preparation for confirmation and baptism with some of the young people. For the last half of the summer term the drop in opens up to Y6 so that primary school leavers have a chance to meet their high school peers and have something familiar to join in with come September and the move up to secondary school. Please pray for the flourishing of this group as they grow together and explore faith and friendship, and if you would like to help out, come and have a chat – you would be really welcome. Thank you. **Rev. Lizzie Reynolds** 33