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← The Parochial Church Council Of The Ecclesiastical Parish Of All Saints, Church Normanton

2023-12-31-accounts

Annual Parochial Meeting - Reports for 2023

Vicar’s Report

I want to start by saying thank you. In the following pages you glimpse something of the breadth of ministry that occurs through the people who make up All Saints, and I know there is more that goes on largely unseen that doesn’t even get a mention here. None of that would happen without the sacrifice and dedication of the saints who serve this community for the sake of their wonderful Saviour. So thank you all.

There is an old joke about a visiting preacher, who asks a church warden how long they have been in post. ‘I’ve been the church warden here for 52 years’ came the reply. ‘You must have seen a lot of changes in that time,’ says the preacher. ‘Yes,’ replies the warden, ‘And I have resisted every one of them…’

Change is inevitable, particularly in this era of huge flux. You can try to resist it, like those who wish the church building looked the same as it did at some idealised time in their youth. They have wiped from their memories of how uncomfortable pews are to sit on for any length of time. Pews were largely a Victorian invention for cramming as many people as possible into a church building, and then in most places you had to pay an annual rent to regularly get to sit in one with a reasonable view and status.

When people say to me they would like the church building to be like it was, I sometimes reply, ‘What before it had any heating? Or any glass in the windows? In the days when the side chapel was full of tombs? Perhaps before any seating at all and the elderly and weak went to the wall? Before altar rails were added to stop the animals for sale at the weekly market inside from eating the hangings and pooping round the altar… (but not keeping clean the rest of the building where you stood!)? The days when children

had to be completely silent and you could be expelled for a single cough?’

No, what they usually mean was they would like it to look like it did on their wedding day, even though they possibly haven’t entered, or helped maintain, the building since. ‘But it doesn’t look like a church…’ No it doesn’t, because the Church is a group of people, not a building. The gathered followers of Jesus in a particular place, who come together to worship God and to support, care, learn, encourage, pray for and love one another. To carry out the final instruction Jesus gave his followers before he went to the cross.

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34

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And we also spend time regularly to remind ourselves of that action of His complete love and self-giving in the memorial we know as Holy Communion, when He gave us that command. The "New Commandment", the Wycliffe Bible Commentary states, "was new in that the love was to be exercised toward others not because they belonged to the same nation, but because they belonged to Christ ... and the love of Christ which the disciples had seen ... would be a testimony to the world".

The building, which many in our community find so precious, is simply there to aid the Church to carry out this commandment, not as an end in itself. It is not a museum.

But the change I was thinking of, is that in the people not the building. It was brought home to me recently, in a group I was chatting to. Only one person in that group had been part of the Church before the Millennium. None of them remembered its heyday in the days of the Anglican Renewal Movement, Cathedral Praise and Saints in Worship. I had made the mistake of thinking it was all a part of their shared heritage that they knew so well.

Very recently I have buried several people who have been the bones of the Church. Without singling out anyone in particular, I haven’t had to take the funerals of so many members of the church in a single year, even during covid, and most of them you would happily describe as pillars of the church community. And very sadly we have also just lost Paul, our retired clergyman from Essex who integrated so well with us over the last few years, and whose compassion, wit and wisdom was a major contribution to the ministry. He has had a positive effect on so many of your lives and been a companion in ministry for me.

But even bones change. Bone cells may be the longest living cells in your body, but surprisingly they do not live beyond 25 years max. Your body is constantly regenerating itself, and your Maker is trying to do the same

for you. Regeneration is one of the four main effects of salvation.

Change is actually a good thing. We may wish it was instantaneous, and sometimes some of it is, especially around the moment of conversion. But other things take time, because God is patient and gracious with us, and he is the master physician. He wants to change you to be like His Son, He wants to change you to be more than just your circumstances, He wants to change you to be a wellspring of grace so that others might also change and find Him.

You may say God never changes; “With him there is not a variation of the turning of the shadow.” (James 1:17). But his dealings with us do change with time. Many of God’s arrangements, directions and allowances are temporary according to the needs of his people and his ultimate purpose. We can be sure that God never changes his standards of love and justice. Also, his “eternal purpose” to bless mankind by means of his Kingdom never alters. But this doesn’t mean that God always acts in the same way from one situation to the next, or even that God doesn’t change his mind. It is simply an affirmation that God’s core essence, love, is unchanging. God is always asking: “What is the most loving choice out of all of the options available to me?” So Yes... God changes as he responds to our actions.

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His unchanging essence of love demands it. That’s the paradox of love.

So what about you? I was told as a young Christian that our faith is like the moon, it never stays the same, it is either waxing or waning, we are either moving towards God or away from him. I know which I’d rather be… It is much easier to compromise with the world, to take the path of least resistance and settle for a comfortable life. The old illustration of boats are very safe in the harbour, but it isn’t what they were made for. And some of the most exhilarating times in my life have been on the helm or bowsprit of a yacht, plunging through the waves to cut a course to a new destination.

Our prayer group has strongly felt that we need to wake up and be ready for what God has in store for us next. Also that God is refining us, bringing the gold out from the dross. And finally, even if our bumbling minister is too stupid to notice us, (oh, that’s me, sorry…) God sees you. He sees you, He loves you enough to sacrifice Himself for you and He knows all that you face and all that you fail in. Yet He loves you with that knowledge and he doesn’t fail to notice you. You are a part of His plans for the future.

In particular, our work with children is changing. Judith, after years of faithful service and freely given time and much energy; is now stepping down. Leah, who has so ably supported her mum and given so much to our Church School, is also feeling the pressure of full time work and her involvement with other schools as her children grow up. Children’s Church, Messy Church, Cafe Church and our Church School are all going to need help, prayer and planning. But there are other areas too. Diane, who is still so involved after years of dedication, has moved to working in the office as administrator just 4 mornings a week (9am-12pm). Our wonderful worship team is aging and we are always looking for help with wardening. So where do you fit in this and where is your heart? Please talk with me if you want to discuss your thoughts, I promise not to instantly sign you up for anything you don’t want…

Bless you all, and thank you for everything that you do in His name.

Alan

As we reach the milestone of another change, the 10 year anniversary of the Diocese of Leeds, Bishop Tony will be retiring too. As a mark of the decade of the new diocese, the Bishops have issued this prayer which very much sums up our purpose in these changing times:

God of all grace, whose boundless and transforming love gives life and growth to your Church: enrich us with the fruits of your Spirit, that with joy and thanksgiving we may share the good news of your kingdom on earth fulfilled in your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen

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All Saints Normanton Parish Church MEETING OF PARISHIONERS 26 March 2023

1. Minutes of the previous meeting 24 April 2022

2.

Election of Church Wardens

Andy Vanstan had come to the end of his term as Church Warden. There were two vacancies for Church Wardens.

One nomination was received for Church Warden

Proposed by Andy Vanstan, seconded by David Collett

As there were no other nominations Virginia Hashimi was duly elected as Church Warden for the ensuing year.

Rev Alan Murray thanked Andy Vanstan and Virginia Hashimi for their service as Church Wardens over the last year.

All Saints Normanton Parish Church ANNUAL PAROCHIAL MEETING 26 March 2023

Present: 37 Church members were present at the meeting.

1. Minutes of the previous APM 24 April 2022

The minutes from the previous meeting were accepted as a true and accurate record.

  1. Matters Arising

None.

3. Apologies:

Rendel Murray Doreen Falkinder Kate Penrose John Penrose Sue Ellis Michelle West Judith Townsend

4. Electoral Roll

Roll in 2022: 102. There have been eight new enrolments, four deceased, one no longer attends and lives outside the area and none requested to be removed from Roll; the new Electoral Roll is 105.

5. Election of PCC Representatives

There were four vacancies for PCC Representatives (one of these is a vacant one-year position from 2021 which has not been filled). Leah Huddlestone, Ann Preston and Elaine Wells have come to the end of their three years as PCC Representatives; Rev Alan Murray thanked them for their service throughout the last year. Three nominations were received therefore there was no need for a vote. Those duly elected were:

Elected to PCC: Proposed by: Seconded by: Jo Reid Elaine Wells Rendel Murray Gavin Budby Virginia Hashimi Andy Vanstan Denise Monkman June Townend Wendy Smith

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6. Election of Deanery Representatives

There were four positions for Deanery. Four nominations were received therefore there was no need for a vote. Sue Hodgson and Michelle West will re-stand. Those duly elected were:

Elected to Deanery: Proposed by: Seconded by: Andy Vanstan Pat Hartley David Collett Roslyn Maddison Susan Hodson Doris Haywood Susan Hodgson Maeve Rogers Pat Hartley Michelle West Susan Hodgson Marianne Fernandez

7. Accounts

The report was contained in the APM booklet. Derek Howell expressed his thanks to Diane Brennan and John Penrose. The meeting accepted the accounts.

Derek Howell provided the following information to Church members to make them aware of the issues PCC is dealing with over the next twenty-five years. PCC have a sub-committee named Estates who meet regularly to look after the buildings. The planning permission for the fencing at the back of Church came through this week. This fencing will add to the security of the roof, windows and the Vicarage.

A number of reports have been undertaken by the architects; the Church tower is the current priority. The works which need undertaking are re-wiring, problems with the lighting, the louvres need repairing, patches of stonework, potential water regress and the clock is not working. The pointing on Church needs to be done and damaged stone needs replacing. The architects have put together a package of pointing for the ground floor level which will take place over ten years. The organ loft wall is very eroded. There are grants available, but they are difficult to get. Over a period of time all the windows in Church will need to be reset. The perspex needs to be removed and modern protection put in place to replace it. In 2015/2016 the York Glaziers Trust produced a report, but we have not yet acted on this, it is very expensive. Last year some of the windows of the Parish Rooms were vandalised. These cannot be repaired as no one is prepared to make windows like these. A contactor has been found who will replace the current windows. It is likely they will be metal and will cost a lot of money (approximately £60,000 for all the windows). Each window is different so needs to be individually made and this will require planning permission. The architects are putting together a programme of work for the Parish Rooms, the cost of this will be £10,000 to £15,000.

Giving to the Reordering and Fabric Fund has been re-opened; giving to this is extra to a Church member’s normal giving. Church members are to speak to Derek Howell if they would like to give to the Reordering and Fabric Fund. Rev Alan Murray expressed his thanks to Derek Howell.

8. Appointment of Examiner of Accounts

Derek Howell asked that the meeting agree to appoint John Penrose again as the Independent Certifier of the accounts. All present agreed.

9. Reports

All reports were contained in the APM booklet. No questions were forthcoming.

Gavin Budby expressed his thanks to Church for allowing the TLG ministry to operate for twelve years. TLG Wakefield will close on Friday and Acorn AP will open on 12[th] April. Ann Preston thanked Gavin for everything he’s done at TLG.

10. Vicar’s Report

Rev Alan Murray thanked everyone for all they do and asked that they pray for the Church Warden situation.

AOB - Marianne Fernandez thanked Rev Alan Murray for everything he does.

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The Annual Parochial Church Council Report 2023

The Church and Church Office are situated on the B6133 in Normanton.

The Council is required, as stated in the Parochial Church Councils (Powers) Measure 1956, to co-operate with the ministers in promoting in the parish the whole mission of the Church, pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical.

Membership

Members of the PCC are either ex-officio or elected by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) in accordance with the Church Representation Rules.

During the year, the following served as members of the PCC:

Incumbent: Alan Murray Wardens: Virginia Hashimi (2023) Vacant Treasurer: Derek Howell (APCM 2022 - 2nd term) Giving Officer Secretary: Rachel Budby (2022) Deanery Synod: Sue Hodgson (2023 - 2nd term) Rosalyn Maddison (2023) Andy Vanstan (2023) Lay Vice Chair/Training Michelle West (2023 - 2nd term) Disability Elected Members: Gavin Budby (2022) Environment/Young People Stewart Drury (2021) Beth Edwards (2023) Marianne Fernandez (2022 - 2nd term) Judith Howell (2021 - 2nd term) Children/Safeguarding Denise Monkman (2023) Joy Smith (2021 - 1 year, co-opted)

The Standing Committee

The Standing Committee is a statutory committee which deals with anything that arises in between PCC meetings. The committee consists of the Incumbent, Churchwardens, Vice Chair, Treasurer, Secretary and one elected PCC member.

The retiring members of the PCC are Stewart Drury, Judith Howell, Joy Smith. There are no retiring members of Deanery Synod.

There are 99 parishioners on the Electoral Roll, 26 of whom are not resident within the parish. 5 have moved out of the area and no longer attend and 3 were deceased. There are 2 new enrolments.

The full PCC met 6 times during the year. The Standing Committee has the power to deal with any emergency which arises, subject to any directions given by the council. There are also three subcommittees: Estates and Mission & Ministry meet 3 times a year and Governance meet twice a year, to further discuss their areas of ministry.

As an Anglican church in the parish of Normanton, West Yorkshire, our intention is to meet the spiritual, physical and pastoral needs of all the people who live within our parochial boundary. We seek to minister pastoral care to all age groups and cultural backgrounds within a Christian context.

Parochial Church Council Annual Review of Meetings in 2023

All meetings during the year were chaired by Rev’d Alan Murray. Regular items on the agenda include: Matters arising, correspondence received, Vicar’s items, Warden’s items, Finance, and also reports from The Well, TLG, Church School Governors, Deanery & Churches Together.

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JANUARY

MARCH

MAY

SEPTEMBER

NOVEMBER

JULY

Rev Alan Murray Chairman

Rachel Budby PCC Secretary

All Saints Parish Church

High Street Normanton West Yorkshire WF6 1NR Registered Charity

No: 1135324

Bank: Independent Examiner: CAF Bank Ltd Mr John Penrose 25 Kings Hill Avenue 2 Park Avenue Kings Hill Normanton West Malling West Yorkshire Kent WF6 2DR ME19 4JQ

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Church Warden’s Report

I can’t believe that a year has passed since I became Warden again, and this time as sole Church Warden. I stood down the previous year to concentrate on my business and retirement planning.

The past year has been a real blessing, and I am grateful to the team of Deputy / Side Wardens; Andy, Ann, Ian, Sue, Marianne and Stewart, who assist with opening and closing the Church and many additional tasks that ensure the smooth running of each service.

As ever it's been a busy year for the Church with our regular Sunday and Wednesday services, as well as our regular seasonal services such as Remembrance Sunday, the Memorial service, Lent and Holy Week, Advent and Christmas. Not forgetting Baptisms, Weddings, and Funerals.

Thank you to the helpers at each service and to everyone who gave additional of their time to assist with both the summer and Christmas Work for Church Days. It is much appreciated.

The Church building is structurally safe and sound and watertight. Each year we continue to improve and maintain the Church and building and this year our aim was to ensure better security to the side of the Church and Vicarage. The new security fencing has blocked and stopped the menace of persons meeting at the back of Church leaving cans and litter including needles. We are also relieved that it has reduced the amount of damage caused, and graffiti found, as well as providing the privacy sought within the Vicarage grounds.

The Parish Rooms and car park have also received much attention this year. A whole list of repairs were dealt with last summer, and we are grateful to Paul Fernandez and Stewart Drury who both worked so hard repairing wall panels and fixing soggy floor joists. Mums, Dads & Tots are happy with their new dry storage cupboard. The Parish Rooms walls were painted, and carpet spring cleaned. The car park had an upgrade with professionally painted white and yellow lines.

During the Easter Break the first of the new replacement windows were fitted to the Parish Rooms. The first windows replace the ones that were boarded up and a programme to replace more windows will continue over the months and years ahead.

Planning and managing the ongoing maintenance and upkeep of our wonderful

Church, your Church Warden supports, and is supported by many Church and team members.

My thanks to Derek Howell who has lead discussions with our Architects, Contractors, as well as submitting planning applications. Thank you, Derek! My thanks also go to the PCC and the sub-committees for all their efforts and support throughout the year.

Finally, thank you Diane Brennan, for all your hard work supporting not only myself as Warden but all of us with Church matters, and admin, rota's and much, much more. Thank you.

With every blessing Virginia Hashimi, Churchwarden

Electoral Roll Report

After the APM 2023 the Electoral Roll stood at 105. The total for this year is 99, (please see breakdown below):

1) Deceased 3
2) No longer attend and live outside area 5
3) Requested to be removed from Roll 0
4) New Enrolments 2
2023 105
-6
99

Andy Vanstan, Electoral Roll Officer

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Finance Report 2023

The Accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Receipts and Payments Method required under the 'The Charities Act ’ 2011 .

I am pleased to say that this has been another year where finances have allowed All Saints’ to continue its Ministry in Normanton and beyond and the aspects of planned maintenance agreed in its budget. Fabric has been maintained with security being improved to both church and vicarage by the installation of the North alleyway security fencing.

However in achieving this, the ongoing effects of the national economic situation have been felt and we have needed to draw more from our cash reserves than originally anticipated.

The detailed accounts follow, both in summary and published form. I have drawn out the following points:

Giving and Overall Income Levels:

Our estimated levels of direct and planned giving have not fully materialised, falling short by over 6%. The ongoing effect of the cost of living crisis in 2023 is likely the reason for this.

Regular Giving is the life-blood of any church and I want to thank everyone of you who supports the church in this way and especially those who have responded so positively in this most uncertain of years.

I will however repeat the very important point I continue to make concerning us regularly reviewing our planned giving, in the following quote from The Church of England:

‘ Regular giving is of course good and we thank everyone who is committed to supporting the church in that way. However, before all of us who do so feel smug - one aspect of regular giving which is of concern throughout the Church of England is what has become known ‘ ’ as static giving .

Basically, giving the same amount regularly, year on year (i.e. but not increasing it).

If we do not increase our giving by at least the rate of inflation each year how can even existing things continue, when all costs are rising by at least that rate? ’

We all recognise, because of our home situation, that the cost of essentials and especially fuel costs continue to rise.

Unfortunately, the church building is not immune to any of that and rising costs have to be found and that can only be found from our giving.

I would ask all regular givers to All Saints’ to think about this and, if possible to consider a 5% increase in their giving in 2024.

Other areas of income have compensated to some extent for this fall in giving including a slightly larger surplus than estimated on the PCC’s element of wedding and funeral fees and with the partnership agreement with Acorn AP, the agreed hire rate for use of the Parish Rooms has yielded more than estimated. The estimate at the beginning of 2023 being conservative as the future development of Acorn AP was not fully certain at that time.

Expenditure

The majority of expenditure is unavoidable and on items of necessity for the ongoing running of all aspects of the church. Many of these are subject to negotiated contracts, eg Heat, Light, Water, Insurance, Security, Telephone and Internet, Wages which are reviewed regularly to ensure the most economic and value for money options are obtained. Other elements of expenditure are relatively small and there is little room for reduction in any of them. The only aspects of major expenditure within the PCC ’ s control falls within the category of Church Mission and Parish Share (which, although treated separately, is really ‘ Mission ’ in our Diocese).

As stated earlier all planned levels of mission and ministry have been financed in accordance with the budget, including meeting in full, our Baseline Parish Share. PCC also agreed to respond to the emergency appeal for the Pakistan Earthquake with a one off donation, which explains the above budget spending in Overseas Mission Giving.

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Re-ordering & Fabric Fund:

The Reordering & Fabric Fund was created out of the former Reordering Fund and is a specific internal fund to allow PCC, the means to consider how to deal with wider, major fabric issues, beyond everyday maintenance and upkeep, on both Church and Parish Rooms. It remains a ‘restricted fund’ meaning donations to it and expenditure from it will only be for those purposes named and will mainly be project based.

During the year, the following has been paid from this fund:

Offsetting the costs of the above have been:

As you might expect when maintaining a Grade 2* listed building, parts of which are over 500 years old with some glass which is 800 years old, the reports referred to above, by our Architects, show that work is needed, some imminently and some ongoing into the future.

the cost and certainly we must be the ones to plan the work and pursue possibilities for its completion.

Some members of the congregation have continued donating to the Reordering and Fabric Fund for which we are extremely grateful. If any other members of the congregation wish to commence or recommence donations to the Reordering and Fabric fund, additional to their regular giving, whether monthly or by one off donations, that would be greatly appreciated. Please have a word with me (Derek Howell) if you might wish to do so.

In Conclusion:

The ongoing recommendations to PCC by our Architects is that work should be thought of as in projects, of a financial size which are seen as achievable, even if some of these projects are over 10 years or more.

Such projects CANNOT be financed by church members alone and therefore other sources of funding have to be sought, eg grants. However, as the regular users and beneficiaries of the building, we must be prepared to bear some of

May I reiterate my thanks to you all for your support throughout the year. My special thanks go to our Church Administrator, Diane Brennan, for all her work in maintaining the day to day financial processes and record keeping and to John Penrose for undertaking the role as our Independent Examiner for these accounts.

Derek Howell Treasurer & Giving Officer

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Summarised Annual Accounts 2023 - All Saints Parish Church, Normanton

Budget £ EXPENDITURE Actual £ Budget £ INCOME Actual £
CHURCH SERVICES VOLUNTARY INCOME
£49,200 Parish Share £49,200 £63,800 Direct Giving £60,080
£1,700 ClergyExps £1,820 £5,500 Planned GivingEnvelope £3,911
£2,500 Service Resources £2,677 £17,500 Income Tax& GASDS Reclaimed £16,145
£2,950 Funeral/Weddings Fees £3,007 £8,200 Plate Collecton £6,243
£350 AwayDays,Confs. £5,600 £500 Weddings & Funerals collecton £514
£0 CommunityFocused Events £50 £5,000 SundryDonatons £845
£1,200 General Sundries £290
CHURCH BUILDINGS INCOME FROM CHURCH ACTIVITIES
£6,800 Insurance Premiums £7,188 £6,850 Wedding /Funerals Fees £7,727
£12,000 Heat & Light & Water £10,587 £400 Away Days, Conferences, Books
& Media		 £5,580
£3,400 Fire & Security £1,881 £0 CommunityFocused Events £856
£500 Church Fabric £992 £4,200 Parish Room Letngs £6,797
£500 Church Equipment £200 £80 Photo copying £166
£4,100 Church Cleaning £3,977 Social Functons £0
£500 Parish Rooms Equipment £456 Insurance Claims £0
£1,000 Parish Rooms Fabric £1,130 £1,400 Grants £1,375
£2,870 Parish Rooms Cleaning £3,621 £1,500 Misc £84
CHURCH MISSION INCOME FOR MISSION
£2,400 Overseas Mission Giving £2,900 £100 Restricted Missions/Charites £157
£6,000 UK Mission Giving £6,101 INVESTMENT INCOME
£100 Collectons Overseas £56 £100 Bank Interest £437
£240 Investment income £225
CHURCH ADMINISTRATION
£18,900 Admin Wages & NI £18,773
£1,400 Repro rental & materials £1,099
£300 General £851
£4,200 Telephone Software & Internet £4,247
£700 Ofce Statonery £478
CHURCH SCHOOL
£1,500 School Governors £1,500
£123,320 MONTHLY TOTAL
(Exc Reordering)		 £128,681 £115,370 MONTHLY TOTAL
(Excl Reordering)		 £111,141
Reordering & Fabric
Expenditure		 £28,389 Reordering & Fabric Income £22,107
FULL TOTAL EXPENDITURE £157,070 FULL TOTAL INCOME £133,248
Cash at Bank No1 & No2
Accounts & Petycash		 £6,411
Cash at Bank No 3 Reordering
& Fabric A/c		 £51,962

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Acorn@Normanton Alternative Provision

The fact you’re reading this report now means Acorn has been a success and were very much still here. After the sad closure of TLG Wakefield in April 2023, we could never truly be sure of God’s plan when launching a new provision and if it was truly what he wanted.

Despite the sadness of the final TLG term (January – April 2023) the team continued to commit all they had to ensuring our students and parents were not impacted by the closure and Ciara, Steph, Rendel and Rachael all worked with dignity and compassion. Even with such a distraction, we still saw most of our students successfully achieve English and Maths qualifications.

When all TLG Centres closed in April 2023, Gill and Andy quickly launched Acorn Alternative Provision and such was their determination in creating the charity to launch after Easter 2023, we were able to launch four Acorn Centres across the UK without our students missing a day of education. Sadly, Ciara and Steph were made redundant at the end of the Spring term, leaving our staff team made up of just me. Thankfully, Rendel returned to her classroom teacher role on a full-time basis until the end of summer term. It is no exaggeration to say Acorn@Normanton may never have opened had it not been for the willingness of Rendel to come out of retirement.

April to July 2023 was a challenge and even though we had gained a good reputation with schools over thirteen years with TLG, the lack of DfE registration became a stumbling block. We quickly went from partnering with seven schools to only two who were willing to refer. The decision to not be registered is one that was difficult to make, but based on the seven OFSTED inspections I had experienced, it was clear that without the backing of a large organisation like TLG, we would never meet the standards set in the framework. In addition to this, working without the constant need of progress data does mean we can focus on a child’s mental health and not limit this time to

small slots between core-subjects. This term for our students was a successful one and we saw every one of them graduate in July 2023. The Mayor of Normanton was our special guest at this event and had supported both TLG and Acorn that year with a very large

charitable donation that helped provide much needed resources for our students during our first term as Acorn. This money also allowed us to take our students bowling for their Christmas party after Rachel Budby led a card making lesson with our students. During this lesson I have to say the students behaved excellently and I feel Rachel may need to commit to teaching full-time.

The lack of referrals did have a financial impact on Acorn@Normanton and we were already working to a deficit when we began a new school year in September 2023. Thankfully, we had seen referrals increase towards the end of July and this growth continued throughout the rest of 2023. Projected budgets do show that we may still have a small deficit by the end of September 2024 but we are pleased that our finance is improving and we have now seen a number of schools return and have formed a partnership with Acorn@Normanton. It’s worth noting that the deficit can be eased through giving and we did launch a giving page that can be accessed through the QR code provided in the church newsletter.

In closing, I would be lying if I did not say 2023 was a challenging year and one where I’ve truly valued the prayer and support of Alan and All Saints Normanton. We are seeing a major mental health crisis in the UK and though Covid has played a major role in this, I cannot ignore the fact that we are also seeing a generation who are just not prepared for the real world, and the challenges life can bring. We hope over the next few years, we can play a small role in changing the mindset of our students and their families, ultimately meeting with Jesus through ourselves being a reflection of him.

Thank you to everyone who supports Acorn@Normanton either through your kind encouragement, financially or through prayer.

Gavin Budby, Head of Centre

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Baptism

In 2023 the decision was taken to return to precovid times, splitting the Thanksgiving and Baptism services. The Thanksgiving service now takes place during the morning service on the first Sunday of the month. The Baptism service will continue to be after the morning service on the third Sunday of the month.

During 2023 we carried out 16 Baptism services and welcomed 21 children into our Church family.

As always, my grateful thanks go to the Baptism Team for their continued support in ensuring all the families have some wonderful memories of their day. The naming and blessing prayer is always a popular part of the service – thank you Ann. Also, to Diane for her organisational skills and ensuring everything is ready for the services. Sue Hodgson

Café Church

Our bi-monthly Cafe Church gatherings have continued throughout the year. We have been pleased to welcome a good mix of people each time, our regular Church Family, those who haven’t been to Church before and those who haven’t been for a while. We also have a few people who at the moment only come to Cafe Church.

Our themes for this year have been:

February The Mustard Tree
April Palm Sunday
June Trinity Sunday
October Harvest Celebration
December Advent

Everyone enjoys the chance to meet in a relaxed friendly atmosphere, to engage with

the theme and join in with table talk singing, prayer and crafts.

It’s great that people also feel comfortable to stay about after the service ends, chatting and sharing time with friends old and new.

Again we are grateful to the teams who get the coffee/tea organised and served really well and also to those who have baked or been prepared to take part when asked.

Thanks also to those who help to clear up and put the Church back to normal.

Please continue to pray for this developing area of our Church Ministry.

Leah Huddlestone & Judith Howell

Churches Together

We have lost a few members and have some lovely new faces who have joined us and fitted right in.

We meet regularly to discuss upcoming events and also meet every 5[th] Sunday and hold a joint service together.

In 2023 churches together organised

March World day of prayer November Remembrance service in Haw Hill park

Marianne Fernandez & Sue Hodgson

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Health Walks from The Well

Wakefield Deanery

In 2023 we had 44 weekly walks with from 4 to 11 walkers each week with a total of 297 attendances over the year, not to mention Dorothy the miniature dachshund.

Deanery Synod

All meetings were face to face.

We meet at 10am in The Well building in Haw Hill Park and often use cars to enable us to walk in a variety of locations near Normanton, returning for a snack of soup and bread after a walk of 2 to 2½ miles, lasting about an hour or so.

27[th] June – at Wakefield Cathedral. Canon Missioner Rev Canon Dr Philip Hobday was the speaker and he encouraged us to think about the Cathedral and what it can do to help parishes? He also encouraged us to think about the church as a whole and what it needs to do to continue to be present in future generations.

John Penrose

8th November – at St Helen’s Church, Sandal. Nick and Vivien Drayton from Christians Against Poverty (CAP) were the speakers and gave a presentation on CAP – who they are and what they do. CAP is a charity supported by churches who understand that poverty is a serious issue, and aims to relieve people from it across the UK. There was a challenge to support and partner with CAP to set up new local debt centres, to support the Wakefield debt centre and put CAP in touch with potential befrienders in our congregations who are able and prepared to come alongside people in our communities who are struggling with debt.

Men’s Group

Men’s Group has been having a great year, we are still studying the 52 Men of the Bible which we do monthly, that's if we have time to in between all the great conversations and food we have.

21st February – at Wakefield Cathedral. The speaker was David Greenwood-Haigh, who talked about ‘Fairtrade’. David is an awardwinning chocolatier, businessman and corporate team builder who has been involved in ‘Fairtrade’ over the last 2 decades. He explained the Fairtrade principles and instructions, and how they were found in the bible. David challenged us to consider our church becoming a ‘Fairtrade’ church & as a deanery to consider working towards being a fairtrade deanery.

Gavin Budby has been able to serve to the men the CodeLife course. This has been well received from those attending, giving us God inspired debates and direction for our walk with Christ. For this we are very grateful to Gavin for being able to provide this. Keep watching this space for more content.

There has been a mix of breakfasts and evening events to enable more great God filled men of the church to attend.

Sue Hodgson, Roslyn Maddison, Andy Vanstan & Michelle West Deanery Synod Reps

Attendance through the year is between 5 and 12 men, averaging 6 to 7 per meeting.

Men’s Group is for all men! It is a arena for those attending to share their opinions, experiences, prayer, and debates. We are here to bring together men in Christ, Iron sharpens Iron.

So invite yourself/whoever you want to, just let me know and I will add you/them to the WhatsApp group and e-mail list. Gossips NOT welcome, it is a safe environment for men to vent off in confidence also.

Scott Hodgson

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Messy Church

Our Messy Church gatherings continue to be very popular. This year we have been pleased to host 3 celebrations.

In April we celebrated Spring and New Life. We enjoyed all the crafts, particularly decorating chick buns, making frog puppets, straw fliers and bracelets.

At our seaside celebration in June we made shiny fish, designed our own postcards, made jellyfish and glittery mermaids. Making our light-up lighthouses was particularly popular!

Again our Advent gathering was really well attended and everyone enjoyed a variety of Advent/Light crafts and activities. The children particularly enjoyed making their own Nativity Tea! We had great fun!

There was a great atmosphere throughout the session and really positive feedback from families and helpers alike.

The response to our Messy Church gatherings is amazing. Families are really enthusiastic and grateful for all the opportunities we provide. There’s always an excited buzz in Church. However everyone, adults and children alike settle down to listen as we share a Bible story and prayer. We are greatly encouraged by the links we are continuing to develop with families linked to our Church School and also in the wider community.

We are really grateful for those from the Church family who come to help the families at each session. Messy Church couldn’t happen without your amazing support and encouragement! Thank you everyone!

Please continue to pray for our Messy Church “Congregation”, for the children and their families and for ongoing opportunities to share fellowship and faith as we witness to our community in this exciting way.

Judith Howell & Leah Huddlestone

Mums, Dads & Tots

We now have a steady 25 pre-schoolers, toddlers and babies each week. We had a couple of children who left in the Summer, but we had some new children join us is September, to keep the numbers up. Some weeks are busier than others, but always very different.

We are very lucky to have Emma Farnell who is the family support worker based at The Well Project. Emma comes along most weeks to help and support us and talk to our families.

We now have a large range of toys, for all ages and we have a craft every week, depending on the time of the year. We also have a dressing up corner. We had our usual Christmas party with a visit from Father Christmas himself, all children get a gift although some are more eager than others to go and collect it.

Once again Michelle Newton and Emma Farnell arranged the Christmas gifts. On party weeks parents are asked to bring a plate of food instead of the normal £1.50 weekly contribution for each child - this contribution helps cover snacks and drinks for children and adults.

We have been able to keep the weekly contribution of £1.50 per child, which keeps our funds steady. Although we do have some parents who aren’t able to pay every week, but with the help and support from The Well we can cover them.

This year at our Easter Party we were able to give the children a small gift and an Easter egg each which were supplied by The Well.

A big thank you as always goes to June and Denise who come every week to prepare and serve adults and children alike with drinks and snacks and look after the kitchen.

Our lovely mum Vikki Gibson is still running and sets up each plus week, arranges craft and activities for the children. I continue to support Vikki, I help with crafts and getting supplies

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when needed. When Vikki is unable to come for any reason, we have a group of lovely adults that come early and help me and my husband set up and put away the toys and equipment and generally tidy up at the end of the afternoon.

Thank you to Alan for taking on the role of Father Christmas again last year.

I would also like to thank church administrator Diane, who is always happy to let Vikki into the hall each week.

Wendy Smith

Open Doors Prayer Group

Open Door prayer meetings continue by Zoom, and are held the first Saturday of the month from 11am to 12 noon. An email, with a link to join the prayer meeting is sent out by the church office the day before.

We pray for people whose stories are included in the bi-monthly prayer news videos on the Open Doors website. To protect the most vulnerable Christians, their stories are either reenacted, or their voices distorted and replaced by a representative of Open Doors. Watching the videos and seeing the countries and villages where persecuted Christians live, helps us to pray and makes it much more ‘real’, than reading their story.

We were pleased to welcome Lee Proudlove, from Open Doors at our service on Sunday 27 August 2023, who told us the stories of some of the persecuted Christians he has met and how Open Doors are supporting our persecuted church family worldwide. You were every generous donating money, and we were able to send £250 to Open Doors to support their work.

If anyone would like to know more, please do not hesitate to contact us. Everyone is welcome, we are always pleased to see new faces. However, if you decide to join the prayer meeting, but would prefer to pray alone at home, there would be no obligation, or any pressure to continue.

Stephanie Woodhead & Ginny Camponi

Pastoral Support Team

During 2023 Marianne and Rendel, our fully trained Pastoral Ministers, have been supporting many members of the church family (and others), giving emotional and spiritual support and in practical ways. This has been done by visiting, taking home communion, shopping and social outings, as well as supporting by phone, text and email. We are also very aware that many of our church family also provide much needed care and support to others, and we are very thankful for that. Let us continue to care for one another as a response to God’s love for us.

As mentioned in last year’s report, Deb Atkinson has now found her calling in Phil and Belinda’s church in Barnsley. She is part of the team who have just launched St George’s Good Food Pantry. We wish both Deb and Phil every blessing in their new ministry.

If anyone knows of anyone who might benefit from pastoral support or who would like to receive support themselves, please contact Alan, Marianne or Rendel.

Marianne Fernandez & Rendel Murray

An item on the latest news on persecuted Christians is included in the church newsletter, with a few suggested prayer points.

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Rock Solid Youth Group

Under the supervision of Gav Budby, Rock Solid is now led by Joy Geldard-Smith, Stewart Drury and Rendel Murray. All of us have DBS clearance, have completed the recommended safeguarding training and the Diocese of Leeds training “ Good Practice for Working with Children and Young People” . We meet weekly during school term-time from 6pm - 7pm. The sessions usually consist of theme-led games, a short video and an opportunity for discussion. The resources that we use are produced by Youth for Christ. At the sessions we have also made soap, cards, Christmas decorations and have an opportunity to play board games etc.

Gavin visits our sessions at least once every half-term to observe and to ensure we are following our policies and procedures - and to spend time with the young people. Currently there are seven young people who attend each week, mainly from church families, but also two Ukrainian children who have lived with church families. We also welcome young visitors who are brought along by their friends.

Please would you consider whether you could come and share a game, quiz, activity or craft with our young people? You would be made very welcome! Please come and have a chat with one of us.

Stewart Drury, Joy Geldard-Smith & Rendel Murray

Safeguarding

On behalf of the PCC, I continue to work to ensure that we comply with the National Safeguarding requirements and have

due regard to the House of Bishops’ Guidance on Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults.

Judith Howell, Safeguarding Officer

Small Saints

Small Saints continues to run well. We have a small core group who attend every month with others who come occasionally. We still have a wide age range (2 - 11) and planning themes and appropriate crafts is challenging but we have great fun sharing in lots of exciting

activities, particularly if food is involved and when we are able to spend time outside!

This year we have learnt about Jesus as a boy, People that met Jesus, the Psalms and Old Testament Heroes like Samuel, Daniel and Elijah. We also celebrated Mother’s Day and thought about Respect at Coronation time.

We enjoy being together and our Small Saints are enthusiastic and full of fun!

They are really patient, helpful and supportive of each other which is a great example to us all. They are always attentive and keen to learn more about following Jesus and developing their role as members of the Church family. They are growing in faith and understanding and as witnesses to their friends.

We are grateful for those who help and support us in any way on Small Saints’ Sundays and thank you all for your encouragement and prayers.

Please continue to pray for our children and for plans going forward.

Judith Howell & Leah Huddlestone

Tuesday Prayer Meeting

The Tuesday Prayer Group has continued to meet on a weekly basis this year. At the moment we meet via Zoom, as this has been the preference of those who regularly attend the meeting. We spend time listening to God and then sharing what we believe we have received. We are constantly amazed that what we share so often echoes or expands on what another has said. If there is something that we believe is of importance to the wider church community, we will pass it on to Alan.

Since about the middle of December we believe that God has been speaking to us for our church, with certain phrases seeming to come through more strongly. This has been through both words and pictures and a feeling of anticipation that God is on the move among us, calling us to be holy:

Firstly the phrase: “Wake up, be ready - the time has come. God’s Holy Spirit is waiting, God is on the move” came through. Not knowing this, Alan also preached on this subject recently during the sermon series “Reactions to the End Times”, helping to confirm what we had sensed during our time of listening.

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Secondly, is the theme of sieving. In December, one of our group had a picture of a sieve - the sort a farmer might use to sift grain and separate it from the husks, separating the good from what should be discarded. In January the theme of sieving came up again, but this time it was for panning for gold - getting the small quantity of what is valuable from all the rubbish. It is about us, as a church, needing to choose what is good and leaving behind what is not.

Thirdly, a phrase that has come up in our time of listening, more than once, are the words “I see you”. We are truly seen by God.

On another occasion:

I see you

And again, for those who feel insignificant and unseen in the church family, “I see you”.

One Sunday Alan used the phrase “You are God’s favourite”. Each of us is his favourite because we have Jesus and God sees Jesus in us.

These three themes were further confirmed for us when a group of women from our church attended the New Wine Women’s Day in Huddersfield. During the talks and the led worship, each one of these phrases was used and expanded on and were noted by those of us who are part of the Tuesday Prayer group!

In summary:

We also spend time praying for those in the church community who need prayer (either passed on to us in person or from the All Saints WhatsApp group), and we also pray for our community, our country and for world issues.

If anyone feels called to join us and would like to know more, please speak to Rendel or Elaine.

Rendel Murray

WoW - Women On Wednesdays

Women on Wednesdays meet around every six weeks and enjoy time together doing various, activities at various homes or restaurants!! We go out for meals, laugh through white elephant nights, watch dvds, hold quizzes, chatter nights, picnics or BBQs. Whatever we are doing, we are laughing.

Our ever popular white elephant evening is still top. Sadly we have said goodbye to Sally Dinsdale and Doreen Falkinder, and Cathy Cook can no longer attend. They loved this event and could be very naughty, creating lots of laughs. but our ladies are enjoying meals out more now. We have enjoyed nights at the Singing Chocker, who are very accommodating with us. We also tried an afternoon tea this year for the older ones who no longer like to go out at night. It was a massive hit with everyone, we will continue to make it a regular. Victoria Gallivan hosted a craft night. We all made door wreaths, some were better than others.

We have a WhatsApp group and if you would like adding to it let me know, this keeps us up to date with what’s going on and stops us jamming up the Church group!

We have had a few new faces join us this year which is lovely. Don’t be shy, join us we are a friendly bunch.

New for 2024!! We have become WOT and moved to a Thursday. This means we can meet more often. See you there.

Marianne Fernandez & Sue Hodgson

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Worship Team

During 2022 the numbers of those making up the Worship Team has remained unchanged, most members have

been part of this ministry for a varying number of years, as has the basic setup and method of preparation for and involvement in our various church services.

The team operates on a monthly rota basis with Terry Gill, Mark Randall and Derek Howell sharing the leading of services. They also, based on the chosen themes, determine which music to include in the services they lead. They are supported our 2 pianists, 3 guitarists, 2 brass players and singers. Recorded music, used both together with and in place of a live worship team, is also used.

Members of the Worship Team undertake other ministries within the church as well as having family, work or external voluntary responsibilities, so the demands and expectations of weekly worship services on a relatively few is quite a significant pressure and your prayers and encouragement is always needed.

There is a real need to consider that for the worship of All Saints’ to remain fundamentally based on live music in the medium to long term future, more people with some musical ability, need to consider coming forward to serve in this way. In addition, as has previously occurred, as we continue to pray for growth, to have faith that some of that growth ‘prays in’ some with musical ability who might also eventually move into the music and worship ministry.

The Worship Team would like to thank all those involved in the PA and VA ministry who support us in each service and Diane, our church administrator, for her work in providing some sheet music and planning the rota.

Derek Howell, on behalf of all Worship Team members

Wednesday Communion Coffee Morning Donations 2023

Motor Neurone
Disease £50
Association
DEC Turkey-Syria
Earthquake Appeal		 £50
Water Aid £50
Macmillan
Cancer £50
Support
Christian Aid
Christia Aid £50
Week 2023
Orbis £50
Dementia UK £50
MOROCCO
EARTHQUAKE £50
APPEAL
LIBYA
FLOODS £50
APPEAL
The Well
Project		 £50
Acorn Alternative
Provision £50
Normanton
BBC Radio 4
Christmas Appeal
St Martins in the		 £50
Fields Charity
2023 Total = £600

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refreshments and gifts at Christmas. Emma Farnell, our Community Support Worker is also on hand to help out/offer advice to parents. We hope to continue this support going forward.

Youth Clubs and Outreach

Our youth club provision continues to run the weekly sessions for young people aged 6 to 19 years. Normanton Town Council allow us to use the Woodhouse Community Centre on Monday’s free of charge to be able to run the youth club there. Vibe Fitness is used for boxing and dance on Monday’s and Friday’s too.

The Youth Work Team continue to run detached/outreach sessions each Wednesday followed by a teen drop-in session.

The Easter Egg Hunt was a success with over 360 children attending in the rain. We raised £573.14 with the raffle and cake/drinks sale which covered costs. It ran alongside our brunch club, each child was given a free Easter Egg and a packed lunch.

The Halloween Trail in October took place in the park run by Normanton Town Council – we offered refreshments at the event and raised £409.

Younger sessions, Boxing and Dance are funded by the Well Project. Teen sessions are funded by WF Youth until April 2024.

In November we reconnected with IPL and as a result they provide fruit for the youth clubs each week and fundraise for us or do collections such as toy/gift collections.

Christmas gifts were awarded by Mission Christmas again this year which meant all young people attending the youth clubs received a gift for under the tree. The Well Project have been supporting Mums, Dads & Tots at the Parish Rooms, with some funding secured, providing some equipment,

Foodbank

Between January 2023 and December 2023 we provided over 32,000 meals to people living in crisis / food poverty. (It was 21,300 in 2022).

In addition to the above, for the first 3 months we continued to provide meals and parcels to the hotels and hostels in Normanton when required. Brunch clubs through the school holidays also helped feed children who were not in school.

During 2023 we received 25,469kg of donations (30,574kg in 2022). As you can see there was a huge decrease in donations and rise in people needing our help. The food bank has to make these shortfalls up and has had to use funds to purchase stock.

The 200 Club was introduced and currently we have the equivalent of 65 people donating £5.00 per month to the Normanton Food Bank.

Well Loved Shop

The Well Loved Shop was closed in September 2022 and remained closed for 2023. We secured the old TSB premises with funding from Wakefield Council for three years and received the keys on 1[st] December 2023. Work began straight away and through the Christmas period to get it ready for opening early 2024.

The Normanton School Uniform Exchange

Tracy Cook continued to run the uniform exchange from home (and the warehouse we were given space in to use for storage and uniform) as well as holding pop up shops in school holidays – continuing to help families and raise funds for the Well Project. Just 9 pop-ups at Normanton Junior Academy (used the hall for free) raised over £2,100 for the Well.

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The Well Maintained Bike Library

Bike donations continue to come to us, Terry works on the donations and gets them ready for giving to people in the community.

Health Walks, Coffee Mornings, Meet n Eats Diner

Health Walks are attended by around 8 to 10 people each week and enjoy soup and a roll at the Well Project afterwards if they wish. Coffee morning attendance dropped to zero in August school holidays. The Meet n Eats Diner hosts around 45 – 55 people each week with a delicious hot meal for free. We always need more volunteers to help and/or cook the meals though.

Community Navigator

Emma Farnell continued to meet/exceed all of the targets for this project and the feedback from school and the funding providers exceeded expectations. Despite this, the project was handed over to another provider at the end of March 2023.

Christmas Dinner took place 14[th] December at the Woodhouse Community Centre again this year and again was a huge success with everyone enjoying the event.

Fundraising

The Well Project now self-fund the Community Support Worker (previously Family Worker) position with Emma for 20 hours per week. Emma continues to support the Well Project and help people in the community with all sorts of problems and support including career advice, housing advice, benefits forms, court attendance, mental health advice and much more. Emma is employed on an ongoing basis as long as we are able to provide the funding.

We held several fundraising events throughout the year, including Coffee Mornings at the Parish Rooms which were really successful – the Christmas Jumper one raised over £750 alone! We also held stalls/fundraisers at the Altofts and Normanton galas and the car show – all great events and only possible with the help of volunteers and the community.

We are forever grateful to All Saints Normanton Parish Church for all of the support we receive, whether food donations here and there, cash donations, sharing our social media posts/ word of mouth, painting and decorating as well as advice and help throughout the year.

Working with Wakefield Council and Nova we have secured funding to run Me & Menopause sessions in the community and Let’s Get Cooking courses.

Walking Football, Walking Cricket, Gardening Group, Craft Group, Seated Exercise, Litter Picks

We have an amazing team of volunteers and staff members and couldn’t do any of what we do without them. We are looking forward to the challenges that 2024 will bring.

These groups are all run in partnership with Coalfields/Five Towns Active and take place weekly. Gardening group, due to very low numbers ceased in April 2023. Eddie from Coalfields attended the groups until he left later in the year, replaced by Hannah who was then replaced in October by Helen from Coalfields. We have excellent volunteers for the craft and seated exercise groups helping Coalfields run the sessions.

Michelle Newton

Walking football utilise the use of our minibus through the winter/wet months to take the team to Lock Lane Sports Centre for the football session, returning to the Well in Spring through Summer.

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Youth Ministry / Young Saints

All Saints Youth Ministry had a great start to 2023 with the launch of our first Youth Alpha course. This was attended by around six to eight young people and was a great success. We celebrated the commitment of our young people by presenting each one of them with a youth bible during the Sunday service. I know this was a proud moment for Mel and I and we hope that celebration like this become the norm.

I believe the weekly commitment made by the young people really helped to form a small community and this led to them asking for an increase in the number of Sundays they wished to meet. Based on this feedback, it was decided that Young Saints would meet on the 2[nd] and 3[rd] Sunday of each month. Again, we were encouraged by the number of young people willing to attend two sessions per month and we continued with this format until the end of the year.

In March 2023, we wanted to encourage our young people to serve and to be part of a Sunday service. Through an initiative we called Codename Legacy, we saw young people lead on the bible reading, prayer and welcome. Again, the feedback from this was positive but there is a want to see young people be part of a service more than once a month. There is a struggle at the moment regarding our young people and their connection with a church service. The youth team are currently praying and considering what we can do to avoid losing this group once they outgrow Young Saints. It is however difficult to push for change when church attendance is sporadic, and this makes providing for a demographic difficult.

In addition to Young Saints, our youth ministry also includes Rock Solid. This is a group that the church has run for many years, and it continues to attract a small number of people who meet on a Wednesday evening. We are seeing both Rock Solid and Young Saints overlap and young people like Lexi and Joseph

will attend both groups. In May 2023 we also subscribed to the Rock Solid resource which means we now deliver a short biblical message at the beginning of each session.

In December 2023, after speaking with Alan, it was decided that 2024 would be my final year as a youth leader for our church and after twenty-three years, I felt it was time to pass the baton to someone else (But who?). I feel 2023 was a great year of growth and development for our youth ministry but leading on this along with my Head of Centre role for Acorn and my chaplaincy at Wakefield Trinity, it was evident I was simply over committing. There was also a feeling that any further development would be seen by some as an obligation rather than a positive way forward for our young people which also led me to feel it was a good time to step back. I can however say that due to a few changes and a great deal of prayers, the above will not be the case and I will be continuing in my youth leader role has normal. Since I was twenty-two, I’ve kept saying ‘I will give it another five years’ so here’s to another five years (maybe). I also feel we have a great team of youth leaders who I would like to further develop and train over the next twelve months.

I cannot speak highly enough of our youth team and the love and passion they all show towards our young people is amazing. Rendel, Joy, Stewart, Rendel and Mel have ensured that all young our people have fun, are fed, nurtured and that Jesus is always at the centre of every session.

Gavin Budby, Youth Ministry Lead

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To the church family and the members of the PCC

April 2024

It is my pleasure to provide you with this update during Mrs Stone’s maternity leave. I hope you are well and I would like to thank you for the support and the care you continue to show towards our school. I trust the following report will provide you with an update on our current journey as a school.

Our School Vision

Respect - We respect and love one another Empower - We encourage and strengthen one another Grow - We grow and flourish together as individuals within a community

I would like to update you on some changes made to our school vision since we last shared this with you. We have made these refinements to our vision of Respect, Empower, Grow, which is now rooted in the Church of England’s vision for education, and with this- Jesus’ promise of ‘life in all its fulness’ at its heart. The school logo of the butterfly also links directly to our vision of ‘Respect, Empower, Grow’ as follows:

Respect: Educating for community, living well together, dignity and respect

Just like the butterfly, we believe that all our children are unique and capable. We strongly believe that positive and respectful relationships are crucial for living well together in our community and are therefore at the centre of daily life in our school. Our Christian Values of ‘Friendship, Forgiveness, Hope, Respect, Thankfulness and Perseverance’ shape and support our young children too as they flourish together and grow their wings.

Empower: Educating for hope and aspiration

The butterfly represents change and the opportunity for all to reach their potential and fly high. We empower and equip our children to overcome any challenges, to have high aspirations and be optimistic for the future.

Grow: Educating for wisdom, knowledge and skills

It is our aim to be inspirational and to provide strong and lasting foundations so that our children are knowledgeable, develop a love of learning, are enthusiastic and confident. Our children are unique and have gifts and talents, which are nurtured and celebrated. We encourage them, just like the butterfly, to put on their brightest colours and be proud of who they are.

I am proud to be Acting Headteacher of our wonderful school and the way that we continue to strive to provide the best experiences, opportunities and relationships that we can for all who pass through our doors.

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Team Awesome!

We continue to call ourselves ‘Team Awesome’ as we aim to achieve the very best for every child. Here are some of our recent achievements, which I wanted to share with you all:

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Our Church and Local Community

We continue to be proud of our place in the local community and the links which we have with church. The children look forward to Reverend Murray and Mrs Howell visiting to lead worship and also when they and other volunteers support our Hand To Mouth sessions throughout the year. The children enjoy the celebrations such as Easter and Mother’s Day which they attend in church, as well as visiting during the year for mock weddings and other occasions where they can learn about how the church is used and why it is so important in the community. Our Eco Club and school councillors are active in leading initiatives in school for all children to be able to play their part and make a difference. Some examples include collecting food for The Well during our ‘reverse advent’ and food trolley in school, recycling plastic bottle tops at home and at school and collecting money for Martin House and Prince of Wales Hospice. We also support a variety of other national charities throughout the year. Our Reception children have been visited by local police officers, firemen and women and are looking forward to a visit from a local dentist to teach them about oral hygiene. We are proud of the feedback we receive from members of the community whenever our children have been out and about as respectful and well-mannered members of the school.

I would like to say a huge thank you to the governors of our school who continue to be so willing to offer their time, commitment, support and care. We believe in school that the power of relationships is paramount in everything we do and the strength of the relationships between staff and our governing body is the standard which we hold all other relationships to. Our Governing Body are often called upon to give their time and often have difficult decisions to make. We thank them for this, especially Mrs Leah Huddlestone and Mr David Sanderson who are devoted to leading our governing body and always have the staff and children of our school in their hearts and prayers. Their support and guidance has been invaluable for me in taking on the role of Acting Headteacher and I am indebted to them for this.

We thank you for your ongoing thoughts, prayers and support and look forward to the remainder of the school year working alongside you.

Best regards,

Miss Leanne Hargrave, Acting Headteacher

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Revd Paul Haworth (1947 – 2024) - A brief obituary

Paul Haworth was born in 1947 in Scarborough, where he attended the High School for Boys. He once invited Philip Larkin to come to speak to him and his fellow students.

He studied English for a Master’s Degree at Gonville & Caius College Cambridge and then had a career with the GPO in computing. Later he returned to Cambridge to study for a second Master’s in Theology before ordination at Westcott House, Cambridge. He was made a Deacon in 1978 and Priested in 1979. He once wrote, ‘A priest stands windward of creation and leeward of God’.

He served as Curate of St Andrew’s Hornchurch 78-81; Curate of St Mary & St Michael Loughton 81-88; Team Vicar of Holy Cross Waltham 88-92; Team Rector of Becontree South 1992 – 2000; Priest in Charge of Holy Trinity Church, South Woodham Ferrers, a joint Anglican, Catholic and Methodist Church from 2000 until his retirement in 2011. After thirty-odd years of ministry in the Diocese of Chelmsford he and Kathrine then retired to Burnham-on-Crouch on the Dengie Peninsula in farthest Essex.

I say retired, but Paul spent most Sundays around and about, mostly village churches, covering holidays, sickness, and interregnums. They thought Essex would be the end of their travels, everything about the location suited them perfectly - but circumstances change, and in the summer of 2019 due to Kathrine’s deteriorating condition they rejoined some of the younger members of the family in making a move up to Normanton to share in her care and communal family living.

Paul has made a wonderful contribution to Sunday worship here over the last 5 years, whilst at the same time being Kathrine’s main carer. They didn’t have a car, but his encyclopedic knowledge of buses and trains have taken them all over Yorkshire and beyond, and Paul always had interesting facts to tell you about the places he went, things that even those of us who knew that particular place well didn’t know. His gentleness, his grace and his humour will be much missed as he takes his place in his master’s presence.

Well done, good and faithful servant, rest in peace.

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