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2020-12-31-accounts

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The Parish of St Barnabas, Clarksfield, Oldham

part of the benefce of St Barnabas Clarksfeld and Holy Trinity, Waterhead, in :— The Deanery of Oldham East; the Episcopal Area of Middleton; in the Diocese of Manchester.

Ministry Team in 2019

Vicar The Revd Dr Paul Monk Assistant Curates The Revd Jane Hyde Lay Readers Pete Haslam (St Barnabas) Ruth Lees and Rosie Kingham (Holy Trinity)

ST BARNABAS CHURCH, CLARKSFIELD TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2019

1. Accounting Basis

2. Funds

Parochial Church Council for 2019

Church Wardens Mr Peter Haslam Church Secretary Mrs Joanne Monk Church Treasurer Ms Gisele Onwumere (with Duncan Goodman as deputy) Deanery Synod Rep Mrs Michelle Hacking Elected Members Mr Tom Edmondson Mrs Christine Haslam Mrs Joanne Monk Mrs Megan Patrick Mrs Nicola Williams

Restricted funds; Any Church income received in trust or endowment which is subject to restrictions on the use to which the funds may be used are separately identified in these financial statements. The balance as at the end of the year represents the cumulative difference between the restrictive income received and the expenditure for approved purposes. There are three current funds; The Youth Club Fund, The Building Fund and the Community Fund.

Unrestricted funds; The General fund represents the total of income and expenditure on all non restricted activities.

Other Church officers

Administrator Ms Sarah Gura Child-protecton Ofcer Suzanne Evans Electoral roll ofcer Mrs Marion Partington (over part of the year) Gif-aid Secretary Ms Gisele Onwumere (with Mr Duncan Goodman) Sacristan Mrs Marion Partington (over part of the year) Child-protecton Ofcer Miss Suzanne Evans

Parish Information

Benefce St Barnabas, Clarksfield and Holy Trinity, Waterhead, both in Oldham. Atendance The average Sunday attendance during October 2019 was 27 adults and 13 children.

Bank The Co-operative Bank , Spindles Square, Oldham. Insurance The Church, PCC and property are insured with Ecclesiastical PLC . Fees The list of Diocesan fees are displayed in the Church porch and vestry. Parish Share The Parish Share for 2019 was £15,500, which was not paid in full.

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ST BARNABAS CHURCH, CLARKSFIELD TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31ST DECEMBER 2019

Annual Parochial Church Meeting

Minutes of the APCM held on Sunday 7 April 2019 Revd. Paul Monk led us in opening prayers

Present Paul Monk (Chair), Peter Haslam (Warden), Jo Monk (secretary), John Barrett Ann Billingsley, Margaret Haslam, Sarah Gura, John Marshall,

Apologies Rebecca Burbridge, Christine Haslam, Ian Hulse, Kelly Hulse, Marion Partington

Introduction given by Revd Paul Monk

I’d like to talk briefly about the past year and then discuss the future. Some of the past year was a bit grim, so I’m going to be as optimistic looking as possible. After all, our God is love and Scripture tells us that love always protects, always perseveres

2018 contained some real achievements. Jane was licensed as our curate. We’ve also improved the building.

But 2018 was often a difficult year. Firstly, we never had enough money. For example, we did not pay the Parish Share in full.

Second, we need to do more building work if we can attract the necessary grants. For example, we need to replace the roof in the near future, many of the external doors and windows need replacing. And we need to enhance the security in the building.

The future Our Church Council has been discussing the future. We want the Church to pray and follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit; we want it to be in control of its destiny rather than merely responding to circumstances.

We would like to address our Church’s inclusivity. In many respects we’re doing a good job. The PCC would like to make a public statement that we want to be inclusive in every respect. It therefore recommends that we become a formal member of the ‘Inclusive Church’ movement. If you like, it’s an inclusivity kitemark saying that we refuse to discriminate. Their vision statement says:

We believe in inclusive Church — Church which does not discriminate, on any level, on grounds of economic power, gender, mental health, physical ability, race or sexuality. We believe in Church which welcomes and serves all people in the name of Jesus Christ; which is scripturally faithful; which seeks to proclaim the Gospel afresh for each generation; and which, in the power of the Holy Spirit, allows all people to grasp how wide and long and

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high and deep is the love of Jesus Christ.

The PCC wants to recommend to this meeting that we adopt this statement or something like it.

Second, the PCC wants to recommend to this meeting that we admit all our children to Holy Communion, provided of course they are baptised. I’ll rehearse the arguments briefly. The Bible insists the sole criterion Church membership is baptism. All the baptised are full members of the Church. Jesus says that all are to take the sacraments, ‘Drink this, all of you…’ so the early Church took him at his word. It took the Church hundreds of years to agree a coherent theology of Communion: it’s a real and efficacious spiritual food. No one can say how it ‘works’ because it’s also a divine mystery; indeed, you cannot fit the infinity of God’s grace into a human-sized mind. The Church first started defining Holy Communion in the Middle Age. The Victorians introduced fastidious teaching courses and we’ve turned their stance into a rigid dogma: we only take Holy Communion if we understand — hence the emphases of confirmation. That trend accelerated until the turn of our own century. The PCC wants to go back to the Bible, to Jesus, and the early Church, and recommends that we allow every baptised member to receive Holy Communion … if they so wish. Let Holy Communion teach us about Holy Communion: practise makes perfect. We need to forget under-

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REPORT TO THE MEMBERS ON THE UNAUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST BARNABAS, CLARKESFIELD, OLDHAM

YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2019

I report on the accounts of the charity for the year ended 31st December 2019, which are set out on pages 4 to 6.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act)) and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to:

Basis of independent examiner’s report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from you as trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair view’ and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent examiner’s statement

In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention:

  1. Which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in any material respect the requirements

  2. To keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the 2011 Act; and

  3. To prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the 2011 Act have not been met; or

  4. To which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

19 March 2019

Duncan Goodman ACA 839 Huddersfield Road Oldham OL4 4AY

standing and be honest: no one can understand a fathomless mystery.

The third area the PCC wishes to address is money. No one likes discussing money, but it’s time we did. The PCC recommend that members give, give often, give reliably, give generously. Please think and pray about how much you can give. It’s now as easy to give electronically as well as on a collection plate. Indeed, the Diocese and our insurer both recommend electronic giving: it’s more secure; we’re not keeping money on site; it’s safer than taking money from here to the bank; we don’t need to remember to bring money with us on a Sunday; and we can still support the Lord’s work even if we miss a Sunday service for whatever reason.

The coming year will look at many (maybe more) aspects of Church life, seeking God’s will.

Finally, on behalf of all the PCC, I want to thank the small army of people and welcoming. Thank you.

Nicola Williams proposed that we accept the Minutes of the Annual Parish Church meeting 2018 and Tom Edmondson seconded. On vote, all those present accepted them unanimously.

AOB John Marshall and Paul Monk asked to include items under AOB.

Annual Parish Meeting

Election of Wardens

We have one warden, Peter Haslam. He is willing to stand again this year. He was proposed by Margaret Haslam and seconded by Tom Edmondson. On vote, all were in favour of his election.

Annual Parish Church Meeting

The minutes from last year’s APCM have been accepted (see above).

The annual reports from all sections of the Church community were presented and accepted without further comment.

Admission of Children to Communion: Paul explained why the PCC is recommending this measure. It was explained that children will be prepared for Communion through Sunday School and RS at school. The measure was accepted unanimously. The PCC will now go ahead and implement it.

The PCC has recommended that we become members of the Inclusive Church movement. Paul explained what this means and read out the Inclusive Church ‘Statement of Belief’. The meeting agreed unanimously that we would like to go ahead and become members.

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TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS MEMBERS OF THE BOARD AND PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS

Paul read out our policies on Child-Protection Policy and Vulnerable adults. Our Safeguarding Officer is Suzanne Evans. The meeting accepted the current Policy unanimously.

fulfilling this role.

Elections to the PCC Four members of the PCC have asked to stand down this year. They are: Rebecca Burbridge, Kelly Hulse, Efe Osagie and Ruth Spratt. There was a vote of thanks and appreciation to them for all their hard work and commitment.

Megan Patrick and Nicola Williams each have two years left on the PCC and are willing to continue. Tom Edmondson and Christiane Haslam were reelected to the PCC (Tom was proposed by Sarah Gura and seconded by Jo Monk, Christine was proposed by Nicola Williams and seconded by Michelle Hacking). Both were re-elected unanimously. Jo Monk was co-opted onto the PCC during the year so needed formal election. She was proposed by Sarah Gura and seconded by Tom Edmondson and was unanimously elected.

Sidespeople The following sidespeople are willing to stand and were unanimously accepted by the meeting: Vadim Bezkorovainiy, Kirstie Chapman, Charlotte Derbyshire, Tom Edmondson, Michelle Hacking, Margaret Haslam, Carl Mayfield, Megan Patrick, Maddie Ransome,

Accounts The PCC has accepted the accounts and the auditor has signed owing to a loan from the Diocese. The accounts were accepted unanimously.

Any other Business John Marshall apologised that he is not able to stand for office in the church as he needs to spend several months of each year in Barbados. He is concerned that the congregation has decreased in recent years and feels that if people would sing more and pay more attention to music, this would improve. His comments were noted, but the point was made that not everyone wants to sing or to join a choir. Those who wish to do so can join his occasional choir, which sings on special occasions.

Paul asked people to make their financial contributions electronically, directly through their bank, if possible. This makes it easier for the Church to predict income and helps with security, as it avoids us having a lot of cash on the premises.

REGISTERED CHARITY NAME THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST BARNABAS, CLARKSFIELD, OLDHAM CHARITY NUMBER 1147033 REGISTERED OFFICE St Barnabas Church Arundel Street Oldham OL4 1NL TRUSTEES Trustees Revd Dr Paul Monk Tom Edmondson Michelle Hacking Christine Haslam Peter Haslam Revd Jane Hyde Jo Monk Revd Denise Owen Megan Patrick Nicola Williams TREASURER Gisele Onwumere INDEPENDENT EXAMINER Duncan Goodman ACA 839 Huddersfield Road Oldham OL4 4AR BANKERS Co-operative Bank 12 Market Place Spindles Centre Oldham OL1 1HE

Prayers The meeting closed with prayers led by Paul Monk.

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ST BARNABAS CHURCH, CLARKSFIELD

TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Report from the Vicar

CONTENTS

Members of the Board and professional advisers .............................. 31 Independent Examiners Report ........................................................... 32 Receipt and Payments Account .......................................................... 33 Statement of Assets and Liabilities ..................................................... 34 Notes to the Financial statements ....................................................... 35

The past year has been interesting, for many reasons. It’s been a good year insofar as again we’ve welcomed new people as they choose to join us in worship and fellowship. The Church had a so-called ‘Archdeacon’s visitation’ (much like an Ofsted inspection in a school) in 2019 and was deemed above satisfactory, which is the highest grade. We also improved our suite of buildings. Finally, we invited new groups as they chose to use our buildings for their parties, projects and functions.

Last year was in many respects a gamechanger. Easily the biggest change concerned our community project. As a Church, we were unable to obtain funds for a community worker to manage the project. Yet, at the same time the project was growing so fast it required additional oversight. As a result, some features became unsustainable and, with great sadness, we closed it in early 2019.

In response to all these changes, the Parochial Church Council showed great wisdom in requesting a time of quiet and discernment — we took ‘time off’ to seek God’s will for our Church. As a result we gradually saw that God has been asking us to re-direct our gaze back to Him. We are a Church first. Everything else follows from that commitment.

The Church is now planning new events and services and encouraging new vocations. Already, the Church has joined the ‘Inclusive Church’ movement (see page 3).

We therefore ask your prayers and help as we re-explore what being the Church for Clarksfield and Greenacres entails.

Paul Monk: Vicar (February 2020)

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Charity Registration Number: 1147033

Letter from the Vicar of St Thomas, Moorside

(and team Assistant Curate )

THE PAROCHIAL CHURCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PARISH OF ST BARNABAS, CLARKSFIELD , OLDHAM TRUSTEES’ ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

For the year ended 31st December 2019

We are three Churches: St Thomas in Moorside; St Barnabas in Clarksfield; and Holy Trinity in Waterhead. The buildings and parishes are distinct and separate but the three congregations comprise Christian sisters and brothers working together for God’s Kingdom.

To be a Christian implies an indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The Bible says we are united spiritually because we are all inhabited by the same Spirit. We are like a spiritual body: St Paul calls it ‘The Body of Christ’ and the Book of Common Prayer calls it ‘The Mystical body’. St Paul’s concept of the body is not a spiritual metaphor but a spiritual reality. We are linked and interconnected in the spiritual domain. This spiritual interconnectedness is reflected in the times we come together as three churches to worship and pray. In 2019 there were retreats in our churches and also quiet days with the Community of the Resurrection at Mirfield. Times spent together in prayer and fellowship brings the spiritual realm into the realm of everyday living, and we grow and thrive as Christians.

The Christians in our three Churches are learning how to be the body of Christ in our part of Oldham. That’s why we are learning to share services,

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Table 3 Table citing all the grants awarded and received by St Barnabas Church during 2019.

Date Source Amount Use
16.01.2018 Wakeham Trust £1,000 For food store
01.02.2019
07.08.2019		 Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund
Oldham Council		 £600 For food store
£1,000 For food
20.08.2019 GMCPS £500 For the roof
16.12.2019 Natonal Lotery £8,795 For security
Total £11,895

The Church was awarded very nearly £12,000 in grant monies during 2019, which is significantly down on the £34,882 we received in 2018.

and local funders. These grants are a way of recognising this project’s worth.

The small grant from the Greater Manchester Churches Preservation Society (GMCPS) was given to pay a quantity survey to estimate the cost of replacing the Church roof, which is aging fast. The surveyor estimates the likely cost is £205,000 though Brexit and inflation suggest the actual sum could be higher.

The grant from the National Lottery will help us to enhance the security of the building with new doors, windows and mend the Church’s security alarm. Once enacted, these replacements will doubly help the Church because our insurance premiums will decrease somewhat.

The Church Council is extremely grateful to these funders for putting their trust in the Church. It is hoped that subsequent grants will enable yet further improvements to the building. A superior building means less maintenance, more projects that help more local people. It can also enhances our potential for higher rental income.

share skills and expertise. Hopefully we’re also sharing ourselves and our spiritual lives. We all have God-given gifts and if we can use them across our three churches then not only will God’s Kingdom thrive, but we ourselves will grow and thrive as people.

The world will see Jesus living in us in proportion that Christians share in this way. We therefore hope and pray that the world will make a more balanced assessment of Christianity. Stated differently, we need to grow together as Churches if we want the Church to grow. This begins with prayer for each other and ourselves and prayer that as churches we hear and respond to God’s call in this area of Oldham.

I’m therefore delighted when I see this growth has started and pray that it will continue into 2020 and thence light the path that leads toward a Christlike future. The Revd Denise Owen (March 2020)

Report from the Church Warden

We welcome those who are new to the Church and joined us during 2019, and hope you feel comfortable at St Barnabas. Please speak with me if you want to get more involved and contribute to the life of the Church.

In all Anglican Churches, the wardens bear the prime responsibility for the well-being of the Church, both as an organisation seeking to sponsor the ushering in of the Kingdom, and for the fabric of the building.

Within this context I, as a Warden, am delighted to note how 2019 has often been a rewarding year. We’re improving the building for use by the congregation and the wider community and rectified a great many small niggles and problems. To repeat a paragraph from previous years’ reports, ‘The building is clearly in a superior state of repair and decoration than at the start of the year’.

In many respects it has not been so satisfying a year. We closed our flagship community programme, so the footfall through our building decreased owing to their own financial considerations in this ‘age of austerity’.

We have many tasks to address in 2020. Most involve improving our core finances to afford our commitments, and sponsor outreach and other work within our deprived community. The offerings each Sunday are insufficient to cover the Church’s costs and are declining, although we did have a modest Gift Day and several generous individual donations. We all experienced a difficult time financially this year, perhaps owing to the national economy. I would like to thank all those members of St Barnabas’ congregation who have lavished support on me as a Warden during 2019. I hope I can continue to earn your support in 2020.

My thanks go to the team that lead each week’s services at St Barnabas:

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Our Assistant Curate, the Revd Jane Hyde with the Bishop of Middleton, the Rt Revd Mark Davies, immediately after her ordination to the priesthood at Manchester Cathedral. Saturday 22 June 2019.

the servers, PCC members, readers and intercession leaders, sidespeople, leaders of the Sunday-school, and those who brew. And please notice how the Church always looks clean and tidy every Sunday so many thanks to all who work to maintain this high standard of presentation.

Peter Haslam : Warden (February 2020)

Report from the PCC Secretary

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) convened on six scheduled occasions in 2018. We also held one short extraordinary meeting.

The PCC also convened the Annual Parochial Church Meeting in April last year and helped convene this year’s APCM.

I have sought to publish the minutes from our meetings as soon after each meetings as practicable. Jo Monk: PCC Secretary (February 2020)

net deficit for the year of £6,230 against a surplus last year of £1,257. The main element in this apparent worsening was the fact that we received less in Gift Aid, continued to pay off the debt caused by the youth club, and by the residual debts of the Community Project.

Also note that we also did not pay our full parish share in 2019: we paid £7,379 which is better than the £3,052 we paid in 2018. Note that we did managed to pay the full share of £11,378 in 2017.

In summary, Church funds continue to be under enormous pressure making achievement of its missionary and charitable aims difficult. This is not unique to St Barnabas Church!

The 100 Club closed in early 2019 owing to the illness of its administrator.

The Church holds four funds. At the end of the year, the following are the account balances:

count balances:
General Fund £15,715 deficit
Community Fund £9,845 surplus
Youth Club Fund £5.797 deficit
Building Fund £5,437 surplus

Therefore the Church is in deficit by £6230.

General fund

The total income for 2019 was £50,961, which looks considerably less than in 2018 because we received fewer grants for building projects. Apart from

After subtracting building projects, costs in 2019 were considerably lower at £40,605 than the £67,248 we spent in 2018. The principal savings were the community project which stopped in mid-2018 and the youth club which stopped later that same year. Other costs in 2019 were broadly in line with 2018.

Restricted Funds

Community Fund

The Community Project closed in 2019 owing to operational difficulties. The fund has also closed, but retains £9,845, which therefore returns to the Church’s main account.

Youth Club Fund

The Youth Club closed in early 2019. The fund is also closed, but was in deficit by £5797.

Building Fund:

The building fund was in credit at the turn of the year. We had received grants to effect improvements to the security of our building. Those monies relate to the spaces used for the food cooperative.

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People news

Our Curate Jane was ordained as a priest in the Church of God. She was previously a deacon. That priesting service occurring in Manchester Cathedral on 22 June 2019. Revd Jane celebrated the Eucharist for the first time on Sunday 23 June 2019 at our sister Church of Holy Trinity in Waterhead. Paul Monk : Vicar (February 2020)

Report from the Property Committee

We did not undertake any major building projects during 2019. But we have overseen the following:–

Treasurer’s report

The audited accounts which supplement the Annual Report offer a detailed description of the Church accounts. These show the Church had an overall

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Figure 1 The Parish of Clarksfield: the location of the Church is shown by a white by colour. The key appears bottom right.

By law, the fabric of an Anglican Church is inspected every five years by a nominated architect. Our most recent inspection occurred in November 2018. He found a few small problems that have been solved already. But the architect also told us that the Church needs a new roof. The Church the likely cost at £206,000 with a further contingency of 10%.

The principal challenges in 2020 will involve improving the security of the building (with better doors and windows) and starting the process of seeking funds for that new roof.

Paul Monk and Peter Haslam: Vicar and Warden (February 2020)

Report concerning community work

The Gospel imperative demands that we offer seek to establish the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven.

Our Church is continually devising and resourcing projects to meet the needs of local people. We also offer the use of the Hall to projects which offer help that complements our own projects and that seek to address local needs. Incidentally, this aspect also generates income for both Church funds and renovation work.

To that end we welcome new groups to the Halls: the Muslim Beavers, Cubs ands Scouts and the B’s Diamonds dance troupe. We have also hosted

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many transient groups during the year. And we are pleased to have helped the many, many groups who continue to use our comprehensive suite of rooms to further work and ministries.

Since 2011, the Church has been supporting our community through the provision of food when we started an embryonic food bank. Since 2017, the Church has subscribed to Fareshare : for a small fee, we receive large amounts of good-quality food. That food underpins our food cooperative (as below). During 2018, we started the process of changing the food bank into a food cooperative. The rationale is straightforward. While our food bank was working well insofar as we gave ca. 30 parcels a week it was also generating a sense of dependency. We started a co-operative pilot in August 2018. It now operates within a model known as a ‘food pantry’ and feeds a great of food at 35p per day per person.

The scripture breakfast remains the only project that attracts members from both St Barnabas and Holy Trinity. We have explored passages from both Testaments. A significant proportion of the group’s members have led sessions. Paul Monk (February 2020)

Report from Deanery Synod

Much of this year’s discussion has centred around the new Mission Action Plan (MAP) which looks at clergy deployment and the Diocesan imperatives of community engagement and mission. Tangential themes included vocations and clergy work-loads.

Synod worked to produce a Deanery MAP which would be common to the parishes in the Deanery. The aim of the MAP is for parishes to work together on projects or to work on the same initiatives in parallel. The MAP was agreed and accepted at the March meeting.

The MAP includes: parishes becoming members of the Inclusive Church Church’ awards and the provision of groups to foster spiritual growth. Revd Katy Cunliffe in her role as Deanery Children and Young Families Missioner spoke to Synod about the process of becoming Child Friendly in June.

The November meeting included a presentation by Bishop Mark Davies and the Diocesan Chief Operating Officer Helen Platts. They explained the reasons behind and the process of reducing the number of Deaneries. The Diocese of Manchester is currently looking at decreasing the number of deaneries from 20 to 7. If accepted, our own deanery of Oldham East will join with Oldham West and Ashton. The new deanery (which has not yet been named) will be the largest in the Diocese. There will be a full-time Area Dean.

Both Bishop Mark and Helen Platts emphasised that this was the beginning of a consultation and that Diocese was willing to listen to all opinions

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PCC programme for 2020

about the reorganisation.

Synod meetings also include regular updates about parish share and how much each parish has paid towards theirs for the year.

Paul Monk and Denise Owen (February 2020)

The Parish of Clarksfield is multi-racial, with a composition that seems to change with a bewildering speed. Many recent statistics appear below. The accuracy of and our social context.

Population

Statistics from the Church Urban Fund suggest that on 1 November 2019, the adult population in the Parish is 4,993. If inaccurate at all, the figure will be too small.

Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) on Sunday 29 March 2020 at approximately 10:45 am.

All PCC meetings start at 7:30 pm and meet in the Vestry: Monday 20 January Monday 23 March Monday 18 May Monday 20 July Monday 21 September Monday 23 November

Social programme for 2020

Tuesday 26 February 10:00 am: Service for Ash Wednesday . Sunday 4 October 9:30 am: Harvest Festival . Sunday 1 November 4:00 pm: Commemoration of the Faithful

4:00 pm: Commemoration of the Faithful departed , commonly called ‘All Souls’ Day’.

9:30 am: Remembrance Service .

Thursday 24 December 11:30 pm: Midnight Mass at Waterhead Church Friday 25 December 9:30 pm: Eucharist for Christmas Day .

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Churches Together in East Oldham

The local Churches Together group comprises five Churches: St Barnabas in Clarksfield, Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Waterhead, Elim ‘Fountain of Hope’ opposite Greenacres School, Greenacres Congregational Church, and St Thomas’ Anglican Church in Moorside.

East Oldham Methodist Church on Ripponden Road no longer seems to want to remain a member of Churches Together in East Oldham . And we have tried repeatedly to invite St Anne’s Roman Catholic Church on Cooke Street. Sadly St Anne’s closed at very short notice in November 2019—no neighbours were informed. This failure demonstrates why the Lord’s Church benefits from ecumenical partnerships of sharing and trust.

The ministers of the Churches meet regularly for prayer and discussion. We also facilitate joint events of worship and praise.

The biggest and most successful event of the year was a joint service during Holy Week when a huge congregation received The Holiest Week with great devotion and faith. St Barnabas hosted the event.

The first such Churches Together service occurred in 2016, when Waterhead Church hosted a well-attended event The Passion . A similar but poorly attended event occurred in Elim Church in 2017. Moorside Church offered a different presentation in 2018, with readings, prayers and hymns.

With sadness, for the second year running we had no Whit Walk. We were unable to recruit a band to accompany the walk.

Paul Monk : Vicar (February 2020)

Deprivation indices

or deprivation. These IMD bring together 7 statistical domains: employment; income; health and disability; education; crime; housing and services; and living environment. The IMD are a relative measure that is used to compare geographical areas; it is not a direct measure of deprivation. Other measures, such as child poverty or working-age poverty, are necessary to develop a fuller understanding of an area.

Indices of multiple deprivation are compiled by the Anglican-run Church Urban Fund (see https://www.cuf.org.uk/parish/240284 ). The most recent were published on 1 November 2019 and suggest our Parish is in the most deprived 1.9% of all Anglican parishes in England. This result demonstrates a slight worsening since the previous statistics (published in 2015) which suggest we were then in the most deprived 2.1%.

Deprivation within the parish is localised into small pockets. The colourcoded map in Figure 1 well demonstrates the diversity.

Ethnicity

Figures from Oldham Council **suggest that ethnic diversity in the Parish exists at a level of 54%. (Across the entire Diocese, the highest is 88% and the lowest is 1%.)

Data from the Church Urban Fund suggest the approximate ethnicities in the area around the Church are: Asians of Pakistani heritage, 65% : eastern European 24% : white British 6% : other, 5%. These figures are changing fast and are likely to be inaccurate insofar as they underreport the numbers of immigrant families living locally.

Regular services

Table 1 below contains a simple statistical analysis of service attendances over the past three years. No obvious patterns emerge. The statistic for ‘All Sunday services’ is a weighted average of all our Sunday services. The entries lower down the table help unpack this headline composite.

The programme for 2020 has already been restricted very severely by the Covid-19 pandemic. The remainder of the year’s programme depends on the many and as-yet unknown consequences (including legalities) caused by Covid-19 and its aftermath.

Figure 2 below shows the average number of adults attending services (both Sunday and Tuesday) since 2002 — the first year for which good data are available. 2019 saw decreased attendances relative to the previous few years. We continue to enjoy an increase in the numbers of Church members from different backgrounds: one estimate suggests we have regular worshipping members from 17 different nations although that number has declined somewhat as the Home Office moves asylum seekers, and others move.

The adult attendance in 2019 varied between the extremes of 14 and 40. The Sunday average over the year was 27 adults and 13 children, with 7 extra

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2019 2019 2019 2018 2018 201 201
No. adults non-
adults		 adults non-
adults		 adults
Sunday
All Sunday services 52 28 12 31 15 33.8
Parish Eucharist (not parade
or family)		 20 25 14 27 11 34
Family Services (Eucharistc) 20 28 11 36 16 35
Morning worship (non-
Eucharistc)		 12 28 12 29 16 31
Tuesday
All morning services
of HolyCommunion		 51 7 – 9 – 10

----- Start of picture text -----
48
46
44
42
40
38
36
34
32
30
2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020
----- End of picture text -----

Figure 2 Average annual adult attendances: the data include both Sunday and Tuesday attendees, a the growing numbers of members unable to attend the Church, so receive communion by e

Report from the Sunday school

The Senior Sunday school looked at prayer and the Christian life in the teachings of St Paul, and did so between January and September 2019. We also studied the meaning and liturgy of the Eucharist, in accordance with the Church’s decision to admit children to Holy Communion. Group size varied between 3 and 9 children, between the ages of 10 and 17. After the summer holidays, the session was cancelled four times in a row owing to only one or session. Accordingly, the Senior Sunday school has stopped for the time being. We will reassess this in a year’s time if we have enough new children coming into that age group to merit forming a new senior group.

The Junior Sunday school is held for 3–10 year olds. We cover stories from the Old Testament and the life, miracles and parables of Jesus. We have group sizes between 3 to 8 and with an average attendance of 5. We do a range of craft activities to illustrate what we learn and the children can recount the main lesson from the session at the end. The older children are encouraged to prepare and run sessions occasionally.

Suzanne Evans and Jo Monk: Group Leaders (March 2020)

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Table 2 Total Living in the parish Living outside the non-
parish adults
2019 64 22 42
~~2018~~ ~~61~~ ~~21~~ ~~40~~
2017 62 21 41 16
2016 73 24 49 18
~~2015~~ ~~71~~ ~~23~~ ~~48~~
2014 68 20 48 15
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—

Report from the Child-protection Officer

St Barnabas’ child-protection policy is displayed prominently at the back of the Church nave.

The Parochial Church Council insists that all adults who work with young people must have an enhanced DBS. Most have undertaken on-line training and all have been advised of the procedures they should adopt if concerns arise. If they, or any member of the congregation, have safeguarding concerns about any child, they should in the first instance contact me as Child for advice if required.

Report from the Youth Club

Between 2010 and 2018, the Oldham Play Action Group (OPAG) led the youth club at St Barnabas Church. OPAG stopped in December 2018 because we were unable to attract the necessary grants.

Between February and April 2019, the Madhlo Centre in Oldham Town

2019 owing to lack of sufficient Madhlo leaders.

I would like to thank everyone who supported the Youth Club and helped it become a part of the Church’s life.

and also extension.

Paul Monk Vicar (February 2020)

adults each Tuesday. These numbers are augmented by increasing numbers of members who now are housebound or live in sheltered accommodation (5 members in 2019). Attendances for our family services remain strong but, for the first time, word services are now more popular than Eucharistic worship.

from a talented and growing pool. They comprise: one Lay Reader, one ALM (Accredited Local Minister), and several members with a gift of preaching.

Additional, special services in the liturgical year

The following additional services occurred in 2019: Ash Wednesday

); Maundy Thursday (Holy Communion); Good Friday (family service); Carol service; and Christmas Morning (family Communion).

The attendance at all the services for Easter and Christmas was very strong. The Carol service included The Soul Inspirations Gospel Choir and the Tame Valley

We joined our sister Church of Holy Trinity in Waterhead for the following additional services: The Annunciation of our Lord (‘Lady Day’); the first mass said by our Curate Jane Hyde; and two events in collaboration with the RSPCA following the opening of their new centre in Strinesdale, Waterhead.

The occasional offices

Statistics for the occasional offices are given in Figure 3. As in previous years, the numbers of the occasional offices occurring in our Church are very small indeed. Realistically, these numbers will remain very small as a result of the changing ethnic composition of our Parish.

Miscellaneous

In addition to the above, during 2019 the Vicar and Curate also led:

School liaison

No services for local schools occurred within St Barnabas during 2019. Nevertheless, work with local schools has been extensive:

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3

----- Start of picture text -----
• Clarksfield School The link with the school only started in 2015 and seemed
to wither. It is now growing strongly again. The Vicar has led several sessions
in the school at Easter and Christmas, and two classes attended teaching
sessions in the Church.
• Littlemoor School The Vicar has led many assemblies and classes. He is also
2
Vice-Chair of governors at the school.
•
Paul Monk (February 2020)
Electoral-roll Officer 1
The list in Table 2 numbers the adults listed on the electoral roll. The list is sub-
divided according to residency within or outside the Parish.
One Church member died during 2019: Mrs Sylvia Kershaw. Some congrega-
tional movement occurred with new members joining and other members moving
away or ceasing to attend.
0
Paul Monk (February 2020)
2000 2005 2010 2015
8
14
12
6
10
8 4
6
4 2
2
0
0
2000 2005 2010 2015
2000 2005 2010 2015
----- End of picture text -----

Figure 3 The numbers of occasional offices occurring in our Church during the past few years. Key: Left-hand page, baptisms; right-hand page top: weddings (including blessings); and right-hand page bottom: funerals.

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