Profile for the Post of

Transition Minister

(Associate Priest)

in the Parish of St Paul, Wokingham

which includes Woosehill Church (LEP),

St Nicholas’, Emmbrook, and St Paul’s, Wokingham

August 2016

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The Profile

This profile was compiled and written by members of Woosehill Church, St Nicholas’,

Emmbrook, and St Paul’s, Wokingham.

Address: Woosehill Church Chestnut Avenue Woosehill Wokingham Berkshire RG41 3RS

Web: www.thechurchonwoosehill.org.uk

St Paul’s Parish Rooms Reading Road Wokingham Berkshire RG41 1EH

Tel: 0118 979 2122 Email: office@spauls.org.uk Web: www.spauls.org.uk

If you would like to find out more about the post on an informal basis, then please contact one (or more) of the people below: The Rector, the Revd. Richard Lamey 0118 327 9116 richardlamey@btinternet.com Woosehill’s Senior Steward, John Hoskins 07710 272546 johnhoskins@talk21.com St Paul’s Warden, Peter Wells 0781 083 7172 peter.wells@spauls.org.uk

Appointment Process (Incumbent Stipend on the Oxford Diocesan Scale. The appointment is under Qualified

Common Tenure and is subject to enhanced DBS disclosure.)

Send your application form to: The Venerable Olivia Graham Foxglove House Love Lane Donnington Newbury RG14 2JG archdber@oxford.anglican.org Applications submitted by email should be followed up by a signed paper copy by the date

of shortlisting.

Closing date for receipt of applications: midday on Friday 23rd September 2016 Shortlisting: Wednesday 28th September Interviews: Thursday 6th October

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Table of Contents

The Profile ............................................................................................................................................... 2

Appointment Process .............................................................................................................................. 2

Foreword ................................................................................................................................................. 3

Introduction from the Rector, the Revd. Richard Lamey ........................................................................ 4

Partnership for Missional Church ........................................................................................................... 6

The Setting of the Parish ......................................................................................................................... 7

Church Numbers and Services ................................................................................................................ 9

Woosehill Church .................................................................................................................................... 9

St Nicholas’, Emmbrook ........................................................................................................................ 12

St Paul’s, Wokingham ........................................................................................................................... 14

The House ............................................................................................................................................. 16

Who we are looking for ........................................................................................................................ 17

Foreword

As an Archdeaconry, we are piloting the Partnership for Missional Church process for the Diocese,

and the eclectic mix of a dozen or so parishes/benefices involved has formed a fascinating

community of learning which is proving to be both enriching and enlightening.

The Rector has written a comprehensive introduction to this role on the following pages. Woosehill

is both mature, in the sense that the LEP has existed for more than 30 years, and young in that it has

only been part of the newly formed ecclesial unit with St Paul’s and Emmbrook for 4 years. They

have embarked on a spiritual journey of discovery of God’s purposes and God’s future, and the

energy which this has produced is palpable.

I endorse fully the sense of excitement and possibility which shine through these pages, and to

commend this job to anyone who is stimulated by diversity, an ecumenical outlook and a deep

curiosity about what God is doing.

Venerable Olivia Graham Archdeacon of Berkshire

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Introduction from the Rector, the Revd. Richard Lamey That we are able to advertise for a Transition Minister in the parish of St Paul, Wokingham is a

testament to the good shape Woosehill Anglican-Methodist LEP is in and how well this parish is

developing. This is a genuinely exciting and well-balanced job:

helping the Church of Woosehill to listen to God through an active and planned process of

development through Partnership for Missional Church (PMC) while building on a settled

and happy congregation,

having principal responsibility for Woosehill Church within a supportive and lively Clergy

Team,

treasuring the Woosehill way, especially the coherent Methodist and Anglican heritage,

while being energised by ministering on a regular basis at St Nicholas’, Emmbrook (a

Eucharistic community meeting in Emmbrook Village Hall) and St Paul’s, Wokingham (high-

church Liberal Catholic with a landmark building, incense and an outstanding parish church

choir).

It is an unusual job title but I hope that unpacking it word by word will help you see why we are so

thrilled to be where we are in putting together this profile, and how many opportunities the job

opens up.

Transition

This is an appointment under Qualified Common Tenure to do a specific piece of work in Woosehill.

(All of your other rights as a priest would still apply, but the appointment is being made for an initial

period of three years, with the possibility of one year’s extension). The single alternating-model at

Woosehill should have meant that this was the turn of the Methodist Church to appoint a Minister,

which they were keen to do. However, given the PMC process Woosehill (along with the rest of the

parish) are engaged in, the Methodist District and Circuit very generously offered to support an

interim Anglican appointment.

We are just going into the second year of the structured three year (or slightly more) PMC process,

as part of a pilot project run by the Archdeaconry. It is going well. It is hard work, a major

commitment. It is teaching us to think about God and the church and the community in new ways

and to learn to actively attend to the voice of God while going with the grain of who we are. PMC

starts from the belief that the church we are is the perfect place to start. It is not about revolution in

the life of the church but about a steady drawing-out of unexpected opportunities.

Lay leadership of PMC is a given, although the clergy have a key part to play. The first part of the

responsibility of the Transition Minister will be to support and inspire Woosehill Church to the

successful completion of the PMC project and to embed changed ways of thinking, working and

being which make a lasting difference to the life of the church and community.

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Minister (Woosehill)

The post is also to be the priest in Woosehill and for Woosehill Church. As minister you will build on

the excellent foundations laid by the Revd. Patrick King, with the same level of responsibility. You

will chair Church Council, be pastorally responsible for Woosehill, lead worship there on 3 or 4

Sundays out of 5 and plan and lead the celebrations of Christmas and Easter. Other priorities have

emerged from the PMC process which need to be addressed outside PMC itself, including developing

stronger links with The Hawthorns Primary School and external organisations meeting in the church.

In virtually every way you will be the Vicar of Woosehill. It is in essence a Team Vicar’s post with

responsibility for a single church, with the backing of the Revd. Catherine Bowstead (Minister of

Wokingham Methodist Church) and myself. Roughly speaking, about 70% of your time will be

dedicated to Woosehill.

Parish

The parish was formed in 2012 and we have

made good progress in learning to relate to

each other, to trust each other and to build a

common life, through things like a shared

weekly Bible study, a parish-wide Youth Group

held at Woosehill once a month and joint social

events. We also need to develop a corporate

response to the major new housing estate of

830 homes in Emmbrook which has just started

to be built. The Transition Minister will play a

key role across the three churches in

embodying the parish while celebrating the different strengths and rejoicing in the diverse beauty of

each church community. You will take your share of occasional offices and work with the clergy team

(chiefly the Rector, the Assistant Curate and the active retired priest) to serve the whole population

of the parish, building up our common life. Relations with the Methodist Circuit will also be

important- they are already very friendly and we are now looking to do more together.

It is, as this Introduction and this whole Profile show, a really exciting post. It balances change and

continuity, independence and collegiality, freedom and support. It builds on the firm foundation of

vibrant churches who are doing a lot of things well but who know that we should be doing more to

realise the Kingdom of God.

Please be assured of our prayers and thoughts as you consider what it is that God is calling you to

next, and please pray for us in turn as we seek to hear God’s call for this one parish and these three

churches, through the PMC process and beyond.

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Partnership for Missional Church The parish as a whole has adopted the Partnership for Missional Church (PMC) process to inform our

vision for the Parish.

So what is Partnership for Missional Church (PMC for ease)?

Briefly, PMC is a learning and exploring process in which a parish/benefice PARTNERS with others in

the area to learn, and to begin to practise, new spiritual and MISSIONAL habits which will enable

them to discover how and where God is already at work in the world and how and where God wants

them to share in that work. Why? Because we believe that the CHURCH should be the good news of

Jesus Christ lived out in the world, a world that is changing rapidly and in which that Good News is

desperately needed.

Participating churches meet together with the delivery

team three times a year over 3-5 years to learn, first, to

listen and discover who (and whose) they are, and then to

experiment with some new kinds of action in and with the

community. In the final phase congregations will begin

moving toward living in God’s preferred and promised

future for them and their communities. The end result will

be a culture change in the congregation.

In the Parish of Wokingham St Paul, the first year of PMC

is almost over. Each church has undertaken three discovery exercises to establish “where we are

now”, through interviewing a sample of members, building a timeline and assessing demographic

data for the parish. We have practised listening to God together and we are beginning to embark on

Missional experimentation – finding a project (or projects) that will stretch us out of our comfort

zones and take us out into the community to partner with “people of peace” who are already doing

God’s work in some way. For this we will need to set up mission innovation teams willing to take

some risks in faith.

Further information about PMC can be found at www.churchinnovations.org , http://www.stpauls-

wokingham.org.uk/tell-me/partnership-for-missional-church-pmc and Appendix 2 on page 35 of

http://www.oxford.anglican.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Berkshire-Archdeaconry-Plan-

BC.SCO-15.11-14052015-21.pdf

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The Setting of the Parish

Location

Lying in the east of the Royal County of Berkshire and at

the heart of the Thames Valley, Wokingham is only 30

miles from London. It offers a pleasant blend of

countryside and town, historic features and up to date

facilities, big business and market town trading. The

economic prosperity of the district, together with a

pleasant environment and excellent transport links,

make it an attractive place to live and work.

Wokingham, a town of 38,000, still retains the character

of a small market town. Two major housing developments are about to start (one affecting

Emmbrook with 830 additional homes) and it remains to be seen how this alters the town- 11,000

extra residents are a lot to absorb. The town’s main function is to act as a shopping and servicing

centre for the surrounding area. The town centre has a busy market place, specialist shops, major

chains, and many restaurants. Further afield, Reading contains many major chain and department

stores, as well as the Oracle shopping centre. Within Wokingham there are three industrial estates

providing opportunities for small and medium sized companies to expand.

Wokingham has a thriving cultural community with a wide range of arts, sporting and leisure

facilities within easy reach, both within the immediate vicinity and at regional centres such as

Reading, Oxford and London. These range from local amateur theatre and music to internationally

renowned concert halls, cinemas, and theatres; facilities for diverse indoor and outdoor sports from

kayaking to skiing; beautiful local countryside; good libraries and leisure-time courses at local

colleges.

Schools in the Wokingham Borough are consistently high performing. The parish includes two infant,

two junior (one of them St Paul’s Voluntary Controlled School), three primary, and three senior. Each

of the Parish churches enjoys good links with their local primary schools, links we hope to build on in

the future.

Wokingham has unparallelled transport links, giving easy access to the major parts of the country.

The M4 and M3 run to the north and south, while the M40 is also close by. Wokingham station is on

the main Reading to Waterloo line – Waterloo is an hour away – and Reading is also on the main

Paddington line.

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The parish of St Paul (pink

area) lies to the south and

west of the centre of

Wokingham. It is in Sonning

Deanery in the

Archdeaconry of Berkshire

within the Diocese of

Oxford. The church of St

Paul, together with the

Parish Rooms, is located on

the main road running

between Wokingham and

Reading. To the west of the

parish is the large housing

development of Woosehill

served by the Woosehill

Church. The village of

Emmbrook is in the north of

the parish served by the

church of St Nicholas, which

meets in the Emmbrook

Village Hall. This is

expanding with the new

housing development to

the north west of the

village.

St Paul

Woosehill

Church

St Nicholas

St Pauls

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Church Numbers and Services Woosehill Church St Nicholas’ St Paul’s

Membership (electoral

roll)

112

(61 Anglican, 11 Methodist, 40

both/other)

25 195

Sunday main service attendance

55 20 115

Services – Sunday 8:45 Communion 1st and 3rd 10:00 Service of the Word 1st 10:00 Communion 2nd & 4th 10:00 Methodist 3rd 10:00 Café Church 5th 6:15 Taizé/Iona Service 4th

11:00 Community

Eucharist

8:00 BCP Communion 9:30 Parish Mass 6:15 Evensong & Benediction 1st

6:15 Healing 2nd

6:15 Choral Evensong 3rd

Services mid-week 8:30 Wed Morning Prayer 10:30 Wed House

Mass

8:30 Morning Prayer 9:30 Thu Low Mass 9:30 Sat Low Mass

In 2015: Weddings Funerals Baptisms

11 50 33

Woosehill Church

Background

Woosehill Church evolved from a house church to become an Anglican/Methodist Local Ecumenical

Partnership (LEP) in 1984, originally meeting in the local primary school. Our sponsoring body is

Churches Together in Berkshire. We are a ‘Conventional District’ for Anglican purposes with our own

churchwardens, electoral roll and church council. In March 2012, following a parish reorganisation,

we became part of a new parish, with St Paul’s and St Nicholas’. At about the same time, following a

reorganisation of Methodist Circuits in the area, we became part of the then new Berkshire Surrey

Borders Circuit within the South East District of the Methodist Church. There are nine churches in

the Circuit - Bracknell, Wokingham, Woosehill, Church @ Pines, Winkfield Row, Crowthorne,

Bagshot, Sandhurst and Yately, and High Cross Camberley, of which 3 are LEPS. Our closest

Methodist links are with Wokingham, a large and prominent town centre church with extensive

community facilities. The minister there, the Revd. Catherine Bowstead, regularly takes services at

Woosehill and both she and Revd. Jackie Case, the Circuit Superintendent, would welcome the

appointee leading occasional worship in the Circuit.

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The church building is modern, built in 1993, on land leased for

999 years from Berkshire County Council (now Wokingham

Borough Council) to the Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes

with a Sharing Agreement in place with the Anglican Church. It

comprises a multi-purpose hall for worship and other activities

together with 1 meeting room downstairs and a further 2

meeting rooms upstairs. The sanctuary can comfortably

accommodate 220 people and is cleared of chairs every week to

enable it to be put to other uses. We adjoin the site of The Hawthorns Primary School and other

community buildings.

Ministry and Leadership

The LEP was set up with shared Anglican/Methodist ministry, but in 2012 moved to a

‘single alternating minister’ model, beginning with an Anglican appointment, but still remaining part

of the Methodist Circuit.

Our governance is by a Joint Church Council (which fulfils the role of the PCC), with powers

delegated to it annually by two separate councils made up of members of our congregation and

representing the two denominations. The Joint Church Council meets 5 times a year, with a

leadership team of 5 Stewards and staff meeting once a month. For Anglican purposes, two of the

stewards are designated as churchwardens.

There is a clear tradition of lay leadership.

Worship and Learning

We use a variety of liturgies from the Anglican and Methodist traditions, and have room for

creativity within our services of the Word.

We have come to value greatly the marking of the church’s ‘special days’ with engaging and creative

services; Ash Wednesday, Easter Sunday and Midnight Christmas Communion have been particular

highlights recently.

We have a talented music group which plays for most of

our main services with music generally chosen

collaboratively by the minister/worship leader and the

music group leader.

For young people, there is Sunday Club, which meets

during the 10.00am service and a youth group for over 11’s, which meets monthly. There is also a

lunch club/bible study which meets on Wednesdays.

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Pastoral

A team of pastoral visitors visit members of the congregation in need of support and also make

contact with new members. The team meets on a regular basis under the leadership of the Pastoral

Co-ordinator.

There is also an active and well-supported prayer chain for emergency or more sensitive prayer

needs when the more public intercessions may not be appropriate. A monthly 'Together in Prayer'

meeting is usually led by a member of the congregation and prays for the needs of the church and

the community.

Mission

There is a thriving group for toddlers and their carers, run by members of the congregation and the

Parish, which meets on Wednesday mornings.

We have good links with The Hawthorns Primary School, but

could do better. One of our church members currently serves as a

school governor. A small team from the church takes assemblies

at the school and leads staff prayers, whilst the school uses our

facilities for major assemblies and for their nativity play. There

are also solid links with the new Windmill Primary School.

Other activities and groups:

A number of girls’ groups (Guides, Brownies and Rainbows) meet in the church building.

For some years we have run a Holiday Bible Club.

The Afterschool club meets in the church building.

“Cake bombing” in new estates

Christmas Carols at the local public house

Wider Church

We contribute fully to the Deanery Synod and the Circuit meeting; and are members of Churches

Together in Wokingham. One of our Church Council members is County Ecumenical Officer for

Churches Together in Berkshire.

A tithe of our annual income is allocated to various charities. Our current overseas nominated

charity is Emmanuel Ministry in Kolkata India and we are one of the sponsoring churches for

Soulscape, a Christian charity which supports young people in our local schools.

Finance

Our finances, whilst tight, are on an even keel. We pay a ‘parish share’ to both the Diocese of Oxford

and the Methodist Circuit. This has always been paid in full, but it does absorb a high percentage of

our income.

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St Nicholas’, Emmbrook St Nicholas' Community Church exists to worship God and to be

a means of enabling people to live in and realise the presence of

God's Spirit in the World. To spread the message of God's Love,

as revealed to us in the life, death and resurrection of our Lord

Jesus Christ. To support one another in community, by prayer

and through care, so that we may grow into the fullness of our

own humanity. All this we celebrate in the Eucharist.

We live out our Mission Statement individually and corporately

through our Sunday Worship, vital Fellowship Groups and

involvement in community concerns and activities.

Background

St Nicholas’ Church was established in 1977 in the Emmbrook area of the Parish to serve the growing

population there. Set up as a Community Church, its

congregation of 20-25 meets for Sunday worship in

Emmbrook Village Hall.

From the outset, St Nicholas’ was set up to “look and feel”

like a worshipping community in its own right, with its own

governance and a large measure of control over its own

finances. St Nicholas’ Council is constituted as a sub-

committee of the St Paul’s PCC.

Worship

The Eucharist is at the heart of the worship for St Nicholas’, with a less formal Catholic style than at

St Paul’s. The congregation is drawn largely from Emmbrook. Lay participation is a key feature of St

Nicholas’ character, both in worship and wider Parish events.

St Nicholas’ holds an all-age service known as “See! Hear! Live!” on the first Sunday of each month,

in which our young people are encouraged to participate. This service is much appreciated by all and

is an important part of St Nicholas’ worship.

Many of the congregation are involved in setting up the worship space each week and packing things

back in the cupboard at the end of the service – hence the

nickname ‘The church in the cupboard’.

The congregation at St Nicholas’ join the St Paul’s congregation for

special services and for many parish social events. A number of

Parish-wide initiatives have their origins in St Nicholas’ activities,

including “First Steps”, for pre-School children and their carers, and

the Wednesday morning “House Mass”.

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Fellowship Groups

Three Groups meet regularly to share in friendship and support, and to deepen their faith through

reading and prayer. This is an area which is open to a fresh vision and fresh input but which is

already in good health and which makes an important contribution to the life of the church.

Lay Leadership

Lay leadership is very strong at St Nicholas’ with a clear

identity within the church which emerges from its

strong sense of community. A chaplaincy service has

developed and operates at Emmbrook (senior) School,

“Open the Book” is taken in to Emmbrook Junior School

and a “Praying the Streets” scheme is run, whereby two

local roads a week are leafleted, inviting residents to

submit any requests for intercessory prayer to be

included in our weekly services. Many of the

congregation are involved with community groups and

activities.

Recent Events

As well as participating actively in Partnership for Missional Church our congregation was

represented at a Leading Your Church into Growth (LYCIG) conference last year. As a result of this

several successful outreach events have been held, designed to make new contacts in the

community. These include ‘Praise and Puds’, and an excellent afternoon tea which were well

attended by local people. We are keen to offer more of these in the future.

Future

A major change in Emmbrook over the next few years is the building of a large new housing

development and St Nicholas’ has to respond proactively to this over the coming months and years.

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St Paul’s, Wokingham

The Church

The church was consecrated in 1864. The elegant spire is a

well-loved local landmark and can be seen from all round

Wokingham. The building itself is richly decorated with

stained glass windows depicting the life and work of St

Paul. The church also has a fine ring of eight bells.

We are an inclusive church imposing no conditions on

anyone wishing to join our community. We fully support

women’s ordination, and the admission of young children

for communion.

Worship

St Paul’s has a long-standing Anglo-Catholic tradition. The

Eucharist is at the heart of the worship here. St Paul’s uses

liturgical vestments; incense and bells are used at most

sung services. St Paul's supports a traditional robed choir

of 25-30 singers led by our Director of Music.

The major festivals are observed at St Paul’s including the

Easter Triduum, Corpus Christi, major saints, and Festivals of

Our Lady.

The church bells are rung by an enthusiastic and friendly band

of ringers of various ages for Sunday Mass and during Tuesday

evening practices throughout the year.

The Parish Rooms

The Parish Rooms are two minutes’ walk from

the church along the Reading Road. They are

widely used by many church groups and local

community organisations and families.

The Parish Office, run by the Parish

Administrator, is located in the Parish Rooms.

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Mission

St Paul’s engages in a number of mission and outreach projects

including:

Love Wokingham – a stall run in the market place to engage with Saturday shoppers

Open the Book – a successful presentation of the Word in local schools

Charities currently supported are The Link, The Children’s Society, and The United Society

Christmas Carols in the Market Square

Activities and Organisations

Junior Church – The children meet every Sunday during the morning service in term time.

Mother’s Union – A very strong branch of the MU, meeting monthly.

St Paul’s Church of England Junior School – St Paul’s is a Voluntary Controlled School and has strong links with St Paul’s Parish. Rated by Ofsted as ‘outstanding’.

Assemblies run in 5 other local schools

Rainbows & Brownies – Meet in the Parish Rooms every Tuesday.

Welcome Club – A social club for over 50s with a regular attendance of around 30, meeting once a month.

St Paul’s League of Gentlemen – a well-established men’s group meeting regularly for fellowship.

Social

St. Paul’s has an active social committee, which arranges a variety

of events throughout the year. These include: annual summer

barbeque, quiz night, harvest supper, occasional theatre trips and

monthly Sunday afternoon walks. These events are not intended

to raise money, simply to cover their costs and provide

opportunities for relaxing and socialising together.

Parochial Church Council

The PCC has 15 ordinary members. The PCC meets

approximately seven times a year. A lot of the work of the

PCC is done by Sub-Committees which are appointed by

the PCC and report back to the PCC. These cover areas like

Mission and Outreach, Youth and Children, Music and

Worship, Finance, Fundraising and Pastoral Care of the

Congregation. The finances are currently good and have

enabled us to pay our Parish share in full.

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The House

23 Sheridan Way, RG41 3AP The house was purchased by the Diocese of

Oxford in Autumn 2012. It is a large,

extended, detached house with four

bedrooms situated in Woosehill, but handy

for the rest of the parish as well as the

wooded countryside which surrounds

Woosehill.

The ground floor accommodation

comprises an entrance hall with fitted

hardwood flooring, an L-shaped, dual

aspect lounge with hardwood flooring and fireplace with coal-effect gas fire, a dining room with

ceramic tiled flooring, a study with hardwood flooring, a cloakroom with WC and hand basin, a

kitchen/breakfast room with integrated oven and grill, gas hob with extractor hood over,

dishwasher, and upright fridge/freezer. There is also a utility room with a washing machine.

The first floor comprises a master bedroom with built-in wardrobes, en-suite bathroom with bath

and independent shower over, bedrooms 2 and 3 both with built-in wardrobes, bedroom 4, and a

family bathroom with bath and independent shower over. The property has the benefit of uPVC

double glazed windows and doors, an attached double garage, large driveway providing ample

parking, and a good-sized rear garden.

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Who we are looking for We are looking for someone who has read this far and is feeling excited about joining a newly

formed parish that is still exploring ways of working together, but which is justifiably proud of what

we have already achieved in our first four years.

We are looking for someone who can meet at least some of what we think we need, while offering

something different as well.

To be specific, we are looking for somebody who:

will join us on our PMC journey, and be the spiritual leader for Woosehill.

is passionate about God’s church being active in the community, enriching the community

and transforming it, who will themselves be active and visible in the community, developing

established connections, e.g. with local schools, and forging new ones.

longs for God’s church to grow in every way and is inspired by working with people of every

age, who has something to say to those who have only just started to think about God and

those who have been coming to church for decades;

will value and honour the way each of the three churches does things, and will rejoice in that

diversity, including the Methodist inheritance at Woosehill; who will really enjoy leading

worship across the whole parish and find the range of worship refreshing;

We hope that you’ll have:

a strong sense of how much God loves you, and a longing to make that love known to others

in action, word and prayer,

a longing to be part of a Team, to work with others, to minister to them and to be

ministered to in turn,

lots of ideas about what you’d like to try,

and the wisdom to know that some of

those things won’t work, and to learn from

what ‘fails’ as well as what ‘succeeds’,

a commitment to the wonderful routine

and variety of Parish life,

and a sense of humour (it always says this

in adverts, but we really mean it!)