Team Vicar for St Bartholomew’s Sutton-cum-Lound, All Saints Babworth, St John’s Scofton and St Michael’s West Retford, within the Retford Area Team Ministry

and within the Deanery of Bassetlaw & Bawtry

CONTENTS Introduction page 1 The Parish of St Bartholomew, Sutton cum Lound page 2

The Parish of All Saints, Babworth page 2 The Parish of St John’s, Scofton page 3

The Town of Retford page 4 The Parish of Retford page 5 The Churches of the Parish of Retford – St Michael’s page 6

The Retford Area Team Ministry page 7

Introduction We are looking for an enthusiastic and able Team Vicar who will spend approximately half time

ministering among the village communities based around Sutton-cum-Lound, Babworth, and Scofton and half time ministering in the Parish of Retford with responsibility for St Michael’s, West Retford. See the individual church profiles for details of each church.

The intention is that the person appointed will exercise elements of traditional parish ministry (Sunday worship and occasional offices etc). However, a significant part of their time will be spent leading on the Growing Disciples element of the diocesan vision to welcome 7,000 new disciples into our churches in the years ahead.

As a diocese we are working through the implications of last year’s report produced by the Church of England entitled: ‘Released for Mission – Growing the Rural Church’. We believe this will help us to deliver our vision.

The priest appointed will be based in Sutton-cum-Lound

whilst working across the parishes. She/he will be joining a significant ministerial team in the Retford Area Team

Ministry. This post represents an exciting opportunity to work with inherited church structures but to develop new ways of being church. The general

goodwill to the church that exists needs to be consolidated into a more embedded numerical growth in church life and, it is anticipated, in new worshipping communities.

Inevitably, the information in this pack gives factual details. The real excitement here is that the

post opens up a new future which is difficult to define or describe at present but which we believe will see existing potential turned into new life as we continue to “Join together in the

Transforming Mission of God” in this diocese.

Key features of the role are:

A vision for discipleship in the rural church - the role will involve growing and nurturing disciples within existing congregations and new Christians

Develop new forms of outreach and work collaboratively with the other members of the ministerial team (clergy and lay) to enable the churches to “Grow Disciples Wider, Younger, Deeper” in accordance with the diocesan vision

Play a leading role (along with the Deanery Missioner to Children and Young People in Schools) in growing disciples in schools, especially in Sutton-cum-Lound C of E Primary School and Ranby C of E Primary School

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The Person Appointed will • have a proven track record in church growth and nurturing disciples of Christ • enjoy getting out and about amongst people and being visible within the community

• have a proven track record of being able to work collaboratively with male and female clergy colleagues and with male and female lay people

• be good at seeing the gifts of others and at encouraging their use • be comfortable working with a variety of church traditions

• be able to work ecumenically, especially with the Methodist Church • be able to delegate

The Parish of St Bartholomew, Sutton cum Lound The Parish consists of three villages, Sutton, Lound and Barnby Moor all being served by the one Church in Sutton. The villages are situated about three miles to the north west of Retford town centre. Local amenities include Post Office, Church of England Primary School, and Pub. The housing is very mixed varying from the very wealthy to former council housing. The population of the three villages is a mix of professional commuters, retired people and those not so well off, many of whom live on the former council estates. The Church is 13th Century and well maintained.

Population: 1700 Electoral Roll: 23

Parish Worship At present the Team Vicar takes the Communion

Service once a month. Other services are led by the Reader and a lay member of the congregation.

1st Sunday – Sung Mattins 2nd Sunday – Common Worship Communion

3rd Sunday – Family Service. 4th Sunday – Songs of Praise

5th Sunday – A Service of Hymns and Readings

Mission priorities The PCC recognises that their primary mission field is Sutton cum Lound Church of England Primary School which is situated in Sutton village. They are committed to continue to build on the good relationship that has been developed over the last three years since the arrival of the Head Teacher. The School recently received a ‘Good’ Ofsted and an ‘Outstanding’ SIAMS (Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools), with the Church and School jointly delivering Messy Church in the School.

The Parish of All Saints, Babworth Babworth parish boasts two churches: the nine hundred year old parish church of All Saints at Babworth and the modern chapel-of-ease in the village of Ranby, St Martin’s. Replacing a tin tabernacle which had served Ranby since 1926, St Martin’s is now half a century old. All Saints’ has been called the “church among the trees” for its somewhat isolated and quintessential rural England setting. Both churches offer a friendly welcome to regular and occasional worshippers alike. They are well looked after and carefully – and at times expensively – maintained. St Martin’s Ranby

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Ranby has a thriving church primary school. Relations between the parish and Ranby Primary School, always good,

have nevertheless strengthened in the last couple of years since the start of Messy Church @ Ranby School which takes

place usually once a term.

A considerable proportion of worshippers at both churches live outside the parish and are attracted by the continued use of the Book of Common Prayer.

Having a substantial car park All Saints is able to host a popular Snowdrop Festival weekend in February which attracts visitors from as far afield as Sheffield to the west and Humberside to the

east. They come for a variety of reasons – to admire the medieval church; to savour the refreshments on sale; to purchase the fresh farm produce donated by worshippers; to listen to the

background organ music; and especially to hear the short talk on All Saints as the birthplace of the Pilgrim Fathers movement.

The profits from the weekend are largely donated to a number of charities supported by the PCC. Many Americans, too, visit All Saints Church to see one of the origins of the USA. A parish

supper, a rogation walk and many visiting choirs and performers all add to the community spirit of the church.

Over the next few years there will be huge opportunities both to “market” the church and to grow new disciples as All Saints Church will play a leading role in the Commemoration of the 400th Anniversary of the Mayflower Pilgrims in 2020.

Population: 1329 Electoral Roll: 40 Average Sunday attendance 30 Last year (2015) there were 2 Baptisms, 2 Burials and 8 Weddings; up to July 2016 there have been

3 Baptisms, 4 Burials and 4 Weddings

Current pattern of Sunday Services - all Sunday services are Book of Common Prayer (1662) First Sunday 11.00am Holy Communion at St Martin’s, Ranby 6.30pm Evening Prayer at All Saints, Babworth Second Sunday 11.00am Holy Communion at All Saints, Babworth

Third Sunday 11.00am Matins at All Saints, Babworth Fourth Sunday 11.00am Holy Communion at All Saints, Babworth

The Parish of St. John, Scofton with Osberton We are a friendly group of people who love our parish church for many different reasons, who come from different backgrounds and churchmanship, and have different skills and

gifts to offer. Our regular congregation’s ages range from babies to over 90, although only about half of them actually live within

the parish. In its beautiful rural setting St. John’s church is a very peaceful place, surrounded by ancient parkland with

grazing cattle and sheep. Many a city dweller has been enchanted by the contentment to be found here. The river

Ryton and the Chesterfield Canal run through the parish, and the population is spread over a wide area of tenanted farms.

All Saints, Babworth

A group of Pilgrims enjoying a church

service in Babworth

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We hope to find someone who will spend a little time in the parish, and in the primary school in Ranby to which the younger children go. We are looking for some help in exploring a way forward to make the

church more attractive to the younger generation. Change is always challenging but we look for someone to bring support and

enthusiasm as we work to spread the appeal of the church and its activities more widely, together with some clergy presence in the

parish. We are looking forward to a good party to welcome our new Team Vicar!

We hope to find somebody to join us, bringing new ideas and energy, some pastoral care, and a sense of humour, as well as a thick jersey to wear on those cold winter mornings in the country. We offer a warm welcome and, we hope, open minds, as we strive to encourage more of our community in the blessings of the church.

Population: 102 Electoral Roll: 37

Current pattern of Sunday Services First Sunday: 9.00am Holy Communion Book of Common Prayer (1662)

The Town of Retford Retford is an attractive and thriving market town in North Nottinghamshire, with a population of about 22,000 people. It is

close to the A1 motorway. Trains stop at Retford going north/south on the main London-Edinburgh railway, and going

east/west on the line from Sheffield (Meadowhall) to Lincoln and Cleethorpes. The UK’s newest international airport (Robin Hood

Airport Doncaster/Sheffield) is only 12 miles away.

The town has all the features one would expect to find in a market town of this size, including branches of the main high street banks and building societies, two large superstores (ASDA and Morrisons), branches of national retailers such as Boots, W H Smith, Argos, Dorothy Perkins, Aldi, Costa Coffee etc, alongside many local and traditional shops. Market days are Thursday and Saturday, supplemented by a flea market on a Friday.

There is a Primary Care Centre where most of the GPs have their surgery, a local hospital with

Outpatients Clinics, an ambulance station, and a hospice. The nearest General Hospital with Accident and Emergency and Maternity facilities is 9 miles away in Worksop.

There are two secondary schools in the Parish of Retford, both housed in buildings built in 2007. There is also a Post 16 Centre, which caters for all students over the age of 16, offering

both A levels and vocational courses. There is one Church of England (Aided) Primary School [www.st-swithuns.notts.sch.uk] and one Roman Catholic (Aided) Primary School in Retford,

along with four other county primary schools and one infant school; all but one of these have nursery departments. There is also a school for pupils with special needs. There are several independent schools within a 10 mile radius covering the whole age range.

A wide variety of cultural facilities and leisure activities, including two theatres, is available either in Retford itself or within a radius of 10 miles.

The social make-up of Retford is very mixed, though it would be true to say that Retford avoids

the extremes of either poverty or wealth.

Retford Town Hall

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Within Retford there is a large and a small Methodist Chapel, a large Baptist Church, a Pentecostal Fellowship, and a Roman Catholic Church. All these churches belong to Churches Together in Retford. There are regular meetings supported by the clergy of all denominations, and a breakfast for the clergy/ministers every two months.

There is a Kingdom Hall for Jehovah’s Witnesses in Retford. Apart from this, there are no significant gatherings of people of other faiths, though there is a Muslim College just outside

the town.

The Parish of Retford The three former town parishes of St Michael’s, St Saviour’s and St Swithun’s were amalgamated to form a single Parish on 1 January 2002.

The agreed objectives of the Parish are that we want to enable as many people as possible to worship God within a varied Anglican context;

enable as many people as possible to follow the way of Jesus and grow spiritually;

provide as much information and encouragement as is needed to help people come to faith in Jesus Christ;

enable all the people of Retford to feel cared for and supported, especially at significant points in their lives, e.g. birth of a child, during their education, marriage, illness, death of a loved one;

encourage people to be active in their love and care for all others – locally, nationally and internationally;

work with other bodies to make Retford and the world a better place.

Parish Statistics

These are the figures for 2015 (2014 figures in brackets) St Michael’s St Saviour’s St Swithun’s Total

Number on Electoral Roll 50 (45) 107 (114) 32 (34) 189 (193)

Attendance on a normal Sunday – adults 40 (32) 81 (77) 10 (11) 131 (120) Attendance on a normal Sunday – children and young people under 16

3 (2) 5 (10) 0 (0) 8 (12)

Communicants on Easter Day/Easter Eve vigil 41 (38) 131 (121) 15 (20) 187 (179) Attendance on Easter Day/Easter Eve vigil 50 (45) 189 (163) 18 (20) 257 (228)

Attendance at special services during Advent held for congregation and local community

65 (86) 321 (272) 66 (22) 452 (380)

Attendance at special services during Advent held for civic or school organisations

0 (0) 555 (424) 595 (206) 1150 (630)

Communicants on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

66 (42) 148 (167) 31 (24) 245 (209)

Attendance on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

86 (57) 255 (223) 139 (145) 480 (389)

St Michael’s St Saviour’s St Swithun’s Total Worshipping Community at 31/12/15 Age 0-10 3 (2) 39 (46) 0 (0) 42 (48)

Age 11-17 4 (1) 7 ( 7) 0 (0) 11 (8) Age 18-69 18 (14) 90 (101) 9 (8) 117 (123)

Age over 70 25 (16) 65 (59) 31 (31) 121 (106)

Total 50 (33) 201 (213) 40 (39) 291 (285) Joined worshipping community in 2015 4 (4) 15 (29) 5 (0) 24 (33)

Left worshipping community in 2015 1 (1) 25 (11) 4 (2) 30 (14)

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Baptisms aged under 1 6 (11) 4 (10) 12 (15) 22 (36) Baptisms aged 1-4 2 (1) 3 (3) 4 (3) 9 (7)

Baptisms aged 5-12 0 (2) 0 (2) 3 (0) 3 (4) Baptisms aged 13 + 0 (0) 2 (1) 0 (1) 2 (2)

Total Baptisms 8 (14) 9 (16) 19 (19) 36 (49) Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child 0 (0) 0 (0) 0 (0) 0 (0)

Confirmations 2 (1) 0 (0) 0 - 0 (0) 2 (1)

Marriages 2 (4) 4 (1) 1 (3) 7 (8) Service of Blessing after civil marriage 0 (0) 0 (0) 0 (0) 0 (0)

Funerals in church 18 (18) 37 (18) 12 (8) 67 (44) Funerals at crematorium 7 (10) 14 (25) 0 (0) 21 (25)

All the churches within the Parish of Retford & the Retford Area Team Ministry are happy to host

the re-marriage of divorced persons when such marriages comply with the Diocesan Guidelines. None of the churches has passed any of the resolutions that restrict the ministry of women priests.

The Churches of the Parish of Retford Each of the churches in the Parish has its own distinctive tradition and style. This is considered a strength of the Parish at a time when people choose which church (if any) they wish to attend not on the basis of geography but on the basis of what sort of church appeals to them and meets their needs. For more information about the other churches see the websites at

www.retfordparish.ratm.org.uk

St Michael’s The broad vision for St Michael’s Church, within the context of

the Parish of Retford, is: “To develop a thriving parochial ministry for all ages, with a fresh

emphasis on new work with parents/children/schools and developing a new role for the church within the community; working within a modern catholic Anglican tradition.”

Profile of the Congregation There are 52 people currently on the Electoral Roll as members of St Michael’s. The average congregation is 40 adults and three children. They are well spread out across the age range.

Worship Pattern The main Sunday service is held at 10.30am,

and is always a Sung Mass. Vestments, incense and bells are used, and the

sacrament is reserved. The hymnbook is The New English Hymnal, though more modern material is regularly used – there is a printed hymn-sheet every week.

On the first Sunday of the month, Baptisms take place in a more child-friendly version of the Sung Mass.

There is a midweek Mass every Tuesday at 11am. Compline is said every Friday evening at 6.30pm, led by lay people.

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Holy Communion is celebrated monthly at three residential care homes.

Choir practices are held on Thursdays at 7.30pm. St Michael’s has a newly-formed Pastoral Care Team of four lay

people.

A joint Mothers’ Union meets on the first Tuesday in the month

at 2.00pm, usually at St Saviour’s Church Hall.

A Study Group is usually held during Lent.

The Chapter House is occasionally let to various groups during the week.

The congregation has links with the Ratikovo Trust, with varied functions being arranged to support a young girl and her family in Ratikovo (Bulgaria).

St Michael's belongs to Churches Together in Retford, the ecumenical body that links churches of all denominations in Retford.

The last funding campaign was held after Easter in 2016.

The Future There is a great deal of good-will and

enthusiasm for St Michael's to play a full part as the only modern catholic Anglican church within the Retford Area Team Ministry. The congregation looks forward to welcoming a Team Vicar who will encourage them to trust in God and lead them into a new phase of mission and ministry.

There is great untapped potential in the parish, with the building of new houses, and many opportunities for pastoral ministry through

baptisms, weddings, funerals and through involvement in. schools.

The Retford Area Team Ministry The Retford Area Team Ministry was formally constituted on 1 April 2011. It is one large benefice containing approximately 33,000 people living in 25 parishes (with 30 active church buildings – including North Wheatley and North Leverton Chapels which are part of Local Ecumenical Partnerships).

The Retford Area Team Ministry has a Team Rector, 4 Team Vicars (one half-time), 2 stipendiary lay ministers (one full-time and the other half-time), and recently had a curate. The clergy and lay

ministers meet together for food, prayer and support weekly, usually on Thursdays at lunchtime or in the afternoon. Several retired clergy and Readers with Permission to Officiate help by taking

services and in other ways.

The Retford Area Team Ministry is in a “Covenant Partnership in an Extended Area” with the Retford section of the Trinity Methodist Circuit. The Methodist Superintendent plays a full role

within the life of the Team, and all of the clergy have dual Anglican & Methodist authorisation. It has always been the conviction of the Retford Area Team Ministry leadership (both clergy and

lay) that only by working together can the needs and opportunities of both rural and town parishes be properly met.

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The Retford Area Team Ministry can offer:

• a very varied range of parish ministry in a bustling market town and surrounding villages

• an excellent 4 bedroom vicarage at Sutton • the support and encouragement that comes from being part of a team

• the opportunity to play a full part in the way the team grows and develops • full reimbursement of working expenses

The house is a spacious, 4 bedroomed, purpose-built vicarage constructed in the late 1960’s. There is an attached single garage which was formally a double garage but one side was sacrificed to enlarge the vicarage study. Due to the village location, heating is by oil-fired boiler and radiators as the village does not have a gas supply. The house is in a reasonably sized plot at the rear of the church and is accessed by a private driveway through the churchyard.

The new Team Vicar will also be part of a

friendly Deanery Chapter in the Deanery of Bassetlaw and Bawtry, and will receive a great deal of support and encouragement from

Diocesan leaders who continue to encourage pioneering and innovative ministry.

For informal discussion and further information, please contact the Team Rector, Tony Walker (01777 703800 or tony@tonywalker.f9.co.uk) or the Venerable David Picken, Archdeacon of

Newark, on 07917 690576 or email David.Picken@southwell.anglican.org)

Application pack from: Jo Padmore, PA to the Archdeacons, Jubilee House, Westgate, Southwell, Notts NG25 0JH; email: archdeaconspa@southwell.anglican.org; tel: 01636 817206 or download from the Diocesan website: Parish Profile / Diocesan Appendix / Clergy Application Form

We welcome applications from suitably qualified clergy from all sections of the community and we strive to be an equal opportunity employer. Enhanced DBS clearance is required for this post.