Esgobaeth Llanelwy

Diocese of St Asaph

Ardal Genhadaeth Wrecsam :: Wrexham Mission AreaFicer Eglwys San Silyn :: Vicar of St Giles Church

Application PackSeptember 2014

A Profile of the Diocese of St Asaph

The Diocese of St Asaph is a diverse and hopeful community of faith. With roots in the Celtic church and a wealth of character and tradition, we seek to continue to uncover our shared vocation as God’s people in the Church in Wales in the north east of the Province. We are a diocese in good heart and seek to persist in responding joyfully to God’s chal-lenge. The Diocese follows the English/Welsh border in the east, whilst the western edge is delineated by the Conwy Valley. The northern boundary runs along the North Wales coast as far as Llandudno, but only takes in part of that town. The southern boundary runs from the lower end of Llyn Tegid (Lake Bala) across to Dolfor, just south of Newtown in Powys. Ecclesiastically it is bordered by the dioceses of Chester, Lichfield and Hereford on the northern and eastern sides. To the south we border Swansea and Brecon diocese and to the west, Bangor.

The diocese is predominantly rural, with many parishes having populations of less than 1000. However, there are important and continually developing industrial and com-mercial areas around Deeside (one of the largest industri-al parks in Europe) and Wrexham and significant smaller developments along the two main arterial roads (A55 and A483).

The coastal strip is home to traditional holiday resorts and tourism is an important industry in many parts of the dio-cese. The largest employers are the local authorities through education and the health services with two large general

district hospitals at Bodelwyddan and Wrexham. Wrexham hosts a refugee and asylum seekers support centre (supported by the diocese), while migrant worker groups in the region (largely white EU) are involved in both industry and agriculture. A significant number of care workers come from the far-east. Together with many of the rural areas in the UK, the agriculture sector within the diocese has endured many shocks and changes, includ-ing the foot and mouth crisis, the changing structures of agricultural support from the EU, increasing fuel costs and the unfolding impact of global warming. Welshpool and St Asaph have two of the largest livestock markets in Europe.

The Diocese of St Asaph is at an exciting time in its life as we work towards a more collab-orative style of ministry under the banner of 2020 Vision, which has been born out of the Church in Wales Review which took place in 2012. Parishes and emerging Mission Areas are being challenged to discover together how we ‘Unlock our Potential’. We have a vi-sion of a church working closely together and ‘going for growth’ - a church where ministry teams of ordained and lay people work together to enable the whole church to grow to its full potential.

Why, what, when, who, where and how...Here’s a quick summary of what 2020 Vision is, why we are do-ing it and what it means for churches and communities in the Dio-cese of St Asaph...

Why?

The Bench of Bishops and the Governing Body asked for the Church in Wales Reviewto find out if our leadership, structures and resources are ready to take God’s missionforward in Wales, as we approach our 100th birthday. 2020 Vision looks at the challengesand recommendations which the Review gave us.

What?

2020 Vision says that “We are stronger together” and suggests we form MissionAreas – equal partnerships between clergy and Church members – to unlock ourpotential as the people of God answering His call in today’s Wales.

When?

Now. We don’t have to wait for someone else to give us permission to start buildingrelationships and partnerships in worship, witness and mission. God’s call is for now.

Who?

Everyone. All the baptised are commissioned as disciples and witnesses of Jesus. 2020Vision wants to see us renew and invigorate our churches. You can take the initiative,and our vicars, area deans and archdeacons are there to enable you to move forward.

Where?

Every church is in a local area of community and mission with other churches. It mightbe your deanery but some deaneries are too big or no longer reflect the population ofour communities so we might look at new boundaries. We are God’s family and wewant to partner with each other so we are strengthened to travel together in fellowship.

How?

You are the Church, and you will have the ideas. What can you share to help God’smission where you live and worship? What can you stop doing to help free you up toserve in new ways? How can you partner with brothers and sisters in other churchesto tackle things which may seem too great to tackle as a single congregation?

2020 Vision offers us three points of focus for our mission:Serving community, inspiring people, transforming Church.

About St Giles’ Church...St Giles’ Church is at the centre and heart of Wrexham and we are seeking an experienced and creative priest to lead this busy mediaeval church in its mission and outreach to the people of the town.

As a diocese we are working towards the creation of new Mission Areas where clergy and laity work together within a Ministry Team. Whilst other areas of the diocese are working towards this goal Wrexham will be one of the first official Mission Area within the Diocese of St Asaph. The Vicar of St Giles will work alongside the Mission Area Leader and oth-er colleagues in developing this fresh and creative model of being Church.

Our vision of a Mission Area is where the Ministry Team (ordained and lay) work togeth-er in the outreach and mission to the communities we serve. A place where each supports the other and where the seed can be planted and grow. It will be a team where everyone is valued and where every gift is used; a place where new gifts and talents are allowed to flourish; where the strong help the weak; where the church is at the heart of the communi-ty.

St Giles’ Church is a busy and active church with many activities taking place within the church building. There is a good team of lay leaders who work tirelessly in fulfilling the mis-sion and outreach of the church into the town centre and community.

The church is used extensively by the Civic Authority which looks to the Vicar of St Giles to meet all Civic duties. The Vicar is invited to all civic functions and plays an important part in the civic life of the town through the role of Mayor’s Chaplain.

Within the church there is a strong military presence and St Giles serves as the Regimental Chapel for two Regiments based in Wrexham (Regular and Territorial) who have the Free-dom of the Town and who use the church on a regular basis.

Recently re-ordered St Giles’ Church now has excellent facilities for catering and for out-reach work using a flexible space within the building. The educational role and life of St Giles is very important and the Vicar will have an important educational role within the Mission Area. Within the church building there is the office for the St Mary’s and St Giles RE Centre (of which the Vicar of St Giles will be an ex-officio Director). The Director of the RE Centre is a member of the Mission Team and also acts as Chaplain to St Joseph’s Catholic/Anglican High School. The Centre uses the church building for outreach work with schools and children’s groups and as this work has expanded it is proposed that College House (within the grounds of St Giles) becomes the RE Centre whilst the area now occupied by the RE Centre within St Giles becomes the Parish Office and meeting area.

The Vicar of St Giles will work alongside the Director of the RE Centre in developing its role and expanding its work. The work of the RE Centre is funded by the Wrexham Parochial Education Fund (of which the Mission Area Leader is Chair), which has substantial funds, and can enable this work to flourish, grow and be a huge resource to and within the Bor-ough of Wrexham. The person appointed will need to have some educational knowledge/involvement and also a proven track record in initiating, alongside colleagues, new initia-tives and building on what is already being done.

This has been a period of change at St Giles and the congregation are now seeking a person who can build up the church community and enable them to grow in faith and strength and to be a shining light of Christian presence within the town centre and beyond. We would like to have a person who can lead and encourage, who is well organised and who can work alongside us as we move to a new chapter of our Christian life.

There are many opportunities for us within the life of our town but there are also challeng-es. There is the challenge of a mediaeval church building which is in need of some restora-tion. There are also challenges in our Christian mission to the people of our community and we will need to look at new ways in which we can meet these.

A recently appointed team member (2nd curacy) will work alongside the Vicar of St Giles in developing the Mission Area Website – to include all the churches within the Mission Area – and to look at the way in which the Gospel message can reach many people through the social media. There are good ecumenical relationships within Wrexham and alongside others we endeavour to bring the Gospel Message to the town.

At St Joseph’s Catholic/Anglican High School we have the first joint school within the Prov-ince of Wales. The school has a part time Anglican Chaplain who works alongside two part-time Catholic Chaplains. St Joseph’s was a Catholic High School and it would be true to say that whilst great steps forward have been made in this joint venture there are still some small steps still to be taken. St Joseph’s recent Inspection Report showed the school to be “good”, “excellent” and “sector leading”. This has resulted in over-subscription and a rise in the number of families ‘encouraging’ their children to join church groups to enable them to qualify for entrance to St Joseph’s. The challenge to us is how we “keep” these families within our churches once they have a place confirmed at the school.

There is also St Giles Voluntary Controlled School which has a special relationship with St Giles’ Church and the Vicar or Curate is a member of the Governing Body. St Giles’ Church also provides a Governor for Minera Church in Wales Voluntary Aided School (the parish once being within the ancient Parish of Wrexham).

In all this work the Vicar of St Giles’ must have a proven record of collaborative ministry as we bring the seven churches of Wrexham into the newly created Mission Area. S/he must be willing to work alongside colleagues both ordained and lay and encourage others to come forward to exercise their ministry within the life of the church and community. This is a truly special post and for the right person a busy, exciting and fulfilling ministry in the life of St Giles, its role in the civic and regimental life of the town and in the life and mission of the whole church within Wrexham.

A note on legalities

The Church in Wales is changing, and in the diocese of St Asaph, we are moving from a structure of “deaneries made up of parishes” to a structure of “Mission Areas”. Around forty years ago, the Parish of Wrexham became a self-contained Rectorial Benefice and Deanery under the leadership of a cleric with the title “Rector of Wrexham”. As Wrexham now moves into becoming a Mission Area, there will be a Mission Area Leader for the local ministry team, and the position at St Giles’ is reverting to its former title of “Vicar”. In the transitional period, with the dissolution of the old rectorial benefice, the Benefice is being organised into seven conventional districts, with each member of the team having incum-bent status as “priest-in-charge” and taking responsibility for one or two of the districts. Under the Clergy Service Canon of the Church in Wales, vicars, priests-in-charge and in-cumbents now all carry the same canonical status, and the clergy appointed in Wrexham will all be titled “Vicars”.

A message from the people of St Giles...The congregation of St Giles are looking for a forward thinking, experienced priest, with a pastoral heart and proven leadership skills, to encourage and enable the people of St Giles into building a future that will embrace the whole of the community, especially those living within or connected to the centre of the town of Wrexham.

There are already strong links to St Giles within the civic, business and military life of the town, it is the desire of the congregation to build upon the foundations and connections already forged and to enhance and secure them for the future.

St Giles could not be better placed within the town. Holding a central position, this building, the tower of which is described as one of the Seven Wonders of Wales is unique and much loved. A replica of the tower can be found at Yale University – the founder is buried here at St Giles.

Major events in the life of the town are already celebrated here. The Mayor’s civic service, regimental anniversaries, Christmas carol services for the many charitable organisations and music festivals throughout the year all take place on a regular basis.

The Education Centre situated within the church of St Giles has the staff and funding to provide excellence within the field of religious education in Wrexham that would be the envy of many dioceses, it is expected that our new vicar would be appointed as Non Execu-tive Director of this facility, working closely with the education team to deliver the very best we have to offer to the many schools and educational facilities in the mission area of Wrex-ham, included in which is the thriving Coleg Cambria and Glyndwr University.

Much of what is delivered to the people of Wrexham by the people of St Giles is already of great benefit to the town, but we recognise the time is right to appoint a leader with the exceptional qualities needed to lift this church and move it forwards to achieve its full po-tential as a witness to the Christian faith and the presence of God in our community.

Therefore it is imperative that we appoint a good team player able to embrace the ethos of “mission area” as laid out in 2020 Vision for the diocese, a good communicator able to inspire and encourage us into a new way of being church that will embrace the whole com-munity of Wrexham.

Worship...The Pattern of Sunday worship is currently

Time: Service: 0800 Holy Communion 0930 All Age Worship (Second Sunday of the Month) 1100 Choral Eucharist 1300 Baptism 1800 Evening Prayer (Cymun Bendigaid 2nd Sunday, Taize’ 3rd Sun- day )

In addition to Sunday Worship, Morning Prayer is said at St. Giles Church from Monday to Thursday each week at 0830. Monday is a service for all the Mission Area Clergy, before the weekly planning meeting. There is also a well attended Eucharist each Thursday at 1100 which is attended by people from throughout the Mission Area.

Numbers attending over the past year (2013) have been as follows:-

Electoral Roll 127 Average Sunday Attendance 75 Average Weekday Attendance 35 Average Weekday Toddler’s Group 12 Easter Communicants 148 Pentecost Communicants 79 Trinity III 62 Christmas Communicants 152 Baptisms (under 11) 44 Baptisms (over 11) 11 Confirmation (whole Mission Area) 21 Weddings 14 Funerals (In Church) 26

The recently implemented All Age Worship now running for three months has an average attendance of 38 approximately half of which are children.

Events and Activities in St Giles

Welcomers Daily 1000 – 1600 Babes in the Pew Each Wednesday Morning Garden Working Party Tuesday Mornings Flower Arranging Team Thursday Afternoons (or as required) Lunch Group Twice Monthly Mothers Union Monthly Men’s Society Monthly Friday Fellowship Bi Monthly Study Group Lent Outside Involvement Choir Concerts Organ Recitals Christmas Market (Wrexham Council)

Housing...The Vicar of St Giles’ Church will be housed in a substantial four-bedroomed modern prop-erty in a quiet, tree-lined residential area of Wrexham. The house is maintained to a high standard and is close to all the amenities of Wrexham Town Centre as well as being near to the park. The Vicarage boasts pleasant gardens and a conservatory to the rear.

The accomodation comprises of an internal porch, hallway, study, lounge, dining/conservatory, breakfast room, cloaks, kitchen and utility room. Upstairs there are four bedrooms, the main bathroom and a toilet and en-suite to the master bedroom.

There is gas central heating installed and there are gas fires in the lounge and study with double glazing throughout along with cavity wall installation. A double length detached garage was contructed 10 years ago and there is parking for four vehicles.