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January 2023 E-Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Welcome to this first edition of our new e-newsletter. As we seek to address our carbon impact and consider better ways of sharing important news, this is a first experiment in getting things to you in a way we hope you can access, enjoy, and share with others.

Yours,

Kerry

If you would like to submit a news story or details of an upcoming event in your church or circuit, we would love to hear from you! Please email Emily at comms.leeds@ywmethodist.org.uk with the information you’d like to share, or for further guidance. The deadline for the February E-Newsletter will be Wednesday 22 February at 5pm.

Events

Methodists at Pride networking gathering

Are you a Methodist who engages in Pride? Or considering organising a presence at Pride for the first time this year? We'd love you to come along to a networking event on Zoom on 15 February at 7.30pm. The evening will be a time to share stories, ideas and good advice about the ways we might seek to engage well in Pride events. We'll also be launching a new “Methodists at Pride” video for LGBT+ History Month, as well as a pack of resources to support Methodists who wish to engage in Pride missionally.

Methodist Women in Britain

Methodist Women in Britain (Yorkshire West District) are hosting a Zoom meeting with Tim Baker of All We Can, to hear about their work in Malawi.

Yorkshire Plus Regional Retreat

The next Regional Retreat for presbyters, deacons and lay employees is at Wydale Hall in North Yorkshire from 9-11 May 2023. There will be opportunity for reflective walks - long and short, led and self-directed - in the beautiful grounds of Wydale Hall and the surrounding countryside. Why not start the year by booking yourself into what promises to be an enriching time of refreshment and renewal? Booking closes on 01 March.

Circuit Stewards Training

Are you a new circuit steward, or have you been one for a while and are looking to dive deeper in to your roles and responsibilities, and develop your skills and knowledge?

This 5 session course takes place on consecutive Thursday evenings from 02 to 30 March. It introduces new Circuit Stewards to expectations and responsibilities of serving in this area of circuit leadership, and will refresh existing Circuit Stewards in their ongoing learning and development.

Faith at the Frontline

Are you aged 18-30? Interested in exploring what it means to live, tell and share faith in all sorts of contexts and places? Join us for Frontline and explore with other young adults - ask questions, share learning, and bring challenges. Whatever your experience or confidence level, you are welcome.

Lay Leadership Skills

A day of exploring leadership skills for lay people working in the Methodist Church, hosted by the Learning Network on 15 March. We’ll be exploring the themes of: leadership styles, leadership skills, leading meetings, managing volunteers, encouraging participation, team and group dynamics and understanding conflict styles.

Church at the Margins Community of Practice

The Church at the Margins Community of Practice (CaM COP) is aimed at individuals ministering alongside financially marginalised people. CaM COP meets four times each year and seeks to be a safe space to share joys, concerns and learning. It is a place to consider and promote good practice and provide opportunity to raise awareness and conversation around pertinent issues.

Future CaM COPs will be held on:

Tuesday 14th March 2023, 7.30pm-9pm

Conversation focus: Sharing food justly (facilitated by Debora Marschner)

Thursday 15th June 2023, 7.30pm-9pm

Conversation with Eunice Attwood (Connexional CAM Officer)

Church Planting Intensive

The next Church Planting Intensive (CPI) takes place on 17 to 19 March 2023. CPI begins with a residential at Cliff College and then meets monthly on the 1st Thursday between 7-9pm. CPI is a fully funded year-long hybrid course for those who are planting New Places for New People, designed for those who are actively shaping a vision, about to launch or in an existing project. It mixes teaching and reflection, prayer and deepening our calls. Places are limited to 30, so do book quickly if you are interested. The course will run again on 3 to 5 November 2023.

Arthur Rank Centre - Rural Ministry Course

The Rural Ministry Course is designed for lay and ordained church leaders across the denominations entering a rural appointment, and those already in rural ministry who feel the need for a “refresher”. The two-day programme employs a variety of approaches including practical sessions, group work and workshops led by practitioners, and includes sessions on understanding rural contexts, mission and growth, leadership, farming, and work with children and young people in the countryside. We understand Methodist leaders are also entitled to a 50% discount on the course price.

Yorkshire Plus Lay Employees Retreat

Over time things change – but is that always for good? “Lost, Found, Reclaimed” at Wydale Hall from 5 - 7 June takes as its starting point "The Lost Words" book, written as a response to the removal of everyday nature words – among them "acorn", "bluebell", "kingfisher" and "wren" – from a widely used children's dictionary, because those words were not being used enough by children to merit inclusion. In this retreat we will be exploring some of the things that have been lost; what might we want to reclaim or rediscover; but also what new things have we found that aid our work.

Head to the Eventbrite booking page for further details of accommodation, subsidies and how to book your place. Places are limited and the booking deadline is 03 April.

Don’t forget to check the District website for details of other upcoming events.

Vacancies

Youth & Children’s Worker - Burley-in-Wharfedale

Do you have the desire and gifting to reach out to the young people in our church and local community, to share God’s transforming love with them?

We are a welcoming church in the lively, community-minded village of Burley-in-Wharfedale, which is set close to the beautiful Yorkshire Dales. It is our vision to find a passionate, dynamic Youth & Children’s Worker to expand and develop our work with young people. We are looking for someone with experience of working with children and young people in a paid or voluntary capacity, who is innovative, enthusiastic, and able to work both independently and collaboratively.

Closing Date: Friday, 3rd March 2023 at 12 noon

Interview Date: Monday, 20th March 2023

News

Anyone need any chairs?

The King’s Way Church in Ossett have 60 chairs which they don’t need anymore. Could you make use of them? They are slightly worn at the corners but otherwise comfortable.

Methodist Church “Getting Started Online” Resource

Getting Started Online is a new course from the Methodist Church exploring our place in the digital world. It’s made up of 24 short videos and it will be launched on Monday 20th February.

We are excited about the opportunity that the online world provides for us as a church seeking to grow and reach out to all people. The digital world is a mission-field like any other and we are looking forward to discovering more about it with you over these sessions.

One of the best ways to engage with the course is to join the facilitated sessions running throughout February and March. Being part of these sessions will enable you to reflect on how you can embed your learning into your own local context. It also provides an opportunity to engage in conversation with others and an opportunity to ask questions and deepen your learning.

You can join the Facebook Group Getting Started Online which is designed for those of you who want to learn more and deepen your skills. It’s a safe place for conversation and questions, especially if the digital world is not your natural home and you’re not sure how or where to start!

From Monday 20 February the course will be on MCBX, where you’ll also find a BSL version. Here you can watch the videos, follow links, and deepen your own learning or learn together alongside colleagues or as a circuit.

NSPCC “Listen Up, Speak Up” Training

Half a million children suffer abuse and neglect a year in the UK, but there’s something we can all do to change that. We at NSPCC know that, with the right support, every child can be kept safe. We can stop abuse, and even prevent it from happening. But to do this, we need to work together. Even if children aren’t a big part of your everyday life, you’ll still share a community with them – whether that’s on your street, your commute or at the shops. Knowing how to speak up for them is essential.

That's why we're encouraging every adult in the UK to take our 10-minute digital training. Listen up and learn a little with our Connect the DOTS training. We'll show you where to go if you need support, and how to speak up for children who need it. Because that little bit of knowledge can help keep a lot of children safe.

Watch out for Wayleaves

The Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes (TMCP) are receiving an increased number of requests from service providers that wish to install pipe, cable, or communication apparatus under, over or on the Church's land. Although this is often presented as a simple arrangement requiring a signature by the landowner, permission for such apparatus usually constitutes what is known as a "wayleave agreement". If Managing Trustees are approached directly by a service provider regarding a Wayleave Agreement or anything the Managing Trustees suspect could be a Wayleave, they should contact TMCP for guidance and assistance.

Energy Basket Questionnaire

As winter sets in, the Connexional Property Team have been receiving an increased number of enquiries from Managing Trustees concerned at the rising gas and electricity costs for their buildings, especially when contracts come to an end. We are aware that some churches would be interested in joining a collective group called an energy basket, which may open up opportunities for more competitive gas and electricity rates due to buying in bulk. The Connexional Property Support team would like to support churches in facilitating an energy basket but we would need to know how many churches would be interested and at what timescales. Thus, this short survey has been developed so that we can ascertain the appetite for exploring this scheme further.

Methodist Church House - New Address

As you may be aware, The Methodist Church have been in the process of moving out of our Marylebone premises over the last year. We have now completely left and our new address is:

25 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SF.

Please note that the Connexional Team are not yet in our new building due to renovation work being undertaken, but all correspondence should now use this address.