PARISH PROFILE

of

ST PETER-AD-VINCULA

ROYDON, ESSEX

JANUARY 2019

ABOUT OUR CHURCH

St Peter-ad-Vincula is a warm, welcoming village church. Our church members are of all ages, ranging from very young children in Messy Church and Dads and Toddlers to the elderly. The congregation represents the whole range of Church of England traditions, and some whose background reflects other Christian denominations.

Usual Sunday attendance is between 30 and 35 people in the morning and between 10 and 15 people in the evening. There are often over 100 people at services for special occasions such as Remembrance Sunday and Christmas.

The church is open to the public every day of the week between 9 am and 3 pm. The church website (www.roydonstpeters.org) provides lots of information about our church and our activities.

WORSHIP

The preaching tradition is broadly expository and lectionary based. Laity are involved in leading worship, including reading lessons, leading intercessory prayers and leading services. Five lay people are licensed to administer the chalice. Complete Mission Praise and the New English Hymnal are used at morning and evening services respectively. The clergy and choir are robed at most services. The choir sings at most morning services and at other events and it has recently enjoyed singing (and recording) two new anthems which were especially commissioned by members of the congregation. Refreshments are served after the services in the Church Hall.

Labyrinth Prayer Walking takes place regularly in the church, providing a welcome opportunity for reflection and prayer. During Lent, there is a Quiet Day and weekly Prayer Walks.

OUR SERVICES

Our current pattern of Sunday services is as follows:

Our Sunday morning Holy Communion services are choral services with our choir and organ. The All Age Worship service on the fourth Sunday of the month is a shorter, more relaxed service, with musical accompaniment from the St Peter’s live band. When there is a fifth Sunday in the month, we use this service to focus on mission. Each Mission Service has a different theme and often incorporates a presentation from an outside speaker. Themes covered in recent Mission Services include Fair Trade, Modern Slavery, Operation Christmas Child and local charities such as the Michael Roberts Charitable Trust.

In addition to the Sunday services, a short time of prayer is held at 8.15 am on Tuesday mornings. During this service we pray in particular for the village and offer to God the prayers that have been written in our prayer book and on our prayer board.

In 2018, there were three baptisms (with eight more planned for early 2019), two weddings and a wedding blessing; ten funerals and two burials of ashes.

Week Time Service First 9.30 am

5.00 pm

Common Worship Holy Communion

BCP Evening Prayer Second 9.30 am

5.00 pm

Common Worship Holy Communion

BCP Evening Prayer Third 9.30 am

5.00 pm

Common Worship Holy Communion

BCP Evening Prayer Fourth 9.30 am

5.00 pm

All Age Worship

BCP Holy Communion Fifth 9.30 am

5.00 pm

Morning Prayer Mission Service

BCP Evening Prayer

MISSION Dads and Toddlers

Once a month, on a Saturday morning, dads and their toddlers meet at the church for bacon sandwiches, play and a chat. The “St Peter’s Dads” entered a tug of war team at this year’s Summer Festival.

Messy Church/Families at St Peter’s

In 2016, we started quarterly Messy Church sessions, which have proved to be successful. We aim to hold a family activity (Messy Church or something similar) at least once a month, on a Saturday afternoon. Families gather at church for songs, activities and refreshments.

Recent family activities have included treasure trails in and around the church, an Easter Eggstravaganza and ADVENTure. About twenty families have signed up to our mailing list. We have an enthusiastic team of helpers who have worked really hard to develop this over the past couple of years.

We would like to build on this and encourage families to become more involved in the life of our church.

Clubs and Social Groups

We have a bell ringing team, choir, music group, sewing group, flower arranging team, catering team (who organise regular social events) and a house study group. A Men’s Curry group meets regularly and more opportunities for social events reaching out beyond the immediate church community are planned.

Our parish magazine – the Roydon Parish News – is published monthly. It has a circulation of over 600 each month and involves a team of 40 volunteers.

The church is regularly used for concerts, both by our own musicians and visiting groups. Recent highlights include the De Merc choir, Choir18 and a concert of local talent.

Supporting Charities

We support a range of charities, both financially and practically. To give one example, we recently supported “Streets2Homes”, a local charity which helps the homeless, by holding a sleep out in the churchyard just before Christmas.

Summer Festival

The St Peter’s Summer Festival is held every two years, over the August Bank Holiday weekend. It is a successful fund-raising event for the church, but it is also an excellent way of bringing the whole village together. During the festival weekend, we have beautiful flower displays in the church, musical performances, a “pub shed”, a tug of war, “The Big Screen on the Green” (an outdoor film show), vintage car display, dog show and much more.

THE PARISH

The parish covers an area of some 5 miles by 4 miles, bounded on the west by the River Stort (also the diocesan boundary with St Albans), on the north and east by the large town of Harlow, and on the south by the parish of Nazeing. It is largely agricultural land with wooded areas. It is divided into four main residential areas: the main village of Roydon, Roydon Marina, Broadley Common and Roydon Hamlet with Dobbs Weir.

The total population is around 3,000. Recently, there have been a number of small housing developments in the village and more housing is planned for the area bordering Roydon and Great Parndon.

There is a strong commuter element, as Roydon station is on the main line from Cambridge and Stansted Airport to Liverpool Street. However, many people have lived in Roydon for a long time. The age range is that of a typically balanced population. There are three estates, originally built as social housing and now largely owner-occupied, and residential areas which have been privately developed.

The village has a large village hall, playing fields (including a children’s play area, tennis courts, football pitches and cricket pavilion), three public houses, two restaurants, a general store (groceries, newsagent, post office and off-licence), a pharmacy, a hairdresser and an estate agent.

We have good links with the local primary school and pre-school. The schools use the church for their own celebrations at major festival times. We are welcome at Roydon Primary Academy and Roydon Pre-School to visit and take assemblies. The schools have participated in Labyrinth Prayer Walking and are keen to be involved again.

There is also a United Reformed Church in Roydon, with whom we have a very cordial relationship. We share joint services on Remembrance Sunday, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Maundy Thursday, Pentecost and the Women’s World Day of Prayer. The congregations support each other in social and charitable events.

St Peter’s also has contacts with the historic church of St James in Stansteadbury, where four services are held each year. St Peter’s choir has often sung there.

In summary, there are lots of activities at St Peter’s but we are also seeking new ways to forge links with people across the community.

THE BUILDING

Our church is an architecturally delightful Grade 1 listed building dating from 1225.

In 1969 it was re-ordered, with a new altar on the North wall.

The original sanctuary is now used as a side chapel – the Colte Chapel. It is named after the Coltes of nearby Nether Hall, whose daughter, Jane, married Sir Thomas More in St Peter’s in 1505. The Colte Chapel is used for evening services and for morning prayers.

In 2013, major work was undertaken in the church, which included the re-tiling of the floor and the replacement of the pews with 80 wooden chairs and 48 folding chairs stored on trolleys.

This work has beautified the church and, more importantly, has created a more welcoming and flexible space for our worship and activities. The chairs can be (and frequently are) rearranged to suit all forms of worship. Also, the church can now be used for many other activities such as concerts, quiet days and other community events.

There was a further significant project in 2016 to repair a number of the windows and, in 2018, work has been undertaken to repair the roof.

The church has a sound system with a hearing loop and facilities for recording and CD playing.

Attached to the church is a church hall with two function rooms, a well-equipped kitchen and toilets. It is all accessible to the disabled. The church hall is regularly used for a range of community activities, including a coffee shop, the Women’s Institute, playgroups, craft groups and birthday parties.

There is a vestry in the church itself and a separate parish office above the church hall.

Outside is a large car park and a churchyard which is still open for burials. There is an area consecrated for the burial of ashes, which includes a memorial wall. A Quiet Garden and a Wild Area have recently been developed to encourage visitors to enjoy the peace and beauty of the churchyard.

FINANCES

The 2017/2018 accounts are attached. St Peter’s has platinum financial status. The church provides funds to support a wide range of missions and charities under the current policy of the PCC to donate 10% of voluntary giving.

PERSON PROFILE

We are looking for a priest who will develop our worship and help us to achieve our priorities:

To develop our mission to younger adults and families;

To encourage and guide our various lay-led initiatives;

To build up our weekly congregation;

To reach out to more people in the parish;

To encourage people to commit to God through baptism and confirmation.