SPRING SYNOD NEWSLETTER

THE METHODIST CHURCH



York and Hull District

Newsletter following

Synod on 25 April 2009

Hosted by the Ripon Circuit

From
Heather Shipman
3 Templar Gardens
Wetherby
West Yorkshire
LS22 7TG
synodsec@yorkhullmethodist.org.uk



Full Synod Minutes are available on the District Website (Synod pages)


www.yorkhullmethodist.org.uk
(If you have any problem at all in accessing information in this way please don't hesitate to contact either Siân Henderson or myself for a paper copy)

Dear Friends

Synod began with worship led by the Ripon Circuit. We were invited to participate in meditations, and the thought provoking and prayerful worship set the scene for the business session of the morning. Synod was welcomed by Revd Graham Sturdy. This Spring Synod was chaired by Revd Richard Andrew, Deputy Chair of the District as the Revd Stephen Burgess was on sabbatical.

The Revd Mary Jackman read the list of Local Preachers who had died during the past year and Synod stood in silence to remember them.

One of the responsibilities of this Synod is the agreement to the appointment of officers in the District and a list was brought to Synod. This list is on the website and if anyone feels there are any inaccuracies in it or would like to volunteer for any vacant posts, please let myself or Siân Henderson know.

Extension of period of office for Chair of District

Stephen could not decide whether it was advantageous or disadvantageous to be away from Synod when the recommendation that his term of office as Chair of the District be extended for a further 5 years to 2015. Synod were delighted to agree to the extension by a very large majority and steps were taken to let Stephen know of the decision immediately, even though he was mid-Atlantic with some young people taking part in the first leg of theTall Ships race to Tenerife.

Cessation of Worship

Synod agreed to the cessation of worship in the following churches:

Well in the Ripon Circuit
Perth Street in the Hull West Circuit
Hutton in the Driffield Circuit
Burstwick in the Hull East Circuit
Gillamoor in the Ryedale Circuit

From September 2009 Helperby will transfer from the Thirsk and Northallerton Circuit to the York North Circuit

Committee Reports
Synod received reports from the following committees:
District Policy Committee, Ministerial Synod, Finance, Safeguarding, District Appraisal, Property and the Manse Committee
Fuller details of these reports can be seen in the minutes but herewith a flavour of some of the issues involved:

District Policy Committee

Synod had sought to make itself as environmentally friendly as possible and had conducted an audit of mileage and time spent in travelling by members attending Synod. The Revd John Brown had produced a graph which showed the relationship between mileage, journey time and location It will no doubt influence the positioning of District meetings in the future.

Ministerial Synod

The Revd Keith Himsworth reported that our three first year Probationer Ministers, the Revds Susan Greenhart, Neville Simpson and Mike Poole would proceed to the second year of probation and the Revd Rachel Wood would go forward for ordination at Conference in 2009. Our best wishes for the future and congratulations Rachel.

Safeguarding

The Revd Alison Mcdonald reported that the publicised timetable for the introduction of Vetting and Barring had been delayed and encouraged churches to continue to ensure that all the required people were subject to CRB checks. Further information regarding courses and training would be circulated in the near future.

Appraisal

Colin Hogg reported that in the wake of the recent pilot schemes, and after debate at Methodist Council, the new system of Annual Development Review would not be introduced until further refinements had taken place. We are therefore encouraged to continue with our current system until 2011.

Property

Dr Nigel Hardwick drew our attention to the opportunity to go to a road show outlining the duties and responsibilities of Methodist Trustees. If you are interested in this please see your Superintendent Minister or contact Nigel as soon as possible as places are limited.

Finance

Our Finances are in good order. Thank you to both David Finch, our former Treasurer and to Ian Stockley our current District Treasurer

Manse Committee

The report on those Manses recently inspected showed that they were all in a good state of repair. Our thanks go to all those stewards who work so hard to maintain them locally as well as those who serve on the District Committee, particularly Geoffrey Beecroft who we thank for all his hard work

Memorial to Conference

Synod also agreed to send a Memorial to Conference encouraging the use of only the most up-to-date statistics when levying Connexional Charges on the Districts.

The focus of this Synod was a Mission Shaped Circuit and in the afternoon we heard 5 presentations from around the District of Good News stories. These were as follows:

Martyn Holman on the Aroma Coffee Shop in Haxby;
G.ro.W, a home grown approach to worship, preaching and teaching by Barrie Morley,
Reaching Men - outreach initiatives to men in the Church and community by David Richardson;
The employment of a Circuit Support Manager by Graham Sturdy and
'More than just a Church' - initiatives and opportunities in Market Weighton, by Sue Pegg

These presentations and an address from both the Revd Richard Andrew and Mrs Tricia Mitchell inspired Synod and many further Good News stories, alongside problems areas, were shared in small groups. Further information about these will appear on the website.

...and a reminder

This is only a brief summary of Synod business. The minutes of Synod are on the website. Your Circuit representatives and your Ministers are all members of Synod so will also be able to answer any queries you may have. Much of the business of Synod requires a follow up in the Circuit so please ensure that you have all the information you need. If there is anything further I can help with please don't hesitate to contact me.

Heather Shipman, Synod Secretary.