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Vacancy: District Children and Youth
Ambassador
The
District would like to record our gratitude to Melody Jones of
the Cannock Chase Circuit who is stepping down from this role
after a number of years of service. Thank you Melody!
We are now looking to make a new appointment to this voluntary
position. It is suitable for someone aged 18 or over, but
beyond that is open to all, both lay and ordained. A role
outline can be found here.
Please consider whether this might be a vocation for you, or
mention it to others whom you think may be suitable.
Expressions of interest should be made to the District
Office by 1st September. The Chair is very happy
to have further conversations with anyone who wants to explore
whether this role is for them..
Role Description here.
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Funding for HE Study
Funding
to support higher education study
The Methodist Church has some funding available to support course
fees for any member of the British Methodist Church, lay or
ordained, wishing to study a theological subject at masters or
doctoral level. Further details, criteria and application forms
can be found here: Scholarships
and Funding (methodist.org.uk) and the closing
date for applications for this year is Thursday 21st September
2023.
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Personal Reflection Course
APPLY FOR ‘SOUL FOOD’
This course is about doing prayer. So a typical session will
include time for prayer (using different ways of praying),
personal reflection and listening to one another, as well as some
teaching from the front. There won’t be long essays to write; the
‘homework’ is to spend some time each day praying.
Course venue and dates:
Day meetings: Saturdays 14 Oct, 2 Dec and 3 Feb: 10am – 3pm, St
Aidan’s Church, 10a Mount Rd, Penn, Wolverhampton WV4 5SW
Zoom: Tuesdays 24 Oct; 7 & 21 Nov; 12 Dec, 9 & 23 Jan: 7
– 9.30pm
There is no entrance requirement for this course other than a
desire to grow in prayer.
This is likely to be expressed in:
❖ A
willingness to talk about your prayer life;
❖ A sense
of (or desire for) community with other praying people; ❖ A commitment
to attend all the course sessions.
If you would like to join the course, please email or write to
Charles Ruxton (address below) with the following:
1. A paragraph or two on any experience of prayer that you have,
and how you hope the course will help you.
2. Any access requirements (e.g. internet access, large text,
wheelchair access for the day sessions etc.)? (remember to
include your address, phone and email please!)
Charles Ruxton (Lichfield Diocesan Spirituality Adviser) is at charles.ruxton@trinitychurches.org
Mary Flitcroft (Worcester Diocesan Spirituality Adviser) is at spirituality@cofe-worcester.org.uk
All of the
information you provide will be confidential to the Tutor Team
(including Diocesan Spirituality Adviser). It will only be used
for course administration and will not be passed on to anyone
beyond the Tutor Team. If you would prefer your details not to be
recorded in this way, please let us know
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Called to Organise Blog
I
am excited to reach out to you today to introduce our new blog
called "Called to Organise." This blog aims to document
and share captivating stories and resources about the two-year
faith-rooted community organising pilot project in the region
covering two districts, Birmingham and Wolverhampton &
Shrewsbury.
Through the blog, we aim to spotlight the transformative power of
faith-based initiatives and the impact they can have on churches
and communities.
The two-year pilot project that forms the cornerstone of this
blog has been a collaborative effort, bringing together
individuals from diverse faith backgrounds, community leaders,
and passionate volunteers.
In "Called to Organise," you will find a collection of
real-life narratives, success stories, resources, and lessons
learned from the project and its participants. Through these
accounts, we hope to inspire others to participate in similar
initiatives and bring about positive change within their churches
and communities.
I would appreciate your support in spreading the word about this
blog. Sharing these stories on newsletters and social media
contacts will help us reach a wider audience, amplifying the
impact of our faith-rooted community organising efforts. Your
support in sharing the blog posts would mean a lot to us.
To explore "Called to Organise," please visit https://calledtoorganise.co.uk/.
Here, you can find our latest posts. We will soon add a way to
subscribe to receive regular updates to your inbox.
Here are our latest posts:
https://calledtoorganise.co.uk/my-community-organising-story-kerry-scarlett/
https://calledtoorganise.co.uk/my-community-organising-story-eddy-aigbe/
If you have any questions or need more information, please don't
hesitate to contact me directly at ccorganiser@wsmethodists.org.uk
or 07534573880.
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Welfare Benefits and Money Adviser
Welfare
Benefits and Money Adviser
Between
16 & 35 hours per week (Job Share Considered)
Rate
between £11.22 & £14.07 per hour depending on experience
12
month fixed-term contract
We are seeking a proactive and organised individual to join our
team. Ablewell Advice Walsall is an outreach project of the
Central Hall Methodist Church. Central Hall is a registered
charity and our services are authorised and regulated by the
Financial Conduct Authority.
We provide specialist advice in relation to debt and welfare
benefit matters. Our philosophy is to provide advice that is
“people-centred, putting the client and their needs first”.
We are a distribution centre for the Black County Foodbank.
We are offering between 16 and 35 hours, and the hours can be
adjusted to suit the applicant. The working patten for this post
will be 9.30 - 15:00 Monday, Wednesday and Friday, at our advice
centre, with additional hours on Tuesday and Thursdays at NHS
offices as part of our Severe Mental Illness Project. The
successful candidate’s duties will include:
- Provision of
benefit and money advice
- Proactive follow
up of enquiries
- Being a team
player in a small team, and able to work independently some
of time.
You will
be someone who:
- Has completed
formal training to deliver welfare benefits and money advice
- Is able to work
independently
- Is trustworthy
and comfortable with handling confidential information
- Enjoys working as
part of a small team
- Is flexible and
adaptable
- Is willing to train
and expand their knowledge of welfare benefits
- Is sympathetic to
the Christian ethos of our organisation.
This
post is subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service
check.
For an informal discussion about this role, or an application
pack please email Bev Boden at revbevboden@gmail.com, leaving your
telephone number, and a best time to call back. Application packs
will be sent on application to the above contact details.
CVs
will not be accepted.
Closing
date: 12 noon on Friday 4th August 2023. Interviews will be
held on Friday 11th August 2023
Ablewell Advice Walsall, The Central Hall, Ablewell Street,
Walsall WS1 2EQ www.ablewelladvice.org.uk
F: AblewellAdvice T:@Ablewell_Advice Tel:
01922 639700
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Wesley House Supervision Courses
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Action for Children News
News
for your District from Action for Children
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Hello from Action for Children!
I hope this finds you well.
We have started to receive heartwarming reports
from churches who have held early Action for
Children Sunday services and I hope you will be
able to share any news you can with us in the weeks
ahead regarding celebrations of our special
relationship. It would be wonderful to have an idea
of how many churches hold Action for Children
Sunday services so if you do get feedback please
pass it on.
Colleagues from across the charity were pleased to
be able to attend the recent Methodist Conference
to share updates on our work and engage with
Conference members during the breaks from business.
Our CEO, Paul Carberry, was invited to speak this
year, shining a light on the work we do to help
vulnerable children, young people and families.
This email looks ahead to the autumn with details
of a creative fundraising opportunity, Boycott Your
Bed. I do hope many of our Methodist supporters
will be able to support this.
Best wishes and continued thanks,
Anna
Faith Partnerships Lead
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News from Action for
Children
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Host your own
Boycott Your Bed this autumn
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Right
now, over 4 million children live in
poverty across the UK. That's almost
30% of all children. And with the
impact of the cost of living crisis
hitting home, they're even more
vulnerable. Tonight, many will go to
sleep hungry. Some won’t even have a warm
bed to climb into or a safe space to
wake up in.
We’re a vital lifeline, but we can’t do
it without you.
Together, we can make sure children
have the basics like warm clothes, hot
meals and a proper bed. We can help
them recover from abuse and neglect,
and put support in place for families
to protect against it happening, too.
And we can offer the right mental
health support, so children thrive.
How to get involved
People across the country will be
giving up their bed for the night and
attending a Boycott your Bed Live
event. But if you can’t make one of our
in-person events, you can still get
involved with the fun!
All you need to do is sign up, get a
team together, raise funds and give up
your bed for a night.
Maybe members of your local congregation
would be able to join together or work
colleagues? Further details and our
registration form can be found here.
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Where is child
poverty increasing in the
UK?
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The
End Child Poverty Coalition (of which
Action for Children is a part) has
published new detailed local child
poverty data up to 2021/22.
It shows that the withdrawal of the £20
increase in Universal Credit in October
2021, followed by the onset of a major
cost of living crisis, has resulted in
the return of near pre-pandemic child
poverty levels. Read more about which
areas of the country are affected worst
and how you can make a difference, in
our blog here.
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The
Stephenson Awards recognise and
celebrate our incredible staff
colleagues, volunteers, foster carers
and supporters who are there for
children, young people and families -
as well as the remarkable achievements
of young people and their families themselves.
This year we were delighted to welcome
as a judge, the Revd Rachel Parkinson,
Chair of the Wolverhampton and
Shrewsbury District.
The awards are named after our founder,
the Revd Thomas Bowman Stephenson, and
were held in London, hosted by Angela Rippon
CBE.
We send congratulations to one of the
winners, Margaret Hobbs (Home
Collection Secretary of Wellingborough
Methodist Church) who has been
collecting for Action for Children for
more than 70 years. Margaret has
organised a huge number of fundraisers
down the years including three-legged
races, cake stalls and in-store
collections.
Thank you to all our supporters for the
amazing dedication you show to the work
of our charity, helping to secure safe
and happy childhoods for thousands of
young people each year.
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From
Manchester and Stockport District, a
report of a recent informal Q and A
session at Manchester Central Hall. A
group of Action for Children staff met
with local Methodists to share updates
on our work in the area. Read more here.
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Action for Children District Advocates
Dear
District Advocates
Supporter Services may already have been in touch with volunteers
who collect and bank donations/collections, but I wonder if you
can also share locally that we have a new freepost licence which
is: RUEY-EGCU-ZKZL. Please can all post now use this licence number
and not the old one, RTGA-TJEJ-HHCK which has been discontinued.
I hope the following may answer any questions your volunteers may
have about this:
Will
communications sent using the old number reach Action for
Children?
Yes, but there will be a significant delay.
Do I
need to order new collection envelopes?
Please use existing ones but use the new licence number when you
send the envelopes to us. We are printing new envelopes and these
will be ready soon. We will let you know when they are in stock.
My
cheques have not been banked and/or I have not received a thank
you from AFC. Why is this?
The delay in receiving mail sent under the old licence is likely
to be the reason for this. We apologise for the delay.
Action
for children Sunday is coming up. I am concerned about ensuring
our collections reach you. What should I do?
Please send cheques etc in the usual manner but using the new
Freepost licence number RUEY-EGCU-ZKZL.
But don’t worry, if the old number is used by mistake, the
collection will still reach us eventually.
Once the new collection envelopes are ready we will let you know.
Thank you for your continued support.
Best wishes
Anna
McCrum
Faith
Partnerships Lead
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Journey of the Magi
Journey of the Magi – a festive, light-hearted, joyful event
with a moving and profound message.
Share
the joy and wonder of Christmas with your church and local
community through this exhilarating, critically acclaimed
performance. The show offers a bridge between contemporary life
and Jesus’s birth, comparing our own personal journey to
Christmas day with the journey that the wise men took. With
sparkle and songs to keep the children entertained and bags of
good humour for the grown-ups, Journey of the Magi delights
audiences of all ages and offers a chance to reflect and refocus.
“Absolutely fabulous show. Wonderful mix of fun,
wit, and meaning. It made me laugh and it made me cry all in a
couple of minutes. (Hope you'll come back.)” Richard, Poynton Methodist Church
Springs
is inviting churches to host a performance of Journey of the Magi,
which will be available nationally during Advent 2023.
Further
information can be found on the Springs Dance Company website
page https://springsdancecompany.org.uk/productions/journey-of-the-magi/,
by emailing touring@springsdancecompany.org.uk or
by calling 07775 628442.
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Exploring Digital
A day online exploring the digital world for Methodist Churches
and communities.
Join together with Methodists from all over Britain for a special
digital gathering. Learn from key individuals who've mastered the
digital world on how to connect and share the Gospel online. The
event will feature insightful keynotes, group discussions and an
expert panel. Don't miss this chance to enhance your
church's online presence and explore faith in the digital era!
- When: Saturday 30
September, 10am to 3:30pm.
- Where: Online, so
you can join wherever you are.
- Cost: We are providing
this day free of charge.
We'll be
sharing further information about speakers, topics and resources
closer to the event. Register
for your free place now to avoid missing out and
join us on Saturday 30 September for a day
of exploration into the digital world and the
opportunities it holds for the Methodist Church.
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Advanced Safeguarding Training
Advanced
Safeguarding Training Dates.
Anyone wishing to book onto one of these sessions needs to email kayredfern@birminghammethodist.org.uk
All of the below are training dates at The Methodist Churches
below:
16th Sept – Dudley Wood – face to face – 9.45am
registration
9th Sept – Coventry – Central - Eadon Hall – face to
face – 9.45am registration
14th October – Kenilworth – face to face – 9.45am
registration
25th November – Solihull – face to face – 9.45am
registration
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Children's Support Fund
There
is still money available from the above and if your Church is
thinking of running any Children's activities, then, please
consider applying for a maximum of £500. The attached application
form needs to be completed.. Any further
questions please contact Tim Lorimer on tim.a.lorimer@gmail.com Many
thanks
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