d1x8239b43517c.cloudfront.net...Sunday, Christmas Eve Carol Service, Christingle Celebration and an Easter service on Penhill. We realise that there is a need to fill the gap in our

PAGE 1 THE BENEFICE OF LEYBURN with BELLERBY

Our Invitation


five archdeacons (Bradford, Halifax, Leeds,

Pontefract, Richmond & Craven). The parish of

Bolton Priory lies in the Skipton Deanery of the

Ripon Episcopal Area, in the Archdeaconry of

Richmond and Craven. The Bishop of Ripon is

the Rt Rev’d Dr Helen-Ann Hartley.

Our vision as the Diocese is about confident

clergy equipping confident Christians to live and

tell the good news of Jesus Christ. For all of our

appointments we are seeking clergy who have a

joyful and confident faith which has inspired a

track record of church growth, both numerically

and spiritually.

The Anglican Diocese of Leeds comprises five

Episcopal Areas, each coterminous with an

Archdeaconry. This is now one of the largest

dioceses in the country, and its creation is

unprecedented in the history of the Church of

England. It covers an area of around 2,425 square

miles, and a population of around 2,642,400 people.

The three former dioceses were created in the

nineteenth and early twentieth centuries to cater

for massive population changes brought about by

industrialisation and, later, mass immigration. The

diocese comprises major cities (Bradford, Leeds,

Wakefield), large industrial and post-industrial

towns (Halifax, Huddersfield, Dewsbury), market

towns (Harrogate, Skipton, Ripon, Richmond and

Wetherby), and deeply rural areas (the Dales). The

whole of life is here, along with all the richness,

diversity and complexities of a changing world.

The Diocesan Bishop (The Rt Rev’d Nick Baines) is

assisted by five Area Bishops (Bradford,

Huddersfield, Kirkstall, Wakefield and Ripon), and

The Diocese of Leeds


ordering St. Matthew’s so it can be used as a

resource centre to bless and serve the

communities. But as we re-order, we recognise

that the church is about the people not buildings

and so we want to focus on how we may serve

the people of our communities and the wider

deanery.

We recognise that we need to build strong lay

leadership and work to support wider events in

the Dale, and we would value somebody who

could encourage our congregation to a deeper

commitment to support the wider ministries in

the area .

We believe that God is doing exciting things here in

this part of Wensleydale. After many years of the

tide going out God has told us to prepare for the

tide to come in and has given us a vision for

growing God’s Kingdom in this place. As we look

around, we see the first shoots of new life starting

to poke through. For the last seven years we have

been slowly building foundations and now are

looking to build on these in a new way. Over the

past years St Matthew’s has become one of the key

resourcing churches in the deanery.

We have been seeking God’s vision for the future as

part of our desire to grow God’s Kingdom. We

believe that our parishes occupy a key place as the

market town in the Dale. Just as Leyburn influences

the life of the local economy over a wide area, and

through its auction mart the farming communities

far and wide so does the church of this town and

there is huge potential to influence the growth of

God’s Kingdom in the wider community and

surrounding areas as we seek revival here.

We aim to be “outward looking” and reach out and

bless the communities in which we live through our

service. In order to do this we know that we must

rely on the power of God the Holy Spirit to

transform us as individuals and congregations.

We have started this process and as a pilgrim

people we are continuing to seek God for direction.

An important part of our vision includes re-

Our Vision


We are seeking a Priest who will enable us to

fulfil our Vision by being:

A VISIONARY – to build on the foundations and

help us to see God’s plans for the future

a spiritual person who seeks God

one who helps us hear God

one who teaches us where God is at work among us

A TEAM BUILDER & ENCOURAGER – so that every

member of our congregation may be given the

opportunity to use their gifts to serve God

compassionate, caring, humble and inclusive

a confident but also collaborative leader

a delegator – so that the new priest does not burn

out

a listener – so that those who have been damaged

by past events may feel their voice is heard

a trainer – someone who develops those in the

church

a spirit-filled, joyful, kind and loving pastor with an

infectious faith

A BRIDGE-BUILDER – someone who is visible and

accepted in the non-church going communities, so

that we can provide support to the town and

farming communities

willing to understand the local community

an encourager of our ecumenical partnership with

other Christian churches

a friend to those who are unwilling to engage with

church life

a good communicator of the gospel

someone committed to strengthening the links we

have with our schools

Someone to bring their experience, enthusiasm and

knowledge to help us develop our Mission Action

Plan

We are seeking to do our part to serve by:

ensuring that you have time for your own

spiritual growth/refreshment, and you take time

off

engaging fully with Diocesan plans for leading

your church into growth

using the gifts of our Lay Worship Leaders and

Readers take an active part in worship

doing our part in building bridges into the

community

being open to change whilst exploring other

ways of being church

using volunteers to undertake administrative

tasks until such time as we can provide a paid

administrator

The Role of a New Priest


We are a Benefice of two parishes within the Deanery of Wensley

St. Matthew’s, Leyburn and St. John the Evangelist, Bellerby

Our Church Families

Each church reflects the

characteristics of our

communities: Bellerby

is a small tightly knitted

village community,

whilst St Matthew’s lies

at the heart of a key

market town in the

Dale.

Each is governed by

their own Parochial

Church Council, and has

its own activities and

events linked to the life

of the community they

serve.


Many in our congregations are elderly and enjoy

our traditional services and the care provided by

our members, but we also have a sizeable group

who want to explore newer ways of being

church.

Many people help our church flourish by the

giving of their generous gifts of time and talents.

We love putting on bring and share lunches in

our new hospitality area and special

celebrations are a feature of St. Matthew’s

church, including: Harvest Festival, Mothering

Sunday, Christmas Eve Carol Service, Christingle

Celebration and an Easter service on Penhill.

We realise that there is a need to fill the gap in

our age profile and we know we must develop

outreach to the 20 - 55 age group as we seek to

encourage more to join us, to learn of God’s love,

and be active in our churches.

Everyone is warmly welcomed at St Matthew’s and

St. John’s. T

Our Worship


St. Matthew’s, Leyburn

The Mothers’ Union has been an important part of

our mission in the area for many years. The branch

has a very active membership, meeting monthly for

prayer in the Friends’ Meeting House, for Coffee

and Chat at members’ homes and for services at St.

Matthew’s.

Enthusiastic members of our congregation work in

teams to provide flower displays and make

refreshments whenever needed, especially after

our Sunday services

In recent years we have started two small lay led

house groups which have grown from the Pilgrim

courses which met in church. In these, people meet

to discover God’s love in their lives, pray, chat, read

and meditate on the Bible. St Matthew’s is now a

hub for diocesan training, and we are planning for

how we can use our facilities for training in

spiritual and practical skills of the laity so that they

can take their place in stepping up in leadership.

We want to offer these to the wider area.

St John’s Bellerby

The congregation in Bellerby run many activities

to strengthen the bond between the church and

the community. These include:-

• Beating the Bounds, which is an ancient

custom in which our vicar leads villagers

around the parish boundary of Bellerby,

praying for protection and a blessing on the

land, homes and businesses.

• Harvest Lunch

• Wine & Cheese Evenings

• Themed Meal Evenings

Church Activities and Events


Bellerby

The PCC of eight members represents almost

half the regular congregation. Most of the

work in the parish is done by its members,

including the main fundraising. Routine

cleaning is carried out with a rota of members.

While minor maintenance is performed by

members, more demanding work is done by a

local retired joiner/builder.

Internal decoration of the church in 2006 was

carried out entirely by members of the

congregation.

A home group thrived for many years but was

discontinued two years ago. We hope to start

one up again in the future as new people move

into the village.

Our Team


Our Buildings—St Matthew’s, Leyburn


Our Buildings—St John The Evangelist, Bellerby


The Re-ordering of St Matthew’s

The first two phases of the re-ordering were

financed by the sale of the old church hall and the

plan is that once phases 3 and 4 are complete the

facility will generate an income which will pay for

its operation and the associated administration.

In order to ensure our finances are in a robust

state to progress our plans the PCC decided to

run a stewardship campaign in the spring of

2019. The campaign will focus on the links

between gladness, thankfulness and giving of our

time, talents and treasures to bless those around

us and build God’s Kingdom.

St John’s

Despite having a very much smaller congregation

than St. Matthew’s, St. John’s is paying virtually

the same Share Request.

In the past this has been paid out of regular

church income, but recent large increases in the

Share means that a portion of St. John’s reserves

will need to be used in 2018 and in future years to

continue paying the Share in full. Unless

something changes, this can be only sustained for

perhaps another five years.

Ten members of the regular congregation of St.

John’s gift aid with weekly envelopes whilst three

villagers who attend the church on an occasional

basis gift aid through standing orders. Two of

these began following a stewardship campaign

last year, and one of them is from another

denomination.

Our Finances

A sponsored trek to Everest Base Camp to raise

funds for the re-ordering of St. Matthew’s.

A car boot sale to raise funds for St. John’s.

Neither parish is financially wealthy, but both pay their Parish Share Request in full and there is no

historic debt.


We believe that the Anglican church exists largely

for those who do not attend. So a major part of our

vision is to reach out to those in our parishes.

In 2017 St. Matthew’s received a grant from

Stronger Communities Yorkshire to start a number

of projects which are shared between the church

and the local community:

Good Neighbours

Providing practical help to those who have

difficulty with transport, household tasks or

gardening.

Soup ’n’ Pud

A once-a-week lunch is provided free for those who

feel isolated and enjoy an opportunity to meet

together and chat.

Mother and Toddler Group

Now that we have facilities we are planning to

provide a mother and toddler group in St.

Matthew’s.

Open the Book

We have a group of volunteers preparing to start

Open the Book and are working with adjacent

Benefices to form joint teams.

Message in the Movies

Once a month we host a discussion around a film

and how the message in the film relates to our

Christian lives.

Schools

The last incumbent and curate were heavily

involved in working with the secular schools in

the Benefice. We are starting a team to provide

“Open the Book”, and plan to do this in

conjunction with adjacent benefices so as to

provide a stronger team across both church and

secular schools.

Youth Club

Provided in conjunction with Leyburn Arts and

Community Centre so that young people have

somewhere to go and socialise.

Kirkwood Hall

Twice a month we run hymn-singing and ‘songs

and scones’ at the local sheltered housing.

Our Outward Mission

Hymn-singing in Kirkwood Hall


Our Communities—Leyburn

New picture of Leyburn

Rev Michael Hepper (left) & Rev Chris Lawton with the

Bishop of Ripon the Rt Rev Helen-Ann Hartley


Our Communities—Bellerby


As part of our mission we hold many events and

activities with the intention of reaching out to those

in the community who rarely come to services and

religious events.

St Matthew’s Leyburn

We host musical events and drama in St Matthew’s

which are put on by local choirs and visiting

societies. Many are held jointly with Leyburn Arts

and Community Centre. We hope that as re-

ordering progresses these events will grow in scale

and sophistication as more space and facilities

become available.

We play a key role in Remembrance Day Services at

Leyburn War memorial .

We provide chaplains to the Auction Mart since

farmers find traditional service times do not meet

their work requirements.

In the run-up to Christmas we provide free mulled

wine and mince pies to traders and shoppers in the

market place and town squares. It has been a

delight to see how all respond when they find there

are no strings attached to our generosity, which is

part of our message that we have freely received so

we must freely give.

Since the physical re-ordering has started we

have need of funds and so have been running a

variety of fundraising events so that local people

can support the church. These have included a

medieval banquet at Castle Bolton and a

Victorian Tea party at Bolton Hall.

We try to be imaginative in developing new and

fresh ways to express our Christian faith to

those who have lost or have never had contact

with Christ.

Missional Activities and Events


As well as local community projects, We see the

importance of looking outwards so our vision

includes the congregations’ support for many

Christian activities which take place in the wider

community of the Dale and Wensley Deanery.

There is still scope for greater involvement in all

these ministries especially the “Church about the

Dale” trailer (CaTD)

The King’s Club

A week of activities for school-aged children which

takes place once a year in Askrigg for the whole of

the upper and lower Dale. This is run jointly by a

Methodist and Anglican team.

Church About the Dale

We have welcomed the joint Anglican and

Methodist mission initiative, ‘Church About the

Dale,’ and have permission to use its trailer on the

market place, although at present we are short of

volunteers. On a Deanery level, we also help staff

and cater for the Church on Show stand at the

Wensleydale Agricultural Show each year.

The Filling Station

A monthly ecumenical service of worship and

prayer is held in Newton-le-Willows. This

provides a time for worship, a visiting preacher

and fellowship for all who love Jesus in the Dale.

Wensley Deanery Prayer Meeting

Our parishes participate fully in the life of the

Wensley Deanery and we welcome the monthly

prayer meetings for revival which take place up

and down the length and breadth of the A684.

We are represented at Synod and enjoy

engaging with the challenges and opportunities

that the Deanery presents for mission.

Local chapter

Our clergy have been regular attendees at

chapter meetings, finding them to be both

refreshing and beneficial. We would hope that

our new incumbent will also be an active

member of the wider clergy team.

Our Dale and Deanery


Leyburn is a vibrant market town at the entrance

to the dales. It balances a rural life with good

access to the services and facilities of modern living

required by families.

We are within easy striking distance of the new

Prince’s Gate retail development at Catterick

Garrison where modern shopping centre and

leisure and amenity centres support the garrison

but are open to the public and so provide the

facilities expected in a large town. As a result of the

construction of the Bedale bypass, we now have

good transport links with the A1 motorway and the

main line rail connection in the thriving county

market town of Northallerton. From here London

can be reached in two hours and York in 20

minutes. Nearby is the spa and conference town of

Harrogate with its excellent shopping and

recreational facilities. The industrial conurbation

of Teesside is within commuting distance as are the

university towns of Durham to the north and York

to the south. The major commercial and financial

centres of Newcastle northwards and Leeds to the

south are about an hour and a half by train and

motorway.

As well as tourist businesses in the locality many

small and medium enterprises are based in

Leyburn, which provide opportunities for

employment, both around the centre and the new

industrial estate. High speed broadband and the

local business clubs provide support for self-

employment.

•

•

The Vicarage

A modern, purpose-built detached house with 4

bedrooms, several reception rooms, double

garage, garden and orchard situated on a

modern estate at the northern end of Leyburn.

Living Here


Statistics

The congregation of St. John’s at Lammas Lunch

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d1x8239b43517c.cloudfront.net...Sunday, Christmas Eve Carol Service, Christingle Celebration and an Easter service on Penhill. We realise that there is a need to fill the gap in our