THE CHURCH IN

SPARKBROOK –

Christ Church

Sparkbrook

Reflections on Eighteen Years in a Multi-faith, Inner-City Parish

in Birmingham, UK

By

Revd. Simon Holloway

1984-2002

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Introduction.

Each one of us is special and has a unique calling and purpose in God’s overall plan to build

His church and extend His kingdom. There are many strands in the preparation and formation

of a person whom God can use and every stage in life can been seen as a preparation and part

of the overall plan of God for a life of faith.

In my own case, I can now see, on reflection, many such strands which God has weaved

together to make the ministry in Sparkbrook possible and sustainable. I have outlined some of

these strands of activity in the following pages, but not explained the background or vision

behind them.

My upbringing in Bristol within a loving and secure merchant family has provided a sense of

security and identity at the start of life. There were many opportunities to explore, travel,

pioneer, have adventures, participate in sport and artistic endeavours as well as develop skills

in human relationships, writing, analysing, organising etc. through school and especially

through the scout movement. I am thankful to God for such a background.

However, there was a missing dimension – the purpose and reason for it all. In effect, the

spiritual dimension was missing. Where do we come from, what are we doing here, how

should we live and where are we going? Such questions invaded my life during my late teens

and especially once at University. After pursuing many false trails, I found the answer in a

personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ and the missing dynamic for living in the

fulness of the Holy Spirit, while at Sussex University studying Mathematics with Statistics.

My life took a different direction from then on. Instead of heading for big business with BP,

with whom I had a student apprenticeship, I offered for VSO in Sierra Leone, West Africa

and while there was called to full-time Christian service. I returned to UK to study for the

Church of England ministry at Trinity College Bristol and met my wife Pauline half way

through my studies there. We married at the end of my 2nd Year.

Through a CPAS Ordinands conference at Herne Bay, we were guided to offer for a

‘Missionary’ ministry in a UPA parish in Wolverhampton but were also challenged by the

growing needs in Multi-cultural parishes through the testimony of David Bronnert from

Southall. Eventually we came to the Midlands in September 1979, first to Wolverhampton

and then to Stafford in 1981, before being appointed to Sparkbrook in 1984. Two word

pictures (or prophecies) were given to us at strategic stages of our ministry:

You will be a BRIDGE, helping the people of God to be united in ministry and prayer

together and also making a bridge into new cultures and areas.

You will be a PLOUGH, breaking up the hard, resistant ground ready for the sowing of the

seed of the Word of God.

By God’s grace, we sought to be obedient to the heavenly vision.

On the eve of our Induction in Sparkbrook, a letter arrived from a friend in Nottingham with

whom we had studied in Bristol – he shared with us the Prayer of JABEZ, which has now

become so popular. But this was in January 1984. Pain and Enlargement. So it has been.

These reflections are selective and other stories could be told by the many whom God has

called from the ends of the earth to join us in Sparkbrook. It is a developing story and the

kingdom advances, despite many setbacks and troubles along the way. To God be the glory!

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Beginnings

On Wednesday 25th January 1984, a fire

was relit in Sparkbrook which has not yet

gone out. Indeed, on this day, Bishop Hugh

Montefiore inducted me to be Priest-in-

Charge of Christ Church Sparkbrook. This

date in the church calendar is a reminder of

the Conversion of St.Paul on the road to

Damascus, when he had a vision of Jesus

in a blinding light which caused him to be

blind for 3 days. It was snowing that night

and our young family was settled into the

snug warm vicarage but there was a fire lit

in the derelict houses opposite the church

and vicarage and the Fire Brigade and

Police were called that night, during the

service. A few months later, there was

another fire when the Embassy

Sportsdrome on Walford Road was burnt

down and several months later there was

another fire in the derelict Baptist Church

in Palmerston Road! We held a Bonfire in

our church grounds that summer, as part of

a Holiday Club and our Area Dean in

Small Heath saw the smoke, and thought

we had burnt down the church. But no, it

was the Embassy Sportsdrome on that

same night! Indeed a FIRE was lit when

we came to Sparkbrook and the flame

continues to burn brighter to this day!

The Context of the church in Sparkbrook

in January 1984 when I came to serve was

one of uncertainty about its survival as a

church placed in an increasingly Islamic

community in inner-city Birmingham.

However, there was a praying core of

people in the local congregation and a full-

time ministry team of 5 people who had

time and some energy to give to the work

of mission and ministry. None of the other

four were ‘licensed’ but two were church

wardens, one was PCC secretary and the

fourth was a local missionary amongst

Asian women. They were the praying

core, with a few others, and the church had

held on through 4 interregna in 10 years, as

there were a succession of ministers

serving the church during the 1970s and

early 1980s. There was faith, prayer and

commitment from a persevering core of

people and a good foundation upon which

to build.

In the early months, we had a Mission to

aim for which helped to mobilise the

church into prayerful action. Billy Graham

was coming to Villa Park in June 1984, as

part of MISSION ENGLAND. On my

second day in post, I took the two church

wardens to the NEC to a preparation

meeting with Dr. Graham who outlined the

vision for Mission England. As a

consequence, our church took up the

challenge and booked a double-decker bus

to transport people from Sparkbrook

EVERY night. We were the FIRST church

in the Midlands to do so and received a

prime place in the car park. We also

trained and mobilised a team of people -

15 church members of all ages out of 35

attendees - to visit people in our parish

with invitations and eventually we took

400 people from Sparkbrook to hear

Dr.Graham at Villa Park. Some of our

church members trained as counsellors,

choir members and prepared for follow-up

groups also. Dr. Christopher Lamb1, then

working in Birmingham as Adviser in

Muslim-Christian relations, visited with us

and came with us to Villa Park to interpret

for some Muslim guests who also came to

hear Dr. Graham. I remember well sitting

next to Mr. Mohammed Noor and a couple

of his friends, who nevertheless took time

out at Villa Park to conduct their evening

prayers of Salat, for 15 mins, during the

initial congregational singing. As a result

of this Mission England, 40 people made

some response and joined nurture groups

for 6 weeks following the mission and

many became church members, while

others moved on after a few months or

years to other churches.

FOCUS ON MISSION

This FOCUS ON MISSION has been a

key part of the genetic code of Christ

Church Sparkbrook, but did not start with

1 A former CMS mission partner in Pakistan, who

was fluent in Urdu.

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Mission England. Reading the history of

the church by a notable former

Incumbent2, I learnt that Christ Church had

sent around 100 people into the Mission

field, either at home or overseas, during its

first 50 years of life. Obedience to the

Great Commission3 has been part of the

heartbeat of this church from its

foundation.

With the changing and challenging mission

context over the years, the church has

sought to adapt its style and facilities to

meet the new challenges of succeeding

generations. In the 1940s, the church

almost closed, as it was damaged during

the blitz of Birmingham in 1940 as the

BSA armaments factory nearby was

severely bombed. Many of the

congregation dispersed to the suburbs and

fed into other churches, but a faithful

remnant stood by the church and were

committed to its restoration and rebuilding

after the war. Several significant ministries

of both clergy and lay people kept the

vision alive during the reconstruction

period after the Second World War. The

church building was repaired, the spire

removed as it had been damaged and the

rock garden seen today contains the stones

from this former spire. A new East

Window was inserted to replace one

destroyed by enemy action in 1940.

In the 1950s and 1960s, several former

CMS missionaries from East Africa served

as Incumbents of Christ Church and they

were well equipped to welcome the Black

Christians from the New Commonwealth4

who came to live in Birmingham, many in

Sparkbrook, during these years. Despite

indifference from some in the

2 Canon N. Treddennick Vicar of Christ Church

Sparkbrook 1889-1941, GOLDEN JUBILEE

History of the first 60 years. 1867-1927 3 Jesus’ final words in Matthew’s Gospel “Go

therefore and make disciples of all nations…”

Matt.28:19,20 4 Black Christians came especially from Jamaica,

Barbados, St.Kitts & Nevis and a variety of other

Islands. More recently some have come from

Montserrat, following the Volcano eruption in

1997.

congregation, born more out of fear and

ignorance than hatred, many Black people

joined the church, especially the choir and

there were MANY weddings in the church

during the thriving 1960s, sometimes 4 or

5 every Saturday during the summer

period.5 Congregations in the 1960s had a

regular attendance figure of 150+ and for

special occasions there were 400+.

However, there were still many more seats

than that, as the church was originally built

with pews to seat 800 people and in the

early years, most were taken. There used

to be two Sunday Schools meeting before

11am Worship – one at Christ Church

School, then located on the Stratford Road,

and another at Montgomery School in

White Road. After a 50minute class, the

children were then trooped off to church in

a crocodile file, seating in the North and

South Aisles of the church, while the

adults sat in the main Nave seating!

Re-Pitching the Tent6

But when we came, the church building

was inappropriate for the mission and

mission to which we were called. The

Memorial Hall had been compulsorily

purchased by the City Council in the 1960s

to make way for the Sparkbrook Family

Centre and the Health Centre. As a result,

the church had some capital tucked away

but during the 70s and early 80s they had

not agreed on any of the 4 plans drawn up

to provide a Hall, either inside or alongside

the church. But with the help of an able

church warden, we agreed to re-order the

church to provide a hall, extra meeting

rooms, loos and kitchen space in the West

End of the church. In effect we divided the

church building in half, reducing the pew

seating from 800 to 400 and reordering

some of the furniture. It was completed by

autumn 1985 and has provided a most

useful and flexible space for a variety of

uses over the years. For example, we have

hosted Holidays Clubs, Musicals, our 125th

Anniversary Party with seating for 125

5 As evidence see the Wedding Registers 1954-

current, located in the Church Safe! 6 Title of a book by Richard Giles “Re-pitching the

Tent” Canterbury Press, 1996

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people, Line Dancing, Harvest suppers,

Christmas Bazaars, Sparkalive

Celebrations, Wedding Receptions, Youth

Services and Celebrations, Sudanese

Refugees meeting with their Bishop and

regular Shared Sunday lunches and even

table tennis competitions. Free carpet from

hotels or the Classic Car Show at the NEC

have added a warm touch and a new hot-

air blower gas heating system has made it

comfortably warm to be there.

Comfortable chairs from Trinity Centre,

which closed in 2000, and from Social

Services, have also added some good

touches.

However, we have never been totally

happy with our church building and have

‘made do’ over many years. We have spent

around 10 years considering major changes

to the building, with two feasibility studies

completed (with grants from Church Urban

Fund and the Digbeth Trust) considering 7

different options in the first study and

making a detailed plan for a completely

new Church Centre in the second. At the

time of writing, the future of the church

building is still uncertain, though the

congregation has indicated a preference for

a re-build of a more flexible and simple

building.

Unity in Diversity

Another Key to the Growth of the Church

has been Unity in Diversity, helping

people to find their unity in Christ rather

than in their cultural identity. This has

been most important in the challenging

years of the 1960s up to date, as the

character of Sparkbrook has changed

again, with a majority of the community

now made up of people who have their

origins in countries with an Islamic or

Hindu majority. In the 1960s and

following, the following major ethnic

groups have relocated to Sparkbrook7 and

many other parts of Inner-City

Birmingham : Pakistani, Mirupuri,

Kashmiri, Pathan, Punjabi, Yemeni,

Syllhetti Bengali, East African Asians and

7 Figures taken from Census 1991. We are still

awaiting the results from the 2001 Census.

Indians from a variety of castes and

language groups. There was also a small

group from South East Asia, especially

Vietnam and some from China. In more

recent years, the community has received

refugees from Iran, Afghanistan, Somalia,

Sudan, Bosnia, Kosovo and a variety of

other nations, as a result of ethnic conflicts

or persecution for political or religious

reasons. Recently8, it was counted that our

congregation had members representing 21

different nationalities or language groups,

covering 4 out of 5 continents!

Equipping and releasing every member

for ministry has been another key

dimension to the growth and confidence of

the church over many generations. This

has been built into the life of the church

from the beginning, as many members

received their call to full-time ministry and

mission after some experience of such

work in the life of the church. Lay visiting,

Sunday School teaching, Bible Classes for

men and women, Housegroup leadership,

Holiday Clubs for children, Camps for

Youth, Youth Clubs, Prayer ministry,

Worship Team, and choirs… all of these

and others have provided a place for

nurture of a ministry of every believer in

the life of the church9. Such equipping and

releasing into ministry has been developed

throughout the years of the church’s life to

date. Our church has sent a number of

people into mission and ministry, both at

home and abroad. Several have gone on for

further training at Bible Colleges, on

Counselling Courses, Theological

Training, Missionary training and ended up

as vicars, pastors, missionaries, or as

committed lay members exercising a

ministry in their place of work. We have

often sent out 20% of our membership in

one year to serve God in other places, but

God has then brought new people in to

8 Count taken in June 2001 9 Evidence can be seen in the Annual Reports of the

Church to date.

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take their place. ‘In giving you receive and

in dying you are born to eternal life’10

A Clear Biblical Foundation and Vision has been another key dimension for

Church Growth. Biblical preaching and

teaching has been foundational in the life

of the church at every stage and this has

not only been from the Leadership of the

Incumbent. It has also come from a variety

of Assistant Ministers, Lay Pastors,

Missionaries and others who have come to

identify with the life and witness of the

church in Sparkbrook. Biblical expositions

and preaching on Sundays, have been

complemented by small group bible

studies and prayer taking place at a variety

of times during the week. The church has

experimented with a variety of times and

locations for such in depth application of

the teaching of God’s word. In the early

years, the church building itself was used

but in recent years, homes have been a

more appropriate (and warmer) place for

such ministry. However, several groups do

currently use the church for weekly or

fortnightly meetings, which not only focus

on biblical teaching, but also include fun,

fellowship, food, worship and friendship11.

The current mission statement of the

church has the following STRAPLINE

Vision:

“Making Sparkbrook Sparkle for

the Kingdom of God”

The deeper Vision Statement includes the

following:

1. EXALT God – through our

worship, prayer and obedience

2. EDIFY Believers – through

discipleship, biblical nurture

and training

10 A line from the Song “Make my a channel of

your peace” Songs of Fellowship 381, The Prayer

of St.Francis 11 Lunch Club for seniors has around 16 people

meeting every two weeks for lunch, exercise,

worship and a speaker or bible study and prayer.

Also a recently-formed Children’s Choir has also

around 16 people aged 7-12yrs with a few parents,

older siblings and a gran also.

3. EVANGELISE the Lost –

through obedient, loving and

sensitive witness

4. EXTEND Christ’s

Compassion to the Needy –

through loving service

These Vision Statements have been

reviewed regularly and printed in our

Church Directory each year12

Developing a Loving Community has

taken time but has not only been a question

of meetings but of sharing life, hospitality,

suffering together, serving together and

growing in friendship and trust, especially

as we have prayed together. After a few

months in Sparkbrook, we saw the need for

some of the core leadership team to have

time out away from Sparkbrook and so we

booked for Spring Harvest at Pontins in

Rhyl and later on went regularly to Butlins

in Minehead. It was good to be together on

holiday but also receiving spiritual

refreshment from these Bible

Week/Celebrations around Easter. Later

on, we discovered a superb Fruit Farm near

Ledbury, which we have booked annually

for the last 15 years, with a few exceptions,

for an annual Parish Weekend in the

country. The value of such times has been

in building up our relationships as a

Church family of all ages in a non-

threatening and relaxing environment,

away from the stresses of inner-city,

mainly Islamic Sparkbrook. Another

development, originally suggested by one

of our daughters, was to have a monthly

Family Lunch in church. So, for the last 15

years, the first Sunday of each month has

been a time when church members have

brought and shared lunch together. Visitors

have been immediately made welcome and

even some unaccompanied children have

been served, overseen by their ‘adopted

parents’ while at church. As in many

churches of our size, there is a great sense

of belonging and family and this has kept

us during the hard times. However, the

challenge has also been to continually be

open to newcomers and to their credit, the

12 Church Directory Nov.2001 p. 15

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congregation has risen to the challenge,

especially since we have sent out so many

people also over the years. We do need to

continually look outwards or we will die!

Welcoming the Ministry of the Holy

Spirit has been another Key to Growth.

Since the early 1980s, the renewal

movement within the historic

denominations, pioneered by the Fountain

Trust and taken up by Anglican Renewal

Movement and locally by the Diocesan

Renewal Group, has deeply affected the

life of the church. The prayer life, public

and private worship ministry, the ministry

of healing and use of other gifts of the

Spirit have been quietly exercised by the

members of the fellowship, but not in such

a way as to alienate or divide the

congregation. One of the significant

dimensions of the Spirit’s ministry has

been in giving direction and insight into

potential problems and conflict situations,

as Sparkbrook remains a most demanding

area in which to live, on many levels.

Many have observed that they feel a

‘spiritual oppression’ over the area and that

both prayer and witness are hard work. The

ministry of the Holy Spirit has given us

perseverance, joy and liberty in our spirits

to keep on with our worship and ministry

in this area, despite many disappointments

and discouragement. Saints Alive13 and

the Alpha Course have been two key

ways in which the ministry of the Holy

Spirit has been introduced to new believers

or enquirers. The fullness or baptism of the

Holy Spirit has been encouraged as part of

the initiation of new believers, with a

belief that some signs will follow such

ministry, that will give power to serve God

more effectively. However, on-going

renewal and refreshment in the Holy Spirit

has also been encouraged as we all run dry

at times. So, regular ministry to receive

fresh fillings of the Holy Spirit have also

been encouraged both locally and at other

13 Saints Alive, by John Finney and Felicity

Lawson, ARM 1987 & The Alpha Course,

developed by Nicky Gumbel, Holy Trinity

Brompton, 1991f.

places.14 We have learnt to worship God in

Spirit and in Truth, with an emphasis on

listening to God, being faithful to His

Word and exercising the gifts of the Spirit

as they are given, all for the mutual benefit

of believers and for the glory of God. God

has looked after us in the area of Worship

development, so often an area of tension

and conflict in churches experiencing

renewal. We inherited three excellent and

committed organists/pianists at Christ

Church. The church had already moved to

a more informal worship style and gladly

adopted Mission Praise at the time of

Mission England as the main church song

book. This was supplemented by a second

volume a few years later. But in the early

1990s, with money left in a bequest, we

purchased Songs of Fellowship and

became members of the Christian

Copyright License organisation, so that we

could legally photocopy and project on

acetate, both the words and later the music

from their material. One notable Organist

served Christ Church for 46 years

continuously. John and Dora Thomas came

in the late 1950s, led several robed choirs

in the 1960s and 1970s, but also adapted

well to the new music in the 1980s and

1990s. However, John has taken up a new

post in Billesley and continues to go from

strength to strength. Helen Collins has

served well alongside John as Deputy

Organist for many years, but has found a

new lease of life in her music ministry

since John has moved on. She has been

ably supported by a worship team of

singers and musicians, included a couple

of other younger pianists and keyboard

players. Though tempted at times to

provide different services for different

musical tastes, we have so valued our unity

in diversity that we have learned to love

each other and love the Lord. We have put

aside our own preferences in musical style

for the greater vision of unity in worship

and praise to God.

14 New Wine Conferences, Spring Harvest,

Diocesan Renewal Meetings, Soul Survivor for

youth etc.

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Our partnership with other local churches

has also been significant in this and many

other aspects of ministry and mission in

our area.

The Unity of the Churches in a Common

Vision has been another key to Growth.

The Sparkalive Movement has developed

over the last 15 years, born out of the

prayers of two ladies from the Elim

Church. They agreed together to ask God

for Him to send godly, spirit-filled

ministers to all the church in the area. With

very few exceptions, God has done this!

United Prayer and a Unity of the Churches,

especially at the leadership level, has been

a vital key to the growth and sustenance of

ALL the congregations in the ONE church

in our area15

When I came in 1984, there was an

existing “Joint Churches Action

Committee”, with participation by a few

church only in some aspects of join

mission, but mainly on the social justice

agenda. A joint Christmas Card, Carol

Singing in the Bingo Hall or streets, an

Easter Day march, co-ordinated Christian

Aid collections and a quarterly newsletter

was the limit of the activities. Two lay and

one clerical rep met quarterly to plan but

never to pray. However, there was also a

covenant drawn up between around 6

churches to always consult with each other

before taking any major initiatives in

mission. Though limited to the historic

churches16 in the area, it did not fully

represent the church in Sparkbrook and

Sparkhill and after a few years, we started

a monthly Saturday morning prayer

meeting to seek God’s way forward.

Several reps from other churches came

along and this monthly prayer meeting

continues to this day, involving at its peak

around 40 people. United prayer from

united leaders and churches has been

15 There are currently 18 congregations in the

Sparkalive Area, with a regular participation by 10

of them in united worship, witness and prayer in

our area. See further “The Sparkalive Vision” by

S. Holloway 1997 16 Four local Anglican churches, one Methodist and

one Baptist.

highlighted as a KEY component for

Social Transformation in desperate

situations all around the world.17 Parallel

to the Sparkalive Leaders’ Fraternal,

however, there has been an ongoing

“Women’s World Day of Prayer” group

meeting in our area for many years and

their commitment to partnership in prayer

has been heartening.

So, in the late 1980s, the JCAC folded but

the Sparkalive Fraternal and Prayers

expanded to embrace nearly all of the

congregations in the area. The only ones

not participating either had another

theological position or were seeking to

serve a city-wide or even national

membership. The locally-based and spirit-

filled, biblically founded congregations

and leaders shared a common vision,

though worked out in a variety of styles

and dimensions to their ministry and

mission.

Several areas of joint mission and ministry

have included the following:

Jesus Video Outreach – pioneered with

the help of Agape first of all in Sparkhill

and then with a visiting American team in

Sparkbrook, five local congregations18

have taken part in the Millennium Project

to personally deliver a copy of the Jesus

Video to households in our area. Over an

18 month period, around 3000 houses

were visited and around 800 videos given

away free of charge by teams from the

various churches. This has been an

important seed-sowing work, providing

Videos of the Life of Jesus from Luke’s

Gospel in many languages. We have been

able to purchase the videos at £1 each and

have seen this as a valuable part of our

mission to our area. Most receptive were

the areas where we had regular contacts

17 “Transformations I & II” . Video produced by

the Sentinel Group. 18 Christ Church Sparkbrook, Sparkbrook Christian

Centre (Elim), English Martyrs (RC), Ladypool

Road Congregational Church and Assemblies of the

First Born. See Christ Church Sparkbrook Annual

Report 2001

9

because of our schools work or other

aspects of ministry and service.

Sparkalive Schools Team. This ministry

has developed out of the vision of just two

church leaders in the late 1980s. Alex

Temple and Simon Holloway, serving the

local Baptist and Anglican Churches in

Sparkbrook, teamed up to start presenting

a special assembly once per term around

the theme of the major festivals –

Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. They

started in 4 local primary schools and

presented their first special Christmas

Assembly in December 1987 on the theme

“The Shepherd’s View of Christmas” by

two Shepherds. Since then, the team has

expanded to ten people and we now cover

up to 15 local schools, including Infant up

to Senior, and also visiting a Special

School regularly. Still we visit each school

once per term, but take a similar

presentation over a two week roadshow

period to the schools. There has always

been a combination of DRAMA, Visual

Talk, Interview, Song, Prayer/silence for

reflection around a theme. We have often

written our own scripts 19and developed

our own talks, but have also borrowed and

adapted ideas from elsewhere. We have

often been joined by visiting mission teams

and have benefited from the support and

encouragement of younger people who

have come to serve in Sparkbrook at

various times.20 Teachers are invited to

evaluate our presentations each time and

we have had some most positive feedback

although we have also received criticism

and encountered conflict at times, usually

from those who have a different

theological perspective.21

Open Air Ministry has been most

selective in our area but we have

19 Sparkalive Schools Team Dramas and Talks.

1987-2002 Simon Holloway. (in preparation) 20 For example – Frontline Teams in 1994/5 and

1995/6; Pastoral Assistants 1989-1998, Youth

Worker 1999/00 21 Most criticism has come from ‘Liberal

Christians’ who embrace a Universalist or

Inclusivist position towards other faiths. Secular or

Muslim staff have been always most appreciative!

experimented with a variety of ways of

witness over the years and have developed

the following regular pattern.

• Christmas Open Air Carol singing –

an hour or more of singing a mixture of

traditional carols and contemporary

worship songs22. We have

experimented with a number of venues

but have usually been in a busy

shopping centre. At the same time, a

team of church workers has been

available to talk to local people, offer

invitations to special Christmas

services or give some suitable

Christian literature in a variety of local

languages.

• Good Friday March and United

Service – With the regular support of

the Sparkhill Corp of the Salvation

Army in the planning stages, the

Sparkalive Churches have regularly

followed a variety of routes each year

to stage a Good Friday March of

Witness through the streets of

Sparkbrook and Sparkhill. In the earlier

years, we had police escort and led off

with music from a mobile PA system

attached to a car, but in the last few

years, we have provided our own

Stewards and First Aiders and

conducted a Silent March, between the

Stations, usually other local churches

en route. At these Stations, we have

raised the wooden Cross which we

have carried along the route, sang a

song, had a Bible Reading, brief talk

and prayer, before moving on. From

10.30am to 12noon we have marched

and from 12noon to 12.45pm had a

United Service, followed by

refreshments. Twelve churches were

represented in 2002 and around 150

people were on the March, with others

joining us at the Service.

• Summer Open Air Services – One of

our local churches, St.John’s Sparkhill,

22 For example using Graham Kendrick’s “Make

Way for Christmas” Make Way Music 1994 and

the Bethlehem Carol Sheet.

10

has taken the lead in organising Open

Air Services in the Summer Holidays

in Sparkhill Park, outside their church

school, without any need for obtaining

permission or electricity as we were

using church school land! Again, this

has provided another opportunity to

demonstrate Unity in Mission. Often

visiting Christian leaders from around

the world, linked to the Church

Mission Society (CMS) or other

missions have taken part. In summer

2001, we had a Romanian Orthodox

Priest, Indian Christian Leader and

Brazilian Church Leader involved. We

take seriously the vision to ‘Think

Globally and Act Locally.’23

• On the Move. For the year 2000, a

group of churches in our area

combined forces for a 10 day mission.

This was planned as a Cluster Mission

from three local Anglican Churches –

St.Edmund’s Tyseley, St.John’s

Sparkhill and Christ Church

Sparkbrook. In 1998, we booked a

team of 20 students from Trinity

College, Bristol to come and join us for

this mission at the end of June 2000.

We then discovered that a new mission

organisation called ‘On the Move’ had

been invited to lead Open Air missions

throughout Birmingham during the

SAME week, combining Open Air

worship on the streets with a Free

Barbecue in a local park. In the end we

had 6 local churches involved in the

Mission, serving hallal and veggie

burgers in Sparkhill Park for 3 days

and then in Farm Park on Saturday 24th

June, which combined with the official

Opening of Farm Park. We worshipped

and fed around 1,000 people in Farm

Park that day and the Park was blessed

by a visiting Kenyan Bishop. People

are still talking about that day.

23 Vision Statement from Church Mission Society

(CMS), Partnership House, 157 Waterloo Road,

London SE17 8UU.

Strategic Partnerships in Mission

Another Key Dimension to help with the

Growth of the Christian Community in our

area has been Partnership in Mission,

both between the local churches of

different denominations, but also with

various Mission Agencies. Some of this

partnership is of a confidential nature

because of the sensitive areas of our

mission engagement. However, we have

provided a regular cross-cultural training

location for several mission agencies.

Navigators were the first such ministry to

make use of our services, with several

imaginative training weeks for Graduates

and Undergraduates spending a week in

the Baptist Church ‘Hotel’, and working

alongside several local churches in

schools, youth, children’s and home-

visiting work. There has been established a

regular cell of Navs in our area and several

relocated to live in the area also, in

response to these missions. Operation

Mobilisation also sent us a team on

several occasions as part of their ‘Love

Europe’ mission programme and Sparkhill

has continued this longer than in

Sparkbrook, but mainly taking students

from the US. Agape24, have based their

A.I.T. (Agape International Training)

Course for 3 months in Sparkbrook and

Sparkhill, to help their mission partners

and others prepare to serve God in other

countries and cultures. After some time in

our community, such trainees have gone to

serve God in such diverse countries as

Tibet, Russia, Hungary and Nigeria. Also,

there has been a most fruitful partnership

with CMS, especially for Christ Church

Sparkbrook and St.John’s Sparkhill, but

now increasingly also with

St.Christopher’s Springfield. Since the

CMS Training College relocated to Selly

Oak from North London in the late 1960s,

there has been a regular flow of personnel

between Selly Oak and our area. Staff from

Crowther Hall, the CMS Training College,

have often preached in our churches,

24 Formerly called ‘Campus Crusade for Christ’ and

founded by Dr.Bill Bright in the US, but now with

a variety of names in different countries. In UK,

their H.Q. is based in Tyseley, Birmingham.

11

students have spent time here for 3-

12months on placement and overseas study

bursars have been placed with us also. As a

result, the churches here have been

enriched by our contacts with Christian

leaders from around the world, especially

Africa and South Asia, but CMS partners

have also been sent out from here to other

mission bases around the world. For 8

years, an imaginative project called

“Emmanuel House” the A.R.T.

Programme, was led by Varghese and

Rachel Kattapuram, experienced Indian

Mission Partners who had served God in 4

continents, from the Mar Thoma Church of

South India. Many CMS mission partners

were trained in Sparkbrook for 6months or

so, in this Action Reflection Training

(A.R.T.) programme. Our links with the

overseas church have been strengthened

and we have kept a World Vision before us

regularly. As well as support from these

mission agencies, one unique Bible

College – Birmingham Bible Institute –

has also kept up a steady flow of student

placements to our church, which has kept

us fresh, provided many of our Pastoral

Assistants25 and given us some excellent

preachers from time to time. However, this

college has now relocated from Edgbaston

to Selly Oak and no longer has the

convenient student accommodation on an

easy bus route to our church. There is also

a change in name to Birmingham Christian

College, though the vision stays mainly the

same.

Deanery and Diocese of the Anglican

Church

As an Anglican church, we have also been

part of a Deanery and Diocese, which has

brought us both blessings and challenges

over the years. In 1991, I was appointed

Dean of Bordesley and also made up to

Vicar of Christ Church Sparkbrook, having

served as Priest-in-Charge for 7 years. It

25 Steve & Catriona Foster, Phil Slater, Peter Smith,

Chris & Margaret Pickford, Stewart Mills, Alan &

Joanne Parkinson, Michael Axellson, Rajesh &

Anne-Marie David (All BBI trained and linked to

Christ Church Sparkbrook)

was a measure of confidence in the

Diocese that our church had a long-term

future when the Incumbency was restored

after many years of threat and pastoral re-

organisation. During my time in post, I

have seen the closure of several churches

in our Deanery – St.Andrew’s Bordesley

(already closed but then demolished),

St.Gregory’s and St.Oswald’s in Small

Heath, Emmanuel in Sparkbrook and

St.Bede’s in Greet. However, in two cases,

black-led churches have bought the

buildings and continued a Christian

ministry. In one case a Christian housing

association redeveloped the building and in

another a Muslim independent Primary

School took over. We have also seen

recently the closure of the Trinity Centre, a

night shelter located in our parish and it is

currently up for sale. In our increasingly

multi-faith community in the majority of

our Deanery, the number of viable parish

plants was declining and yet the need for

ministry and mission of all kinds was

increasing.

The Anglican Church in Small Heath

eventually rationalised from 3 down to 1

church plant and from 4 clergy &

assistants down to 2 clergy. However, a

valuable Stepping Stones (Family Support)

and Gilgal (Women’s Refuge) project was

established in partnership with Spurgeon’s

Child Care between several churches in

Small Heath. The re-ordering of St.Aidan’s

(now called All Saints, Small Heath) to

include a Place of Welcome and a new

Vicarage has also prepared the church to

face the new mission challenges of that

community, especially amongst the

Refugee and Asylum seekers who now

abound in our city.

Two long periods of Diocesan

Consultation have been called for over the

last 8 years – Together in Ministry and

Mission (1994-1996) and Called to a New

Kingdom (2001-2002) – in order to assess

the new Mission Map and our available

resources. At the time of writing, the latter

Consultation is still on-going. However,

with fewer people regularly attending

12

Anglican (and other) churches, there is a

need for more creative ways of reaching

new people, a challenge to train and

release more lay people into ministry and

reduce the number of full-time clergy. Our

church has also been considering this

throughout this time and experimenting

with a variety of styles, times and ways of

outreach, worship and discipleship.

In March 2002, the new Deanery of

Yardley and Bordesley was officially

launched after a 2 year engagement, as the

Deanery of Bordesley had reduced to just 6

parishes and 8 clergy. However, we were

serving a very large population of around

60,000 people and now the combined new

Deanery has 17 parishes with 130,000

people to serve! It is the most populated

deanery in the Diocese and with the largest

numbers of those of other faiths,

predominantly Muslims.

Our former Deanery and our current

Deanery both embrace a variety of

churchmanships but mainly either Anglo-

Catholic or Evangelical, with hardly any

other ‘brands’. The most helpful aspects of

our Deanery connections towards the

growth of the church locally have been

a) The appointment of a Deanery Youth

Support Worker to assist with our

youth work

b) The networking and sharing of ideas

and resources with parishes serving a

similar context, especially in the

former Bordesley Deanery, as we all

shared an Islamic context.

c) The development of a Cluster of

churches to provide clergy support and

prayer.

On the Diocesan level, it has also been a

mixture of support and challenge. The best

support from the Diocese in terms of

growth of the church locally, in my

opinion, has been the provision of lay

training course material – especially the 3-

D course, for Developing Disciples over a

30 week study course, locally led by me

for a group of 9 people. The Diocesan

Evangelical Fellowship and Diocesan

Renewal Group have, over the years,

provided some excellent one-off day

conferences, celebrations and clergy

support but they have not been regular

enough to really make much difference.

The local Sparkalive Fraternal has been

more help because it has been regular and

local.

In addition to this strategic partnership

with Mission Agencies and involvement

with other Anglican Churches, there has

also been a valuable link with other

churches in similar situations around the

City and indeed around the nation. To

share common concerns and link up for

mutual support, prayer and sharing vision,

has been vital to maintain the vision and

direction of the church over the years.

Two Networks have been especially

valuable in this respect. One has been

mainly at the Leadership Level and the

other for the Church Workers and Mission

Personnel linked to our church.

Together for Birmingham

Even before the advent of Together for

Birmingham, there was a meeting to pray

for revival in our city led by Revd. Bob

Dunnett at Birmingham Bible Institute. He

had been the Regional Prayer Co-ordinator

for Mission England in 1984 and yet every

3rd Friday night had already been fixed as a

prayer night for Revival at BBI for years

before that. Bob invited ministers to join

him for prayer and breakfast in his home

monthly on Tuesday morning for years at

7am. Such respect for this man of God

from Christian leaders of all

denominations brought many along. For a

while Alan Redpath joined in, during his

latter years of retirement before his exodus

to glory. Out of this prayer group and other

meetings grew Prayer for Birmingham

(PfB) and this opened out into Prayer for

Revival (PfR), a network of Intercessors

for the City and for the Nation. In the late

1980s, Graham Kendrick’s Musicals on the

streets – Make Way, Make Way for the

Cross, Make Way for Christmas – were

developed and performed on the streets of

Birmingham. On one occasion we circled

13

the whole of Birmingham along the Outer

Ring Road on the number 11 bus route; on

other occasions we came into the City

Centre along the main artery roads and on

yet other occasions we sang round the City

Centre and praised God in the main

squares – Victoria, Chamberlain,

Centenary Square. God was on the move

and we brought a Carnival of Praise to the

streets and parks of Birmingham over

many years. It was good also for the Body

of Christ to discover each other through

this means. In 1996, an even larger body of

Christians from all over UK descended on

Birmingham City Centre during the time of

the G8 summit at the International

Convention Centre. Around 70,000 people

encircled the ICC for the Jubilee Campaign

to Drop the Debt. This massive show of

public support to reduce or cancel the debt

of the world’s poorest countries received

also Governmental approval and has

brought many countries nearer to the stage

of being able to afford a decent health and

education system, rather than be crippled

by Debt.

So, eventually in 1992 Together for

Birminghamn (TfB) was launched as the

vision of Nick and Lois Cuthbert, leaders

of the fairly newly founded Riverside

Church in south Birmingham. They had

come to the city of Birmingham in the mid

1970s, been involved in the Jesus Centre

and then in 1984 founded Riverside,

flowing out of Moseley Alive and several

other initiatives. They had great support in

the early years from Tom Walker at

St.John’s Harborne and David MacInnes,

then the Birmingham Diocesan Missioner

and one of the City’s most prominent

Renewal leaders. Nick and Lois brought

together a dozen leaders of churches across

the city to pray and share in depth with

each other and out of this group developed

a regular quarterly meeting of Christian

leaders, from the charismatic and

evangelical wing of the church in the City.

Bob Dunnett, former Vice Principal of

BBI and Bryan Pullinger, founder of

Solihull Christian Fellowship, have been

two other key allies in this ministry, which

has also had overlaps in Pray for

Birmingham and Prayer for Revival. The

parallel tracks of Leaders’ meetings and

Intercessors’ meetings have been vital for

the progress of developing a vision for the

whole City of Birmingham. Ed Silvoso,

an Argentinean Mission Leader from

Harvest Vision,26 was invited to visit the

city on two occasions to conduct Pastors’

Seminars on “Reaching an Entire City for

Christ”27 In addition, the Challenge 2000

Conference was held in Birmingham in

1992, with Dr.Peter Wagner as the main

speaker, sharing the DAWN28 vision to the

nation and teaching on Strategic Level

Intercession, Church Planting and Church

Growth principles.

The twin aspects of the Vision Statement

of Together for Birmingham have been

“There is only one church but many

congregations. We are together so that

every person in Birmingham may have an

opportunity to hear and respond to the

good news of Jesus Christ.”29 This vision

has been translated also into our local area

and many other areas and districts around

Birmingham. However, TfB decided to

fold as an organisation in March 2001,

after 7 productive years and the vision has

now been taken up more at the local level.

In preparation for the year 2000, there was

a leaders’ prayer meeting in Committee

Room 2 of the Council House for 3.5 year

meeting at 6.30am every Friday morning.

A city-wide, ward by ward Prayer Guide

was produced and prayers were offered for

the city in the heart of the city leading up

to the Millennium. Many would see some

answers to prayer in the appointment of a

Christian Chief of Police and a succession

of Lord Mayors. Also we have seen the

26 Author of “That None Should Perish”, Ed

Silvoso 27 National Cities for God Conference Nov.1994

28 DAWN = Discipline A Whole Nation. A Church

Growth strategy of Church Planting developed

originally in the Philippines by Jim Montgomery.

See Jim Montgomery,’ DAWN 2000: 7 million

churches to go’. Highland, 1990 British Edition. 29 Agreed Vision Statement from TfB Conference

January 1994

14

agreement to erect the Flame of Hope

permanent statue in Centenary Square,

officially launched by Sir Cliff Richard on

31st December 1999, when the Flame was

lit by laser. Underneath the Flame, there is

written “Jesus Christ – the Light of the

World” a gift from the Churches of

Birmingham for the Millennium.

During the Millennium Year, there was

also a wonderful Pentecost Celebration in

Canon Hill Park, with the Web Page

Jesus4Brum.com. On that day, so many

churches and missions were gathered

together in this City Centre Park, opposite

the Edgbaston Cricket Ground and it kept

dry throughout! Christian bands from

around the city, established and

experimental, entertained the crowds from

the bandstand and the main stage. Stalls

were set up by a host of local churches and

Christian agencies. It was a wonderful

party to celebrate the Birthday of the

Church. This event ‘laid the ghost’ of the

earlier fiasco during the visit of

Bp.Desmond Tutu in 1988. On that

occasion too many events and locations

were booked, too few people attended and

there was a huge deficit in the budget of

around £50,000. This amount was

eventually underwritten largely by the

Church of England, as a former Bishop of

Aston was the chair of the planning

committee, but this Bishop consequently

resigned and took up a parish post in

another part of the country.

For the Christian Workers, the network

which has helped us most has been the

support from the Alliance of Asian

Christians and a variety of other mission

agencies which have worked together to

sponsor a succession of Conferences30,

training days31, prayer events and other

means of support. Some of this is

confidential in nature but we are thankful

30 For Example: The Rainbow Conference, summer

1999 31 For Example: Faith to Faith, based at Carrs

Lane Church Centre, who also sponsor “Faith and

Society”, a network of Muslim and Christian

leaders who meet regularly to consider issues of

faith in our Western Society

to God for the unity in mission and vision

which such contacts have brought us. Both

national Christians from a variety of

cultural and ethnic backgrounds as well as

returned Mission Partners who have served

overseas in various countries have

contributed to the rich network of

Christians working in Sparkbrook and

Sparkhill in this wonderful cross-cultural

community.

In helping to develop ministry amongst

Youth and Children in Sparkbrook, again

we have had the benefit from two major

city-wide initiatives, in which our youth

have participated at various levels.

Act One Youth Camp Ministry

In response to the Faith in the City

Report32, many projects were set up at the

local or city-wide level to address the

issues of poverty and lack of opportunity

which faced people of all ages in the inner-

city of Birmingham. Two city-wide

projects have specifically helped the youth

of Sparkbrook. First of all, a Diocesan

Youth Camps project33 was set up, at the

inspiration of the Diocesan Youth Officer

and his team, to provide a week-long

activity camp in the summer vacation for

youths aged 11-14yrs, with a leadership

team drawn as well as the ‘campers’ from

the Inner City churches. Over the last 11

years, since it started, this has developed

into a wonderful community of leaders

across the city from black and white-led

churches, Anglican and other churches also

with a regular 60 youths and 20 leaders

serving and learning and growing in faith

together. It has provided a wonderful place

for the faith to be ‘caught’ as well as

taught. There has been an amazing unity

and sense of belonging amongst the youths

32 Archbishop of Canterbury’s Report “Faith in the

City” – A Call for Action by Church and Nation ,

1985 Church House Publishing. 33 Initially called BEACON BREAK as the first

camps were located near the Beacon. It then

changed to ACT ONE and ACT TWO , camps for

11-14s and training for 14-18s. It has now changed

its name again to INSOULS and TRAINERS

(reflecting the same age-focus of 11-14s and 14-

18s)

15

and their leaders from the Inner City areas

of Birmingham, including some from

Outer Estate housing. There has been

great partnership between Black, Asian

and White leaders from a variety of

Anglican and other churches. It has been a

spiritual oasis for some, a turning point for

others, a place for spiritual growth and

opportunity to learn to lead for others.

Above all, it has been a place for HOPE in

the city and something that so many youth

have looked forward to. At the peak, we

sent 18 young people and leaders on the

Act One youth camp, though we now send

fewer to Act One or its replacement and

have been sending more to CPAS34 Falcon

camps instead.

Malachi Community Trust

Another city-wide Project which had some

initial support from the Faith in the City

fund (called the Church Urban Fund)

which was set up to help Urban Mission

projects is the Malachi Community

Trust. In the early days, it also had the

name “Christian Arts Project”, but the

earlier name of Malachi Community Trust

was already in existence as a small

committed group of musicians, dancers

and actors met regularly to explore how to

present the Christian faith into our

contemporary culture through the medium

of the Contemporary Arts. Gordon and

Lyn Lee are the founders of this ministry

which has now grown to employ a dozen

or more workers, full or part-time and

spawned other ministries including

Malachi Theatre Services and Malachi

Music. The core vision of this trust and the

name comes from the very last verse of the

Old Testament:

“He will turn the hearts of the fathers to

their children, and the hearts of the

children to their fathers, or else I will

come and strike the land with a curse.”

Malachi 4:6

34 CPAS is Church Pastoral Aid Society, based in

Warwick. The Falcon Camps are a sponsored

national programme for Inner City children and

youths from aged 8-17yrs. It started as an Anglican

home mission to support Urban Mission in the 19th

Century.

Family reconciliation ministry is at the

heart of the vision of Malachi Trust35.

Having trained with Roger Jones36 in the

1980s, Gordon developed his own vision

and style of Musicals for use in schools to

communicate biblical family values and

seek to address some of the deepest

concerns and causes of family breakdown,

truancy, teenage rebellion, youth crimes,

drug addiction and emotional crises.

Children from schools in Sparkbrook, and

especially from Christ Church School,

have taken part in many of the musical

which have grown out of this ministry.

Several times large numbers have gathered

at the National Indoor Arena for

presentations of the musicals “Days of our

Childhood” 1996 and “Led by The Star”

1999. After Premieres in the Town Hall

until it closed and then in the Symphony

Hall, the musicals have been taken to local

venues in community centres, schools and

churches all around the Midlands and on

one occasion to London. In September

2000, the Malachi Trust Choir was chosen

to represent Birmingham at their Day at

the Millennium Dome, sponsored by

Cadbury’s and Macdonald’s and

performed a part of ‘The Promise’–

looking at the Parable of the Good

Samaritan through the eyes of youths who

experience Peer Pressure.! Other musicals

that have developed are “The Journey” –

an updated version of the Prodigal Son and

their most recent musical is called “A

Friend Like You” – a ‘toybox’ musical

addressing citizenship issues. And they

have recently re-launched ‘Days of our

Childhood’37 with a fresh recording on

CD and updated dramas.

35 This is the shortened title. They can be contacted

at Crossover, 619 Bordesley Green, Bordesley

Green, Birmingham B9 5ZX Tel.0121-772-4503

E.mail: mail@malachi.org.uk 36 Roger Jones of Christian Music Ministries, who

has developed musicals for use in schools and

churches over the last 25 years. This ministry has

extended around UK and to other countries also,

especially Israel. CMM 325 Bromford Road,

Hodge Hill, Birmingham B36 8ET tel.0121-783-

3291 37 I was involved in giving the vision for this

musical when I shared with Gordon and Lyn Lee a

diagram from a book by Josh McDowell & Dick

16

One of the great values of this ministry has

been the bridge-building nature of their

work in schools and communities all

around Birmingham. Teachers, parents and

faith leaders of all persuasions have

endorsed and valued this ministry. It is

rooted in the world of young people,

sensitive to their culture, able to express

through drama, music and dance their

hopes and fears and yet at the same time

faithful to the biblical vision of the

Kingdom of God. One musician in our

church commented to me “Malachi Trust

are 5 years ahead of the trends in our

culture”. Indeed they are communicating

now to Generation Y and Z, the

Millennium and post Millennium children,

the majority of whom are born into broken

homes.

Children from Sparkbrook have taken part

in both Malachi Musicals and the Act One

youth camp programmes. These have

given them a place to develop their talents,

build their self-esteem, form positive

relationships with Christian adults in a

supportive environment and explore issues

of faith and discipleship in the context of a

loving community. Much seed has been

sown over the last 12 years or so, since

these projects have been established and

we wait to see how these children develop

in the years ahead. Ongoing prayer,

friendship, encouragement and support

will be needed to see that these young

people go on to reach their full potential.

However, some signs have been good, as

children from Christ Church School, who

took part in these musical as children, have

gone on to develop a positive self-esteem

and have made a good contribution at

Secondary schools. For example, Ezekiel38

took part as the Angel Gabriel in ‘Led by

the Star’ at the Symphony Hall and NIA.

Although he has special educational needs

and suffered from learning difficulties, his

participation in Malachi Trust musicals

AND Act One youth camps, has given him

confidence in his own abilities and he

Day called “How to be a Hero to Your Kids”,

Word Publishing 1991 p.26 38 Name has been changed to protect his identity.

obtained 8 GCSEs and is now at college

training in Music Management.

Community Involvement and

Ministry The life of the local church must never be

divorced from the context in which it is

based and throughout the time that I have

served as Incumbent of Christ Church

Sparkbrook, I have also sought to build

bridges and find ways to serve the local

community. Sparkbrook was once a well-

to-do area, as can be traced from the

historical record and even the size of some

of the existing houses. Long-standing

residents can remember the days when

there were servants in the 3-story houses in

Braithwaite and Gladstone Roads.

However, due to its close proximity to the

BSA factory, which produced armaments

during the Second World War, the area

was heavily bombed and many of the more

affluent residents moved out to the suburbs

– for example to Shirley, Dorridge,

Solihull, Sheldon and Knowle. As a result

much of the housing stock was poor and

run-down after the war, but available at a

cheap price for enterprising people. Some

whole streets had to be knocked down and

even during our time in Sparkbrook, we

have seen massive improvement in the

housing stock as Housing Associations

have rebuilt or re-ordered many houses,

sometimes twice during our 18 years.

Urban Renewal has provided grants for

some while SRB39 has done the same in

recent years. However, in the 1960s, there

was much unrest in Sparkbrook and a

famous sociological study40 was done by

Professors Rex and Moore, commenting on

the causes of some of these tensions.

Overcrowding and unemployment were

two of the causes. In response to these

problems, the Sparkbrook Association was

founded through the inspiration of two

local professionals and others. Dr.Molly

Barrow, a local GP and Revd. Jack Reed,

39 Single Regeneration Budget, replacing a number

of smaller grants like Inner City Partnership Fund

etc. 40 Rex and Moore, ‘Race, Community and

Conflict’, OUP 1967

17

the Vicar of Christ Church Sparkbrook

gave the leadership needed then to see the

building of the Sparkbrook Family Centre

and the founding of the Sparkbrook

Association. In its early days, there was an

Advice Centre and a full-time Social

Worker employed by the Association.

Birmingham Friendship Housing

Association had its beginning as part of the

Association, before branching out into

Braithwaite Road. There was a thriving

social club, discos, sports clubs, carnivals

(the first in Birmingham) and early

regeneration of Farm Park, which had been

left to the people of Sparkbrook by the

Lloyd Family. This famous banking family

once lived in Lloyd House, the Georgian

manor house in Farm Park, which had been

their garden!

When I came to Sparkbrook in January

1984, I spent several months taking stock

of the situation in the community, as well

as in the church but did nothing much in

the community until the ministry in the

church had been developed and some goals

set for development and growth. However,

in the autumn of that year, I was elected as

Chair of the Management Committee of

the Sparkbrook Association and soon

discovered that the current Warden was

embezzling the funds of the Centre, had an

alcohol problem due to uncertain health

and after a short investigation was

dismissed. For several months, I was left

‘holding the baby’ but with the support and

advice of City Council officers, the

committee appointed a new Warden,

Graham Lowther who served for a couple

of years and then as his successor Fiona

Waddell, both of whom were committed

Christians. However, with a lack of

sufficient time to do all that was necessary,

I stood down as Chair and became Vice-

Chair of the Association. We also

discovered an Insurance Salesman from

Moseley who was willing to serve in a

voluntary capacity as Treasurer, with a

local Muslim Community Worker as Chair

of the Association. This team has worked

well up to the present time, but the Centre

changed hands in the mid 1990s as the cost

of repairs to the building to make it safe

and warm were beyond our scope to deal

with. The City Council took over the

running of the Centre and the Management

Committee became an Advisory body

instead. Sir Richard Knowles, the leader

of the Council for many years, was one of

the Sparkbrook Ward Councillors and a

committed Christian himself, so we had an

ally in high places. He helped us to see

through the budget for the repairs and

refurbishment of the Centre, which now

also houses the Sparkbrook Area Office for

the Department of Leisure and Culture.

Sparkbrook Neighbourhood Forum

Devolving government down to the local

level has been very much part of the vision

of the national Government, especially

since Labour came to power, and the

development of Neighbourhood Forums

has been a part of that process in our City.

So, in 1996 a pressure group was started to

‘Make Sparkbrook Better’. We had a

series of Public Meetings over a 12 month

period to find out what the people of

Sparkbrook thought would make it better.

Then we had another series of meeting

looking at specific themes – Making

Sparkbrook Healthier, Safer, Cleaner,

Working, Schools better etc. – with invited

guests from the various disciplines and

local councillors too. Out of this

eventually was formed the Sparkbrook

Neighbourhood Forum, with three joint

chairs to start with – Asian, Afro-

Caribbean and White European. This

coincided with the success in obtaining a

£23million grant to Regenerate the

community of Sparkbrook, Sparkhill and

Tyseley over a 7 year period, to be

matched with Business and City funds. For

our area, the major foci were to improve

the Barber Trust housing and regenerate

Farm Park. The smell of money attracted

many people, however, and we found

ourselves challenged for the control of the

Forum after a short while. A slate of all

South Asian Muslim men took over control

of the Forum after its first full year but

there was a fight and chair-throwing a year

later and the Forum disintegrated into a

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slanging match. After another year,

however, the Forum became once more

representative of the whole community,

with Management Committee members

representing all sections of the community

and both genders. Currently, the Forum has

an excellent Asian lady as its chair and

there are Afro-Caribbean, White , Asian

Muslim, Hindu and Arab Muslims on the

Committee. Once again, the Forum has

responsibility for increasing sums of

Regeneration money and is about to

employ Street Wardens and Development

and Administrative officers to serve from a

dedicated Forum Base in the heart of

Sparkbrook.

After being ousted in a Coup, I was invited

back onto the Forum as a Vice Chair and

was Acting Chair for a period before the

current Management Committee was

elected. I have served mainly in the role of

Chair of the Friends of Farm Park, a sub-

group of the Forum. This group has

consulted with the Council Planning,

Architects and Parks Department over the

refurbishment of Farm Park, providing a

Farm Watch brief and also helped to plan

various Events in and around the Park,

especially during the Millennium Year.

Children from local Primary Schools

played a big part in the design of the Park

with the helpful partnership of the

Community Education workers who

brought along the children from three of

the four local Primary schools.

Sparkbrook Community Minibus

Project

Another Project which has brought

blessing and encouragement to many in the

Sparkbrook Area and beyond has been the

development of the Sparkbrook

Community Minibus Project. The vision

for this came from Keith Straker, who was

the City Council Play Leader at the Farm

Park Play Centre when I first came to

Sparkbrook. Through his work, a building

was erected in Farm Park to which

children came after school for play

activities and parents were happy to send

them there, where they could be seen. In

the day time, Save the Children held a

Playgroup in this Centre, visited on one

occasion by the Princess Royal. However,

Keith could never get hold of the City

minibuses to take children on outings or

visits to other centres. So, we set about

fund raising for our own community

Minibus in 1986 and by 1987 we had

raised £1,500 through a combination of

donations and a sale of furniture. Seven

local community groups combined to form

the Sparkbrook Community Minibus

Project – 2 local churches, 1 school, 2 Play

Centres, the Sparkbrook Association and

the Area Youth Office. The headteacher

from Christ Church School, Mr.

Warburton, applied on our behalf to

BRMB Walkathon for a new minibus and

in 1988 we received one of the 13

minibuses which they donated that year

from the proceeds of the 1987 Walkathon.

This annual fund-raising charity walk has

brought together thousands of people in

Birmingham to walk the 26.2 miles around

the Outer Circle, No. 11 bus route. After a

break for a few years, the Walkathon

continues to this day. Around 15 schools,

churches, community groups etc. have

made regular use of the 13-seater Sherpa

LDV Minibus which we obtained in 1988.

In 1996, we were donated a refurbished

Ford Transit 17-seater Minibus, again with

the help and support of the Headteacher of

Christ Church School, Ms. Hyde, from the

Trustees of the Dr.Molly Barrow Trust, a

former GP in Sparkbrook. However, at the

time of writing, both minibuses are off the

road in need of repairs and we are

considering scrapping the Sherpa but

repairing the Transit but applying again to

the Walkathon for a new minibus.

Sparkbrook Toy Fayre

One other little Project which has shown

God’s love and care to local people has

been an annual Toy Fayre in Sparkbrook

for the last 15 years. Different from other

projects which have made direct donations

of toys to needy families, this project has

sought to provide BRAND NEW or good

quality second-hand toys for purchase by

the people of Sparkbrook. In September,

we send out letters to schools and churches

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with whom we have links around the

Diocese of Birmingham, inviting them to

consider making donations of Toys or

money for the purchase of new toys. In

early December, usually after a Toy

service in churches, we collect or receive

the Second-hand toys. They are sorted,

cleaned or discarded and then stored in

Christ Church, ready for the Toy Fayre.

Invitations are sent out to families in need,

referred by local Playgroups, Nurseries,

Schools, Churches, Social Services or

Advice Centres. A team of local workers

from these same groups – Schools,

Churches, Community Centres etc. – work

as volunteers to sort the toys and serve at

the Toy Fayre. Tickets are given to each

family to purchase 1 or 2 NEW toys @ £1

or 50p each, and usually unlimited

numbers of Second-hand toys : 10p or 20p.

Books, CDs, Cassettes, Videos, Soft toys

and a few children’s clothes may also be

included. We often have suitable

Christmas music and refreshments

available at the same time and even a

bookstall of Christian books on sale or

return from Birmingham City Mission.

The money raised goes into the fund for

the next year’s Toy Fayre, after all of the

expenses have been taken out. Sometimes

local toy wholesalers will make some

donations of toys, and thank you letters are

sent out to all of the donors.

Sparkbrook Christian Election Forums

The community involvement of the

churches has also included taking the

initiative in each of the General Elections

by setting up a Christian Election Forum

for the Constituency of Sparkbrook, which

has included the Wards of Sparkhill,

Sparkbrook and Fox Hollies and more

recently also Small Heath. Roy

Hattersley and then Roger Godsiff have

served as the MPs for our area in a safe

Labour seat. However, each time we have

fielded questions to the candidates from

the major parties at these Election Forums

held at Sparkhill Methodist Church. Our

questions have focussed on specific moral

matters such as Abortion law, Euthanasia,

but also included more wide-ranging

questions about Immigration, Law and

Order, Urban Regeneration, Education,

Third World Debt and other issues facing

the local community. We have received

support in preparation from the

Evangelical Alliance and Care Trust with

their Election Forum Packs.

For many years also, we ran a ‘Keep

Sunday Special’ campaign in Sparkbrook,

with support from the Jubilee Campaign in

Cambridge. I was the co-ordinator for this

Campaign for a number of years locally.

Despite the excellent support of the local

Muslim community, the power of big

business and commercial interests

eventually prevailed and in 1995, the law

was changed to deregularise Sunday as a

special day set aside for rest, for family

and for worship. In our opinion, this action

has only continued to put more pressure on

the family as a unit in our society and

produced more stress for workers. When

we ignore the Maker’s instructions, then

we suffer the consequences as a society.

Muslim-Christian Consultations

Since 1980, there has been a regular

monthly consultation of Muslim and

Christian leaders at the Sparkbrook Islamic

Centre in Anderton Road, to meet each

other, discuss areas of mutual concern and

interest and to learn from each other’s

faith. I have been part of this group since

1984, when Revd. Edward Williams, the

local Baptist Minister and one of the co-

founders of this group, introduced me. I

have co-chaired the group with

Mr.Mohammed Afzal, the Centre Warden

and also Chair of the UK Islamic Mission.

A group of 8-12 people meet each time, a

brief paper on a topic of interest is

presented and then responded to by those

present. We are given excellent hospitality

by our hosts and guests often bring some

fruit or juice. Recent topics we have

discussed have been:

“Life after Death – the message

of Easter” by Revd. Dr. Andrew Kirk

“Pilgrimage – the message of

Haj” by Mr. Kurram Bashir

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“Current Issues in Education”

by Mr. Peter Courts, Conway Primary

School and “Education in Islam”

We have recently also been visited by a

team of seven leaders from Wiesbaden in

Germany, who came to Birmingham to

learn from our experience of partnership

between the cultures and faiths in our city.

In this group, we have formed deep and

lasting friendships of trust and so have

been able to discuss and debate many of

the thorny issues of doctrine and belief

which separate the Muslim and Christian

faiths. We have also been able to air our

concerns over world events, where our two

faith communities have been in conflict.

But also, we have found a measure of

agreement in our concern over the

increasing secularisation of Western

Society, with the effect that this has on all

of our members and especially our young

people. On a number of moral and ethical

matters there has been complete agreement

– the sanctity of life, family cohesion,

environmental and genetic concerns, for

example.

However, the challenge exists now to bring

this level of trust and friendship to a new

generation of younger Christian and

Muslim leaders. Many younger Muslim

leaders will have the advantage of being

more confident and fluent in the English

language and also more familiar with

Western culture and education. In an

increasingly Post-modern world, both

Muslim and Christian faiths are being

challenged. Both faith therefore need to

find ways to positively engage with those

who have been discipled by Western

secular humanism and communicate their

faith in a way that can be understood and

appropriated those who are seeking God

for themselves.

In conclusion, what has made such a

difference over all of these years and with

the many strands of ministry and mission

in Sparkrook has been the commitment and

love of a supportive family, without whom

none of the above could have been

possible. It has sometimes been a struggle

to keep the right balance between personal,

family, church and community

commitments. I have often been

overstretched but God has been faithful

and kept me going during the hard and dry

times and stressful times. There has been

and still is a great sense of love and

friendship in the community of Sparkbrook

amongst people of all faiths and none.

Many people have problems, but then we

all have some burdens and stresses to bear.

It is just ‘different strokes for different

folks’. Because we all share in the

common challenges of living in

Sparkbrook, we come together on the basis

of our common humanity first and see the

divine spark in each person, as everyone is

made in the image of God and is a

beautiful, special person. In Christ,

however, we can become NEW people,

members of God’s own family, children of

a heavenly father and empowered by His

Spirit to be children of a New Kingdom,

which cannot be shaken and which does

last forever.

It is my conviction and prayer that in the

years ahead we shall see Sparkbrook

Sparkle even more for the Kingdom of

God!

Simon Holloway

Christ Church Sparkbrook

May 2002

E.mail: holloway.sparkbrook@charis.co.uk