WELCOME TO ST MARY THE VIRGIN, GARFORTH Marys... · Dumouchel [s patisserie, which is very popular … and within easy walking distance of the Rectory! St Mary’s, ... excellent

WELCOME TO

ST MARY THE VIRGIN, GARFORTH

Our mission statement:

To know God, to show God, to share God ...

… and spread the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

St Mary’s, Garforth: Parish Brochure Page 1 of 19

SStt MMaarryy’’ss,, GGaarrffoorrtthh??

WWhheerree oonn eeaarrtthh iiss tthhaatt??

IItt’’ss iinn WWeesstt YYoorrkksshhiirree..

OOhh,, tthhaatt’’ss tthhee ppllaaccee wwhheerree

tthheeyy aallll ddrriinnkk tteeaa,, eeaatt ppuuddss,,

wweeaarr ffllaatt ccaappss aanndd ssppeeaakk

ffuunnnnyy??

WWeellll iitt mmaayy bbee,, bbuutt jjuusstt wwaaiitt uunnttiill

yyoouu sseeee eevveerryytthhiinngg oouurr wwoonnddeerrffuull

ppaarriisshh hhaass ttoo ooffffeerr.. BBeessiiddeess,, wwhheenn iitt

ccoommeess ttoo GGoodd,, wwee aallll ssppeeaakk tthhee

ssaammee llaanngguuaaggee aannyywwaayy..

HHooww vveerryy ttrruuee.. II’’mm

iinnttrriigguueedd.. TTeellll mmee mmoorree......


Garforth is a small town on the

edge of Leeds, with a bustling Main

Street and excellent transport links.

There's lots happening here for all

ages, from the very young to the

young at heart!

We have outstanding schools,

lovely parks, independent coffee

shops ... and even a micro brewery.

Our experienced and friendly team

includes three Readers, two

Churchwardens, a Verger, a

Director of Music and full

complement of PCC officers.

We are all ages from 0 up to 90+,

with everyone being valued and

playing an important role in our

church.

We are a warm, welcoming

congregation who get involved at St

Mary's in a variety of ways.

WWhhyy......?? St Mary's is well attended, with 70

- 80 worshippers at 10am services,

but we've got plenty of space to

welcome newcomers into the fold.

We’d love you to help us grow.

We have strong traditions and

plenty of new ideas for the future

... and we're very open to your

vision too.

St Mary's is a beautiful, lovingly

cared for building. You won't need

to worry too much about leaking

roofs or broken boilers here!

WWhhoo......??

WWhheerree......??


We are looking for a new priest who will help and encourage us to grow as disciples of Jesus,

reach out to all the people within our community, and lead our church into growth by:

Working collaboratively within the church and with Churches Together in Garforth,

and being a visible presence in the community life of Garforth.

Continuing the excellent work and traditions of St Mary’s, whilst being willing to

develop and encourage new initiatives and styles of worship.

Committing to pastoral care both within the church and our local community.

Building on all the good work already taking place at St Mary’s as well as moving

forward to meet the future challenges.

Effective preaching, teaching and leading that encourages, challenges and inspires

us.

Supporting the use of our website and social media to spread the good news of Jesus

Christ within our community.

Yes! St Mary’s offers:

A well-maintained and re-ordered church, with an excellent, well-used Parish Centre.

A strong team of three Readers and skilled lay support staff committed to the

church’s mission and aims for the future.

A dedicated team of volunteers working in all areas of church life.

A warm and welcoming church community who are looking forward to greeting their

new priest.

A friendly and popular place to live and work that has very good schools, shopping

facilities and excellent road and rail links.

A large 1960s four bedroomed detached Rectory that provides excellent

accommodation set within large gardens, mainly laid to lawn.

Undisturbed days off and holidays!

Payment of reasonable monthly expenses in full.

CCoouulldd II bbee tthhee rriigghhtt

pprriieesstt ffoorr yyoouu??

...... aanndd wwoouulldd II bbee aabbllee ttoo

sseerrvvee GGoodd eeffffeeccttiivveellyy hheerree??


Parish boundaries map.

Garforth is a small town on the outskirts of Leeds, with a population of 16,000 and rising.

It’s a relatively affluent area with 80% of residents owning their own home.

COMMUNITY

Garforth has a real sense of community, with lots of popular events (such as the annual

Lions Gala in the summer and the Christmas lights switch-on) – and a warm and friendly

welcome for newcomers.

Residents are of all ages: there are plenty of families with children, working couples, and

also quite a number of older people, with several nursing homes, sheltered accommodation,

and a retirement park on Garforth Cliff.

We have a wide variety of clubs, groups and organisations. There is Garforth Town AFC, two

cricket clubs, a bowling club, and a Badminton centre. In addition, there are numerous

amateur sports teams for children and adults.

TTeellll mmee mmoorree aabboouutt

yyoouurr PPaarriisshh..


TRANSPORT

Garforth is very well connected by both road and rail. We have two train stations (Garforth

and East Garforth), with half-hourly trains to Leeds and York, as well as direct rail links to

Manchester, Newcastle, Liverpool and Blackpool.

It’s just a few minutes’ drive to the A1(M) and M1, and the M62 is only a little further.

Buses run frequently into Leeds, and to nearby villages.

CHURCHES

Garforth has six churches: St Mary’s and Garforth Methodist are on Church Lane; Garforth

Evangelical is at the top of Main Street and St Benedict’s Roman Catholic Church is by

Garforth Train Station. Dayspring Baptist Church meet in the library and Shekinah Glory

Ministries meet at the Holiday Inn Hotel.

SCHOOLS AND CHILDREN

Garforth is a great place for families. All five primary schools in Garforth are Ofsted-rated

Good or Outstanding; the secondary school, Garforth Academy, is also rated Outstanding.

There is also SLP College of Dance, a further education college.

There are three parks/playgrounds in Garforth – Glebelands, Firthfields and Barley Hill.

Glebelands has a skateboard park and outdoor public exercise equipment, and Barley Hill

has tennis courts and bowling greens. All three have excellent, modern playgrounds suitable

for children aged 0 -12.

Garforth also has two soft play centres: Megaplay and Monkey Maze.

INDUSTRY AND SHOPS

Ginetta Cars is based in Garforth, at the industrial park on Isabella Road, along with a range

of other light industry.

Our thriving Main Street has a wide range of shops – including bakeries, two greengrocers, a

butchers, a DIY store (Pease of Garforth), and a cobbler’s – plus some lovely independent

cafes. Like most towns and villages, we also have a number of chain shops, including a large

Tesco near Garforth’s main Train Station. Further out from the centre of Garforth, we have

Dumouchel’s patisserie, which is very popular … and within easy walking distance of the

Rectory!


THE CHURCH AND ITS PEOPLE

We have a friendly and welcoming congregation at both our 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. services. St

Mary’s three Readers and two Church Wardens are assisted by Deputy Wardens and a

committed team of dedicated volunteers in all areas of church life. As you might well

imagine, there are lots of rotas! Our Verger manages all the bookings for our Parish Centre

which is very well used by the church and by the community.

St Mary’s PCC is quite large with a membership of 21 people who meet six times a year.

There are smaller “Task Groups” who meet to consider issues of Fabric & Maintenance,

Finance, and to organise Social and Fundraising events, reporting back to the main PCC. We

have a full complement of PCC officers.

We also have a talented team of Flower Arrangers who work hard to ensure that there are

lovely displays of flowers in church each week. They excel themselves at Easter, Harvest and

Christmas, and of course at weddings.

We have a strong Mothers’ Union branch which holds both afternoon and evening meetings

so that people who are working during the daytime can still be active members and enjoy

the friendship and fellowship MU offers.

The Electoral Roll, as of April 2017, numbers 94 people, 12 of whom live outside the parish

(but still like to worship at St Mary’s and who can blame them)!

WWhhaatt ddoo II nneeeedd ttoo kknnooww

aabboouutt SStt MMaarryy’’ss??


WORSHIP PATTERNS

Weekly Services

Sundays:

8.00am: Communion Service (said) with a sermon. Average attendance about 12 people.

10.00am: Communion Service with hymns, choir anthem, and parts of the Eucharist sung:

Gloria, Sanctus, Agnus Dei. Average attendance is 70 to 80 people. There is a four bell peal

beforehand.

Wednesdays:

9.30am: Communion Service (said)

Other Regular Services

Sundays:

3.00pm (every 2 months): Stepping Stones, with Café style worship lead by Readers and

supported by Music Group

3.00pm (every 4 months): Memorial Service

3.00pm (every 3 months): Messy Church (with Churches Together in Garforth, hosting

rotating monthly); held at St Mary’s 4 times a year.

Thursdays:

1.30pm (fortnightly): Play and Pray, for pre-school children and parents/carers

The churchmanship at St Mary’s is central. We have a robed choir and full Eucharistic

Vestments worn.

Annual Services

Easter: Stations of the Cross

Harvest: Family Communion

Remembrance Sunday (the war memorial is currently situated inside the church)

Advent/Christmas: Christingle; Carols by Candlelight; Crib Service 4pm Christmas Eve;

Christmas Day services at 8am and 10am.


The Christingle Service and Crib Service


MUSIC

At St Mary’s, we are proud of our strong musical tradition and realise the fundamental

importance of music in worship.

Our Director of Music/Organist is a highly qualified professional musician and leads our

excellent robed 21 strong SATB choir. We have a large, enthusiastic Junior Choir (age 6+)

who rehearse weekly and sing at significant services, promoting strong links with our

Primary schools from where the children are recruited. One young Junior Choir member

wrote that, “You inspire me to sing clearly and loudly ... best choir teacher ever.”

We use the Patrick Appleford Communion setting and hymns from Common Praise. In

addition we have a Song Book, with songs/hymns from various sources: this is used at

Stepping Stones services and occasional Eucharist services.

We also have an enthusiastic music group (above) who play and sing during our “Stepping

Stones” café style services and other events.


CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

As well as Junior Choir, we have “Sunday Club” for age 3+ and a crèche area in church for 0 –

3s, both during the 10am service. There are regularly about 8 children in Sunday Club and 2

or 3 children in the crèche. Sunday Club normally have a craft activity and a Bible story, and

sometimes do other activities such as baking.

Play & Pray, for under 5s and their parents/carers, meets fortnightly on Thursday afternoons

at 1.30pm. It includes a short child-focused service followed by colouring, playing and

refreshments, and brings in several families who do not otherwise attend St Mary’s.

Our pamphlet Children at St Mary’s gives details about the activities on offer and what we

do to safeguard children at church.

SAFEGUARDING

We have embraced the Church of England ideal that ‘safeguarding is everyone’s business’,

and ensure that all people from St Mary’s who work with children, or adults who may be

vulnerable, have a current DBS check.

We have also completed risk assessments for our work with both children and adults and

introduced “Safe Recruitment”.


DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES AT ST MARY’S

We have a variety of social groups, including:

Mothers Union (twice a month)

Craft Group (fortnightly)

Drop in for a cuppa (weekly)

Our other social activities include quiz nights, murder mystery evenings, music concerts, and

the Autumn and Spring Fayres.

Kippax Brass Band

Other groups that use the Parish Centre include Yoga, Line Dancing, NET Extend classes,

Children’s Drama Groups, Baby Ballet, Lace making.

We have weekly evening Bible Study groups led by Readers; in Advent and Lent, we hold

additional Bible Studies, including both afternoon and evening sessions.

THE SPIRE MAGAZINE

We produce a free quarterly magazine, The Spire. (We welcome

donations to cover the cost of printing.) Copies are available all

around Garforth – in the library, some schools, care homes,

estate agents, coffee shops, and indoor play facilities. Some

local businesses advertise in the magazine. Charlie the Church

Mouse normally makes an appearance too!


THE CHURCH AND ITS FINANCES

We have been able to pay our parish share in full for the period 2009 – 2016 and still

managed to re-order the church and maintain the fabric of the buildings; quite an

achievement! Of course, each year is a challenge but income from fees for occasional

offices, parish centre lettings and fund-raising all help.

2017 proved to be especially challenging with an increase in share of £10,000 over 2016 to

£78,570. We made great efforts to pay as much of the 2017 share as we could and

committed to paying £70,000 of the £78,570 requested; and we have managed to pay the

£70,000. Our parish share for 2018 has decreased slightly to £76,563.

We have an annual review of stewardship giving every July, involving a sermon on reviewing

our giving and a leaflet that uses the financial information for the first six months of the

year.

The church is a registered charity and all members of the PCC are trustees. Our charity

number is 1130765.

THE CHURCH AND ITS BUILDINGS

Our church is a beautiful and striking building, and the Early Gothic architecture is unusual in

this district – our church was built in the cruciform style with a 120ft spire that is visible for

miles around, and which can be floodlit for special occasions and anniversaries.

A substantial re-ordering of the church took place in the early part of 2014. Improvements

were made to the heating and sound systems, and the introduction of a dais and ramp

greatly increased the sight lines and disabled access. A new central heating boiler was

installed in 2017. Both the church and the Parish Centre are very well cared for and are a

valuable resource for the parish.


The present parish church is possibly the fourth to be built here, and evidence exists of a

church on the present site from the 12th century. Most of the cost for building was paid by

the Gascoigne family of Parlington Hall, who were Lords of the Manor, and there are

references to the Gascoigne’s within the stained glass windows. The church was

consecrated on November 14th 1845 by the first Bishop of Ripon, Dr. Charles Thomas

Longley, and has several examples of “Mouseman” furniture.

The Church is currently open Monday to Thursday from 9am to 3pm and Fridays 9am to

12noon for anyone wishing to pray or light a candle.

OUR HISTORIC ORGAN

We were delighted when our Isaac Abbott two manual Pipe organ, built in 1873, was

recently identified as an important example of our organ heritage and was awarded an

Historic Organ Certificate Grade 2*. The organ has been well maintained over the years –

and if funds are needed for future work, its new status means it could be eligible for special

grants.

OUR SPECIAL BELLS

Our four bells are housed at the top of the spire

with a ringing chamber positioned underneath.

Rather than the ropes being attached to the

actual bells, they are attached to the clapper,

with the ropes feeding down into the ringing

chamber and being held in a frame mechanism.

This enables all the bells to be rung by a single

bell ringer!


OUR PARISH CENTRE

The Parish Centre is connected to the church through a link into the crèche area, and is an

excellent resource for the whole parish. It

was consecrated by the Bishop of Ripon at a

special service on the 23rd November 1997.

The Parish Centre is well used by various

groups – Sunday Club, Lace Makers, Yoga,

Line Dancing, Drama and Ballet – and is an

excellent resource for St Mary’s.

THE RECTORY

The Rectory is situated to the rear of the Parish Centre and is accessed via Croft Foulds

Court which runs to the west of the Church. It is a large four bedroomed house with an

enclosed private rear garden, mainly laid to lawn, and patio area. The house is well-

maintained with good carpets throughout and provides excellent accommodation.


SCHOOLS

We have established good relationships with all the primary schools in Garforth by

attending assemblies and holding Harvest and Nativity services in church for the schools to

bring their pupils to during the week. We are also in contact with the local high school and,

until recently, helped support a Faith in Schools worker.

CARING FOR THE SICK AND ELDERLY

We hold services each month at the six Residential Care/Nursing homes in the parish and

also at local sheltered housing complexes. We also have a Pastoral team whose members

visit people who are long-term sick and particularly those who are housebound and no

longer able to come to church. The team will also visit anyone who is newly bereaved and

has been referred to them by the clergy.

WEEKDAY CHURCH GROUPS

Children:

We have a fortnightly Play and Pray group for pre-school children and their carers. This has

been running for many years and has brought several families into church during that time.

Junior Choir currently has over 40 members who meet weekly to practice after school on

Wednesday afternoons during term time. They are also an important part of our outreach,

singing at schools and care homes. For some of the children it is their first experience of

church, and when they sing at services their parents come to hear them, and it is often the

only contact they too have had with church.

Adults:

We have an active Mothers Union and there are two groups – they both meet monthly, one

in an afternoon and one in an evening.

There is a fortnightly Craft Group – who craft and chat!

“Drop in for Cuppa” on Friday mornings started as a fundraising event but has become part

of our outreach as it is attended by adults with learning disabilities from a local day centre.

We hold fundraising and social events in our Parish Centre and it is also very well used by

lots of other local groups.

HHooww ddoo yyoouu ggeett iinnvvoollvveedd iinn tthhee

llooccaall ccoommmmuunniittyy??


OCCASIONAL OFFICES AT ST MARY’S

Occasional offices are an important part of mission within our community. Many local

people still think of St. Mary’s as their church even though they don’t attend Sunday

services.

Baptisms: are held on the second and fourth Sundays of the month at 12.15, and

occasionally within the 10am service. There are regularly two infants at each service. It can

be quieter around Christmas and the New Year. We have a rota for the organist/keyboard

player and there are always at least two members of the congregation on hand to welcome

parents and visitors into church. We have a team of people who visit the family on behalf of

the church prior to the Baptism.

Funerals: St Mary’s is a busy church as far as funerals are concerned. We pride ourselves on

doing the very best we can as a last act for the departed. Last year, we had 57 services in

church and 39 at Crematoria. In Church, the organ is always available and we have a Verger

who will get the church ready and see to the music if CDs are to be played.

Weddings: These can vary in number from year to year. In a really good year we have had as

many as twenty two, but generally it is about five or six. Couples are provided with the

option of having the choir, bells and flowers arranged by our Flower Arranging team. We

always go out of our way to make the Church warm and welcoming on what is a very special

day in every couple’s life.


The Diocese of Leeds is very large and has five episcopal

areas. St Mary’s Church, Garforth is in the Whitkirk

Deanery which is part of the Leeds episcopal area.

The diocesan vision and mission is “to equip confident

clergy to enable confident Christians to tell the good news

of Jesus Christ throughout the diocese – Loving, Living and

Learning”. We at St Mary’s communicate this mission as:

to know God, to show God, to share God … and to spread

the good news about our Lord Jesus Christ.

We have been signatories to the Anglican / Methodist

Covenant since 2012.

CHURCHES TOGETHER IN GARFORTH (CTIG)

We are active participants and supporters of Churches Together in Garforth (CTIG) which

also includes St Benedict’s RC Church, Dayspring Baptist Church, Garforth Evangelical Church

and Garforth Methodist Church.

The ministers/leaders at St. Mary’s, St Benedict’s, Dayspring and the Methodist Church

regularly meet to pray, discuss issues affecting our community and plan future ecumenical

events such as Lent Study Groups, Lent Lunches and Good Friday Walk of Witness. We also

hold some joint services – e.g. One World Week and Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

Messy Church is an ecumenical “fresh expression” of church which is part of CTIG and is

actively supported by all the Garforth churches except St Benedict’s. We have a monthly

Messy Church event with between 40 and 60 people attending – children and their careers.

It is held at a different church each month and working together as a team has helped us to

get to know each other better and enabled us to form new friendships.

CTIG hold monthly faith lunches at St Benedict’s with prayers and perhaps a short talk or

Bible reading. We also send a joint Christmas card to every home in Garforth detailing the

Christmas services and events being held at each church. We have a CTIG Messy Church

stand at the Garforth Gala and Christmas Lights switch-on event.

CTIG is a very important part of Christian ministry in our community and holds a party in

January each year for elderly people within our community. CTIG also actively support the

Methodist Church, which provides a night shelter for one week for destitute asylum seekers

within the Leeds area.

WWhhaatt aabboouutt tthhee wwiiddeerr ccoonntteexxtt –– tthhee

DDiioocceessee aanndd ootthheerr llooccaall cchhuurrcchheess??


AAppppeennddiixx

St Mary’s Garforth Statistical information for 2016

Attendance at worship in each church

Service Time No of Communicants

Adult Attendance Under 16

Sunday Said Communion

08.00hrs 12 12 0

Sunday Sung Communion

10.00hrs 90 95 13

Wednesday Said Communion

09.30hrs 11 11 0

Occasional Offices (2016 figures)

Baptisms Confirmees Weddings Funerals held in church

Funerals taken by clergy not in

church

31

0 * 8 57 39

* Confirmations typically take place every two years. Nine members of St Mary’s were

confirmed in 2017.

Worshipping Community

Adults (Age 70+) 46

Adults (Age 18-69) 49

Young People (Age 11-17) 3

Children (Age 0-10) 10

Total 108


MMaappss ooff tthhee DDiioocceessee

Documents

WELCOME TO ST MARY THE VIRGIN, GARFORTH Marys... · Dumouchel [s patisserie, which is very popular … and within easy walking distance of the Rectory! St Mary’s, ... excellent