District News – 11 July 2023

This Week's News

The Methodist Conference

The Conference Business Digest summarises in brief the key decisions of the Conference. You can download a copy here: Conference Digest
Michelle Deans was one of the ordinands – you can read her reflections of the day here: https://www.methodist.org.uk/about-us/news/the-methodist-blog/michelle-deans-a-reflection-on-my-ordination-day

Line Management Training

Are you a new line manager or an existing line manager that wants to revisit the basics?

Line Management Training is designed for any new or existing line manager. This one-day offering covers the basics of line management, including management styles and models, key skills and the the employment cycle. Participants will join colleagues from across the Connexion at this online training day. The minimum number to deliver this training is 12. We will confirm your place when the booking closes.
There are a number of dates available, but do book early as places are limited!
https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/line-management-training-555609

Lay Orientation

A day for new Lay Employees to meet, explore their role, understand Methodism and get to grips with key employment practices and much more!

There are two dates available in September and October 2023
Book here: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/lay-orientation-2345719

Lay Leadership Skills

A day exploring leadership skills for lay people working in the Methodist Church.

We'll be exploring the themes of: leadership styles , leadership skills, leading meetings, managing volunteers , encouraging participation and team and group dynamics.
Wednesday 7 February 2024 from 10am. Book your place here: Lay Leadership

District vacancies

There are a number of District Roles which have (or are about to) become vacant.

Manses Committee Secretary (volunteer position)

We are looking for a new Manses Committee Secretary to work within the Sheffield Methodist District.

• Have you got great organisational skills?
• Do you enjoy writing reports?
• Are you able to lead a group of people?

If so this role could be for you.
More details can be found here: https://www.sheffieldmethodist.org/recruitment/vacancies/manse-committee-secretary.html

Lay Stationing Representative

We are looking for a new Lay Stationing Representative to work within the Sheffield Methodist District from August 2024.

• Have you for an interest in people and their situations?
• Are you a good listener and do you have a genuine concern about presbyters and deacons fulfil their calling and reach their potential in the right "station"?

If so – this role could be for you. https://www.sheffieldmethodist.org/recruitment/vacancies/lay-stationing-representative.html

Events

Yorkshire Churches Day

Saturday 16 September

Yorkshire Churches Day (YCD) is a chance for every place of worship in the county to open up and showcase the amazing history and heritage found inside their buildings.
It is a day to tell stories and bring to life the variety, beauty, history and sheer wonder of Yorkshire's churches, chapels and places of worship. The aim of the day is to encourage everyone to visit their local church even if they have never stepped foot inside a church before. It will be a day for those who are curious about history and heritage of their local surroundings.
This year we are running YCD in partnership with Heritage Open Days (HOD). This is England's largest festival of history and culture, when thousands of people come together to celebrate their heritage, community and history.
To register, visit the Heritage Open Days website and add details of your church, stating you are opening for Yorkshire Churches Day. The deadline for entry is August 10 2023. Full details on how to register and advice on fundraising events and how to attract publicity can be found on our website. https://www.yhct.org.uk/yorkshire-churches-day/

Appreciating Church conference

Saturday 30 September

Appreciating Church is running a conference on 30th September 2023, with a theme of "Appreciating the tough stuff". It will be a day full of inspiration and wisdom from AI practitioners, including speakers and interactive workshops. It will be a hybrid conference, with an online (Zoom) and onsite (Priory Rooms, Birmingham) conference running in parallel. Much thought has been given to the hybrid nature of this conference, and will be tailored, separately, to both parties of attendees.
The cost of either conference is £100 until 30th June (so get bookings in quickly!), £130 after that.
Visit https://appreciating.church/appreciating-church-conference-saturday-30th-september-bookings-open/

Regional Retreat

The next Regional Retreat for Ministers and Lay Employees within the Methodist Church will be on 14-16 November at The Briery, Ilkely.
The theme is Creative Journeying and will be led by Donna Worthington. Donna is an experienced retreat giver trained in Ignatian spiritual direction, labyrinth walking and storytelling. She studied Theology at Cambridge, and completed an MPhil at Manchester University. She has written several plays, two of which explored the Lindisfarne Gospels, and Christian contemplative prayer. She has led retreats and workshops examining the Gospels through theatre, dream-prayer and dance-prayer.

• We'll seek to deepen our spirituality, explore different ways of praying, and discover our journey with the divine.
• We'll connect Scripture, nature and creative writing with personal reflection and prayer.
• We'll explore the dreams we carry, aided by the artist Van Gogh. and we'll seek to be held by God just as we hold others.

To book online via EventBrite https://231114CreativeJourney.eventbrite.co.uk Deadline – 12 September (for viability)

Urban Theology Union

Certificate in Theology and Discipleship for Mission 2023-2024

Join our 23-24 Cohort for the CTDM to participate in

• scholarly readings of Mark's Jesus movement led by the founder of UTU, Rev'd Dr. John Vincent
• sharing of stories in faith journey, evolution, change and discovery
• perspective building through liberation theologians, including Black liberation and Indigenous theologians.
• gain insight from guest speakers who are embedded in mission provide practical insight into what works,
• how to adapt, and how to flourish as a Kingdom Community.
• Our 15-sessions culminate in student led plans for local mission.

ENROLLING NOW!
https://utusheffield.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/CTDM-23-24-Flyer-Form.pdf

Other News

Action for Children

Host your own Boycott Your Bed this autumn

Right now, over 4 million children live in poverty across the UK. That's almost 30% of all children. And with the impact of the cost of living crisis hitting home, they're even more vulnerable. Tonight, many will go to sleep hungry. Some won't even have a warm bed to climb into or a safe space to wake up in.
We're a vital lifeline, but we can't do it without you.
Together, we can make sure children have the basics like warm clothes, hot meals and a proper bed. We can help them recover from abuse and neglect, and put support in place for families to protect against it happening, too. And we can offer the right mental health support, so children thrive.

How to get involved
People across the country will be giving up their bed for the night and attending a Boycott your Bed Live event. But if you can't make one of our in-person events, you can still get involved with the fun!
All you need to do is sign up, get a team together, raise funds and give up your bed for a night.
Maybe members of your local congregation would be able to join together or work colleagues? Further details and our registration form can be found here.

Where is child poverty increasing in the UK?

The End Child Poverty Coalition (of which Action for Children is a part) has published new detailed local child poverty data up to 2021/22.
It shows that the withdrawal of the £20 increase in Universal Credit in October 2021, followed by the onset of a major cost of living crisis, has resulted in the return of near pre-pandemic child poverty levels. Read more about which areas of the country are affected worst and how you can make a difference, in our blog here .

Stephenson's Awards

The Stephenson Awards recognise and celebrate our incredible staff colleagues, volunteers, foster carers and supporters who are there for children, young people and families – as well as the remarkable achievements of young people and their families themselves. This year we were delighted to welcome as a judge, the Revd Rachel Parkinson, Chair of the Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury District.
The awards are named after our founder, the Revd Thomas Bowman Stephenson, and were held in London, hosted by Angela Rippon CBE.
We send congratulations to one of the winners, Margaret Hobbs (Home Collection Secretary of Wellingborough Methodist Church) who has been collecting for Action for Children for more than 70 years. Margaret has organised a huge number of fundraisers down the years including three-legged races, cake stalls and in-store collections.
Thank you to all our supporters for the amazing dedication you show to the work of our charity, helping to secure safe and happy childhoods for thousands of young people each year.

Urban Theology Union

Catch up with UTU, including Revd Dr Rob Hoch's conversation with Dr. Anthony Reddie, Director of the Oxford Centre for Religion and Culture in Regent's Park College, University of Oxford, and author of Is God Colour Blind?
UTU Newsletter 3 July 2023

And finally ...

From the Methodist Prayer Handbook

Ever loving, ever loyal, everlasting God,
You are the source of all our loving,
you are indescribable beauty,
you are life itself.

Drawing close to you,we are fed,
drawing close to you, we are shown what love really is,
drawing close to you, we are given food to feed others.

May we draw ever closer to you, the source, with joy, with energy, with intent,
for only by experiencing your love can we love your creation,
only by touching your heart can we find heart for others,
only by feeling your closeness can we draw close to those who are lost.

In the security of your love, enable us to love this broken world.
Amen
Sally Jones,
probationer presbyter, South Warwickshire Circuit