Author: Anthony Rossiter

1. Welcome prayer

2. Apologies: Phil, Jackie, Stephen.

Present: Nick Neal (Chair), Anthony Rossiter (Secretary), Fr Kevin, Belinda Barber, Mike Campbell, Ann Shepherd, Clare Byrne.

3. Big picture: A small group has been doing a trial; it is going well. It has been challenging for members but worthwhile and developmental. This small group is planning for a roll out to the parish after Easter on Monday evenings; currently publicised in newsletter with April 27 start (this might be delayed due to coronovirus issues). The current group is mostly female and so they would like more males. The  course involves doing some Bible readings and reflections each day and meeting once a week to share and discuss.

It is cheaper to buy the required book via the Parish who moreover can get on sale or return. It was agreed that initially the Parish would subsidise/purchase so people are not put off from participating. We could ask for contributions later.

We also intend to advertise in partner parishes (St Williams, St Vincent’s and Sacred Heart). On a related note, Greg Ryan also offered to come and give a talk to Parish at some point, for example, how to get started with the Bible?

4. Lindsay Graduated in the summer. She and other graduates are meeting regularly and planning on how they can support each other use this to contribute to parish life.

5. The troublesome trees have come down and cost £3000. However, this has opened up the front nicely. Moreover, we had a thank you from neighbour for clearing the back of lots of trees as this has improved their light.

6. We have heard nothing about the dangerous wall. It is owned by neighbour so it is their responsibility. However, lots of overgrown ivy has been removed.

7. The cupboard in the hall is getting too full or messy and so needs tidying. Clare thinks it is on Geraldine’s list, while she is helping Father Kevin with the office so no action was decided for now.

8. There was a request from care in Crosspool for some cash support, £1500. They offer support, visits, respite and so forth within the Crosspool region. The feeling was we should be supporting local charities, but perhaps the amount was large. Consensus was to propose £1000. We will ask the finance committee to sort out.

9. The dance club performers want a Sunday matinee so they do not have to do 2 performances on a Saturday. Apart from the need to avoid lent, there were no substantive objections but a mild concern that it would be harder to open screens if needed for Sunday morning mass.

10. The AGM is Tues May 11 at 7.30pm. Council members were reminded of the need to provide reports for their responsibility areas (to Nick in plenty of time for printing).  Clare and Anthony are reaching the end of their terms and need replacing. We need refreshments organising (tea, cake, wine) although no decision was taken for now on who would take the lead.

AOB.

We need parish council member to look at new safeguarding rules, H&S, paperwork etc. Lots of new forms needed for groups hiring parish hall. Nick is taking a look but it may not impact on most current users.

Some materials about dedication of UK to the dowry of Mary will be distributed at mass.

There will be a temporary suspension of the sign of peace and changes to holy communion distribution due to the coronavirus. Also Holy water stoops to be emptied. Anything that is shared should not be used for the time being, e.g hymn and mass books, towels, etc. More comprehensive guidance will be placed on the website.

Special meeting to discuss the possible re-opening of the church and the Diocesan requirements.

1. Welcome prayer

2. Apologies: Phil, Mike, Richard.

Present: Nick Neale (Chair), Anthony Rossiter (Secretary), Fr Kevin, Belinda Barber, Anne Shepherd, Clare Byrne, Chris Dingle, Stephen Parker.

3. Discussion Points

Mass times: Suggested that for now, only feasible to do one mass a week, on Sundays at 11am.

We have to have everything ready before the diocese will visit and discuss possible starting dates. Also  there is a roughly 10 page checklist to go through and lots of fine detail. This needs completing very carefully before the visit. We are not trying to rush and likely to be Sept. before we are ready to apply.

We must have sufficient registered volunteers for cleaning and stewarding. They must supply full contact details and sign in and out during their duty. It was agreed that the rotas for both should be held in the same place and managed by the same person to simplify tasks. The rotas should all include a ‘reserve’ for each week.

Suggested using Vurch google drive spreadsheets for organising and disseminating rota.

Clare and Lindsay volunteered to look at the cleaning responsibilities, writing job spec, getting volunteers and so forth. A similar job specification is required for the stewards but likely to be far simpler, e.g. arrive 30min before service and ensure safe movement to allocated seating and safe exit of the congregation.

No one under 16 can be a steward or cleaner.

Over 70s and those with health issues need to attend with caution.

Richard will look at organising who or how many can attend and where they will sit. It was taken as implicit that he would also help with deciding who can attend on each week and where they would sit, given numbers will be limited.

We need to collect contact information for the whole parish so we can contact them with details of arrangements and how to book attendance. Ideally parish database needs to be in a more up to date format to facilitate this by email/text if possible, so Anne said she would follow this up and go into office; Belinda volunteered to help too. This will be needed for coordinating attendance.

Some discussion over whether toilets can be opened and how access is managed. Probably stewards would oversee and restrict use to a single toilet in the narthex so appropriate cleaning can be managed.

4. The meeting closed with a prayer.

Minutes St Francis Parish Council meeting Sept 11th 2019 at 19:00-20:30

1. Welcome prayer

2. Apologies: Phil, Jackie, Stephen.

Present: Nick Neal (Chair), Anthony Rossiter (Secretary), Fr Kevin, Belinda Barber, Mike Campbell, Ann Shepherd, Clare Byrne.

3. Big picture: A small group has been doing a trial; it is going well. It has been challenging for members but worthwhile and developmental. This small group is planning for a roll out to the parish after Easter on Monday evenings; currently publicised in newsletter with April 27 start (this might be delayed due to coronovirus issues). The current group is mostly female and so they would like more males. The  course involves doing some Bible readings and reflections each day and meeting once a week to share and discuss.

It is cheaper to buy the required book via the Parish who moreover can get on sale or return. It was agreed that initially the Parish would subsidise/purchase so people are not put off from participating. We could ask for contributions later.

We also intend to advertise in partner parishes (St Williams, St Vincent’s and Sacred Heart). On a related note, Greg Ryan also offered to come and give a talk to Parish at some point, for example, how to get started with the Bible?

4. Lindsay Graduated in the summer. She and other graduates are meeting regularly and planning on how they can support each other use this to contribute to parish life.

5. The troublesome trees have come down and cost £3000. However, this has opened up the front nicely. Moreover, we had a thank you from neighbour for clearing the back of lots of trees as this has improved their light.

6. We have heard nothing about the dangerous wall. It is owned by neighbour so it is their responsibility. However, lots of overgrown ivy has been removed.

7. The cupboard in the hall is getting too full or messy and so needs tidying. Clare thinks it is on Geraldine’s list, while she is helping Father Kevin with the office so no action was decided for now.

8. There was a request from care in Crosspool for some cash support, £1500. They offer support, visits, respite and so forth within the Crosspool region. The feeling was we should be supporting local charities, but perhaps the amount was large. Consensus was to propose £1000. We will ask the finance committee to sort out.

9. The dance club performers want a Sunday matinee so they do not have to do 2 performances on a Saturday. Apart from the need to avoid lent, there were no substantive objections but a mild concern that it would be harder to open screens if needed for Sunday morning mass.

10. The AGM is Tues May 11 at 7.30pm. Council members were reminded of the need to provide reports for their responsibility areas (to Nick in plenty of time for printing).  Clare and Anthony are reaching the end of their terms and need replacing. We need refreshments organising (tea, cake, wine) although no decision was taken for now on who would take the lead.

AOB.

We need parish council member to look at new safeguarding rules, H&S, paperwork etc. Lots of new forms needed for groups hiring parish hall. Nick is taking a look but it may not impact on most current users.

Some materials about dedication of UK to the dowry of Mary will be distributed at mass.

There will be a temporary suspension of the sign of peace and changes to holy communion distribution due to the coronavirus. Also Holy water stoops to be emptied. Anything that is shared should not be used for the time being, e.g hymn and mass books, towels, etc. More comprehensive guidance will be placed on the website.

Present: Nick Neale, Clare Bryne, Belinda, Anthony, Father Kevin, Richard, Anne, Lindsay.

Apologies. Stephen Parker, Phil Rostant, Mike Campbell

1. Welcome prayer

2. Matters arising from minutes

a. Parish directory (Clare) now done and distributed a few at parish day. Will make some minor updates and then distribute on a Sunday soon.

b. CAFÉ course and The Big Picture. Lindsay reported they will trial “The Big Picture” as a small group course, evaluate and then after Easter do as a Cafe course in the church hall for the whole parish. We have a copy from the diocese for leaders, but attendees may need to buy the book for themselves.

C. Confirmation courses: Richard and Lindsay are running and now are about a quarter of way through, with 26 children on the course. Seem a nice group. Bishop coming 12 o’clock on Saturday December 14th. Discussed whether some sort of party may take place afterwards; Richard and Lindsay will liaise with parents to discuss.

D. Caritas, nothing yet to report but will be in newsletter soon.

3. Trees and wall updates.

Wall. The neighbour is going to look at it but still in progress as they are waiting for an official report/survey.

Trees: Mr Anderson from Treecare did a survey and report. We need to considering issues such as H&S and impact on neighbours. The big tree at the front needs to come down which will be complicated and expensive. He also proposed we remove the sycamores by the football ground and we should do some thinning and remove the silver birch. Friendly discussions with neighbours ongoing about other major pruning. Currently collecting estimates before booking major work. Nick is leading on this.

4. Reports from parish areas. None

5. Item on parish giving. Chris Dingle ask the council to consider a decision taken in parish council 1/3/2011 about giving extra money to needy parishes and disaster appeals in addition to any special collections.

• The council agreed a simple sustainable approach for needy parishes was to double the special collection from parish funds, but this decision did not prejudice giving more should that be appropriate in the future.

• Also the council agreed that the parish should augment what is raised for special disaster appeals and specifically those for CAFOD. General feeling was that we as a parish should be generous and match such special second collections where we can from general funds.

• There is a need to communicate with the parish concerning our commitment to the poor and extra giving.

AOB

• Richard asked about youth club and whether the parish would subsidise the monthly meal they have. General consensus to support this and give £200 pa for now.

• The God who speaks books are a revised translation from King James Version and likely to be adopted in the missal soon. We have a number of these books on Matthew’s gospel. The idea is parishioners buy one and carry it around and read a bit every day. The council was unclear how to take this Diocesan initiative forward as we have only 20 copies, although the principle of encouraging parishioners in regular bible reading was supported. We could facilitate by managing any orders from parishioners, for example on the first Sunday in Advent.

6. Finishing prayer

Minutes St Francis Parish Council meeting Sept 11th 2019 at 19:00-20:30

1. Welcome prayer

2. Apologies: Phil, Lindsay, Stephen.

Present: Nick Neal (Chair), Anthony Rossiter (Secretary), Fr Kevin, Belinda Barber, Mike Campbell, Ann Shepherd, Clare Byrne Mike Campbell

3. Matters arising from July meeting and related matters.

a. Parish directory update: Clare is doing this, still ongoing.

b. Diocesan directory of social action: Nick with Anne are leading on this. The main idea is that the Church is trying to bring related activities under a common umbrella as a form of encouragement and record keeping. However information and purpose still partially unclear.

It was noted under this theme that we could do more to support SVP in the parish, but the counter argument is that we may be better actively supporting “Care in Crosspool” rather than duplicating.

c. CAFÉ course: We have a free course. Clare and Nick watched and think it is appropriate for Lent and propose to run 4 sessions based on Hope at that point. Clare looking at possible dates.

On a similar theme, both Father Kevin and Clare proposed we consider using “The Big Picture” for a longer course linked to the Bible (12 sessions).  Bishop is actively encouraging this course as linked to 2020, “year of the word”. Lindsay and Clare aim to get a copy,  check out and plan. Notional plan for post Easter and Autumn 2020.

Diocesan meeting to discuss confirmation courses in Sept. Stephen and Richard will be going.

4. Reports and items from different areas (if required):

• Mission, Evangelisation and Faith Formation Justice and Peace (Belinda and Mike will take over as council contacts).

• Creation evening of prayer talk and silence on Friday Oct 18. Eva and Stephen organising.
• There is a similar event at St Columba a week later, as part of “city of sanctuary”. Council agreed to donate £25 as requested.

5. Maintenance and infrastructure:

• Trees issue with neighbour. Nick saw him on 11th. The Parish trees are causing excessive shade and probably too large. Tom Garrad from Diocese has suggested a tree surgeon and is following up. First we need to do a full survey of all our trees and advise on required action. It will cost £400 just for review, but the Diocese is likely to insist we do this regardless as part of new policies.

• Update on dangerous wall. Tom Garrad came and looked at it. The wall actually belongs to neighbour, although it is our side that is a problem. The neighbour is going to take this forward but likely will do in bits. The council agreed in principle to contribute to costs.

• Discussion on trolley for amplifier/speakers. Anthony to speak to Liz and Chris Dingle to understand their usage by the  pantomime team before we propose the most cost effective way forward as there is a concern that the equipment may be somewhat dated and thus not cost effective to repair.

• Use of cupboard space in the hall. Grazyna has agreed to sort it when she gets back from Poland.

6. AOB

Parish day on Oct 6. Proposed a bring something to share for lunch after mass. Clare to put in newsletter.

7. Finishing prayer

Next meeting Wed Nov 13^th at 7pm

Minutes of St Francis of Assisi Parish Council Meeting 10 July 2019 7pm

Present:- Fr Kevin Thornton – Parish Priest

Nick Neale, Belinda Barber, Clare Byrne, Anne Shepherd

1) The meeting opened with a prayer

2) Apologies:- Lindsay Reynolds, Mike Campbell,Phil Rostant,  Anthony Rossiter

3) Matters arising from AGM:- Belinda and Mike to help with Justice & Peace

4) Autumn CAFÉ course – this will commence In the Autumn on Tuesday evenings after Mass for 6 weeks. Topic “Gifts of the Spirit”.

Lindsay and Clare will be have a planning meeting next week

5) Emergency Plan – In the event of an emergency concerning Fr Kevin It would be necessary to telephone Bishop Ralph and Fr John Cooke.

It Is also necessary to find out exactly who has keys to the premises. Clare will put an appeal In the newsletter to find out.

Clare will also review Parish Directory.

6) Diocesan Directory of Social Action – Each Parish will be asked to produce current lists of people who are responsible for each section. Nick Neale will contact Mike Murphy to proceed with this.

7) Wall and Trees – Diocesan Property Manager – Tom Garrud has visited the Parish and has had a meeting with Fr Kevin to discuss:-

A) the leaking roof In the narthex – experts to be asked to return to help with yet further plans to determine cause of continuous leaks

B) One of the houses at the side of our car park Is having problems with the high trees on our land overlooking his house and blocking light. An Arborist will be contacted to survey what needs to be done. The condition of the boundary wall outside the church also needs looking at. Tom Garrud has looked at the wall and has suggested that we ask an engineer to look at the condition and see what repairs are needed.

8) Any other business:- Fr Kevin needs to be contacted to find out how many children will be receiving Confirmation from Bishop Ralph

 Numbers needed. Notices are currently being advertised In the Franciscan.

The meeting closed with a prayer at 8.20pm

Parish Council Minutes July 10th 2019

Present:- Fr Kevin Thornton – Parish Priest

Nick Neale, Belinda Barber, Clare Byrne, Anne Shepherd

1) The meeting opened with a prayer

2) Apologies:- Lindsay Reynolds, Mike Campbell,Phil Rostrant, Anthony Rossiter

3) Matters arising from AGM:- Belinda and Mike to help with Justice & Peace

4) Autumn CAFÉ course – this will commence In the Autumn on Tuesday evenings after Mass for 6 weeks. Topic “Gifts of the Spirit”.

Lindsay and Clare will be have a planning meeting next week

5) Emergency Plan – In the event of an emergency concerning Fr Kevin It would be necessary to telephone Bishop Ralph and Fr John Cooke.

It Is also necessary to find out exactly who has keys to the premises. Clare will put an appeal In the newsletter to find out.

Clare will also review Parish Directory.

6) Diocesan Directory of Social Action – Each Parish will be asked to produce current lists of people who are responsible for each section. Nick Neale will contact Mike Murphy to proceed with this.

7) Wall and Trees – Diocesan Property Manager – Tom Garrud has visited the Parish and has had a meeting with Fr Kevin to discuss:-

A) the leaking roof In the narthex – experts to be asked to return to help with yet further plans to determine cause of continuous leaks

B) One of the houses at the side of our car park Is having problems with the high trees on our land overlooking his house and blocking light. An Arborist will be contacted to survey what needs to be done. The beech hedge outside the church also needs looking at. Costs will also need to be assessed.

8) Any other business:-

Fr Kevin needs to be contacted to find out how many children will be receiving Confirmation from Bishop Ralph. Numbers needed. Notices are currently being advertised In the Franciscan.

The meeting closed with a prayer at 8.20pm