In the Chet Valley Benefice we have a Ministry Leadership Team, ordained and lay, who are involved in nearly all aspects of ministry in the benefice. The vicar has oversight of all team members and their roles, working with Rev Robert Soanes in the oversight of the Church in Loddon.

Each person is overseen by the vicar with a review each term. All are members of the Ministry Leadership Team, which meets to take a lead on aspects of ministry within the benefice and also for mutual support and encouragement. An overview of the roles and team members follows:

Children & Families

Alison Ball has been leader of the Children & Families team for about four years and Jill Haylock joined 18 months ago as leader of the Baptism Team. There is a large number of talented lay people who work with them and a dedicated team supporting Xpressions in Xpressions Café.

Noah’s Ark is our thriving weekly group for parents, carers and their pre-school children where we have recently introduced a monthly worship slot which is attracting more people. Through contacts here and elsewhere we have families asking for baptism for their children which the team supports them through from the initial request to after the day.

We are involved in both Infant and Junior Schools with Christian and singing assemblies led by Alison and supported by clergy when available; curriculum activities across the breadth of subjects and lunch club within the Junior School for older members of our community. We also organise an annual Holiday Club with a Spring re-union and other one-off activities such as Ash Wednesday Xpressions and our Easter egg hunt.

Environment & Creation

Val Fryer and Chris Barry lead our work on Environment and Creation. We have been involved in raising awareness of our impact, as a church family, on the environment. We have also been raising awareness of our churchyards and their unique status within our local environment. This has incorporated talks to local groups and a survey of the flora within all church yards in the Benefice, with recommendations for their ongoing care and management. We are also raising awareness of global issues and their critical impact on our future stewardship of creation and the environment. This has involved the issuing of the first in a series of informed pamphlets intended for the use of all within the benefice.

Older People

This work is run by Joan Evans and Audrey Cox. There are a number of current activities including the weekly Lunch Club at Loddon Junior School, which brings together children and older people; monthly services at Davy Place and Saxon House, led by Joan Evans and Julie Oddy-Bates, respectively and Friends & Neighbours, a bereavement support group which started in 2003. Friends and Neighbours has a membership of 40. The group meets monthly, for either lunch, afternoon tea, or an outing, with the occasional speaker being invited. Monday Mardles meets every Monday in All Saints Church Centre, Chedgrave.

Pastoral Care

Ros Hoffmann has responsibility for pastoral care; she is chairperson of the pastoral committee. Members of the committee meet every two months for prayer, mutual support and to discuss future action. We are looking to develop a more co-ordinated approach across the Benefice. Marmalade House, an adult special needs residential home, has a monthly service led by Alison Ball and Julie Oddy-Bates.

Prayer

The current focus is to develop the prayer life of the Benefice, both corporately and individually. The leaders have different responsibilities. Kathie Henery co-ordinates and leads the monthly Meet 2 Pray, a praise and prayer time. Margaret McPhee co-ordinates the prayer chain for emergency and benefice-focused prayers as there is need. She writes prayers for the congregation for specific times e.g. producing a bookmark “Prayer in our Vacancy Period”. The hope is to develop other ideas and ways of praying as a Benefice and in our churches.

Small Groups

Co-ordinated by Richard Seel, a small percentage of the congregations of the Chet Valley Benefice meet together in small groups. Currently we have two benefice-wide groups: one which meets on a Monday, led by Shirleyanne Seel and Jill Haylock and another on Wednesday, led by Ann Johnson and Val Fryer. There is also a fortnightly study group led by John and Ann Adams, which sees itself as belonging to the Church in Loddon rather than the wider Benefice.

Wider Church

Each church in the Benefice supports causes as when they arise (e.g. Pakistan Flood Relief Appeal) and they join together to run Lent Lunches, the donations from which are given to Christian Aid. Individual parishes also support a number of different Christian and secular charities.

Shirleyanne Seel is responsible for encouraging the Benefice to be outward looking and to encourage each parish to support different mission societies. At present this is done by highlighting the work of missionary groups through the News Sheet, Contact and Chet News as well as by prayer, etc.

Xpressions Café

Xpressions Café is a nationally-known fresh expression of church, started in December 2007. The hub of the Café is Xpresso, which meets downstairs in Chedgrave Church Centre, serving free tea and coffee with homemade cake and the Sunday papers. Upstairs in the church centre is Xpressions which mainly caters for primary age children and their families. In the church building Xplore meets offers informal discussion around the day’s theme (usually based on the lectionary). Xperience, also in the church, runs all morning offering reflective prayer stations, also on the day’s theme. At 11:30 everyone is invited to come together for a final session usually using a lot of video and participative activities.

Xpressions Café is run by a large lay team and overseen by Richard Seel. It recently featured as The X-Factor Within (Encounters on the Edge Number 45). A short video of the Café as it was in August 2009 is available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrYGa7-EUmM

Youth Work

Sarah Woodger, with a small team of volunteers, has been able to start two Christian youth clubs as well as a community film club. She also works with outside agencies to see what else can be done for young people in the area. She has a desire for young people to know God’s love and that they are fearfully and wonderfully made!