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Netherexe Mission
Community
PRIEST-IN-CHARGE
The Netherexe Parishes are a Mission Community of nine churches in the Diocese
of Exeter, serving the seven parishes of Brampford Speke, Cadbury, Newton St
Cyres, Rewe with Netherexe, Stoke Canon with Huxham, Thorverton, and Upton
Pyne. We commit ourselves to growing the love of God in our communities within all
our parishes, and making the gospel known to people of all ages and backgrounds.
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Contents Welcome ......................................................................................................................... 3
The Archdeacon’s Foreword ........................................................................................... 4
Emerging New Ministry ................................................................................................... 6
The Netherexe Parishes ................................................................................................. 7
Our Parishes ................................................................................................................... 7
Our Churches .................................................................................................................. 8
Organisation ................................................................................................................ 8
Outreach ...................................................................................................................... 8
Worship ....................................................................................................................... 9
Quotes from the congregations ................................................................................. 10
Finance...................................................................................................................... 13
Brampford Speke Snapshot .......................................................................................... 14
Cadbury Snapshot ........................................................................................................ 15
Newton St Cyres Snapshot ........................................................................................... 16
Rewe Snapshot ............................................................................................................. 17
Stoke Canon Snapshot ................................................................................................. 18
Thorverton Snapshot .................................................................................................... 19
Upton Pyne Snapshot ................................................................................................... 20
How have we coped with the pandemic? ...................................................................... 21
Our hope for the future .................................................................................................. 21
What do we want from our next Priest-in-Charge? ....................................................... 23
Person Specification ..................................................................................................... 24
The Vicarage ................................................................................................................. 25
Growing the Rural Church............................................................................................. 26
Useful Links and Contacts ............................................................................................ 27
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Welcome Thank you for your interest in becoming our new Priest-in-Charge and we hope this Profile
will help you discern God’s call on your life at this time. This is an exciting time for us as
we look to work more closely together as a Mission Community, but also explore more
fully the possibility of joining a larger grouping with the rest of the parishes across our
Deanery.
Devon is a beautiful county, and our parishes are set in friendly rural communities but only
a short distance from the heart of the city of Exeter.
We look forward to welcoming you,
The Netherexe Mission Community
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The Archdeacon’s Foreword This post presents an imaginative opportunity to work with a committed group of parishes seeking to deepen their working together as a Mission Community, but also discerning their longer term future around the proposed Crediton Rural Ministry Hub an emerging new model of rural ministry centered around the market town of Crediton, but reaching out to the rural parishes in the wider area. We would hope that the right candidate will bring experience, energy and innovation to this time of considerable change for those involved with the pastoral re-organisation. Our Diocesan Vision We seek to be people who together are: Growing in Prayer Prayer is conversation with God and is part of a healthy Christian life. Prayer is a life-giving activity that opens up deep places within us to God’s transforming grace. It is essential if we are to become the people and the Church God calls us to be. Making new disciples As the Christian story is less and less known, we must find new ways of telling the story, of explaining the faith and giving a reason for the hope that is in us. With Jesus Christ as our companion and guide, we can travel through life differently. Serving the people of Devon with joy As followers of Jesus Christ, we want to make a difference in the world and make God’s love and justice known. In our church life, we seek to be local, participatory, and outward-looking. Further information regarding our Diocesan Vision can be found in our Next Steps
document at
www.exeter.anglican.org/who-we-are/vision-strategy Living in Mission Communities Our strategy centres on Mission Communities - parishes working together to share the
Gospel of Jesus Christ more effectively in Devon. The phrase Mission Communities sums
up what we need to be as a Church in the 21st century: mission-orientated, community-
focused, and locally-rooted.
Mission Communities help us to work together and support one another better. They enable us to be more flexible in our mission and more responsive to the different contexts and cultures of Devon. A Mission Community aims to express the fullness of the life of the Church locally. This will include: · regular prayer and worship · pastoral care · evangelism and mission, often in collaboration with ecumenical partners · opportunities for learning, teaching, nurture and growth for disciples of all ages · youth and children’s work and worship
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· equipping members for ministry in the community and the local Church · connecting with the local community, especially in service to the poor · good administration and stewardship of time, resources and buildings If our Mission Communities are to flourish, they need to be more than just a structure. They need to live and embody the life of Jesus Christ and to share that life with others. Jesus came so that we can have life in all its fullness. That is our vision and our hope for the Church in Devon. In this Profile, you will find something of the vision and challenges of this new dispersed minster model of church. I commend it to your study and prayer as you seek to discern your next step in ministry. Deanery & Diocese The Mission Community falls within the Archdeaconry of Exeter, and so under the care of the Bishop of Crediton (The Rt Rev’d Jackie Searle) and the Archdeacon of Exeter (The Venerable Andrew Beane). The Mission Community is in the Cadbury Deanery whose Rural Dean is The Rev’d Matthew Tregenza. There are currently four Mission Communities in the Deanery with three licensed clergy (plus curates, Licensed Readers, and PTO clergy). One possible way forward is that the whole Deanery becomes part of the new Ministry Hub and the new Priest-in-Charge will help The Netherexe Mission Community workout its role in the new Hub. Attendance at Synod and Chapter is an expectation, and all diocesan clergy are encouraged to give some part of their time and energies to the wider Diocese. In the Diocese of Exeter, we are working together to live out our three diocesan priorities to grow in prayer, to make new disciples and to serve the people of Devon with joy. We aim to be a diverse and truly representative diocese, and particularly welcome applications from women and those from black and minority ethnic groups. Not only is Devon a beautiful place to call home, but we believe the Diocese of Exeter is a great community of which to be a part. You are warmly invited to contact me directly if you would like a confidential conversation about the post. We look forward to welcoming you to the Diocese.
Andrew The Venerable Andrew Beane Archdeacon of Exeter 01392 425577 [email protected]
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Emerging New Ministry One possible way forward for The Netherexe Mission Community is to become part
of the emerging new Crediton Rural Ministry Hub.
Our Vision is that the new Crediton Ministry Hub should be a place where people can
discover God; through prayer, through discipleship and through serving the people of our
communities. We have been presented with a moment of opportunity to explore a
different model of church across our rural communities reinterpreting the ancient minster
model of church for the 21st Century. We are seeking to grow bolder, humbler, simpler
and younger celebrating our uniqueness as individual parishes whilst learning to value our
strength in working together.
Sustainable growth in rural ministry
As the national church continues to face great challenges in the countryside (heightened
because of the effects of the Pandemic), the emerging Crediton Ministry Hub aims to
pioneer a different approach to rural ministry; one which seeks sustainable growth in this
rural part of Devon.
Unity and diversity
The approach of this new model is to affirm the uniqueness of each parish and each part
of the proposed team, rather than centralising everything under a single benefice identity.
The clergy, licensed lay-ministers and key lay people will work in a coordinated way, but
quite independently; coming together when it makes sense to do so. In particular through
schools work, administration, lay development and social action.
Team Vicar & Focused Ministry
The principle of the Dispersed Minster Model is that a minister (lay or ordained) is rooted
in individual or smaller groups of parishes so that those communities relate to their own
team vicar or focused minister (community chaplain). This means that people continue to
relate to their own village church rather than a large, faceless benefice.
Dispersed Minster Model
The scale of the proposed team, and the size of the vibrant church family in Crediton
mean that, by working together, we can benefit from the economies of scale. We will
develop centrally focused administration. We will also administer occasional offices
through a single point of contact, including the administration of fees. Rotas, schools
work, lay development, simplified governance, social action and maintenance are also
areas that will be explored together.
This is only one way forward and your role will be to journey with Parishes, Deanery
and Diocese to work out the route ahead.
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The Netherexe Parishes
The Netherexe Parishes are a Mission Community of nine churches in the Diocese of
Exeter, serving the seven parishes of Brampford Speke, Cadbury, Newton St Cyres,
Rewe with Netherexe, Stoke Canon with Huxham, Thorverton, and Upton Pyne. We
commit ourselves to growing the love of God in our communities within all our parishes,
and making the gospel known to people of all ages and backgrounds.
Our Parishes Our parishes consist of small to medium-sized villages and scattered hamlets in the
farmland and hills of the scenic Lower Exe, Culm and Creedy valleys, situated to the north
of Exeter, south of Tiverton, and east of Crediton, two nearby market towns. They range in
size from Cadbury (at 500 feet above sea level with its own Iron Age Hill Fort), with a
population around 150, to Thorverton (just above the Exe with two pubs, two shops and
two community halls) and Newton St Cyres (by the Creedy with a brew pub and a cheese
factory) each with a population of around 900.
Rewe, Stoke Canon and Newton St Cyres are on main routes into Exeter; Brampford
Speke, Cadbury, Thorverton and Upton Pyne are a little more off the beaten track,
connected by sometimes narrow Devon lanes. However, all are easily accessible: we are
not a remote part of Devon. Exeter, with its Cathedral, shops, and cultural activities is
within easy reach of all, as are the M5 and Exeter St David’s Station with a good train
service to London and elsewhere.
The local economy is based on farming and small businesses, with people often working
in Exeter or the nearby towns. Older children go to secondary schools or colleges in
Crediton, Broadclyst, Tiverton or Exeter.
Brampford Speke, Newton St Cyres, Thorverton and Stoke Canon have primary schools
which mainly serve our communities. Three (not Stoke Canon) are part of the Exe Valley
Federation; three (not Newton St Cyres) are church schools.
The area doesn’t score highly in indices of deprivation, but there may be hidden pockets
of need, particularly since the pandemic. We live in caring communities which, in normal
“Thorverton Church of England Primary School is at the heart of the village community
and seeks to promote its Christian values and heritage through our Collective Worship,
RE lessons. We aim to show these values by the way we treat each other in school, at
playtime, in the classroom and beyond.” - John Joliffe, Executive Head Teacher, Exe
Valley Federation
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times, have lots going on. Members of our churches do some of the caring and play their
part in sustaining their communities in many ways.
Our Churches Just as our communities are different, our churches all have their different characters,
which we hope you will pick up from the snapshots which follow.
Organisation We are an established Mission Community and have worked together for many years. The
7 PCCs are currently independent financially, but each contributes to a central Mission
Community Fund so that we can do some things jointly. The PCCs meeting together form
a Joint PCC which meets 3 or 4 times a year to monitor and approve those joint activities,
and to link the Staff Team and all the parishes together. We have centralised
administration and a MC Office to handle clergy expenses, statutory fees, invoices and
bookings for weddings and funerals, for example.
We have Working Groups which have representatives nominated by the PCCs to deal
with:
• financial matters (Resources Group)
• service planning (Worship Group)
• discipleship (Growth and Learning Group)
• mission to children and families (Children and Young Peoples Focus Group)
Pastoral care is not centrally organised, but could, and probably should, be.
This structure worked well at first and continues to do so in many ways, but it is becoming
difficult to sustain and we are keen to find a more sustainable way of working together.
Our PCCs are blessed and well served by many capable people, with organisational and
financial skills, but for the smaller parishes in particular it is becoming more difficult to find
new people willing to be church officers. Reducing the number of PCCs and a willingness
to delegate and avoid duplication is likely to be part of the way forward.
Outreach The Bridge Centre at Stoke Canon does a good job serving its local community with
coffee mornings and lunch clubs..... Other villages, pre-pandemic, also had such activities.
In some parishes, pastoral care is well-organised and run by the church, in others the
wider community does the caring and the church is less visible.
Lay people have been much more involved in recent years in preparing families for
baptism and in keeping in touch with them afterwards. There has also been a lot of
involvement, lay and ordained, in our village schools. Church members have been active
in hearing children read, for example, as well as direct involvement in worship in the
schools. All the schools make use of the church buildings for festivals and in some cases
for marking the end of the academic year. At Stoke Canon, the school use the church for
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assemblies twice a week, inviting parents to one of them. This outreach to schools is one
of the things we have done well as a Mission Community and one we are keen to build on.
“We value the contribution of the incumbent to Collective Worship from time to time,
involvement in lessons and at special occasions and festivals. As part of the Exe Valley
Federation, we welcome contributions from local clergy in the Church Schools
Conferences we hold each year to explore how we can enhance the unique ethos of the
church schools in the federation.” - John Joliffe, Executive Head, Exe Valley Federation
The Christmas period, Mothering Sunday, Easter, Harvest and Remembrance Sunday
also provide considerable opportunity for outreach as these services are usually very well
attended in all our churches.
Worship Our normal pattern of Sunday worship, pre-pandemic, was to have one service of Holy
Communion each month in each of our parishes, with lay-led services or more informal
get-togethers on other Sundays. Some parishes managed to have something happening
in church on 3 or 4 Sundays each month. 5th Sundays were usually reserved for a joint
MC Service in one of the churches.
Communion Services are mostly Common Worship, but there is still a fondness in some
quarters for the occasional use of the Book of Common Prayer. Our services, whether
informal or traditional, are simple and welcoming. Lay-led services are usually family-
oriented, with a variety of innovative elements. Messy Church happens on Sunday in
Stoke Canon, and is very successful. In some other churches we have been more
effective at reaching children and families on weekdays than on Sunday, through the
schools, for example, and through Chattertots in Thorverton.
Most mainstream Christian traditions are represented within the church membership,
though many would describe themselves as middle of the road. The Mission Community
benefits from sharing this variety of experience.
“We are an informal church with a relaxed but respectful attitude to
worship and a range of views at the liberal end of the spectrum. Most
people come in search of spiritual renewal but will vary in how they
define that concept. For all, the sense of community and welcome is
strong. Over the last few years there have been people from other
villages who have gravitated towards this church and they have
intimated that there is something special about Cadbury.” - Catriona
(Churchwarden)
“The spiritual heart of our church is: care for each other, fellowship, trust in God, and Holy
Communion.” - Sue (Churchwarden)
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“For me, music is at the spiritual heart of Thorverton Parish Church”
– Royston (Churchwarden)
“For me, it has been sharing the Gospel with others” – Peter (Formerly a Churchwarden
and leader of Family and other Services)
On the whole I think we’re a fairly liberal bunch” – Stephen (Deanery
Synod Rep)
Quotes from the congregations
“I like the friendliness and positivity of the members of our church,
and the general feeling of peace. I have been a member since going to
Sunday school at the age of 5. I’m concerned how well the church will
be supported in the future as there is a need for younger people.”
“I like: the people who attend, the worship and the singing. I was married in church, and
went to church while living in Exeter. I see the future as uncertain. The possibility of joining
the Hub looks to be a way forward.”
“The church is friendly and welcoming and I feel part of a family. I
have always gone to church, but have derived a lot of comfort from it
since my wife died. The church has got to change. We are an aged
congregation.”
“It’s always so friendly”
“A special atmosphere”
“The churchwardens do an excellent job! “
“The Community here is the Church.”
“St. Peter's Church continues as part of the fabric of the village: offering well attended
services sharing the love of God, maintaining the lovely building and having fun raising
money.”
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“The church is an integral part of village life, with our recent open air
services attracting all ages, seeking to present the Christian faith in
a way that is relevant to people today.”
“The PCC manage to think “out of the box” and arrange events/services that are out of the
norm, thus attracting people who would not normally attend a church.”
“To make the church more relevant to the 21stC, it needs to be less
rigid and perhaps less traditionally Anglican. This is the only way to
attract new blood and young people.”
"I always find the worship at Stoke Canon to be sustaining and Spirit-led with music and
song which touches my soul".
"When Isabella, an 8 year old girl surprised her parents by insisting
that she wanted to be baptised it thrilled us all. Two years later she
brought her mother to baptism and confirmation. Wow!"
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Statistics
Average Sunday attendance adult(child)
Number of baptisms
Number of weddings
Number of funerals
Number on Electoral Roll
Number of Participants
Year
2019 2019 2019 2019 2021 2021
Brampford Speke
22(3) 0 2 5 16 14
Cadbury
8(0) 2 1 4 19 11
Newton St Cyres
24(1) 3 4 8 39 21
Rewe with Netherexe
18(2) 2 0 2 21 16
Stoke Canon with Huxham
20(7) 16(3)
3 0
0 0
3 0
36
21
Thorverton
27(5) 6 4 9 49 25
Upton Pyne
14(0) 1 2 2 21 15
Total for M.C.
149(21) 17 13 33 201 123
NB. Huxham joined with Stoke Canon in 2020.
"Following 16 months of closure due to the pandemic, Huxham is looking forward
to being an active Festival Church during 2021 and beyond, and
integrating with Stoke Canon. This will provide a new experience for all." – Miles
(Churchwarden)
St John the Baptist church at Netherexe is one of Devon’s quaintest
and isolated churches, set amidst the fields in the Exe valley and close
to the banks of the river Exe. This simple stone church has no water
or electricity but is “lit by candles and heated by the warmth of the
congregation”. It might be a little church but there’s always a big
welcome. - Helen (Churchwarden)
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Finance
In 2019 separate accounts were made for ten churches. Since then Poltimore has left the
MC.
Receipts across the churches show a healthy balance of planned giving, collections, Gift
Aid, fund-raising, fee income (weddings & funerals), legacies and grants.
Payments include a 100% contribution to the Common Fund and cover the MC
administration and staff costs.
The figures include both un-restricted and restricted funds. Underlying operational
receipts and payments of un-restricted funds balanced across the MC. There was
significant fabric development drawing on restricted funds (particularly in Newton St
Cyres).
2020 figures are currently going through approvals. All churches were impacted
significantly by the COVID-19 pandemic and the closure of all churches during lockdown.
Despite this, the MC achieved 100% contribution to the Common Fund. MC
administration costs were reduced by furloughing staff with churches receiving refunds
against their payments.
Netherexe Mission CommunityFinancial Statements for the Year Ended 31 December 2019
Church Receipts Payments
Excess of
Receipts
over
Payments
Statement
of Assets
and
Liabilities
Brampford Speke 18,897 21,786 (2,889) 20,863
Cadbury 22,196 10,176 12,020 53,770
Newton St Cyres 51,624 78,264 (26,640) 31,957
Rewe 18,088 16,505 1,583 58,613
Netherexe (with Rewe) 3,231 1,028 2,203 18,626
Stoke Canon 35,451 25,077 10,375 65,337
Huxham (with Stoke Canon) 3,528 6,081 (2,553) 16,603
Thorverton 43,928 48,689 (4,761) 21,750
Upton Pyne 20,077 17,643 2,434 20,829
Poltimore (no longer in NMC) 10,934 14,451 (3,517) 28,136
Netherexe Mission Community 227,955 239,700 (11,745) 336,484
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Brampford Speke Snapshot
Easter al fresco 2021
THE GOOD THINGS
• A small but dedicated congregation, not all retirees
• Some young families attend
• A group of lay people prepared to lead services, preach and play music
• Good support from the village in fundraising, attending events, and for festival services
• A willing band of helpers for practical things like cleaning, flowers and running events like
the Christmas tree festival.
• Our worship is very much witness and Gospel centred - we are praying for the movement
of the Holy Spirit through the village
THE CHALLENGES
• Resistance to change among some of the congregation, enthusiasm for change in others
• Outreach, modernisation and growth
• Discernment of what people outside the church want from it
• Enabling the building to be used as a Christian cultural centre.
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Cadbury Snapshot
Clearing the churchyard
THE GOOD THINGS
• In Cadbury - with no school, no pub and no other public space - the church is the obvious
place in which to come together
• Informal, accessible, lay-led services attract a higher congregation than the monthly
communion services
• The church is considered very important by the wider community
• This has spawned our first ever choir and a re-constituted group of bell ringers
• A plan for re-ordering the church is underway as a result of this local support
• Volunteers are willing, when asked, to do practical things to maintain the church building
and support hospitality
THE CHALLENGES
• The responsibility for the comparative success of the church in running popular lay-led
services, continuing to pay the Common Fund and stay on top of its repairs, rests on a few
shoulders
• Developing other lay leaders and increasing participation
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Newton St Cyres Snapshot
Easter 2021 The Daldorph family and the Choir (not shown) sing safely outdoors to
everyone’s delight.
THE GOOD THINGS
• A close, but not closed, worshiping church community who care for each other and
welcome newcomers
• A small willing group of lay leaders and a supportive and generous congregation
• A great organist
• Good pastoral care in the village, not just by church members
• A good relationship with the village school, though it isn’t a C of E school, encouraging
them to use the church
• Good progress with maintenance & refurbishment of our Grade I listed building to make a
warm and inviting environment for worship & non-worship activity
• We have embraced events such as Thy Kingdom Come, and are a part of the Rural
Churches Initiative pilgrim scheme (the Boniface Trail)
THE CHALLENGES
• Growing the number of Participants
• Embracing new technology, e.g. real-time collections, audio-visual equipment, live
streaming
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Rewe Snapshot
The 100 Houses event at Rewe Church
THE GOOD THINGS
• A small but welcoming and caring congregation with real enthusiasm for change
• Church members who like traditional services are supporting the provision of informal
services, and vice versa
• We are starting to experience a growing church
• Holy Puppets
• Netherexe Church (a beautiful chapel in the middle of a field with no utility services!)
THE CHALLENGES
• The church has no kitchen or toilet
• Increasing the number of people actively participating
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Stoke Canon Snapshot
Christ is risen! School children surround the Paschal candle.
THE GOOD THINGS
• Our worship group of 5 lay people have considerable experience in developing and leading
worship, which is very much “Spirit-led” and reflective
• We offer some form of worship every week: HC “in the round”, informal discussion groups,
Messy Church and a service of the word.
• We embrace silence and contemplative space.
• Music is very important to us – we use mainly contemporary songs that move and stir us
and speak of compassion. We also hold regular come and sing sessions.
• The re-ordered community space is a wonderful base for outreach and the church is fitted
with a modern audiovisual system.
• Our church school sits alongside us, with 100+ children who regularly use the church and
its grounds and who consider it to be “their” church.
THE CHALLENGES
• The lack of human resource. Much is done by few.
• Re-establishing the community activities post-pandemic.
• Re- engaging with Messy Church families post-pandemic.
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Thorverton Snapshot
The band rehearsing
THE GOOD THINGS
• There are lots of people willing to do things
• We have a long history of lay leadership
• The choir and organist inspire the congregation
• The band support our innovative family-oriented services
• Chattertots – a midweek meeting in church for young mums and babies
• Our services mostly use Common Worship, but some still have a fondness for the
occasional use of the Book of Common Prayer
• Our annual Arts Festival has been going for nearly 50 years and engages many outside of
the core congregation
• We have so far always paid our Common Fund in full
• We have a small prayer circle, an ecumenical Bible study group, and good cooperation
with the Baptist Church
THE CHALLENGES
• There are not many participants under 60
• The church is only one of several foci in a lively community
• The village is a caring community, but pastoral care from the church has been more behind
the scenes than visible
• Lay leadership needs refreshing as those who have been doing it for a long time step back
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Upton Pyne Snapshot
The enthusiastic local choir, Sing Up, singing for the Bishop.
THE GOOD THINGS
• People who are ready to give time, money, energy & effort to keep the church going as a
place of worship.
• A few relatively young participants – including the creators of the Netherexe Podcasts
• The community who support The Friends of Upton Pyne & value the presence of the
church in the centre of the village, even if they don't often attend it.
• A church that has been prayed in since mediaeval times.
• A spirit of good neighbourliness and a readiness to act with kindness that makes this a
good community.
THE CHALLENGES
• A decline in numbers attending worship.
• The difficulty in finding willing & capable people prepared to take on leadership roles.
• Exploring possibilities for change & development; perhaps becoming a Festival Church
&/or Cluster Church
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How have we coped with the pandemic?
As everywhere, the pandemic closed our churches at first and stopped a lot of our
activities, especially community activities and our normal fund-raising events. We
responded by setting up Zoom and telephone services, and by using email or telephone to
communicate with our parishioners. Some small groups continued finding ways to share
remotely in prayer and Bible study.
Church members played a part in responding to the pandemic in their villages, often as
volunteers to help those shielding or isolating. We have also done more to support the
food banks run by the Churches Housing Action Team in Mid Devon, operating collection
points in some of our churches and in one case opening a community larder in the church
porch.
We were pleased to open some of the churches in autumn, for services and for private
prayer, but some remained closed. A major effort was made to celebrate Christmas in
innovative ways which were well-received. We stopped having services in most of our
churches after Christmas, until Easter, but Cadbury remained open each week as a
beacon of hope.
Our hope for the future
Emerging from the pandemic and re-opening at Easter, what are our hopes?
There are many things which we want to get back to, but also some that we don’t.
Regular services, congregational singing and reconnecting with our schools and young
families are high on our list. So are many of our outreach and fund-raising activities,
though in some cases the stopping has given us pause for thought.
Zoom services had several benefits which we would like to retain: contact with those who
find it difficult to get to church, greater congregational reach for the clergy, and more
collaborative working for our clergy team, lessening the load on individual members. We
want to create a greater degree of freedom for both clergy and lay people. Fewer services
at individual churches and more frequent specialised services attracting people from
across the benefice are probably the way forward. We also need to value and encourage
our current lay leaders, as well as nurturing others and creating a strong pastoral care
team, to spread the load and increase visibility of the church in our villages.
During the pandemic, in addition to Zoom services, we also started to embrace new
technology in other ways. Two churches successfully used online giving platforms for
fundraising, and we increased our use of social media to reach our communities, even
holding a Virtual Arts Festival on Facebook. We wish to build on this.
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Organisationally, we want to explore new ways of working collaboratively as a Mission
Community. We envisage fewer meetings, fewer PCCs, more informal ways of working,
and more delegation from the Priest-in-Charge when we can be left to get on with the job,
leaving them more time for mission and pastoral care. We also wish to explore the
possibility of wider collaboration by being part of the Crediton Hub. Many of us are already
enthusiastic about this possibility.
Oil painting of Netherexe Church by Mike Brown
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What do we want from our next Priest-in-Charge?
We recognise that there are limits to what we can expect of one person: with 7 parishes,
ministry has to be shared. So the main thing we want is your help for us to be the church
in our communities. We want you to inspire us to grow in faith and prayer. We want you to
encourage, guide, and grow lay ministry in leadership and pastoral care. We also want
you to work with us to be the church in prayerful, innovative, efficient and sustainable
ways. This will mean helping us to simplify governance and leading us through change,
embracing new technology when it is helpful to do so.
Of course, making your own contribution to mission and pastoral care will be important.
We want you to lead by example, in a balanced way, reinforcing all we do to show our
love to our neighbours. One priority for mission could be to help us re-imagine how we
work with children and families: we need to reduce the average age of our congregations
and participants. Or you might want to focus on helping us meet the needs of those on the
fringes of our churches who are interested in faith but not yet committed: we also need to
grow in numbers and in fellowship.
Ideally, alongside a passion for seeing others grow in the Christian faith, you will have an
appreciation of rural life, its traditions and its current challenges .You will be warm and
approachable and able to communicate clearly with adults and children.
“We need someone who can make church understandable and accessible
to people who are potentially interested but not convinced.” Catriona
We would value a prayerful person, with a sense of humour, whose life experience
enables them to work effectively with those outside of the Church. You will need to be
energetic and organised, good at prioritising and delegation, and be able and willing to
work collaboratively with, and using the skills and enthusiasm of, our Staff Team, lay
leaders, retired clergy, and your colleagues in the Cadbury Deanery.
“We are looking for someone whose life, work and worship reflect God’s
extravagant love.” Valerie
We want someone to help us to be “one body” in our part of rural Devon. Above all:
“We are praying for a priest who has learnt to discern how God is
already at work in the lives of our churches and is willing to cooperate
with what grows there.”
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Person Specification
FULL-TIME STIPENDIARY POST
We need a Priest-in-Charge with vision who will:
• Work collaboratively with us as we discern our way forward praying, growing and
serving the people of these parishes with joy.
• Encourage, guide and grow lay ministry in leadership and pastoral care.
• Be a prayerful practitioner who is rooted in their own spirituality, can keep the right
work-life balance, and would value working with a community that will support
wellbeing.
• Celebrate our rural communities and help us simplify governance, lead us through
change and embrace new technology.
• A team player who will work with parish and deanery colleagues.
• Have experience of multi-parish benefices and working in rural settings.
• Build on our work with schools, families and young people and engaging with all ages
• Develop and strengthen our links with the wider community.
• Be committed to lead, enable and explore new ways of worshipping, working and
ministering across rural communities.
What we offer:
Variety - from intimate Holy Communion services to creative all age worship; from choral
evensong to digital worship; from medieval buildings to church halls; from rural
communities to the edge of Exeter; our new Mission Community has an incredible variety
of worship styles, opportunities and communities.
Opportunity - to assist and help drive forward the development of a multi-parish ministry
for the 21st century, embracing Fresh Expressions but also affirming the traditional
church. Working with both lay and ordained colleagues and being instrumental in the
development of new models of ministry. We offer work with schools, nursing and
residential homes, community organisations and the farming community.
Innovation - the encouragement and support from both lay and ordained colleagues to
experiment and innovate with worship and ministry. Open to seeking new creative ways of
engagement in a rural setting. The willingness to develop the Festival Church model in
some of our smallest communities.
Support - we are committed to providing administrative support across the team.
Excellent Deanery & Diocesan colleagues, the commitment to developing a training parish
for both lay and ordained colleagues.
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The Vicarage We are offering a modern vicarage in the village of Thorverton.
• 4 bedrooms
• 2 receptions rooms
• Large study
• Good sized garden
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Growing the Rural Church
“For centuries our network of village churches have been at the heart of rural
communities. Their towers and spires speak of the changelessness of God. Rural life is at
a turning point. People are rediscovering the gift of the local, supporting each other and
finding imaginative solutions to the many challenges that are confronting us. All this bodes
well for the health of rural churches and the communities they serve.”
Bishop Robert, August 2020.
Rooted in prayer, Growing the Rural Church aims to:
▪ resource rural Mission Communities…
▪ …to creatively use their talents and buildings, and to…
▪ …connect with their unique communities and landscapes to develop
sustainable futures.
Visit our new www.growingtheruralchurch.org for events, toolkits, resources, and
guidance on how to develop a sustainable future for your community.
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Useful Links and Contacts
Mission Community Website
https://www.netherexe.org/
The Mission Community Team
Rural Dean
The Rev’d Matthew Tregenza
01363 894038
Archdeacon
The Ven Andrew Beane
01392 425577
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