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THE DIOCESE OF SHEFFIELD

JOB DESCRIPTION

JOB TITLE: MISSION DEVELOPMENT ADVISER – REJUVENATED EMPLOYER: SHEFFIELD DIOCESAN BOARD OF FINANCE ACCOUNTABLE TO: DIRECTOR OF PARISH SUPPORT MAIN PURPOSE OF THE POST: Reporting to the Director of Parish Support, the Mission Development Adviser will be responsible for helping parishes, mission units and deaneries to implement the Diocesan strategy and delivery plans for growth, and will support initiatives for deepening discipleship, spiritual maturity, evangelisation and nurture. This post will have a particular focus on the deaneries of Rotherham and Laughton, Wath and Tankersley. The post holder will have a specific responsibility to support the delivery of the SDF Resourcing Churches project. Each member of the Parish Support Team (PST) is expected to have a multi-disciplinary approach and work as a team sharing resources, skills and experience. MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: 1. Church Growth

1.1 To be responsible for helping parishes, mission units and deaneries focus on

strategies and delivery plans to achieve the diocesan objective of Renewed, Released, Rejuvenated, challenging them to meet the outcomes outlined in the Diocesan strategy.

1.2 To have a particular focus on helping parishes, mission units and deaneries implement the Rejuvenated outcomes outlined in the strategy.

1.3 To take a lead in the PST in supporting churches to establish new congregations

as outlined in the strategy. 1.4 To support the Children and Young Peoples Advisor and Director of Education in

establishing new school based congregations.

1.5 To develop and support initiatives for deepening discipleship, spiritual maturity, evangelisation and nurture.

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1.6 Under the direction of the Director of Parish Support to work with targeted parishes and mission units and in partnership with the wider support team of officers and volunteers to develop capacity and capability.

2. Resourcing Churches

2.1 To oversee the implementation and development of Resourcing churches in the strategy, and working with the Incumbents and Programme Manager, ensure the delivery of the SDF resourcing churches project.

2.2 To work with Incumbents of the SDF resourcing churches project to identify obstacles to the implementation of the Resourcing Churches strategy and provide solutions in collaboration with the Programme Manager and the PST.

2.3 To work with the Incumbents and Programme Manager to monitor the delivery outcomes in the SDF project, to provide encouragement and challenge to enable the achievements of targets.

2.4 To work closely with the Resourcing churches operations/buildings manager and the various teams at Diocesan Church House, making effective use of the resources and skills available to support the project.

2.5 To set agreed targets for newly identified Resourcing Churches and to contribute to the monitoring and evaluation of the project using appropriate data and evaluation tools.

2.6 To work with the Incumbents to identify and ensure delivery of training and staff development for the staff in the SDF Resourcing Churches, and to establish and lead a Resourcing Churches Learning Community to share experience, knowledge and lessons learnt.

2.7 To report to the Programme Board on the progress of Resourcing Churches and take appropriate actions in response to Board meetings.

3. Mission

3.1 To facilitate the development and growth of new congregations and a mixed

economy model of church, sharing with the DDO the oversight of Pioneer Ministers.

3.2 Together with other members of the team to engage with the National Church

Institutions, to keep abreast of national developments in mission, Fresh

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Expressions, Pioneer Ministry and social responsibility and in doing so keep the Bishops Staff and wider diocese informed.

3.3 To work with parishes, in partnership with the relevant Archdeacon, Area Deans,

PCCs and clergy to facilitate the formation and development of new mission units. In doing so they will help resource and support growing relationships between churches.

3.4 To lead on MAP exercises, ensuring all churches have one in place or are working

towards this. 4. Resourcing Ministry

4.1 To facilitate and develop joint ministry teams and support the clergy through a

period of transition. This will include developing local lay ministry/leadership.

4.2 To help churches to move forward the wider vision and growth of the Diocese including Salt and Light, Mission Action Planning and commitment to the common fund.

5. Development 5.1 In partnership with St Peter’s College and the Children and Young Peoples Advisor,

to design and deliver training to support clergy and lay leaders in the implementation of the Diocesan strategy.

5.2 The Mission Development Advisers will facilitate and lead Mission Shaped Introduction and Mission Shaped Ministry Courses.

6. Other

6.1 To attend relevant Boards and Committees including the SDF Programme Board, Grants

Committee, Deanery Mission and Pastoral Committee.

6.2 Such other duties of a comparable nature as may be required.

6.3 Due to the nature of the role the post holder will be required to work flexibly, including weekends and evenings by agreement.

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MISSION DEVELOPMENT ADVISER – REJUVENATED

PERSON SPECIFICATION

CRITERIA ESSENTIAL DESIRABLE

Qualifications/Training Ordained Priest in Church of England or an equivalently qualified lay person1

Educated to degree level or higher professional qualification Evidence of recent continuing professional development related to one of the following areas

• Mission planning • Transforming

communities • Church planting • Growing new

congregations • Mission partnerships

Degree in Theology/Ministry/Mission Evidence of recent continuing professional development related to more than one of the following areas

• Mission planning • Transforming

communities • Church planting • Growing new

congregations • Mission partnerships

Spirituality and Prayer Life Deeply rooted in Christ and able to watch over his or her own life and ministry2

Knowledge An understanding of the ethos and structures of the Church of England and a commitment to its mission. Knowledge of current literature and thinking on mission, church growth, resourcing churches and church planting. Knowledge of national developments in mission, Fresh Expressions and establishing new congregations. Familiar with current initiatives to deepen discipleship, nurture and lead people to spiritual maturity. Knowledge of how to develop

Understanding of team dynamics, learning communities and action learning sets.

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capacity and capability in parishes. Knowledge of managing significant change and helping people through transition. Understanding of Mission Partnerships and joint ministry teams. Understanding of Mission Action Planning

Understanding of stewardship and developing a culture of generosity. Understanding of mission statistics and project outcome targets

Experience Parish experience leading a growing church or churches with the ability to impact on wider society. Experience of working with either Fresh Expressions or Pioneer Ministry. Demonstrate successful experience of dealing with finance including working on a limited budget and applying for funding. Demonstrate successful experience of working with teams of volunteers. Demonstrate successful experience of delivering and facilitating projects. Demonstrate successful experience of delivering and facilitating training programmes. Demonstrate successful experience of working in a multi-disciplinary team where team members have experience and knowledge of one another’s roles

Experience of working with both Fresh Expressions and Pioneer Ministry. Experience of leading or involvement in a church plant. Experience of leading or involvement in a resourcing or minster model of church. Experience of growing the funding base of churches and developing generous attitudes to giving to God and the Church. Experience of leading or involvement in establishing new congregations or missional communities Experience of leading Mission Shaped Introduction and Mission Shaped Ministry Courses Experience of leading a multi-disciplinary team.

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Skills and Abilities Ability to work in partnership with others including archdeacons, area deans, parish clergy, employees and volunteers. Ability to develop local lay ministry and leadership. Ability to utilise resources effectively Presentation skills Ability to promote and communicate ideas to encourage, inspire and lead change Ability to communicate to a variety of audiences. Ability to understand and interpret financial information and data. Able to encourage and inspire Able to motivate and influence others

Ability to develop ordained ministry and leadership

Personal Attributes Completer/finisher Commitment to deliver the diocesan vision and strategy

1 Post holders will normally be ordained ministers in the Church of England, although exceptionally a lay person may be suitably qualified to hold the post. The nature of the role suggests that C of E clergy are the most likely candidates to offer the in depth experience, skills set, theological and ecclesiological knowledge, profile and standing to fulfil the role. However, this does not rule out the possibility of a lay person being appointed and fulfilling the role. 2 Given the nature and context of the work it is an occupational requirement that the post holder should be a communicant member of the Church of England or a full member of a church within Churches Together in Britain and Ireland in order to fulfil the main purpose of the post within parishes and across the Diocese. This post is therefore exempt under Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010.

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Towards a generous and flourishing Diocese of Sheffield in 2025 (A review of diocesan vision and strategy for 2018)

Seeking first the kingdom of God: Renewed, Released, Rejuvenated

Please note that this is not a policy paper: it’s simply an attempt to capture an emerging consensus at a moment in time!

1. An Unchanged Vision God who has called you is faithful, and he will do it. 1 Thess 5.24

The Diocese of Sheffield is called to grow a sustainable network of Christ-like, lively and diverse Christian communities in every place which are effective in making disciples and in seeking to transform our society and God’s world. We long to see sustainable Christian communities in every place. We long to see the Body of Christ grow in depth and in numbers. We long to see every disciple and the whole Church serving our wider society as salt and light. This paper makes two important assumptions: 1. The present diocesan vision and strategy are broadly outlined in 5 recent documents (Growing the Body of Christ 2011-2021; Re-Imagining Ministry for Mission 2012-2022; Salt and Light 2012-2015; A Little Letter on Giving [2014]; and Forming and Equipping the People of God 2015-2025) and especially in the last of these. 2. There is to be no deviation from the direction of travel set out there. On the contrary, this paper seeks deliberately to build on the work which was done in the statement of that vision and in the ongoing implementation of it: Growing the Body of Christ, 2011-2021 We remain committed to the annual cycle of making disciples, and to seeking both spiritual and numerical growth in all our congregations. Re-Imagining Ministry, 2012-2022 Mission and ministry will still be delivered increasingly through Mission Partnerships or other groupings of parishes, as we work together, in partnership with God’s Holy Spirit, in Mission Action Planning and growing a ‘mixed economy’* of church life. (* For a definition of ‘mixed economy’ see the glossary at the end of this document.) Salt and Light, 2012-2015 We remain committed to all Five ‘Marks of Mission’ of the Anglican Communion (Tell the world, Teach the faithful, Tend the weak, Transform the unjust, Treasure the earth) through our parishes and deaneries, our schools and chaplaincies. The Diocesan Board of Faith and

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Justice will continue to play a significant role in supporting and resourcing this work, so that we are able, across the Diocese, to serve our communities locally and transform God’s world globally. A little Letter on Giving, 2014 We remain committed to encouraging generous giving as a key mark of authentic Christian discipleship across the Diocese, and, as a Diocese to achieving financial sustainability and mutual support by planned annual giving to the Common Fund. Forming and Equipping the People of God, 2015-2025 Finally, we all continue to prioritise the making of disciples and the growing of a culture of discipleship across every kind of church, school and chaplaincy in the diocese. Equipping and supporting the whole people of God for the whole mission of God will remain the key function of the training provided through St Peter’s College. (These five key strategy booklets will continue to be available on the Diocesan Website at http://www.sheffield.anglican.org/diocesan-strategy) It is for this reason that this paper asks what a generous and flourishing Diocese of Sheffield might look like in 2025 — the latest horizon in that series of publications. Taken together, those documents provide many glimpses of what a generous and flourishing Diocese of Sheffield will look like in 2025. It will be characterised, for example, by ‘whole life’ discipleship, in which every individual follower of Jesus is enabled to fulfil his or her God-given vocation in three senses: as a ‘whole’ life-long calling, as a calling to live a holy life (wholly given to God), and as a calling to live for God in the whole of life (as much when the church is dispersed as when it is gathered). It will be characterised by an appetite for learning in which every individual follower of Jesus is eager to grow to maturity in Christ. It will be a diverse diocese and in almost every place it will demonstrate ‘a mixed economy’ of traditional patterns of church life and ‘fresh expression’ church plants. It will be sacrificial in the service of our neighbourhoods and God’s world as salt and light, active in the public square by bearing faithful witness to the coming Kingdom of God. It will make a difference to localities. The introduction of the word ‘generous’ to this vision may lead to some slight new emphases: eg, a generous and flourishing Diocese of Sheffield will be liberal financially, adventurous evangelistically and bold in making partnerships even across difference — and not least in ecumenical partnership. This document assumes that we will not do alone what we can do in partnership with other denominations; and that we will even attempt to do with others the things that are more easily done alone. But even here these developments stand in continuity with what has gone before.

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However, not even a stated vision is a straight-jacket. Strategy to achieve the vision is still less so. Strategy is at its most effective as a tool for mission when it is regularly revised — and the arrival of a new Diocesan bishop is an obvious occasion for such a revision.

2. An Escalating Challenge: The Four-headed Beast ‘Be strong and very courageous, do not be frightened or dismayed,

for the Lord our God is with you wherever you go’ Joshua 1.9

In my address to the Diocesan Synod in November 2017, I argued that the prospect of realising, by 2025, our vision of a generous and flourishing Diocese of Sheffield is urgently threatened (as is every Diocese in the Church of England at present) by a four-headed beast.

Put crudely, it’s ABCD: a) adult attenders at worship across the Diocese week by week are still falling; b) in most parishes & for the Diocesan Board of Finance, budgets are in deficit; c) in many places church buildings / structures are not what we would choose; and d) across the Diocese as whole, the demographics of both our congregations and of our lay and ordained stipendiary & self-supporting leaders are imbalanced: we are not as diverse as the communities we serve and we are over-dependent on the contribution of our older members. A. Attendance Trends The latest (2017) data about attendance at worship across the Diocese is not all bad by any means. On the contrary, there are some definite signs of encouragement. To take just one example: our Usual Sunday Adult Attendance in 2017 was only fractionally down (by 50, at -0.4%, to 10,080); and our Usual Sunday Attendance for Under 16s was up (by 50 at 2.7% to 1,780) so after years of decline the number of young people has gone up and our overall Usual Sunday Attendance has held steady. But the context remains very sobering. That last figure of 11,860 for our overall Usual Sunday Attendance has dropped markedly in the last two decades. In 1998 it was about 17,000 and in 2008 it was still around 13,430. More recent figures are as follows: 2012 - 12,950; 2013 - 12,790; 2014 - 12,590; 2015 -12,500; 2016 - 11,860. The Lord’s ‘Great Commission’ in Matthew 28.16-20 leaves no doubt that the primary task of the Church of Jesus Christ has always been to make disciples: to increase the number of those who take him for their Saviour and who serve him as their Lord. So there is always an urgent evangelistic imperative for Christians: we are always looking to make the most of every opportunity to bear witness to what God has done for the salvation of the world in Christ. However, that sense of urgency is presumably at its greatest when we are aware that the number of followers of Jesus in our Diocese (at least, those worshipping as members of the Church of England) is falling.

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The population of our Diocese in 2016 was 1,249,097. The overall Sunday attendance was 12,078. That means that less than 1% of the population in the Diocese attended an act of worship in a Church of England Church on a typical Sunday in 2016. Part of the aim of this strategy is simply to bump that number up above 1%. How wonderful it would be if, on a given Sunday in 2025, something approaching 2% of the population were to be found in a Church of England Church. (Bear in mind, however, that that would still mean that 98% were not!) B. Budget Trends Secondly, as a Diocese we face significant financial challenges. Most PCCs (to say nothing of most church schools and most chaplaincies) are well aware of the difficulties in this area; but the problem is also one for the Diocesan Board of Finance, out of which stipends for our clergy and lay staff are paid. Two of our most important income streams are now declining: Common Fund contributions and the grant we receive from the Church Commissioners. In 2015, the old ‘Parish Share’ system by which parishes contributed to the overall costs of ministry in the Diocese gave way to the present ‘Common Fund’ system. However, that change has not yet arrested the falling trend which had by then become established. Indeed, since then the falling trend has continued: under the new system £4.529m of Common Fund was received in 2015; £4.492m in 2016 and £4.322m received in 2017. So receipts through Common Fund in the last three years have fallen by £207k (roughly equivalent to the total stipendiary costs of 3- 4 full-time priests). As recently as 2009, the old ‘parish share’ receipts amounted to £4.85m, almost £530,000 more than last year (roughly equivalent to the costs associated with 8.5 full-time clergy). This element of our income is of course related to attendance: generally speaking if attendances are dropping, as they have been for over 20 years, it is likely that giving will also fall. It is startling to note that out of 192 Common Fund Contributors in the Diocese, only 17 currently contribute more than £62,313pa, which would be associated with the full cost of a dedicated stipendiary parish priest. The figure of £62,313 per full time parish priest/deacon is made up as follows: £48,629 representing local ministry costs (£25,964 for the stipend; £2,077 National Insurance; £9,926 for the house; £9,460 for the pension) and £13,684 representing ministry support costs. This drop in income through the Common Fund has been compounded by a change in the way the Church Commissioners now disburse grants to Diocese. In 2015, the Diocese received £1.909m under the Darlow formula from Archbishop’s Council. In 2016 that reduced to £1.312m with allocation targeted to Lower Income Communities (LIC) only. In 2015, Mission Development Funding from the Church Commissioners also ceased (previously £184k per year). Of course, it’s true that the Diocese has other income streams (fees, investments, other miscellaneous grants) and now the opportunity to bid for Strategic Funding from the Church Commissioners. But the basic picture is a challenging one: our income is falling.

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Now it has to be said that in many parts of the world, and in much of church history, the church has been most effective evangelistically and as a herald of God’s kingdom, challenging and changing the world around it, when it was been most poor. And almost all that Jesus had to say about money was negative: he saw it chiefly as a liability and not as an asset to the Gospel. It might just be that the Church of England nationally, including here in our Diocese, is heading for a new period of material poverty but spiritual wealth. But if so, that Church of England will look very different, with far fewer stipendiary clergy than we have now. Meanwhile, let’s be clear: reduced income means reduced decision-making freedom, it means reduced options and reduced mission capacity. C. Church Structure Issues A third serious challenge facing us across the Diocese is associated with the structures (especially the physical and legal structures) we have inherited from the past. Many of these are not what we would choose, if we were devising structures to serve the mission of God from scratch today. Some of these issues relate to our church buildings. Many of these are not even in the places where we most need our buildings to be: in some cases, they never were, but more commonly they have been stranded by shifting centres of population. Some lack the sort of basis amenities (a toilet or a kitchen, or even a supply of running water) which would make wider community use, especially mid-week, possible. Others are well-located and well-equipped but require the investment of an inordinate amount of time and money to keep them in good condition. But not all our structural issues relate to buildings. Others relate to the requirements of either canon or civil law: these can often be experienced at parish level as a hindrance and not a help in the mission of God, as mission-liabilities and not mission-assets. We live, for example, in a culture which for many good reasons now places charitable trusts, including PCCs, under a considerable burden of ‘governance compliance’, relating to finance, safeguarding, data-protection, health & safety and risk registers. The Apostle Paul had a greater freedom both to focus his energy in response to the leading of God’s Spirit and to improvise in the face of obstacles. It can sometimes feel, by comparison, as if to be a member of the Church of England in mission at present is like trying to run a race with both feet tied together. D. The Challenge of Demographics Fourthly and finally, the imbalance in the demographic profile of our congregations is also challenging. Although, on average less than 1.5% of the population at large was in attendance at worship in a Church of England parish on a typical Sunday in 2016, that overall figure disguises some variances: in the age group 66 to 75, for example, that figure was 3%; in the age group 76 to 85, over 2.5% and even in the age group 85+, over 2%. What a wonderful thing it would be if we could replicate those percentages across every

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age group! Unfortunately, among 25 to 45 year olds we are below 1%; and among 12 to 24 year olds, below 0.5%. Of course, quite apart from the fact that we want people of every age to find salvation in the name of Jesus, the implications of our over-dependence on older people are serious: a disproportionate number of our most faithful adult attenders, of our most generous and reliable givers and of our lay and clergy leaders are well into their retirement years. Put bluntly, these next seven years represent a window of great opportunity but also real threat, to make the most of the wisdom, courage and generosity of our older members, while they are still active in worship and mission. The sobering reality is that even between now and 2025 many of them will become too frail to sustain their current patterns of worship attendance, giving and leadership; and some will die. A key challenge is to ensure that these Simeon and Anna figures are enabled to play their full part in ushering in the infant Jesus for the next generation, while they are still able to do so. In fact, given our disproportionate dependence at present on our oldest members, it is possible that attendance, income and the number of available lay and clergy leaders will continue to fall during the next seven years even if we are really very fruitful, by God’s grace, in making new disciples during that time. It is the combination of this set of four challenges which accounts for the exhaustion experienced by many of our key lay and clergy leaders: most are more than fully extended by a sense of responsibility both to maintain the inherited order and to usher in the new era; most have been quicker (because it can seem easier) to start new initiatives than to close down old ones; many find themselves asked to lead expressions of ministry, lay and ordained, different for those to which they originally felt called and for which they were trained. This strategy attempts to address these acute levels of stress and exhaustion.

3. A Revised Strategy ‘God did not give us a spirit of cowardice,

but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline’ 2 Timothy 1.7 Given the scale of these four challenges and the urgency of the threat posed by this ‘four-headed beast’, it is clear that we cannot continue as we are. It is hard to see, in the light of these trends, how we can sustain the present number of church buildings; and unless we act speedily and urgently, it is hard to see how we can continue to afford 100 stipendiary parish clergy. And yet, the Lord Jesus remains ‘the same, yesterday, today and for ever’ (Heb 13.8). His grace is as richly abundant as it has ever been. His gifts to us are bestowed as generously as they have ever been. God the Father pours out his Holy Spirit upon us in Christ as freely, as

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lavishly as he has ever done. The Gospel remains what it has always been: ‘the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith’ (Rom 1.16). The coming of God’s kingdom of righteousness and peace remains as certain as it has even been. So there is hope! This strategy is an attempt to realign the resources of the Diocese in a way that is realistic but ambitious under God: that’s to say, in a way that takes seriously the challenges we face, but is nevertheless adventurous, generous and unafraid. It proceeds on the assumption that we cannot go on as we are, and that a greater level of risk-taking is going to be necessary if we are to respond well to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. It is a strategy intended to help us realise a generous and flourishing Diocese of Sheffield by 2025: a Diocese that is renewed, released and rejuvenated. The goals stipulated within this strategy serve a double purpose: first, they have an iconic role, helping to capture our imaginations, to symbolise the strands of the strategy, to give momentum to the process and to gather us around shared tasks; but secondly, they have a practical role, acting as milestones on the way, helping us to stay on track and to chart our progress, to monitor and measure our performance. So the goals need to be measurable and achievable; but they also need to be stretching. We need not be afraid of ambitious goals, because we need not be afraid to fail. In fact, failure would not consist in falling short of stretching targets, but in timidly refusing to commit to any ambitious goals under God, or having done so in neglecting them. it would be more faithful to the Lord to set a stretching target and to fall a bit short of it than to set an easy target we could achieve without even really trying. Moreover, while the realisation of this vision will require all of us to be working together, the primary responsibility for the achievement of these goals rests with the Bishop’s staff, and ultimately with me as the Diocesan Bishop. If at any stage between now and 2025, it feels to parishes, schools or chaplaincies that they are being told by ‘the Diocese’, ‘you are failing to meet these goals’, something has gone wrong. A. Renewed! The Church is not a business enterprise. It is always ‘a sign, an agent and a foretaste of the coming kingdom of God’ (Newbigin). As such, it always looks beyond itself and beyond its own interests to those of the whole world; and as such it depends utterly on the grace of God for its fruitfulness and effectiveness. So a strategy for the church, while every bit as shrewd as a commercial strategy, must be grounded firmly in God — taking full account of the power and love, and the infinite resources of the One who ‘owns the cattle on a thousand hills’ (Psalm 50.10)!

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Indeed, in seeking a Diocese which is renewed in God, we anticipate the goal to which all things are moving: the renewal of all things (Matthew 19.28). So our vision is not for the renewal of the Diocese of Sheffield alone, nor even of the whole Church of God: we look forward to the renewal of all creation in accordance with God’s will (Romans 8.19-23). This strategy attempts to align the resources of the Diocese to God’s great work of universal renewal. If we are to realise our vision for the Diocese, so that by 2025 we are flourishing generously, then it will be because we have maintained as a first priority a real reliance on the Spirit of God in prayer and worship and in the consecration of our lives, as individuals and communities. To this end, we will (eg): * recruit & resource a community of 2025 members who will: i) say the Lord’s Prayer daily; ii) say the Diocesan Vision Prayer daily; and iii) to pause daily before God at 20.25 (or at any hour between 20 & 25 past) to seek the renewing power of God’s Spirit for the Diocese. Specifically, we pray that by 2025, 2.5% of the population of the Diocese will typically worship in a Church of England Church. (In 2016, that figure was 1.3%) * hold 25 gatherings a year specifically to pray for the realisation of the vision (2 per deanery, 1 annually at the Cathedral), each attended by one of the Bishops.

B. Released! There are two aspects to this strand of the strategy i) negatively, to release parishes as far as possible from current constraints (eg of the ever-increasing administrative and compliance demands and of inherited rules; of inherited structures and buildings which are no longer well fitted for mission); ii) positively, to liberate and maximise untapped potential of individual disciples, of whole congregations and our concentrations of greatest resource. It is always true that the whole mission of God requires the gifts and ministries of the whole people of God — but in our current crisis it is all the more true that we cannot afford to neglect any of the gifts and resources available to us. But there is work to do in relation to both these strands, before this strategy paper is complete. There are four major questions which are still to be answered: a) How can we release clergy and lay leaders from the burden of unreasonable expectation? This is a major concern. Perhaps the issue can be most easily illustrated with reference to the stipendiary clergy — but it is experienced equally by self-supporting clergy and by lay leaders too. But we can take stipendiary clergy as an illustration: since 2009, their number

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has fallen by 25%, and yet they are, or feel themselves to be, expected to undertake the same number of occasional offices, PCC and other meetings, etc as their predecessors (ie, sustaining ‘inherited church’) — while also nurturing the emerging church into being. How is this possible? Is it surprising that many of our clergy and lay leaders are discouraged and exhausted in this situation? b) How can we liberate the whole people of God for the whole mission of God? In response to the publication of the ‘Setting God’s People Free’ report, the Archbishop’s Council has established a series of learning communities to draw up action plans in dioceses. The Diocese of Sheffield is taking part in cohort 2, in a series of meetings which will run from May 2018 to May 2019. Until this process is complete, we won’t be ready to define in full the work we need to do to release the whole people of God for the whole mission of God. c) What mission can we now afford and how can we afford what we sense the Lord is calling us to embrace? If we are to release the whole people of God for the whole mission of God, we will need to revisit the Common Fund system. Receipts are falling, and we have work to do to enable our worshipping community to grasp the link between Common Fund receipts and staffing levels, in terms of stipendiary clergy and lay support staff. Can we reverse the downward trend of Common Fund receipts, and if so how? But meanwhile, we will continue to invest the ‘lowest income communities’ funding we receive from the Church Commissioners (which amounts to around £1.2m a year, or 20 or so stipends) is guaranteeing the presence of stipendiary clergy in our most deprived communities. This is a commitment for the duration of this strategy, to reflect God’s ‘bias to the poor’. d) How do we reflect all of the classical ‘Five Marks of Mission’ in this strategy? Arguably, we are at a point where marks one and two are rightfully given priority. But the church is not an end in itself — it is a sign, and an agent, and a first fruit of the kingdom. So we seek justice and peace in every possible way. At present, these issues do not have a high profile in this paper, and it will be necessary to incorporate more fully some commitments to our communities and our environment, eg: what should disciples of Jesus, and whole churches, be doing in relation to renewable energy, to offset the growing peril of continued climate change? Nevertheless, some aspects of this part of the strategy are already clear: In terms of strand i (current constraints): It is time radically to tackle those church buildings and structures we have inherited from the past which now amount to a liability and not an asset in the mission of God. This set of

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challenges is rather absent from the current strategy documents — except that the introduction of Mission Partnerships does at least hint at a different way of structuring deaneries. Over the coming years we expect to continue to develop mission partnerships, and other forms of parish groupings as the most effective way of enabling the whole people of God to engage in the whole mission of God. There may be wisdom in moving to larger benefices, overseen by a single PCC where several attempt the work at present: this will reduce the need to recruit PCC officers, reduce the number of hours in governance meetings and so on. Similarly, we will continue to focus the role of Church House on making mission easier for parishes, schools and chaplaincies. Every post holder in our central services must be clear how their work supports and liberates the front line mission activity of the Diocese. In particular, we will want to revisit the question, how parishes might be better supported centrally in meeting the demands of compliance in relation to eg Data Protection, Health & Safety and Safeguarding. It is also clear that in some instances, church buildings and parish boundaries do not serve us well. Some have become liabilities to us and not assets in mission. We will therefore be reviewing our options where buildings are exorbitantly costly to maintain, or are no longer well located in their parishes, or where facilities are especially poor. This will of course require a close collaboration with the DAC — integrating the work of that committee more fully into the strategy of the Diocese than before. But there are real sensitivities here: we are touching matters which many members of our congregations understandably hold dear. We do not sit light to the fact that buildings are precious: they become symbolic of identity not just for worshippers but for neighbour-hoods; they serve as signposts to Christ. So there is no ‘hit-list’ of churches we must close. But the direction of travel in the next 7 years is bound to be in a rationalising direction, where less is more — and releasing congregations and individual disciples from the constraints created by structures which are no longer fit for purpose would be one positive response to the sense of weariness among lay and clergy leaders to which many testify. In terms of strand ii (untapped potential), we will engage vigorously in the national ‘Setting God’s People Free’ agenda. The aim of SGPF is to equip the whole people of God to follow and serve Jesus confidently in every sphere of life Sunday to Saturday. We will rebalance our investment not only in lay ministries in relation to ordained ones, but in lay ministries which are exercised when the people of God are dispersed, in unauthorised and

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unlicensed way, in relation to lay ministries which are exercised when the people of God are gathered. In other words, the mission of God is not necessarily advanced most when the people of God are gathered, whether for worship or investment in discipleship. The mission of God is most advanced when the whole people of God are dispersed in community engagement and evangelism, in daily life and work and the pursuit of the common good. So we will be asking what steps might we take to release the mission and ministry of the whole people of God? However liberating the whole people of God for the whole mission of God implies releasing the full financial generosity of every Christian disciple. Not least through the work of the new Diocesan Generous Giving Officer, we will therefore embark on a concerted teaching stewardship programme to foster responsible and sustainable patterns of giving among the baptised and confirmed. We will also review the current Common Fund system, looking again at the contribution made by parishes and their clergy and lay leaders through fees. In these ways, we will hope to reverse the recent decline in income to the SDBF through the Common Fund and to increase the number of parishes which are able to contribute over and above the ‘ministry cost’ rate. We will be reviewing our recruitment and deployment of self-supporting clergy, to make most effective use of them, as well as of St Peter’s College as a vehicle for training in the Diocese. We will be seeking to encourage stipendiary clergy to take responsibility for their self-care, eg; a) in addition to their full annual leave allocation and a rest day each week, to take one ‘double day off’ in any month in which no annual leave falls. b) to agree with their PCC an appropriate investment of time and energy in sustaining inherited patterns of church and fostering emerging ones; in initiating new mission activities and bringing others to a conclusion; in acting as pastor-teacher and in acting as apostle-evangelist. To this end, we will (eg): * review in 2019 the work at Church House to make mission easier and so seek to create capacity to support compliance issues (cf Mission Partnership Development Workers — but how many people doing what and funded how?) * review in 2019 the Common Fund system in the light of parish fee contribution and embark on a centrally resourced stewardship teaching programme

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* seek to increase total Common Fund receipts by 2025 by 20% from £4.322m to £5.186m, doubling the number of contributors who give over and above their own local ministry costs. * review MDR papers in 2018 for clergy to include questions about a) annual leave and rhythms of rest; and b) PCC endorsement of the investment of time in inherited and/or emerging church activities * participate, in 2018-2019, in the National Church ‘Setting God’s People Free’ learning community programme, to bring forward by 2020 proposals to liberate the whole people of God for the whole mission of God, including proposals for the training and equipping of all the baptised as ‘ambassadors of Christ’. Rejuvenated! There are also two aspects to this third strand of the strategy i) The age demographic of our members is not healthy: we are overdependent on older people and need urgently to recruit more younger people, including lay and ordained leaders. ii) The ‘institutional age’ of our parishes themselves and their congregations is not healthy: too high a proportion were founded decades or even centuries ago. We need urgently to plant new churches and congregations and to nurture ‘infant’ fresh expressions. In terms of strand i (the age demographic): It is time to attempt ‘a transformative engagement with schools and universities’. This will of require a close collaboration with the Diocesan Board of Education, integrating the work of that board more fully into the strategy of the Diocese than before. The potential here is demonstrated by the early fruitfulness of the Centenary Project and by the success of our latest SDF bid. It should be noted, by the way, that form the beginning the terms of reference for the Centenary Project have envisaged that we will place workers in our most deprived communities: churches will are in more affluent areas are expected to resource children and families workers for themselves. This commitment to sustain the work of God in our most deprived communities will continue throughout the period of this strategy. The potential here is also indicated, ironically, by the relative absence of our schools from the current documents — what might be possible if we can harness them? Given their work among students and their thriving youth work, the large West Sheffield churches also represent an untapped resource in this respect: how can we partner with them to engage their new graduates and twenty-somethings in a heroic missionary enterprise? It is also striking that we have in our Diocese the headquarters of the Church Army: how can their considerable skills and experience be harnessed to this strategy?

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A key challenge will be to engage younger lay and ordained leaders and to review the roles into which they feel called. Must all ‘focal leaders’ be ordained? What potential is there for lay pioneers and evangelists, and for a greater fostering of self-supporting clergy (to which there is an existing commitment in the current strategy). Who is being recruited for what model of ordained ministry? But this focus on rejuvenation does not mean that we intend to neglect our most senior church members. Far from it: not only do we owe them a great debt of thanks for their extraordinary contribution in the past, we continue to rely on their activity, their generosity and their prayers. It should hardly need to be said that in the Bible, grey hair is something to be proud of: the oldest members of the community are honoured for their wisdom. So this strategy seeks to enlist the help of our oldest members in ushering in the generation of their children’s children, of mobilising the vision and prayer of every Simeon and Anna we can find. We say thank you to the over 80s for all that they have contributed so faithfully to our parishes over past decades, thank you for what they continue to contribute Sunday by Sunday and during the week, and thank you for what they are committed to contributing in the years ahead. Without their dedication our plight would be considerably more difficult. In terms of strand ii (the ‘institutional age’): Every parish in the Diocese was founded sometime, every church building or consecrated place of worship had a beginning and so did every congregation and mission activity. Not all of these have a long history — but despite a commitment to the so-called ‘mixed economy’ (of inherited and new forms of worship, of long established and recently formed congregations) we are overdependent on those which do. Too few of our congregations have been established recently. This is not to belittle the continuing value of inherited forms of worship. In a significant proportion of our parishes, ‘inherited church’ still functions fruitfully: worship on a Sunday, with children and young people’s work, is well connected to the local community through the occasional offices and ministry in and through church schools; while neighbourhoods are well served through various kinds of outreach. Where this model is still working well we will continue to invest in it and to celebrate it’s vitality. However, even in most of these cases, it will be important to explore ‘fresh expressions of church’* and to pay attention to those parts of a parish population which may not be touched by our traditional forms. But where there are signs that the inherited model is struggling to survive, where church congregations are not well connected to their local communities, we will give new impetus to a programme of church planting*. Given their track record and current commitment to planting, the large West Sheffield churches represent an untapped resource in this respect: and this strategy will endeavour

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to integrate their energy more fully into the life of the Diocese. It’s true that the concentration of our largest churches in the most prosperous part of the Diocese (together with the fact that they also represent a concentration of Evangelical tradition) brings a key issue into focus: how shall we rebalance the distribution of resources so that the most deprived neighbourhoods in our Diocese enjoy the presence of flourishing and contextually appropriate Christian communities? This strategy assumes that church planting, carefully and intentionally led by the Bishops, through the designation of ‘resourcing churches’*, and through the deployment of curates, centenary project workers and interns and through ‘Strategic Development Funding’ bids is the most effective available mechanism to achieve this. Indeed, every parish is encouraged to consider what it can contribute in this regard. It goes without saying that we do not want all the new congregations to be of any one particular style: on the contrary, we want our newest congregations to reflect the full diversity of the life of the church. Nothing else will truly deliver a generous and flourishing Diocese of Sheffield. In seeking to identify giving and receiving churches for new plants, the Bishop’s senior staff will have regard to the opportunity to ‘rebalance’ the resources of the Diocese from the most affluent communities to the most deprived: wherever possible, we will give the most deprived parishes the first opportunity to benefit from a new plant. Indeed, we need to grow our diversity further, and this strategy assumes that rejuvenation and diversification will go hand in hand, and that establishing newer congregations will incidentally drive up the proportion of people from BAME communities, or people with disabilities, for example. This process will also incidentally help to deliver the cultural change we know we need to bring about in many of our congregations, so that they are truly welcoming and open, confident and engaging. In fact, church planting might just prove to be the most direct route. To this end we will (eg): * Identify and invest in 12 'resourcing churches’ by 2025, to champion church planting across the Diocese, in every deanery and across the whole breadth of our traditions. * Establish 25 new congregations in each archdeaconry by 2025 — where a congregation is more than a new mission activity, but a place where the sacraments of baptism and the eucharist can appropriately be offered. * Identify by 2020 and begin to establish by 2025, 25 new congregations based in CofE schools, working in partnership with the DBE * Engage an additional 2500 children and young people through the Centenary Project by 2025, bringing at least 250 to baptism and/or confirmation. * Recruit 10 BAME ordinands / ordinands with disabilities by 2025

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* Ensure that by 10% of licensed lay and clergy leaders are aged under 40 by 2025 * Prioritise the health and strength of the mission of God in our 25 most deprived parishes

+Pete, Bishop of Sheffield, June 2018

A Glossary of Terms ‘Mixed economy’: the combination in a single parish, a mission partnership, a deanery and a diocese of traditional, inherited forms of church worship and of emerging, experimental forms. Both are valued, both require investment. ‘New congregation’: within a benefice, but not necessarily within an existing church building, the creation of a new opportunity for worship, intended for a new community of worshippers. This might involve a traditional form of worship (eg, BCP Holy Communion) in a new venue (eg, residential care home or school) or a new and more experimental form of worship (messy church) in a traditional venue (the parish church), or a new and more experimental form of worship in a new venue. But a new congregation is only so-called if fully fledged discipleship, including participation in baptism and the eucharist, are possible. Any such new congregation might be termed a ‘fresh expression of church’, but I find this term slippery: often it is used to describe something which is not a new congregation, but merely a mission activity intended to provide a bridge over which newcomers can cross to an existing act of worship. Significantly, the words ‘of church’ are often dropped off the phrase in these circumstances, leaving the term ‘fresh expressions’. To quote George Lings, in the phrase ‘fresh expression of church’ only the C of church deserves a capital letter. We have no appetite to multiply ‘FEs’. So ‘messy church’ isn’t necessarily a new congregation, if it is not regarded as the sufficient ‘church belonging’ for those who attend, and if there is no intention ever to offer opportunity for participation in baptism and the eucharist. If instead the hope is that newcomers will be drawn into the life of an existing congregation it is simply a ‘mission activity’. It is no less valuable for that and might be a highly effective bridge: but it is not a fresh expression of Church.

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The term ‘church plant’ refers to two kinds of new congregation: these days the most common use of this phrase is to describe the process by which a leader and a number of supporting people are sent out from an existing congregation (effectively leaving it) to belong to a new congregation in a new parish, often were the remnant of an old congregation has all but died out, often re-booting a church which might otherwise have faced a precarious future. (The similar term ‘church graft’ is usually applied where the number of arrivals from the sending church is smaller than the number of existing members in the receiving church.) this term might also be applied where a new congregation is established within the boundary of a parish or benefice, but away from the parish church — if it is envisaged that it will ultimately enjoy independent governance. Crucially, a ‘resourcing church’ is a church which is so designated by the Bishop’s senior staff and its own PCC and is committed to give itself away (its members, key leaders and most generous givers) in a published programme of church planting in collaboration with the senior staff. To be a resourcing church it is not necessary to be a big church or a rich church or an evangelical church. A resourcing church is not necessarily a church with ample stipendiary clergy staff. It is simply a church which has planting in its very DNA and which is ready to make a commitment in good faith to establish new congregations in partnership with the Bishop’s senior staff. A church of 100 could be a resourcing church if it has the appetite. +Pete, Bishop of Sheffield, June 2018

Resourcing Churches in the Diocese of Sheffield Information Sheet

What is a Resourcing Church? A Resourcing Church is a church which, working closely with the Diocesan Bishop, intentionally resources mission across a city, by planting and revitalising churches, developing leaders and providing other resources for mission. Its aim is to help evangelise a place and transform society. In such churches there is a culture of ‘giving away’. This means generously giving away people and money to reach out rejuvenate churches and communities.

To officially be a Resourcing Church the church must be designated as such by the Bishop and committed to give itself away in a published programme of church planting in collaboration with the Bishop’s senior staff. It is not necessarily a big church, a rich church or an evangelical church. It is simply a church which has planting in its DNA and which is ready to make a commitment in good faith to establish new congregations in places and at times which have been negotiated with the senior staff.

At the moment we don’t have any officially designated Resourcing Churches but the Diocese Strategy is to have 12 by 2025 – across all geographic areas of the diocese and all traditions. Discussions are starting with our four larger churches that have already planted new congregations to become resourcing churches and we have plans to ‘kick-start’ others.

Why are we doing it? The Diocese of Sheffield is called to grow a sustainable network of Christ-like, lively and diverse Christian communities in every place which are effective in making disciples and in seeking to transform our society and God’s world.

We long to see sustainable Christian communities in every place. We long to see the Body of Christ grow in depth and in numbers. We long to see every disciple and the whole Church better serving our local communities and wider society.

Our vision is to see Churches grow in number and spiritual depth, with lives visibly transformed. Our vision and strategic direction are firmly focused on missional and financial growth. With a population of over 1.2 million people, and average all age weekly attendance of just 15,500, we also remain acutely aware of our ageing congregations. We need to continue to ‘grow younger’ and rejuvenate with determination, so that our congregations reflect the demographics of the communities we serve.

Developing Resourcing Churches is a key part of implementing the Diocese’s refreshed strategy, Renewed! Released! Rejuvenated! Because of this church planting expert Bishop Ric Thorpe was invited to speak at Development Day in October and if you’d like to know more his talk and slides can be viewed here, http://www.sheffield.anglican.org/strategy-launch

How are we paying for this? The Church of England has a central fund called the Strategic Development Fund (SDF) that Diocese can bid into to support mission in the economically poorest areas.

The Diocese of Sheffield Resourcing Churches SDF bid is a fantastic opportunity to help grow the Kingdom of God across the Diocese by recruiting teams into parishes to engage with communities and grow leaders to reach more people and to share the Good News of Jesus. We have successfully secured all of the money we requested in the bid and the work will be funded for 6 years, with the expectation that it is self-sustaining after this point. The total project cost is £5.5M with £3.5 coming from SDF and £2M from the diocese and parishes.

The three target areas are: Goole, Rotherham and Wath-Dearne Valley. These areas have huge potential for growth, have experienced long vacancies and are economically some of the poorest areas in our diocese. Each church will receive a multi-disciplinary team tuned to its context. The types of roles in the team are; vicar, curate, children and families worker, admin support and worship leader. As well as being missional the team will be talent spotting people to be part of new missional activities and planting teams.

After this ‘kick-start’ we hope that for the next phase of development churches will nominate themselves to become Resourcing Churches.

Prayer Points • Thanks for the successful outcome of the bid • That the right people are recruited to the teams • That good relationships form with the churches and outwardly into the

communities around the churches • That the numbers of disciples grow in the diocese

To find out more Please see the Diocese website or contact Programme Manager, Alex Shilkoff, on 01709 309100 or alex.shilkoff@sheffield.anglican.org