The PCC met on 1 5 September 2005; these were the main matters which we discussed and decided
* There would be a special open meeting, probably in November, to be arranged with other churches in the Deanery to discuss the admission of women to the episcopate.
* The Yew tree had been felled a few days previously; the wood would be used for turning.
* The Heath and Hampstead Society had offered to help to pay for the repainting of the Churchyard railings and providing the PCC’s contribution did not exceed £3,000, work should start. Camden had made an application for Lottery funding for the churchyard, to implement its management plan but Lottery funds were not available for railings.
* The faculty for the repair of the War Memorial had been granted and it was intended (the PCC thought unrealistically) that the work would be completed by Remembrance Sunday.
* The following were welcomed on to the Electoral Roll: Nicholas Hacking, Maida Aitcheson, Peter Harrison and Rebecca Siddall
* Inigo Woolf (the Treasurer) projected a deficit of £14,000 this year but this would grow to £30,000 next year unless fundraising efforts were effective. Although the Diocese was receiving a much better return on its investments, a long delayed increase in clergy pay meant that Deaneries had been asked for a 4.6% increase in the Common Fund contribution; the PCC voted unanimously to increase its contribution by 5%.
* Emmerson Willis had tendered a good price for the disabled for the toilet and the work would start soon.
* The Building and Plant Committee had looked at developing the belfry room as a space for mothers and children and possibly a small meeting room and also considered more ambitious plans for an extension above the vestries. Andrew Thome, the architect, would be asked to advise on both proposals.
* The main topic for discussion was the “Mission Shaped Church”. The Vicar explained that this report identified the fragmentation of society as the root cause of declining church attendance. This was true generally but not in the Diocese of London where, largely because of the numerous, usually closely knit, immigrant communities and the activities of certain evangelical churches, church attendance had increased. Both instances were however exceptions which tended to prove the general rule.
The report described the fragmentation of a predominantly urban, middle class and middle aged society which was agreed to be a reasonable (if not wholly accurate) reflection of the congregation of St John’s, at least in the first two instances, (St John’s had a full age range). While the fragmentation of society might have contributed to a decline in church going, it was possibly also the reason why so many people still wanted to belong to some community or group especially those with an ethical or social object; the church should consider ways in which it might link into these networks. Conversely, groups which used the church premises should be encouraged to feel part of the wider church. The PCC then looked at ways in which Hampstead had changed in the last 30 years, but few had any obvious connection with the changes in churchgoing at St John’s. Sunday morning church was now far more relaxed, many fewer hats and suits were to be seen and children were seen and heard. The congregation had been respectable and innately conservative and was now more welcoming and socially aware.
There were good reasons to retain Sunday as the principal day for worship. Worship on Sunday was still (despite secular encroachments) the most convenient time for most people and it made a statement against the rising tide of materialist consumerism. On the whole we thought the church was not in touch with contemporary culture, indeed it provided an antidote to the prevalent ephemeral materialism around it and for a decade or so the Church had been almost the only opposition to the Government. St John’s had not, however, (with a few notable exceptions) engaged sufficiently with the social and economic problems of its neighbours (possibly because a majority of the congregation did not live in the parish).
The discussion would continue at a later meeting.
Andrew Penny
PCC Report
Andrew Penny