1

Thank you for taking the time to read this profile. We hope that as it

shares something of life in the Parish of Aldridge you are

encouraged and inspired to consider whether God is calling you to

this role. We are praying that if you are the person God is calling to

be our next Rector, within this profile you may find something that

reflects the minister that God has called you to be.

welcome

contentWe hope you are encouraged and inspired to consider whether God is calling you...

We are looking to welcome a Rector who is:

• A minister who will be open to the gifts of the Spirit, seeking to

encourage them, and who will be a committed Bible teacher.

• Someone who has a heart for sharing the Gospel of Jesus - un-

derstanding the need to look outward to the local community

and helping others to do so.

• An approachable minister with a pastor’s heart who is at ease

with a wide range of people and who will get to know them, en-

courage and support them.

• A leader who can oversee and work alongside others - releasing

and delegating.

Welcome...........................................................................................1

Vision and Mission:

Strengths and Challenges......................................2

The Four Churches.........................................................3

Our Location.....................................................................4

Aldridge Parish Church.............................................5

Services and Worship at APC...............................6

APC Staff................................................................................8

Prayer.....................................................................................9

Pastoral Care...................................................................10

Children and Youth Ministry...........................................11

Wider Ministry.............................................................................13

St Thomas Church....................................................................16

Tynings Lane Church.............................................................18

The Hothouse...............................................................................19

Cooper and Jordan School..............................................20

The Buildings...............................................................................22

Statistics.......................................................................................26

Finances.......................................................................................27

We Are Offering.........................................................................29

32

visi

on a

nd

mis

sion

strengths and challengesThere are four Anglican churches within

the parish of Aldridge: Aldridge Par-

ish Church (APC/St Mary the Virgin),

St Thomas, Tynings Lane and the Hot-

house. The Rector’s main role is to be

the minister of APC, the largest of the

four churches that sits at the heart of

the village.

All the churches in the parish of Aldridge

share a common mission. Each one

aims to be a lively, Spirit-filled, evangeli-

cal church at the heart of its own neigh-

bourhood. We want to share the love of

God with local people through worship,

clear Bible-based teaching and a strong

prayer life, combined with friendship,

pastoral care and practical outreach.

Within this overall mission, the churches

all have their own distinct identity.

The Rector has oversight of all the

churches, but each has considerable

independence led by its own stipendiary

minister and council. St Thomas is led

by Rev Mark Castleton who is full time.

Tynings Lane Church and the Hothouse

share a minister, Rev Jen Middleton

(who is 0.5 at both). The four churches

share a PCC, but have individual ar-

rangements for the day to day vision,

mission and governance of each place of

worship.

The Parish Church is sit-

uated near the centre of

Aldridge, in an idyllic location

at the head of the old village

green. It has the picture

book feel of a typical Eng-

lish country church. It is a

grade 2* listed building and

is part of a conservation area

containing four other listed

buildings in the vicinity.

Aldridge Parish Church is a large congre-

gation with a lot of potential to grow even

more, both numerically and spiritually.

APC seeks to be an exciting and dynam-

ic worshipping community. Its position

and history give it obvious bridges into

the wider community that can be a real

strength in its ministry. APC attracts all

ages, creating a multi-generational con-

gregation.

Like many large churches, part of its chal-

lenge is ensuring everyone finds a place

to call home and a calling to serve. The

incoming Rector will have to discern, with

the help of others, how to translate both

sporadic and regular attendance at ser-

vices into willing discipleship and active

participation in the ministry and mission

of the church.

The nature of the parish will provide the

new Rector with a team of incumbent

level clerical colleagues who meet for

support, encouragement and prayer.

They will share with the Rector the re-

sponsibility, trust and joy of reaching the

whole of Aldridge with the good news

- alongside the wider staff team and

church.

In recent years it has been a joy and a

privilege to see church members, of

different ages and from many walks of

life, follow God’s call into Christian service,

including the ordained ministry.

the four churches

Tynings Lane Church

began as a mission work in

the mid-1930s to the south of

the parish.

The Hothouse was estab-

lished on the Redhouse

Estate in 2002 as part of the

parish’s mission. Situated in

a refurbished shop, a project

was developed to be a re-

source for local children and

young people and their fam-

ilies. Over time this became

a Fresh Expression of church

with its own distinctive wor-

shipping community.

We want to share the love of God with localpeople through worship, clear Bible- basedteaching and a strong prayer life...

St Thomas Church is a

relaxed and informal ‘Word

and Spirit’ church commit-

ted to God’s word and the

leading of the Holy Spirit. We

are a worshipping commu-

nity of around 200 members

of all ages and walks of life

and firmly part of the wider

family of Aldridge Parish. Our

official Electoral Roll stands

at 153, with our latest average

weekly attendance running

at 91 adults and 14 children.

54

No one type of employment predominates. There is a small industrial development within a

defined area but many people commute to work in Walsall and elsewhere. The town centre

includes a large supermarket and a range of shops, restaurants, cafés and take-aways, a mod-

ern GP practice, a Youth Theatre, Community Centre and a wide range of other services such

as dentists and legal practices. In the High Street stands the golden post-box, re-painted and

marked in honour of one of the gold medals won by local swimmer Ellie Simmonds at the

2012 Paralympic Games.

The primary role of the Rector of Aldridge is

to be the minister of the Parish Church but

also includes oversight of and support for the

other three worship centres in the parish.

The full name of the Parish Church is ‘St. Mary

the Virgin’, but for nearly 30 years it has be-

come known as Aldridge Parish Church and

is often shortened to APC.

APC has been a Christian centre of worship

for more than 750 years. We seek to be a

warm, welcoming fellowship and it is our aim

that our worship and clear Biblical teaching

are appropriate and relevant for today. We

have 350 on the electoral roll and our con-

gregation is made up of people from a wide

range of ages, personalities and backgrounds

and includes experienced, Biblically literate

Christians, some of whom have exercised

leadership in the secular world or in other

churches. To retain the relaxed atmosphere

our location

Near the centre of the town are a crick-

et and hockey club and a golf club. Other

sports and leisure facilities, including a new

Sports Centre, with a swimming pool, are a

short drive away.

Aldridge is well served by local schools

which are:

Primary:

Cooper Jordan CE School- see separate

section

Whetstone Field School

Leighswood School

St Mary of the Angels RC School

Secondary:

Aldridge School

St Francis RC School.

Aldridge is within travelling distance of a

number of local grammar schools includ-

ing the Queen Mary Schools in Walsall.

The nearest Church of England secondary

school is the Blue Coat CE Academy in Wal-

sall.

Looking further afield, Aldridge is within easy

reach of Birmingham, Sutton Coldfield and

Sutton Park, Cannock Chase and Lichfield.

The Parish of Aldridge lies within the Diocese

of Lichfield, the Archdeaconry of Walsall and

the Deanery of Walsall

of our services it is our practice that clergy do

not robe or wear clergy collars.

During the last few years the vision of the

church has been: “Living under God’s reign

through worshipping God, growing as disci-

ples and reaching out.” We are now enter-

ing an exciting new chapter in the life of our

church. Through recent teaching and prayer

we have identified that we are ‘standing on

the threshold of a new era’. The leadership

of our new Rector will be pivotal in enabling

us to cross over this threshold and develop a

new and refocused vision.

Over the years God has been faithful in pro-

viding the right person at the right time to

lead our church. As we pray through the

vacancy we trust that He will do so again.

Alongside this certainty comes the knowl-

edge that we are not seeking to stand still.

We are looking forward to a Rector who will

lead and challenge us afresh to grow and

deepen our worship, discipleship and com-

mitment to reaching out with God’s love.

As we seek our new Rector we are aware that

together we face a number of challenges as

we acknowledge the fact that our church,

known for its vibrant ministry over many

years, is now showing signs of decline. We

recognise that ‘doing more of the same’ will

not reverse these trends and we need to be

open to change.

To support the opportunities to make a differ-

ence, our new Rector will be able to prayerful-

ly and carefully build a new team.

aldridge parish church - st mary the virgin

76

We seek to be a place that is welcoming, warm

and relaxed for all those entering our building

to join us for worship. In our services we take

God’s word seriously and are expectant that

through it God will challenge us afresh. Our

worship encourages us to be open and sensi-

tive to the work and moving of the Holy Spirit.

To support our Rector we have 2 retired clergy

and 3 long-standing lay readers. In addition we

have a small team of experienced preachers

and service leaders. To complement this team

we are seeking to identify, train and support

younger members of our congregation to de-

velop their gifts of ministry. We are privileged

The informality of our morn-

ing service aims to make it

accessible to the variety of

ages attending each week. A

dedicated Welcome Team is

on hand to make sure every-

one receives a smile and que-

ries are answered. The service

commences with everyone,

including the children, to-

gether. After an all age intro-

duction, the children leave to

meet in our Church Centre

for their various groups. Com-

munion is included in the ser-

vice usually every other week.

Sung worship is led by one of

our music groups using a va-

riety of instruments. Refresh-

ments are served in church

at the end of the service and

during this fellowship time we

try to ensure that newcomers

and visitors are made wel-

come. At present we have a

USA of about 180 adults and

60 children attending each

morning. Our current policy

regarding admissions to our C

of E Primary school presents

us with opportunities and

challenges as we seek to en-

gage fully with young families

with little experience of at-

tending church services.

services and worship at apcto have a number of talented and gifted musi-

cians making up several worship bands to lead

the sung worship.

As an important part of our involvement with

the community, APC takes an active role in

planning and facilitating the annual Remem-

brance service held at the Cenotaph in front of

the church.

Currently we have two Sunday services, at

10am and 6.30pm. A midweek service is held

each week on a Wednesday at 10.30am.

To complement this team we are seeking to identify, train and support younger members to develop their gifts of ministry.

The 6.30pm service has a sim-

ilar emphasis in terms of infor-

mality and Bible teaching, but

often has an extended time of

worship, teaching and prayer.

As in the morning, members

of our Welcome team are on

hand to make sure newcom-

ers and visitors as well as our

regular members receive a

welcome. One of our music

groups leads the sung wor-

ship and Communion is in-

cluded on alternate Sundays.

Attendance is about 60 adults

and teenagers. Refreshments

are provided at the end of the

service.

We are exploring how we

might incorporate a wider

range of worship and teach-

ing styles into our evening

services.

Our Wednesday morning

service was started several

years ago. It is really encour-

aging to see attendance has

grown to around 35 / 40 peo-

ple meeting together for a

quieter service. Those who

attend this service come from

across the Parish and beyond

and have developed a sup-

portive family atmosphere

for visitors and newcomers.

The preaching and leading is

shared amongst a team from

the congregation and the

clergy. This gives variety to the

services and aims to include

a Communion service at least

once a month.

sunday morning service

wednesday worship

sunday evening service

Our current policy regarding admissions to our C of E Primary school presents us with

opportunities and challenges

98

We continually encourage people at all stages

of their Christian journey to develop their per-

sonal prayer life and to participate in corporate

prayer.

In our Sunday and midweek services differ-

ent members of the congregation lead us

in congregational prayers and intercessions.

Although the prayers usually follow a similar

pattern, this provides opportunity for a range

of voices and forms of expression.

There is a small team who offer personal

prayer ministry at the end of every service. The

team includes people from a range of Chris-

tian backgrounds who are bound by a com-

mon desire that through prayer ministry God

will meet with people, affirm them in His love

and speak into the situations of their lives. We

are committed to ensuring that prayer minis-

try operates within a safe environment. Prayer

ministers always work in pairs and, wherever

possible, with one of each gender.

Our present staff team is much reduced due to a number of changes which took

place during 2017. We currently have a small team of paid permanent staff. To assist

the team we are making a number of temporary appointments. An IT officer has re-

cently been appointed to work for 10 hours per week and we are looking to appoint

additional administrative support.

We have taken the decision not to appoint permanent staff during the vacancy. This

will enable our new Rector to appoint and build a wider team and help the church

leadership identify and explore future needs as a new church vision develops.

Our present team

• A Ministry Assistant working 30 hours per week

• An Office Administrator working 21 hours per week

• A Church Centre Manager part time to ensure the smooth running of our Centre.

• A New Wine Intern working on a part time basis

• Two Church Vergers covering Church services, baptisms, weddings and funerals.

prayerapc staff Prayer support is also available through our

small groups, prayer triplets and through an

e-mail prayer chain, which reaches a very large

proportion of our church with both general

and specific prayer requests.

On the first Tuesday of each month we have

a central prayer event. This is an opportunity

to pray, both as a large group and in smaller

groups, for everything that is happening in

church as well as local and global issues. Peri-

odically we hold 24 hour prayer events where

people are encouraged to pray both at home

and in the church itself. There is a core group

of around thirty or forty people who support

these regularly but we recognise the need for

wider participation from the whole congrega-

tion.

There is a core group who support these regularly but we recognise the

need for wider participation from the whole congregation.

1110

chil

dre

n a

nd

you

th m

inis

try sunday groups

aldridge youth fellowship

Normally up to about 60 children attend

our Sunday morning service, and an en-

thusiastic team of volunteers provide a fun,

friendly environment where children can

explore faith and be nurtured as Disciples

of Christ. We have groups ranging from

a crèche for under 3s up to a Pathfinders

group for 11 to 14 year olds.

We meet in the Church Centre which pro-

vides rooms equipped for the 6 different

Sunday groups. We also have regular “Sun-

day Special” services where whole families

come down to the Church Centre together

to have fun and worship and grow along-

side one another. The children then stay

together as a big group as adults join the

church service.

Throughout the year we hold special

children’s events and celebrations such as

a Light Party and family outreach Easter

event, a holiday club and open the church

for local schools to have a day discovering

the reality of a living faith.

The whole congregation is welcoming to

families and shares God’s heart for chil-

dren and longs that they should know and

love Him.

This is a vibrant work ministering to teen-

agers, and has been a long-standing part

of church life in Aldridge. AYF is the fol-

low-on group from Pathfinders and takes

teenagers from 13 to 18. Currently we have

60+ teenagers supported by a group of

volunteer leaders.

AYF meets on Friday nights from 8 - 10pm

with a range of activities which are run in

the main by the teenagers themselves. It’s

a safe place to which and group members

can bring their non-Christian friends to

introduce them to the fun and, more im-

portantly, to our faith. 

It also meets after church on Sunday

evening in the Church Centre for ‘After

Café’ which gives the opportunity to go

more deeply into the Bible for those who

are ready.

There is a weekend away at a conference

centre early each year and also a camp in

the summer. These are special times to-

gether and form a great part of the AYF

calendar.

On Friday nights there is a range of activ-

ities from ice skating to quizzes to games

nights. The last 30 minutes of their time

together ends with an ‘epilogue’ which

includes prayer, worship and a short talk

often led by teenagers themselves.  This is

an opportunity for teenagers to pray, lead,

speak and discover/develop their spiritual

gifts.

The group’s motto is ‘Through Friendship,

through Fellowship, to Christ’. 

...shares God’s heart for children and longs that they should know and love Him.

The group’s motto is ‘Through Friendship, through Fellowship, to Christ’. 

We have been blessed with clergy who have exercised strong ministries of pastoral care both

within the congregation and in the wider community. We also have a part time Ministry Assis-

tant who overseas much of the day to day pastoral care and a retired Minister who oversees the

Visiting Team. Further support is offered through Small Groups, Carers’ Lunches and informal

friendship groups. A sub-group of the PCM has reviewed the breadth of pastoral ministry that

takes place throughout the church, both formally and informally. Whilst many people speak of

the excellent pastoral care they have received, we are mindful that in a larger church it is easy

for some to fall through the cracks. It will be important to work with the new Rector to develop

a model of every member pastoral care, ensuring that this operates within safe boundaries and

enables everyone to grow in their faith and as disciples of Jesus.

MISSION: Global and Local Outreach

The Global and Local Outreach group (GLO) is a co-opted subgroup of the Aldridge Parish

Church Meeting (APC PCM) which meets regularly to consider the church’s Mission Interests

both locally and globally. We reflect on the work being done in terms of Relief, Social Justice and

Evangelism and consider the welfare of our mission partners. In 2017 the GLO team reviewed all

mission interests that APC has been involved with to determine what the core mission interests

which we fund are; we have additional mission interests whom we support prayerfully, and long-

standing interests which individuals continue to support. The challenge for any church is not to

spread itself too thinly but also to be open to what the Lord might have in mind for new initia-

tives or even to revive old interests with new expression.

Our funded mission partners are:

pastoral care

Overseas• Paul and Cathy Middleton with Mercy Air in

South Africa

• Hilary and Reza serving abroad• Brian and Chris Clarke, Krasif Aid working in

Bulgaria

• Operation South America supporting the

ministry of Osvaldo and Maria-Louisa in

Quyquyhó, Paraguay

• Tearfund Partnership with Kitgum Diocese,

Uganda for the past three years.

(Partnership ended 2018)

Locally

• The Hothouse Project

Other important interests encouraged are

the work of the Glebe Centre in Walsall, The

Thomas Project based in Aldridge, Open Doors

(Persecuted Christians) and Robin and Joyce

Hill in China.

Each year the church allocates 10% of unre-

stricted funds from the previous year to Global

and Local Outreach. The GLO group recom-

mends how this money is allocated.

1312

A Small Group at Aldridge Parish Church is a group of people who come together on a regular

basis for the common purpose of worship, prayer and Bible study. It is hoped that Small Groups

are where individuals can discover and exercise spiritual gifts: for ministry within the group, the

church and beyond. Each group is led by identified leader(s) who seek to nurture group mem-

bers as followers of Christ. Groups normally meet at least twice each month.

Group members are encouraged to serve one another within the group by, for example, lead-

ing studies, making the drinks, or leading the prayers. Members are also encouraged to look for

ways to witness and reach out to family, neighbours and the wider community and to take an

interest in supporting APC mission links.

In the past 3 years, Small Groups have studied: Fruitfulness on the Frontline (LICC), Philippians,

Everybody Welcome (G Fisher), Jonah Joel & Amos, Natural Evangelism (J John) and Ephesians.

Currently there are 15 Small Groups linked to APC.

We have two midweek groups during

term time called Cre8 (school years 5+6)

and Dynamic (school years 7+8). These

are an opportunity to meet together for

fun, games, crafts and Bible study. Cre8

focuses more on learning about charac-

ters and stories from the Bible whereas

Dynamic looks at topics relevant to the

age group such as school life and Chris-

tian lifestyle.

Little Fishes Playgroup is a Christian playgroup

which is run by a staff team under the umbrel-

la of the Parish church. There are four 2.5 hour

sessions a week and the number on role is

generally between 50 – 60. Pre-school children

from Aldridge and beyond learn through play,

based on the Early Years Foundation Stage

guidelines, and the group is Ofsted registered.

Families of all faiths and none are welcome,

on the understanding that ours is a Christian

playgroup, with an ethos and teaching which

reflects that. The group has been running for

over 20 years and very strong community links

have developed. Fishes families are invited to

church events and services and many start to

attend regularly. We are committed to work-

ing in partnership with parents and carers.

Every child at Little Fishes matters and is spe-

cial.

midweek groups

Noah’s Ark is a weekly stay and play ses-

sion for toddlers and their carers, held in

the Church Centre and run by volunteers.

It gives adults a chance to meet and chat

while their children enjoy the activities

on offer, then share breakfast and a sing-

ing session to close. The group meets in

church at Christmas and Easter for a ‘Fun

Service’, providing many with their first

visit to APC. The aim of Noah’s Ark is to

provide a bridge into the community by

offering a warm, welcoming group where

people can be befriended, supported

and introduced gently into church cir-

cles, in the hope that they may seek fur-

ther involvement, which many do.

little fishes

Bridge the Gap is a café run by church mem-

bers and held once a week in our Church Cen-

tre. It provides an opportunity for parents and

carers, waiting to collect their children from

school, to join with others for refreshments

and a chat. Toys and games are provided for

younger children giving them the opportunity

to mix with others through play.

bridge the gap

noah’s ark

wider ministry

small groups

1514

Aldridge Parish Church runs two Alpha cours-

es a year and finds they are well attended and

appreciated and have helped many make or

renew their commitment to Jesus Christ. We

have a great team behind the scenes who

cook an evening meal for the guests and

another team who ‘wait at table’.  The church,

Sunday by Sunday, and some individuals,

take on prayer support for these courses.  We

use the new Film Alpha series and cultivate a

relaxed atmosphere where the Holy Spirit may

gently lead people forward on their spiritual

journey. When the Alpha course is completed,

new and ‘refreshed’ Christians are invited into

a locally generated Beta small group. 

Our strategic aim is to continue to offer Al-

pha in the future and to train up a new gen-

eration of younger adult leaders and support

teams. We started in 2017 mentoring two

enthusiastic, committed and relatively new

Christians and plan to develop this further.

Our experience is that God leads to these Al-

pha groups those in whose life the Holy Spirit

is already at work and it is a joy to spend time

with people who want to move on in their

spiritual journey.

Beta courses in their current format were

launched in September 2012.  Since this time,

participants on successive Alpha courses have

been invited to consider joining a Beta course.

Beta is explained as an opportunity to contin-

ue on the journey exploring the Christian faith,

asking questions, going deeper into areas

raised on Alpha as well as looking at what it

means to live as a Christian.

After completing an Alpha course, most par-

ticipants are unready to make the transition

to being integrated into the church family and

the vision of Beta is to bridge this gap and pro-

vide a continuing support network.  We begin

by looking at ‘The Big Picture’: some helpful

images of the Christian life and how to grow

to maturity in faith. We then teach and discuss

key topics such as assurance of salvation, how

to pray, how to get into the Bible, the impor-

tance of fellowship and what it means for Je-

sus to be our Lord as well as our Saviour.  Later

sessions include sharing our faith, service and

giving, and what the Bible has to say on prac-

tical issues such as family life and work-life

balance. It also provides regular opportunities

to ‘bring your unanswered questions’.

Usually the entire Alpha group begins Beta

and a committed core of around half will com-

plete the course. Following Beta, members

are encouraged to join one of the established

small groups which helps them become more

integrated into the life of the church.

alpha

beta

...it is a joy to spend time with people who want to move on in their spiritual journey.

We hope they will grow and develop in faith

oasis

Oasis started in September 2014 and grew

out of a long-standing group that had been

serv-ing the older members of the parish.

We started as a team of 4 ladies, now 5, and

our vision was that this group would feel ac-

cepted, relaxed and also challenged about

where they stand in relation to faith. We hope

they will grow and develop in faith and that

more will come to know Jesus as Saviour and

Lord.

Several who come are quite frail and do not

come to Church on Sundays so we want to

en-courage them to see that they are still part

of APC.  We meet on the 1st and

3rd Wednesday of every month and we do

hope eventually to be able to offer them

Communion as well. We do some practical

activities and we share a meal every term and

the children from the local school come to

sing to us.

We have speakers talking on a variety of sub-

jects linking the talk every time with Biblical

subjects and we offer prayer every time. We

have been encouraged that some have done

an Alpha course and more have started to

come to church on a Sunday morning as well.

Some of our visitors are now ‘regulars’ and come each week

place of welcome

Our Place of Welcome opened in September

2016 as part of a national network run by local

community groups. Since opening our friend-

ly team has welcomed many people into our

church building. Some of our visitors are now

‘regulars’ and come each week to meet to-

gether for coffee/tea, biscuits and a chat. Oth-

er visitors have joined us as they have seen an

opportunity to talk about the history and how

our building has developed as a worship cen-

tre over many years.

As well as refreshments we have a number

of activities and reference books about the

Church and the local community and there is

always a jig-saw on the go!

If it is appropriate we invite our visitors to come

to one of our services.

As the name suggests it is a place where

everyone can come for a friendly welcome ei-

ther on their own, with family, friends or neigh-

bours.

1716

In 2013, with the backing of the Bishop of

Wolverhampton and the Diocese of Lichfield,

Aldridge Parish Church undertook to support

a Church plant in nearby Walsall. Working with

Gavin our ex Curate, just over 20 members

of our congregation left to support the small

struggling congregation of St Peter’s in Wal-

sall.

The church serves the second poorest parish in

the Lichfield diocese. Had the plant not taken

place it is unlikely that the church would have

remained open. As the plant has progressed

the church has developed a unique amalgam

of informality, contemporary worship and

set liturgy forged out of the practice of both

churches.

The church is reaching out to meet the needs

of the community and is ensuring the good

news about Jesus is preached. As part of ad-

dressing the local needs St Peter’s is working

in partnership with The Eden Project and Betel

of Britain. The size of the worshipping com-

munity at St Peter’s is continuing to grow and

their usual Sunday attendance has risen from

25 to the present figure of around 65.

Although there is no official link with St Pe-

ter’s, members of APC retain an interest in

the work there and readily welcome news of

the plant. Some members are offering practi-

cal support and advice as St Peter’s consider

starting a re-ordering project to improve the

usefulness of their building.

In August 2017 the full story of the St Peter’s

Church Plant was featured on the Church of

England website and facebook page.

what we are about

Inspired by the Great Commandment and

the Great Commission, our vision statement is

‘Reaching Up, Reaching In and Reaching Out’.

Through Reaching Up we are committed to

being and becoming a church that seeks to

grow in our relationship with God by means of

prayer, worship and engagement with God’s

word in submission to and through the power

of the Holy Spirit. Through Reaching In we are

committed to being and becoming a church

that seeks to grow into spiritual maturity

through fellowship and discipleship. Through

Reaching Out we are committed to being and

becoming a church that seeks to share the

Good News of Jesus and His Kingdom with our

local community, as well as to all those known

to us personally who do not know Jesus for

themselves.

st peter’s church plant st thomas church

St Thomas Church was built in 1969 to serve

the estate being built around it in the fields

of the Coppy Hall Estate. As the church was

built the first minister joined forces with a local

non-conformist church who brought with

them a Sunday school and family ministry.

We have a full time minister (Rev. Mark Cas-

tleton) whose job within the Aldridge parish is

to set the vision and lead the congregation of

St Thomas Church. We also have a part time

administrator and a part time Children & Fami-

lies Worker. We have 3 lay readers and 2 non

stipendiary clergy who support the minister.

Alongside these we also encourage lay partici-

pation from gifted members of the congrega-

tion in service leading and preaching. They are

complemented by an army of willing and able

volunteers working across the board in every

area of ministry.

has a leader who represents that group on the

DCC. Together with the Deanery Synod reps,

the wardens and the clergy, they form the full

DCC. Through this system we have a rock solid

foundation of lay ministry driving the church

forward in every area of ministry and mission.

We seek to engage with Reaching Out in a

variety of ways. There are many ongoing out-

reach initiatives including: Playgroup (Play-

group is managed by a committee, with a paid

staff team, the manager of which attends the

church and sits on the DCC), ’Tom’s Toddlers’

(0 to 2.5 years), ‘Footprints’ (2.5 to 4 years) and

‘Wide Awake Club’ (Dads and toddlers), along

with an afternoon Tea Dance and monthly

Communion Service at a local care home,

Richmond Hall. Our Evangelism Core Group

helps the church to plan organised one-off

initiatives and events which include well-at-

tended Community Fun Days and evange-

listic evenings with Dinner and a Speaker.

There are regular opportunities for enquirers

through the running of Alpha and a home-

grown course ‘Good News for You’. Support-

ing the work of our mission partners at home

and abroad: The THOMAS Project (a social

action charity in our local community, with

its own board of Trustees) grown out of the

local church, whose director attends St Thom-

as, Krasif Aid (a Christian social action charity

based in Bulgaria) whose directors attend St

Thomas, and The Watts Family currently work-

ing in Madagascar with SIM.

In short, St Thomas Church is a wonderful fam-

ily-focused, informal, friendly and welcoming

church which values lay ministry and com-

munity involvement and which seeks to be

grounded in God’s word and led by the initia-

tive and power of the Holy Spirit.

We seek to engage in Reaching Up through

a variety of services and prayer meetings. For

families we have a Messy Church service on

Sunday afternoon once a month, which is

complemented by a service to take families

deeper on a Sunday morning once a month

(called ‘Together’). We also hold Sunday

Groups for children from 3-14 years. We have

two communion services each month, one at

8.30am and one at 10.30am. Our other morn-

ing services are Morning Worship comprising

an informal mix of contemporary worship

and a Biblically based sermon. On our Sunday

evenings we have a ‘Seeking His Face’ service

which combines an extended time of worship,

ministry in the power of the Spirit, and space

given in order that the gifts of the Holy Spirit

can be encouraged and practised among the

congregation. We also have a monthly ‘Life in

the Spirit’ day which is a Saturday given over

to encouraging the church to grow in its ap-

preciation of the life and ministry of the Holy

Spirit among us. Different speakers are invited

to come and share their spiritual life and ex-

periences, and we have covered topics such as

Healing, Prophetic Ministry, Spirit Led Evan-

gelism, Spirit Led Relationships, Hearing the

Voice of God, The Father Heart of God and The

Power of Testimony.

We seek to encourage Reaching In through

our Life Groups (small group ministry) which

are tasked with providing an opportunity for

engaging all aspects of our vision, and pro-

viding the chief means by which meaningful

discipleship takes place. Additionally, we have

weekly prayer and Bible fellowship groups. We

also have Core Groups covering: Children and

Families, Discipleship, Fabrics, Finance, Health

and Safety, ICT, Mission and Evangelism, Pasto-

ral Care, Prayer and Worship. Each Core Group

is open for anybody to join and each group

1918

Introduction

Tynings Lane Church is a very special, fami-

ly-like and friendly congregation. Our mem-

bership spans the age ranges with different

services catering for different needs. Our

vision is that we would be a family that wor-

ships together, that does life together and that

is looking to grow.

There is always a lot going on with a variety

of groups and clubs that enable us to meet

together to worship, pray, socialise and reach

out to others. Although many of our members

have been attending TLC for a long time we

believe that God still has much to teach us.

Church Leadership

Our minister is Rev Jen Middleton who also

leads the Hothouse. Steve Harrison is our Lay

Reader and we have recently appointed Kath-

ryn Smith as our new Children and Families

Worker (25 hours a week). The Leadership

Team includes four gifted and committed

Churchwardens and a DCC.

Church Worship

There are currently 103 members on our elec-

toral roll. Our main service is at 10.30am on

Sunday mornings but we also hold a mid-

week family service known as Toddler Praise.

These are very different in character but in

The Hothouse is a fresh expression of church

for those on the Redhouse Estate and an excit-

ing place for children, young people and their

families to be. It has become a place for the

community to come together alongside being

a place for people to explore faith in Jesus and

grow as disciples.

Historically the Redhouse was originally seen

as one of the more deprived areas of Aldridge.

It was seen as a key area to invest resources

for mission, as so few people from the estate

were members of the existing local church.

Its ministry began as an after-school club in

a local Primary School on the estate (which

closed about ten years ago), but soon found a

home, and a growing ministry, in a converted

DIY shop in the centre of the estate. The shop

became a home for the expanding ministry

and the shop became the Hothouse. We are

still there, situated in small row of shops, right

next door to the Orange Chippy.

Over the years the ministry has changed and

developed, most notably in response to the

changes on the estate - although the Red-

house does contain pockets of deprivation it’s

a much more mixed estate than it once was.

As relationships grew it became necessary to

create more formal opportunities to explore

faith and life as our own worshipping commu-

nity.

Alongside a faithful but small team of vol-

unteers from the across the parish we have

the following staff: Rev Jen Middleton (0.5),

Hothouse Leader, Rachel Ruane - Children

and Families Worker (11 hours), Amie Iddon (11

hours) – Community Worker, and we currently

have a student, John Summers studying youth

tynings lane church

both we seek to worship Jesus and learn more

about how we can come closer to Him in our

everyday lives. Our sung worship is modern in

flavour and on Sundays we are blessed to be

led by a good group of singers and musicians,

including keyboard players and guitarists. We

have several talented people who lead and

preach at our services. We have two groups

for under 18s on Sunday mornings: Monkey for

primary aged children, which is fragile, due to

changing patterns of attendance from fami-

lies, and Reveal our group for teenagers.

A congregation for adults with learning disabil-

ities is based at Tynings, meets once a month

and is supported by a team from across the

parish.

During the week the church is at work in many

varied ways. Within the building you could

come across: a coffee morning, Brownies,

toddler groups, a support group for parents of

those with additional needs, people using the

prayer room, lots of small groups, of different

flavours, meeting for Bible Study and prayer,

a film club, a drama group for teenagers and

much more.

Key Challenges

We see the greatest need as connecting our

church members with the local community, so

that effective evangelism can bring new peo-

ple to faith. We have recently started an Alpha

Course.

The age profile of the church is also rising,

and we recognise the need for fresh growth

among younger people in order to plan for the

future of the church. Although many young

families attend our Toddler Praise and Seed-

lings Toddler group, this does not usually lead

to people becoming growing disciples and ac-

tive members of the church. This is something

we are praying about and hoping to develop.

...a family that worships together, that does life together and that is looking to grow.

ministry at Moorlands College working with us.

We provide a range of regular activities along-

side seasonal events and are currently looking

to develop several new ones to reach others

on the estate. In a normal week you’ll find: 2

family drop ins, 2 groups for 7-11s, 1 group for

11-14s, a coffee morning aimed at more senior

residents of the estate, a Bible study group

and our regular Sunday afternoon worship

twice a month. Our biggest seasonal event last

year was our travelling nativity, working with

Tynings Lane Church, we start out in Nazareth

at the Hothouse and collect the characters of

the story along the way before finding Mary,

Joseph and a baby in Bethlehem/Tynings Lane

garden. Last year we had over 160 people take

part.

the hothouse

an exciting place for children, young people and their families to be.

2120

Cooper and Jordan Church of England Voluntary Aided Endowed Primary School is a very pop-

ular over-subscribed school that has an impressive reputation in the local community, with a

great heritage. It has recently been graded as outstanding in their SIAMS inspection and was

rated as Good by Ofsted. It is the oldest in Aldridge, dating back to 1718. Today it is situated in a

modern building which was opened in 1971.

As a Church of England School, we have close

links with Aldridge Parish and our faith under-

pins the ethos of the school. The school sits

next to the church and is surrounded by pro-

tected green space and enjoys excellent work-

ing relationships with the Parish Church. The

local clergy and Church workers regularly take

assemblies and we have had, up until recently,

a Church School link worker who supported

in assemblies, provided pastoral support for

pupils - especially in our prayer room - and

supported staff with their own pastoral needs.

This role is supported through the Cooper

and Jordan Trust and it is anticipated that

an appointment to this post will be made in

the near future. The Church is represented by

Foundation Governors who play an important

role in decision making, especially in matters

such as worship, Religious Education and

SMSC. The Rector of the parish also sits on the

governing body, but there is no expectation for

them to act as chair.

cooper and jordan school

 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”Jeremiah 29:11

proud to provide a secure and caring environment founded in a Christian ethos

The school has a very clear Christian distinc-

tiveness at its heart. There are six Christian

values which each half term forms the focus of

assemblies and lessons. Our strap line: “Where

Light Shines” provides an insight into the

school’s ethos and focus. Cooper and Jordan

is very much a beacon in the local community

and has been for generations. At the heart is

the Christian faith and children are daily en-

couraged to grow in Christ to know and under-

stand the value of a personal living faith that

pervades all aspects of their life and the school

community.

Cooper and Jordan School is proud to provide

a secure and caring environment founded in

a Christian ethos where we work together to

challenge, inspire and motivate all children to

become successful, confident and thoughtful

citizens.

2322

The name ‘Aldridge’ comes from a Saxon word

‘Alrewic’ which means ‘the Alder Village’ as it

was a small settlement in a forest area.

The present church building dates back to the

thirteenth century and the tower is one of the

oldest parts. There have been many changes

and additions over the years either to repair or

expand the existing structure. In the 1990s the

old pews and choir stalls were removed and

carpet and flexible seating provided. This gives

us a more open worship area and versatility

in its use. Additionally later in 2010 we also

removed the old pipe organ and the space

provided became a designated music area,

containing drums, piano and a new versatile

digital organ.

aldridge parish church (st mary the virgin)

the buildings

We have a PA system including audio visual

technology, a small kitchen where after service

drinks are provided, and a vestry where small

children can play and parents listen to the ser-

vice and also toilets are available.

More recently the heating system has been

updated and the controls are now set by a

mobile phone link. Because of the age of the

church some repairs and alterations require

expert advice and skills. However we do have

a dedicated team of volunteers who provide

excellent general maintenance to our church

property. This saves the church a considerable

amount of money during the year.

We are very grateful to God that we can worship and welcome the community into such a beautiful building.

This is part of a select, newly built develop-

ment at the rear of the Church Centre. It

benefits from being in a private and quiet area

with a secluded rear garden and also a small

walled front space with flower beds.

The property itself contains: a small entrance

hall with a large room with shelving on the

right, and a toilet with baby changing facilities

and wash basin to the left. A further lockable

door brings you into the main house. To the

right is the main large living room which has

French doors into the rear garden. The next

room is a large oblong kitchen which also has

French doors into the garden and windows

either side. There are floor and wall cupboards

both sides and a cooker point suitable for gas

or electric ovens with an electric extractor

hood.

Up the stairs, on the left is a bathroom which

contains a walk in shower, bath, toilet and

washbasin. The next room along, overlooking

the front of the house is a large bedroom with

an unusual arched window. Next to this room

is a large two doored, airing style cupboard

the rectory

containing a water tank and wooden open

shelving. Further along you come to the large

main bedroom which overlooks the garden. It

has an en-suite, containing a toilet, washbasin

and electric shower. The next door along is

a further medium sized bedroom facing the

garden and next to this is a storage cupboard.

Finally you come to another medium sized

bedroom which overlooks the front and back

of the house.

The entranceway, hall, bathroom and the

kitchen have ceramic tiled floors, and the other

rooms are carpeted throughout. The house is

fully alarmed and has smart metered gas and

electricity.

To the left of the house is an attached garage

and additional drive parking for two vehicles

and a separate gate to the rear garden. The

garden is completely fenced on all sides which

gives total privacy, and there is also a wooden

garden shed for storage, accessible from the

garden only.

2524

The main Church building was constructed

in 1969 and benefited from the addition of a

large extension in the early 1980s. St Thomas

was built to serve the community therefore the

architecture of the building reflects that. We

have one main hall for worship with a capacity

of 200, which can, if required, be divided into

parts. There are also two comfortable lounges,

both ideal for smaller groups (Crèche, Prayer

Groups, Core Group Meetings), a kitchen with

small Café style dining area, a children’s work

resources room, and church office. The build-

ing has a grassed area at the rear with trees

and shrubs lining the perimeter which is used

during Fun Days and special events, and which

abuts the local park. There is a car park at the

front of the church.

Next to the church is a purpose adapted An-

nexe from which runs a busy playgroup during

term time. It is an old prefabricated structure

originally constructed in 1946, rebuilt as part of

the church in 1971 and extensively refurbished

in 1995. There are two main activity rooms, one

each end of the building, an office and a small

kitchen. This building has an enclosed garden

area which is predominately grassed and has

climbing frames and a sand pit, well used by

the children who attend Playgroup. This build-

ing is also used at the weekend for the ‘Wide

Awake Club’ and our Sunday School Groups.

For many years the only accommodation for

our church activities was a temporary struc-

ture originally built in the 1940s as a school

classroom. Although many lives were trans-

formed in this building over the years, it was

worn out and our dream had been to build a

modern new Centre as a home for our church

groups, and also a base from which we could

reach out more effectively into our local com-

munity.

After many false starts the project was started

in 2009 with a lot of prayer and a commitment

by the church to raising the funds required.

Building commenced in the summer of 2014

with completion one year later. The cost of

the Centre was fully paid by May 2017, with our

church members giving almost £1 million dur-

ing the 8 years of the project.

Our first aim in building the Centre was to pro-

vide a resource which would allow the mission

work of the church to flourish and to help our

groups and projects to fulfil their potential –

and they certainly have.

Our Centre is now used by over 20 of our

church groups, ranging from the ‘Little Fishes’

playgroup for the very youngest, the Youth Fel-

lowship for our teenagers, to the ‘OASIS’ group

for our more senior members.

It has been a venue for outreach with our

Alpha courses, and for some of our regular

ministries including marriage preparation

courses, all with lovely meals made possible

by the fully fitted commercial sized kitchen.

We have held some Sunday worship services

in the main hall, and organised summer and

winter balls which have appealed to both our

church members and also many others from

the surrounding community.

Our Centre has also been used by a large num-

ber of groups outside our church, including

many occasions where we have hosted events

for the Lichfield Diocese. As part of our aim

to reach out to the local community, over 10

groups regularly use our facilities for activities

ranging from dance classes, to karate training,

Probus meetings, weight loss and craft groups.

There have been almost 100 children’s birthday

parties celebrated and some wedding recep-

tions as we seek to make full use of the build-

ing.

We’ve been able to do all this thanks to a team

of volunteers working alongside our part time

Centre manager. The result is that as well as

the Centre frequently buzzing with life, the in-

come generated has gone a long way to meet-

ing the running costs of the building.

We know that we are fortunate to have this

modern new building and are thankful to God

for making a long held dream a reality for the

church. With prayer we are constantly seeking

new ways to develop its use as a central part of

the mission work of our church.

our church centre

Tynings Lane Church was originally built in the

1930s and has gone through various refurbs

over the years, the most significant being in

the late 1990s. It’s a sturdy, straight- forward

building that can seat about 100 when full

(but can easily feel full at 60). From the road

it can appear even smaller, but, like a Tardis,

it is bigger on the inside. It’s a flexible space

and is used for the majority of our ministry

during the week including toddler groups and

film club and everything in-between. It has

a well-tended garden at the rear, with play

equipment for pre-school children. We have a

small kitchen that allows us to provide hospi-

tality. We are currently purchasing new chairs

to make our flexible space easier to manage.

The garden joins the main building to ‘No 4’.

Originally the house next door that was pur-

chased to allow us more space for all we want-

ed to do. The largest room at ‘No 4’ was re-

cently repurposed as a dedicated prayer space.

At times in the week it also serves as space for

small groups, children’s groups and for drama

rehearsals. ‘No 4’ also has a small kitchen, an

office/small meeting space (great for one to

ones) and the converted bedrooms provide

more space for our Sunday youth ministry and

storage.

st thomas church building

tynings lane church buildings

2726

stat

isti

cs fo

r 20

17 APC St. T’s Tynings Total

E. Roll 350 153 103 606

Adults 244 91 70 405

Children 60 14 12 86

Total 304 105 82 491

notes:

1. Hothouse:

Most activities take place midweek.

Occasional Sunday services averaged 21 in

2016, with 11 adults and 10 children.

2. Midweek:

There is a Wednesday morning worship ser-

vice with average attendance in 2017 of 35.

This is held in APC and the congregation

comes from all the Anglican churches in

Aldridge and wider afield.

electoral roll for 2017

350, 57%153, 26%

103, 17%Tyn

St. T’s APC

244, 60%91, 23%

70, 17%Tyn

St. T’s APC

usual sunday attendancesadult USA for 2017

60, 70%14, 16%

12, 14%Tyn

St. T’s

APC

children USA for 2017

par

ish

fin

ance

s The Hothouse finances are handled through their own separate trust.

Sacrificial, regular giving means the finances at the three churches are all

in good shape. We have identified the challenge to increase the number of

committed givers.

At present, all three churches have reserves, with general reserves of

£119000.

Direct giving amounted to around £447000, more than two thirds of the

total income of £662000.

The Pie Chart shows the total expenditure at the three churches for 2017

(still to be audited).

Parish Share - 171k

Church General - 121k

Pre-school groups - 108k

Lay Workers - 87k

Giving/Mission - 70k

Admin - 51k

Events/Activities - 48k

expenditure 2017 in £k

171k

121k

108k

87k

70k

51k48k

2928

• A diverse and varied parish with exciting opportunities

for ministry and mission.

• Supportive stipendiary clergy colleagues.

• The challenge of taking the Parish Church forward to a

new stage of growth and reaching out with the Gospel.

• The opportunity to build and develop a strong staff team

at the Parish Church, working alongside lay colleagues.

• Excellent church buildings.

• A newly- built 4 bedroomed Rectory.

we are offering:

2015 2016 2017

Weddings 9 9 + 1 blessing 15

Funerals 11 in church39 at Crem

13 in church49 at Crem

19 in church30 at Crem

Baptisms 24 25 11

Thanksgivings 1 3 1

Weddings and Funerals are shared with the team across the parish.

Baptisms recorded here are those held at APC. Depending on numbers of

guests and connections to the worshipping community, baptisms take place

both in the main morning service and at lunchtime.