Latest News:
Action for Children News
Climate Justice for all: have your say
Job Opportunity at Beckminster MC
Job Opportunity with the Queen's Foundation
Vacancy for Assistant District Safeguarding Officer
In case you missed it:
Hybrid Church Online Training
MWiB Conference details
FoodCycle Webinar
District Children's Support Fund

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Action For Children News

Climate Justice for All: Have Your Say

You are invited to join us for our ‘Have Your Say’ events on either June 9th, June 12th or July 13th.
These events consist of a 45-minute consultation hosted by CJ4A (worldmethodistcounil.org/cj4a) in partnership with Green Agents of Change (methodist.org.uk/greenagentsofchange).

As part of the CJ4A campaign, we want to send a ‘call to action’ from Methodists to the UK government’s COP Ambassadors. Local Methodist churches and groups will be asked to add their names to this call to action but, before taking that step, we want to hear from Methodists across Britain.

What does climate justice look like for you? What should Britain be doing to ensure climate justice for all?
If you attend a Methodist Church or group and would like to have your voice heard then please do join us for one of these events, which are open to people of all ages (those under 18 will need a parent to book their ticket and give permission).
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/climate-justice-for-all-have-your-saytickets-
152826206297
For any further information, please email: pugmirem@methodistchurch.org

Job Opportunities at Beckminster MC

Lay worker for Older People

Beckminster Methodist Church Wolverhampton is seeking to appoint a part-time Lay Worker for Older People. The appointment will be for 15 hours per week. Salary will be in the range of  £19,760-£21,185  according to experience pro rata to a 40 hour week. DBS(enhanced disclosure)required. Further details and application form available from the Church Secretary, Beckminster Methodist Church, Tel 01902 344910, email info@beckminsterchurch.co.uk 
Closing date: Friday 25^th June

Job Opportunities at The Queen's Foundation

Administrator for the Centre for Ministerial Formation
 

We are seeking a highly motivated and flexible person to provide administrative support to the work of the Centre for Ministerial Formation, focusing on work with Methodist students.
The ideal candidate will be educated to a good standard and have strong administrative experience, ideally in a higher education setting. The ability to work quickly and to prioritise between tasks, responding to developing needs, is essential in this busy role. The postholder will need to be well-organised and proactive, with excellent written and verbal communication skills, and trustworthy with confidential material.
Good IT skills for Office 365 are a necessity and the experience in using a database would be a strong asset.
There is no Genuine Occupational Requirement for Professional Services staff to be practicing Christians and our staff come from a variety of faith and non-faith backgrounds.
 
We particularly welcome applications for this post from black and minority ethnic candidates as they are under-represented within our organisation at this level. All appointments are made on merit.
 
For more details, visit our website
 

Vacancy for Assistant Safeguarding Officer in WS and Birmingham District

This is a joint post between the two Districts and will be assisting the Birmingham Safeguarding Officer.

The Methodist Church is committed to ensuring its churches are safe spaces for all. We work hard to ensure compliance with legal requirements, develop good practice, provide effective training and give professional advice on individual cases.  We have an exciting opportunity to join our team and take forward this work which will include implementing recommendations from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA). The post holder will work alongside the District Safeguarding Officer for both districts.
 
Do you have extensive experience of safeguarding?
Do you have Training and Quality Assurance skills and Experience?
Are you able to work flexibly and independently?
Are you open to working in the faith sector?
If so, this post may be for you.

• Salary £29K full time equivalent. (£16 per hour)
• 20 Hours per week, with flexibility including evenings, and occasional weekends
• Home based
• Travel required across both Districts

Full details are available on request from admin@wsmethodist.org.uk.
 
Please return the application to admin@wsmethodist.org.uk.
 
Closing date and time for applications: 17:00 Wednesday 16^th June 2021
Interviews will be held on Thursday 8^th July 2021.
These will take place at Walsall Methodist Central Hall.
Post subject to satisfactory references and an enhanced DBS check.

Hybrid Church: Leading Worship Online

 A 3-part series exploring leading worship online, for members of the Methodist Church in the West Midlands Region.
 
Much has changed during the pandemic, particularly for the Church. Some people have lost the habit of coming to church and others have grown the habit of joining zoom worship, prayer meetings, fellowship groups and bible studies online. As we go back to in-person worship, many members of your congregation may not be in the building any-more!
 
Hybrid Church; a term seldom heard 12 months ago is now a central conversation in the Church. Initially it was about the technology to get this going, but now it’s probably more about the content, the style, and the connection with those the Church is seeking to connect with.
 
This online event seeks to help churches examine some fundamental underpinning principles and practicalities in mapping out a way forward for your church. Each session will last about 1 hour.
 
Session 1: Preaching Online - Thurs 17th June at 1.00pm Exploring the concept of the preacher as prophet, and how they respond to the mood and emotions of wider society. Mini keynote by Ian Howarth (Chair of the Birmingham Methodist District).
 
Session 2: Leading Worship Online - Wed 23rd June at 1.00 pm Examining the idea that worship leaders are both curators and facilitators, using Sunday worship as a springboard for ongoing reflection and discussion. Mini keynote by Adam Sanders (Birmingham District's Mission Advisor).
 
Session 3: Growing Church Online - Thurs 15th July at 1.00 pm Exploring the use of online platforms to focus on outreach and community engagement. Mini keynote by Geoff Bond (West Midlands Learning Network) and Ashley Cooper (Principal of Cliff College).
 
To book tickets for each of the sessions, please click the following link - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/hybrid-church-leading-worship-online-3-part-series-tickets-150159084865
 

MWiB Conference - Those Celtic Christian Ways

As I hope most of you are now aware, the Conference cannot take place at Swanwick, but we are most grateful to our planned speaker, the Revd Shalome Macneill-Cooper, who has agreed to lead us on Zoom.  Below is the outline of the Conference and, as you will see, each half day is made up of two sessions with a break in between, so that we can have a comfort break, and a short stretch of the legs while we make ourselves a drink.  This will also enable those using landlines and who possibly have ‘free’calls on their contract, to be able to redial in just before the end of the first hour of each session.
While it will be possible for people to join us for one or just a few sessions, we hope as many as possible will be able to with us for all the sessions on the three days.  As all who had booked originally to be at Swanwick have made a contribution of £5, we are asking those who are new participants, to make a similar contribution, sending their cheque to our treasurer, Mrs Dilys Jones, 6 Coach Road, Shrewsbury SY3 5AU, making their cheque payable to Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury District MWiB a/c.  It would be helpful if you would give your contact details: name, address, email address (if you have one), phone number and church or circuit you have a connection with.  I do hope a good number of you will now be able to join us.
 
Conference:    Those Celtic Christian Ways:   Monday 7^th to Wednesday 9^th June 2021
 
Outline:-  Monday (Session 1)   2.00 – 2.55, 3.15 – 4.10 (max)
2.00     ‘Arrive’, Chat, Welcome, Introductions, Devotions (by Pauline and Walsall circuit)   (I would open up on Zoom at 1.30 to give people chance to arrive and chat before the 2pm start; we can use the Walsall circuit Zoom platform)  Then, over to Shalome.
3.15 What is Celtic Christianity? followed by closing devotions (Shropshire and Marches circuit)
 
 Tuesday (Session 2) 10.00 – 10.55, 11.15 – 12.10 (max)
 10.00   Devotions (Brownhills and Willenhall), followed by Shalome
11.15   Celtic Trinity- Understanding of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit  (Shalome)
Tuesday (Session 3) 19.00 – 19.55, 20.15 –21.10
 19.00   Celtic Worship-
20.15   Celtic Worship ………. To finish by 20.55 for evening prayers Shropshire & M
 
Wednesday (Session 4) 10.00 – 10.55, 11.15 – 12.10 (max)
10.00   Devotions (Cannock Circuit), followed by Shalome
11.15   Celtic Model of Mission- things to have on hand-a piece of yarn or string about 30 cms long and tied to make a loop.
 
Wednesday (Session 5) 14.00 – 14.55, 15.15 – 16.10
14.00  Celtic Wheel of the Year and Celtic Wheel Life and Questions Arising
15.15 LOVE FEAST- Please have on hand a morsel of food and a wee sip of something that is a bit extravagant for you and preferably fair trade. Have an extra cup and plate with whatever you are having on hand (be prepared to also eat that, too!). If possible have on hand a candle and a very small finger bowl of water.
Participants may wish to have a notebook on hand for reflection questions.
These sessions will be inclusive for those participating by phone so there will be a reduced amount of visual material. If you have audio or visual needs (a specific font, size or colour) please let Shalome know by ringing 01743 791 267
 

FoodCycle Webinar

We all want a Black Country where no one is hungry or lonely and where surplus food is used to nourish communities.
As part of TCT's work to support people and communities to thrive and flourish, we are hosting this webinar, where you'll learn about the national charity FoodCycle, as it prepares to open its first Walsall-based free meals service for local residents. FoodCycle is a national charity established in 2009, with the aim of tackling food poverty and social isolation using donated surplus food. Within the West Midlands we currently have six projects, all Birmingham-based, and we’re now working to set up FoodCycle Cooking projects within Walsall and the wider Black Country.
Webinar date - Wed, 23 Jun 2021 10:30 via Zoom
Bookings via Eventbrite at https://feeding-black-country.eventbrite.co.uk
How does it work?
FoodCycle utilises suitable kitchens in which our volunteers cook the fresh surplus food donated to us, producing healthy hot vegetarian meals for anyone who would like one. The meals are completely free and anyone can just turn up; typically our guests include low income families, homeless people, isolated older people, and people struggling to ‘make ends meet’.
Is this webinar for me?
• Are you a Walsall based group? We would like the people of Walsall to know about the charity’s service, so that they and their families and neighbours could benefit from nutritious free food. With this in mind we would welcome contact information on any local organisations, community groups etc. through which potential guests could be reached.
• Would you like to volunteer? We would like to attract local volunteers who we could support and train. Our lead volunteers learn Teamwork, Leadership and Delegation, Cooking skills (naturally!), Problem-solving and Relationship-building, and among the free training that we provide is: Food Safety Level 2, Safeguarding and First Aid. So if you have a work intranet or newsletter for example that FoodCycle could be mentioned in, please do let me know.
• Are you interested in hosting a Black Country FoodCycle venue? FoodCycle would like more local venues from which we could provide our weekly meals service. Suitable venues would ideally have a six-hob cooker (or two 4 hob cookers), and would be available once a week regularly for 5 hours. Venues would need to have capacity to seat at least 30 people at a time, because when the pandemic restrictions lessen considerably, each of FoodCycle’s Cook and Collect projects will become a venue from which we will run our free communal meals services again. We will continue to stringently adhere to all guidance on PPE, social distancing etc.
Please see FoodCycle’s latest Social Impact Report: https://www.foodcycle.org.uk/who-we-are/foodcycles-impact/
For more information, please contact:
Pamela@foodcycle.org.uk | Tel: 07377 866347
or Jody@foodcycle.org.uk | Tel: 07593 256805
Book your FREE place via: https://feeding-black-country.eventbrite.co.uk

District Children's Support Fund

The funding allocated specifically to the support of children and families in the District - particularly those experiencing some form of deprivation - is still open to accept applications at the moment.  Are there projects you might consider which could offer support even during the lockdown?  

The maximum amount of any claim is £500 and a Church can apply at any time using the attached form and send it electronically to Tim Lorimer who will process your application and give a decision within six weeks of receipt. The application will need the support of the hosting Church and circuit superintendent. Church’s cannot apply for retrospective funding.
We would hope that individuals and groups that have contributed in the past to the Holiday Fund will still wish to do so knowing that there money will still be used for Children’s Projects.  For more information please contact Tim Lorimer   on lorimertim@yahoo.co.uk 07971899084. 
 

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