At St. John of the Cross Church, Aylsham
Present: Fr. Peter Raj, Fran Ludden (Chair), Christine Barraclough (Secretary). Peter McKenna, Antonia Martinez (Parish Secretary), Georgiana Rylands, Francis Harmer (Finance)
Apologies for Absence were received from: Clare Glenn, Nick Elphinstone, Bruce McKenna, Bob Gale, Margaret Burrows, Praveen James
Opening Prayer
- It was agreed to end the meeting by 9pm
- Minutes of the meeting on 27th May were agreed and signed
- Matters Arising from last meeting: John Holden has agreed to be a representative on the Jubilee Year Working Committee, and he is waiting for further liaison on this.
- Health and Safety There has been no further action on First Aider training. Peter will find out about a first aider training company that he knows of. Antonia will ask at Poringland (RC Diocesan Office) about possible groups we can join. It was agreed that action is needed on refresher training for those involved. Defibrillator training: John is waiting to see whether there will be any further take up for the latest training session. The Health and Safety Inspection Report is pending, and it is hoped that it will be received soon. Safeguarding: A representative has been found for North Walsham: Sue Perrott will work with Fran on this. Father Peter has a link to the training information for anybody in the Parish in a role of responsibility involving children or young people. All volunteers who work with children should be covered.
- Financial Matters– Francis arrived to give an update: The biggest concern financially is the disabled toilet and other necessary structural repairs at St. John of the Cross.
St. Helen’s needs electrical testing to be carried out. Work on the Narthex has been deferred unless something can be done sooner about the doors.
A drone inspection on the roof of Sacred Heart may be done.
A lot of money has been spent in various ways, including at the Presbytery and the Bungalow. Details were given at the AGM. The offertory is currently 5%-10% below budget. Father has agreed that Francis will speak at Mass to all congregations to make them aware of Gift Aid envelopes and standing orders. A Legacies leaflet will be available.
New Missal: an initial batch of 30 copies will be shared out between parishes to assess how many might be used, with a view to possibly ordering more if required. Personal copies may be purchased at a reduced rate. Father Peter agreed to talk about these at Mass at all three churches.
6. Parish Social Committee: A Beetle Drive has been arranged for Saturday 25th October 2pm-4pm. The murder mystery has been postponed until spring. Plans are going ahead for the Christmas Fair on November 29th 9am -1pm. Bob has agreed to be Father Christmas.
7. Parish Priest’s Report: Father Peter expressed his appreciation for the work of the committee. He noted the many ways in which volunteers support the Parish, and he thanked them all, as it is good to see so many taking part. The Patronal Feast Days have been celebrated at Sacred Heart and St. Helen’s, with three days of preparation at Sacred Heart. St. John of the Cross will take place on 14th December. Bishop Peter will visit on Thursday 25th September for the celebration of Confirmation at North Walsham. It will be possible for parishioners to meet him after the service. Refreshments will be arranged in the Hall, and Antonia has spoken to Maureen about the possibility of involving the choir in the setting-up of this beforehand.
8. Services at Christmas: Family Mass at 6pm on Christmas Eve, Midnight Mass at 9pm, St. John of the Cross. Christmas Day Mass at Hoveton at 9am, and 11 am at North Walsham. There will be Christmas Recollection from 10am -3pm on Saturday 13th December in preparation for the season. Father Alvan will be speaking.
Katie Maidment will not be leading a liturgy on the first Sunday of Advent at Hoveton this year. There will be a service of Readings and Carols at Aylsham on 17th or 18th December. Hoveton Carol Service is expected to take place on 14th December (date tbc). No date has yet been fixed for the Carol Service at North Walsham.
Fran asked if sanitising hands before communion was still necessary and it was agreed with Father Peter that this practice should be discontinued.
9. Parish Pastoral Councillors’ reports: St Helen: Georgiana mentioned the Patronal Feast Day celebration which was held in September. It was a great success. The Filipino Mass will be in September, and it is hoped that more people can be encouraged to attend. £30,000 has been quoted for the reglazing of the Narthex. There will be a House Mass on 23rd September. Discussions have been held on the link with Cambodia. Sacred Heart: There was no special news and Father Peter suggested that a forum should be held before the next meeting so people can air any concerns. Peter will arrange this and as Georgiana suggested, an agenda for it will be displayed in advance. There will be things to celebrate and people to be thanked.
10. Car Parking: It was agreed that this should no longer be an agenda item.
11. Annual Parish Meeting -Matters arising: It has been suggested the catering aspect of this should be reduced to cheese and wine, instead of a full meal. As numbers are low anyway, it might be better to hold it at another time of day.
12. Friends of the Holy Land: A decision must be made as to what should be done about this. Antonia has a contact who may be able to speak on the subject on a date yet to be arranged.
13. Parish/Diocesan Twinning: Links with Cambodia are getting more tenuous. The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem has been suggested as an alternative. Father Peter is unsure as to whether we can or should withdraw from the Cambodia connection. This could be discussed at the next forum at North Walsham. Then Father will ask Bishop Peter.
14. Any other business: It is three years since Fire Marshall training was carried out. As it is a requirement that this is carried out every three years, Richard McGreevy is arranging update training and will inform the health and safety reps at each church once details are available.
It has been pointed out that Sacred Heart Church is 100 years old next year, which might call for a celebration. However, the actual parish was not formed until 1960. Diocesan Archives would reveal a more accurate record.
At the next meeting it will be necessary to sort out the election of Reps. The appropriate documents will be distributed in time for the meeting
The next meeting will be on Tuesday 9th December at North Walsham
The Meeting closed at 9pm with a prayer
