Cracks in Kerrier Deanery Plan acknowledged: Diocese advertises for Pastoral Priest
Click here to read the job description. Click here to read the original Kerrier On The Way Deanery Plan (the Diocese has been unable to recruit several of the lay worker positions. The plan talks of 23 churches: the job description lists 21). Key points follow....
Archdeacon Clive Hogger starts by introducing the highly controversial Oversight Ministry model which, he says is 'equipping the lay and ordained leaders and the people in the parishes to work together as a team'. Oversight Ministry is a concept introduced by the Diocese of Truro following its restructuring process known as On The Way - an effort, says the Archdeacon, to make the Diocese more 'fruitful and sustainable'. In Kerrier, the On The Way plan envisages a mega benefice of 23 churches overseen by just two stipendiary clergy - a Rural Dean and a Pioneer priest. This clergy provision will now be expanded with the 'Interim Pastoral Priest' based in Constantine (on the edge of the benefice not far from Falmouth), the Archdeacon says.
Comment: Oversight Ministry has proved to be highly unpopular - both with churchgoers and clergy - and unworkable. In East Wivelshire, no fewer than five priests have resigned because they did not want to be Oversight Ministers. Parishioners say that priests are not trained to be regional managers - nor should they be. Too much responsibility is put on the shoulders of church wardens. And a priest needs to know his/her community. This is impossible with a mega benefice - like the one planned in Kerrier.
Archdeacon Clive Hogger: "The people of Kerrier Deanery have been walking toward this model of ministry in this form for a couple of years now and it has not always been easy for them, particularly as there was a significant reduction in the level of stipendiary ministry provision in the deanery as it was introduced."
Comment: This is an understatement, to say the least. But at last the Archdeacon now recognises that there has been significant resistance to the plan. There has been unease and dissent from the start. The plan was passed by just one vote - pushed through during Covid, with meetings on Zoom, and a total lack of proper consultation.
Archdeacon Clive Hogger: "Time, as they say, is a great teacher and this new interim post of Pastoral Priest represents a recognition that more dedicated stipendiary ordained ministry was required."
Comment: At last! The first official recognition from the Diocese that the Kerrier Deanery Plan is unworkable. However - how can just one Pastoral Priest cover the needs of communities and congregations in 23 churches?
Archdeacon Clive Hogger: "Our plan relies heavily on the development of lay leadership and the fantastic work of 9 PTOS, 1 House for Duty priest, Deanery Administrator (24 hours/week) and a part-time Finance Officer."
Comment: Churchgoers in Kerrier report that there is untenable pressure on church wardens and the nine PTOs to keep churches going. The House for Duty priest, based in Breage, has recently stepped down.
Archdeacon Cliver Hogger: "Some of our churches have fully embraced these changes and enjoy the variety of priest-led and lay led services. .... However not all churches have wanted change, and some have been vocal about that. In particular, they have missed the pastoral care, that having a dedicated imcumbent could bring, hence the decision to look to appoint this post."
Comment: Again, this is a complicated understatement. For a long time, the Diocesan narrative has been that this was the 'people's plan', that Deanery Synod representatives voted for it and it was a 'bottom up' not 'top down' process. In fact, as everyone on the ground knows, the opposite was true - and the Archdeacon acknowledges this here by saying 'not all churches have wanted change'. However, this is a very welcome recognition that more pastoral care is needed. And pastoral care by a priest and dedicated incumbent - not lay pastoral care.
Archdeacon Clive Hogger: "Part of our On The Way plan, to foster the Team Ministry concept, was to create a single Benefice. This is at the stage of public consultation having been completed and the Church Commissioners reviewing all the written objections and supporting statements. The result of this will not affect this appointment or the future of the Ministry Team."
Comment: This is an interesting comment from the Archdeaon. The plans to create a giant benefice have attracted national (negative) attention, and a high level of representations to the Church Commissioners. The churches are spread over a wide geographical area: even this job description recognises the difficulty of travelling over such a wide area on roads crowded with holiday traffic for much of the year. Many hope that the new Bishop of Truro, the Rt Rev David Williams, will listen to to the concerns of people in Kerrier, and far beyond the Tamar, and withdraw the plan for further consultation and consideration. The Bishop is due to be sent a summary of the representations and invited to respond: his response will eventually be circulated to those who made representations before the Church Commissioners meet to discuss this.
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