All Saints Church –
Hesketh with Becconsall
PARISH PROFILE - 2015
Welcome to All Saints Church, Hesketh with Becconsall,
Name of Parish
All Saints, Hesketh with Becconsall
Diocese
Blackburn
Deanery
Leyland
Address
Station Road, Hesketh Bank, West Lancashire, PR4
6SR
Church Website
Allsaintshb.org.uk
Our Mission Statement is:
All Saints Church seeks to serve the community of Hesketh Bank in every
possible way:Worship of word and sacrament, Faithful preaching of the gospel, Pastoral care
of all in need and teaching of the apostolic faith.
We endeavour to offer our best to God in worship and service
What the PCC is looking for
What the PCC is looking for in a new parish priest
 A person who is pastorally sensitive, with a heart for evangelism who
enjoys meeting people and has the ability to nurture a diverse
congregation.
 A minister who has a clear and deeply rooted biblically based faith,
secure and confident in their spiritual life.
 Someone who will continue with our outreach to the young through
involvement with the school, Sunday school and Messy Church.
 Someone who is completely at home with the church’s evangelical
outlook, who has a love and commitment for a variety of worship –
modern and traditional, formal and informal, sacramental and non
sacramental
 We need a good and organised leader who is able to delegate and
enable others to take an active role in the life of the church and its
activities within the parish.
 We are looking for someone who is friendly and enthusiastic with vision
to help us further engage with members of our community and take our
mission out into the parish.
The Church Building
The Church is constructed from sandstone with a natural slate rook and was
built in 1926, it seats 250 and is well maintained. There are wooden rows of
moveable seats, a small piped organ on the west gallery and two large
dedicated stained glass windows to the east end. A tower was added in 1935
to the west end of the Church and houses a bell.
The main entranced situated through a porch to the south between the nave
and the tower, there is a second entrance through to the Lady Chapel.
Church Yard
A raised Garden of Remembrance for the internment of ashes is located to the
north side of the Church. At the end of a short gravel track from the Church is
a large and well maintained burial ground which is still in use.
Church Hall
Built in 1958 and situated next to the Church this has a pitched slate rood with
a main hall with a sprung dance floor, entrance foyer, toilets, a large purpose
built stage with changing rooms on either side and a large kitchen. The hall is
in good condition, a car park surrounds the hall and to one side there is a large
field. The hall is well used by the church and community groups.
Worship at All Saints
SUNDAY
9AM HOLY COMMUNION - BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER
10.30AM HOLY COMMUNION - COMMON WORSHIP
6.30PM HOLY COMMUNION - BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER (HELD ON THE
LAST SUNDAY OF THE MONTH)
ON THE THIRD SUNDAY IN THE MONTH THE 10.30 AM SERVICE IN A NON
EUCHARISTIC SERVICE
We have four organists who work on a rota basis, and a small dedicated choir.
Preaching is shared with our reader, who also takes communion out to the sick
and to the local care home,
We have a Bible Study group which meets each Wednesday, and Messy
Church; which is very well attended takes place on the second Monday in the
month.
Our year of worship has a number of events that take us out into the
community
At Pentecost we join with two other local Churches to walk through the village
as witnesses of our Christian faith. Plough Sunday is celebrated at one of our
local farms and attracts many of the local farming community, and Old Church
Sunday in July sees us processing to our former Church to celebrate a Eucharist
service there. Accompanied by our local brass band we mark the anniversary
of moving from the old church to the New Church.
We hold an annual Prize giving service for our young people who attend
Sunday School and this year we are awarding some 59 prizes. Our Sunday
School children and young people also take an active part in worship at the
10.30am, non Eucharistic Service. They read the readings, collect the offerings,
join in the sermon activity and sing a well prepared song. We are very blessed
that we have the use of a projector and screen so that the Christian message is
both visual and verbal.
We have also developed excellent links to our local Church School. There is a
church and School Group, this meets each term to plan future events. Each
year we hold a leavers service and an event day where the children look back
on their years in Primary School. We also celebrate Education Sunday and last
year we also held a two day event at Easter. This was interactive and the
whole school attended our Easter Stations of the Cross story. It proved to be
highly successful and beneficial to both staff and pupils. We carried out a
similar event at Christmas, which again was interactive and the whole school
were enthusiastic about its impact. We also hold a Service at the beginning of
the new term in September for the whole school.
There are many other services throughout the year, which are well attended
and celebrated Harvest festival provides and opportunity to help others and
provides an abundance of food for distribution to the needy. In November we
hold our Remembrance Day service to honour our war dead and have a
memorial monument in the church grounds. During Advent we hold a
Christingle service, blessing of the Crib, toy service and Carol Service and have
a midnight Eucharist service on Christmas Eve and on Christmas Day our
Eucharist is held at 10.30am.
Our Church is also holding Confirmation classes this year for 5 confirmation
candidates.
We have begun our search for a new Priest through firstly a prayer gathering
and we believe that God will help us to find the right person. Someone who
can lead us, help us to grow in faith, and will be able to help us to build on the
foundations that have been laid thus far.
The Rectory
The Rectory is a modern detached and desirable family home, situated
adjacent to the church hall and field, accessed via Silverdale, a small cul-de-sac.
It has gas central heating with a combi. boiler, there are four bedrooms and
three reception rooms. At the side of Rectory is a garage and gardens, there is
ample off street parking.
The social life of the Church
All Saints Church Pantomime
The Church and the Church hall are used by many difference groups and
organisations such as Mothers Union meetings, Messy Church, Young at Heart
and community groups such as Guide and Scout Groups, Badminton, Mums
and Tots and Singing Groups, it is also a venue hired out for birthday parties
and other celebrations.
We hold fundraising events each year including Beetle Drives and a Ceilidh.
The Church and hall are used for our annual Garden Party and hosts the annual
community Horticultural Village Show. The Church Hall is also the venue for
our sell out performances of our pantomime, performed by members of our
congregation and Sunday School.
The Church Family – Youth Work
We have approximately 60 young people in our church family who regularly
attend our Sunday School, on average we have 30 young people attending at
any one time. Sunday School meets throughout the year with the exception of
the summer break. We meet in the Church Hall and enjoy age appropriate
Bible teaching and activities. We have 12 volunteers who are all CRB checked
and help in this teaching on a rota basis. Our children and young people play
an active part in our worship and join together during our monthly family
service to read, sing and pray. The children also come together during other
special occasions such as Christmas, Lent and Easter and Harvest Festival.
Their own activities together have included sponsored walks and trips to
Windmill Animal Farm. Each year a Sunday School Queen and attendants are
chosen to represent our Church and Sunday School, they visit other parishes
attending Garden Parties and Walking Days
Messy Church
In May 2014, All Saints held its first Messy Church. Held on the second
Monday every month it continues to be enjoyed by many children and adults
from Hesketh Bank and surrounding villages. On average 80-90 children and
adults attend each Messy Church session with extra activities such as Messy
Movie Mornings being held during the school holidays. There are 10 regular
helpers who assist with planning and running of Messy Church.
The Parish
Hesketh Bank lies between Preston and Southport on the Irish Sea estuary of
the River Ribble. Because of our position on the west Lancashire coastal plain
the reclaimed marsh land is a very rich soil suitable for the farming of
vegetables. This is a main economic activity in our area. Our population is just
over 4000 as several modern housing estates and infill housing has been built.
The Churches in Hesketh Bank consist of All Saints, Church of England on
Station Road, the Methodist Church on Chapel Road and the Christian
Fellowship Centre on Moss Lane, the local Catholic community is served by the
nearby Church in Tarleton
Becconsall Old Church is now run by the Churches Conservation Trust and is
opened for special events throughout the year. At the bottom of Becconsall
Lane is Douglas Boatyard located on the tidal River Douglas where a full range
of boat repair service and boat moorings have been provided for over 100
years.
We have a variety of local shops including a Post Office, Newsagents, Chemist
and a Booths supermarket on Station Road which was built in 2010.
Sports facilities include excellent sports fields with cricket and football teams,
all weather football pitches and crown green bowling greens and a gym. There
is also Scouting and Guiding in the village. We also have a nursing home with
30/40 residents.
There are numerous public footpaths around the marshes with a newly
created Heritage Walk. A newly created RSPB nature reserve site is situated on
Hesketh Out Marsh at the bottom of Dib Road.
Old Church Sunday and the Old Church
RSPB building at Hesketh Out
Marsh
The River Douglas, Hesketh Bank
Education
All Saints Hesketh with Becconsall CE Primary School, which is church aided,
was described in its last ofsted report, as ‘a good school with outstanding
features’ and although smaller than the national average size, does have a
present role of 190. The school has strong local links and is remarkably well
supported by its local Church and community.
Over the last two years and with guidance obtained from the Local Education
Authority a determined and sustained effort has been made by the
Headteacher, staff and governors to focus and monitor pupils, progress and
attainment throughout the school. The resulting outcome of this approach,
when coupled with highly effective and suitable intervention strategies has
produced the most positive educational results.
The dedication of the teaching staff is remarkable, however it is with regret
that the present Headteacher will retire in July this year after thirteen years in
post. This means a new chapter opens for the school, Church and the
community. Thankfully a new Headteacher has been appointed and he is
known to have a strong Christian ethos, plus a background of achieving
remarkable results in a similar sized village school. In addition he has recently
held a senior post at Edge Hill University as Head of Department for primary
teacher training.
With the school intake for 2015/16 of 30 pupils, this brings the total number to
192. It is recognised that with the recent housing development and proposed
further development within the village, the number of applications for the
school may be an all time record. The future development of the school will no
doubt be challenging and will be viewed with considerable interest locally.
Our Future
Looking to the future we would want our Church to be growing in faith and
discipleship and in love for one another.
We pray that our weekly attendance will increase and our Sunday School and
Messy Church continue to thrive.
We would like to see at least one young person trained for pastoral ministry
and more people involved in bible study groups.
We would liked to develop our Church building so that our Lady Chapel can be
used independently of the main Church, and put in facilities in the back of
church in order that it can be used throughout the week for various church
activities.
We want to be people of God who will reach out into the community and show
them the love of Jesus.