The United Benefice of Oldbury, Langley and Londonderry
in the Deanery of Warley, Diocese of Birmingham
www.stmarkslondonderry.org.uk www.stjohnslangley.org.uk
www.christchurcholdbury.org.uk www.warleydeanery.co.uk
United Benefice Statement
General Introduction
The United Benefice sits within an area called the Black Country, an industrial area
approximately five miles from Birmingham, whilst retaining a very distinct identity to that of its
neighbouring city.
The most significant changes for the parishes over the last few years have been the formation of
the United Benefice in December 2007, and the appointment of a new vicar for the United
Benefice in August 2010, the first to be appointed jointly by all three parishes. A pattern has
begun to emerge with regular shared services and seasonal study groups such as during Advent
and Lent between the parishes and the congregations are now better known to one another.
We believe it is important to keep our own distinct identities and retain our own styles of
worship and spirituality.
It is hoped that a new Associate Vicar would bring their own specialist skills in ministry to
compliment the existing team of clergy and laity.
There is a weekly news sheet which all three parishes input into.
All three parishes fully embrace the ministry of women priests.
The parishes are generally in the central church tradition.
Current structures
o present staff team (May 2011):
 Vicar: Revd Nick Pelling
 Reader: Adam Hadley
 Community Regeneration Worker: Chris Florance
 Children and families work co-ordinator and Reader in training:
Julie Pelling
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We are in process of appointing a Schools Mission Worker
we also have support from a number of retired priests
3 PCCs
United Benefice staff team meetings
United Benefice church warden meetings
United Benefice social committee
United Benefice Liturgy Group
United Benefice child protection and safeguarding vulnerable adults group
Housing
TheVicarage
15 St Mark’s Road
Smethwick
B67 6QF
The St Mark’s vicarage will be provided for the Associate Vicar.
The vicarage is a detached house a few minutes walk from St Mark’s Church and was built as a
vicarage probably in the late thirties, shortly after the Church. It is situated at the top of a drive
with room to park at least two cars and has a small turning space.
On the ground floor of the house there is an integral garage, laundry room, including toilet, (built
in the mid eighties), large kitchen/diner, hall, lounge, dining room, study and cloakroom.
Upstairs there are five bedrooms (although one room is a dressing room off another room) and
a bathroom.
There is a large secure garden although maintenance is not easy because of the lie of the land.
PARISH STATEMENT OF THE LANGLEY PARISH
1. DESCRIPTION OF THE PARISH
Langley is an urban parish created in 2007 by the merging of the former St John’s Langley, (Rood
End) and St Michael’s Langley (Langley Green) parishes, plus a small area transferred from the
neighbouring Blackheath parish.
The current population of the parish is about 12000, and at present this figure is fairly stable, but
there is the prospect of a small increase in the future as house building continues. There is a
varied ethnic and religious mix of population which at the Rood End part of the parish can be
transient although is fairly static at the Langley Green part of the parish.
The parish has both private and social housing within its boundaries including one block of highrise flats. The ages of the properties range from the 1890s to the present time. Based on the
last available figures 71% of the properties are owner occupied and 29% rented.
There is still a significant industrial presence in the parish including three chemical firms and a
number of engineering businesses.
There are two local shopping areas within the parish and a third on the boundary.
There are four primary schools, one special educational needs school, and two centres catering
for people with special needs situated in the parish.
Langley has a small theatre with an amateur dramatics group and a long established brass band.
There are two parks, one of which has a community centre.
Access to church by bus is quite good in the week, but not so good on Sundays in both the
Langley and Rood End areas.
The Rood End part of the parish is within the top 10% of economically deprived areas in the UK.
Funding has been obtained to enable us to employ a Community Regeneration Worker for two
years, having already had someone in post for 2½ years.
Churches from other denominations in the parish include: two Methodist Churches, Wesleyan
Reform Church, Salvation Army worship centre, United Reform Church, Baptist Church and
several Pentecostal churches. There is one Mosque in the parish and Mosques, Hindu temples
and Sikh temples in adjoining parishes.
2. PATTERN OF CHURCH LIFE
The Sunday service commences at 9.45am and is usually Holy Communion except for one
Sunday per month when there is a family and Scout Group parade family service. There are
seasonal variations to this pattern at times such as Lent, Easter and Christmas.
Our worship is usually based on Common Worship Order One using modern language.
During school term time we have a small Sunday school with about six children attending.
During the last 12 months there have been two baptisms, no marriages and one funeral. The
average Sunday attendance is 24 adults and 6 children.
The congregation is predominately female and older although there are some younger members
of the congregation.
There are 34 on the electoral roll, of which 25 live in the parish and nine who live outside the
parish.
The parish has a Scout, Cub and Beavers group with a total number of 75 and a recently formed
youth group by Worth Unlimited is building steadily.
A full time Community Regeneration Worker has been in post since September 2008, this has
been an exciting new development for the parish, enabling the church to be active and visible in
the community. A baseline report of the area was completed in February 2009. This is available
to anyone who is interested. An end of year report has been produced and is also available.
Langley worships in a central church tradition.
3. DESCRIPTION OF CHURCH BUILDINGS AND FACILITIES
St John’s Church is a single storey building built in 1915 with two connecting halls and an office.
The one hall was built at the same time as the church and the second added some years later. It
is of a practical, manageable size for our needs. Inside it has recently been re-ordered with the
removal of the pews and choir stalls and replaced with individual seating.
In addition to the Scouts, Cubs and Beavers the halls are also used by a number of other
organisations, overseen by a Users Group which is a sub committee of the PCC.
4. ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE
Due to small congregation numbers and low income of the parishioners, we have difficulty
meeting our financial commitments.
Clergy expenses such as travel and stationery etc are met in full.
We have a stewardship scheme.
The PCC meets monthly to plan and organise the parish affairs. Generally, we do not have a
need for sub - committees.
5. OPPORTUNITIES AND EXPECTATIONS
We understand ourselves to be called to:
 Gather together to worship as the body of Christ and to celebrate and embrace
presence and outreach in the Langley community
 Serve our parish and congregation in ways which show the love and compassion
of Christ
 The church working with the regeneration project to draw partners, residents
and other organisations to find ways to address issues and concerns in one area
of the parish
We are able to achieve this if we:
 Grow together as a community of faith in fellowship and supporting each other. If
we worship as the body of Christ and if we are a community resource embodying
mission and outreach
PARISH STATEMENT OF
SAINT MARK’S, LONDONDERRY
1. DESCRIPTION OF PARISH
The parish consists mainly of semi- detached houses originally built by the local authority in the
1920s and 30s and more than half are now privately owned. The district most probably
resembles that of an outer estate in character, although it is long established as a residential area
and was formerly rural in character.
Local shops are small with owners running their own businesses.
The population of the parish is currently around 6,000 and is predominantly white however
there has been an increase in Asian and African-Caribbean families living in the area and recently
some eastern European families have also moved in.
There is a high incidence of life-limiting illness and a need to raise literacy, numeracy and IT skills.
In the local authority ranking of deprivation the parish is to be found in the third quartile.
Unemployment is still quite high in the parish and there is little in the way of employment in the
area, except for work in shops and as paid carers. Professional and formal qualifications among
the residents are low. Most people in employment travel outside of the area to their daily jobs.
There is one purpose built Community Centre apart from that at Saint Mark’s. Social, leisure and
recreational facilities are available through a privately owned club. A British Legion club and a
private day nursery are probably the only other organisations to be found in the parish.
The parish falls within a Sure Start area and there are links with them through the early years
activities run by the Church.
There are good bus services in the district on weekdays. Major routes criss-cross the parish to
larger centres and local services have improved recently.
A small, Christian fellowship uses Saint Mark’s premises on a Sunday afternoon and a Pentecostal
church also use the hall on a Sunday. There are no other worship groups within the parish but a
Baptist Church is active just over the boundary, as are Sikh and Muslim places of worship.
2. PATTERN OF CHURCH LIFE
The main Sunday service is at 9.45am when a diverse, lively Parish Communion is followed by
breakfast. On the first Sunday in the month a more informal communion service is held. This is
an attempt to encourage visitors and to enable baptismal parties to access the worship more
readily. Forms of service for each of the church’s seasons have been developed. Funeral and
baptism services have also been prepared. The congregation is flexible about trying different
styles of worship.
Hymns, songs and psalm settings are taken from many sources and include the best of traditional
and modern church music led by a small number of singers who practice regularly and are
accompanied by a pianist. A high standard of music is preferred and the choir’s contribution is
seen as an important part of worship.
A weekly pew sheet is produced.
The Electoral Roll is 35, with average Sunday attendance being 24 adults and 2 children. There is
a spread of ages including a few school age children, but with the majority being over 50. The
congregation, on the whole, is committed to the weekly worship.
Lay participation is well established for bible readings and intercessions and three lay people have
permission to distribute at communion.
About 68% of the Electoral Roll actually live outside the Parish and travel to the Church because
of its style of worship and family connections.
The figures for occasional offices in 2010 are:
Baptisms: 14. Weddings: 1. Funerals: 13 in Church.
St Mark’s worships in a Liberal/Liberal Catholic tradition.
Community Project
The Saint Mark’s Community Project (SMCP) runs a Carer and Toddler group on one morning
per week. Groups in the evenings are leisure based and rent space for their activities. A youth
group meets on Tuesday evenings and is active and growing.
SMCP, was Company Limited by Guarantee, but has now returned back to a sub committee of
the PCC.
Funding raised by the project enabled renovation of the main hall to take place to improve
facilities. The kitchen was totally re-organised and refurbished in 2008.
Disabled access, toilets for the disabled and baby-change facilities are in order.
Social events, (coffee mornings, Harvest and Epiphany suppers, barn dances, community sales),
take place which encourage all users of the site to participate.
3. DESCRIPTION OF CHURCH BUILDINGS AND FACILITIES
The Church was built in 1935/6 and has a plain exterior, but inside it is light and welcoming,
having been re-ordered in the early 60s for worship in the round. The arrangement of furniture
and fittings is flexible. There is a sound system with a hearing aid loop. The organ is in good
repair and is regularly tuned, as is the excellent piano. Part of the church has been carpeted to
provide a smaller worship area or a place for small children to move about safely.
The Church Hall was built in 1928 as the original church. Two smaller halls were added in the
1980s. One is now used as a play group room. The whole building is now, after 25 plus years of
community use, much nearer to what it should be in terms of facilities and decoration.
All the work undertaken so far has been paid for through grants and fund raising and there is no
debt to burden the Project or the Church.
The building is used six days a week and two evenings and is available to let when not in use.
4. ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE
The Parish has always paid its Common Fund in full. It is common practice to donate a
proportion of the Church’s income to good causes at home and abroad.
Clergy expenses are paid in full.
A stewardship scheme operates but the age of the congregation and the number of fixed
incomes means that this is not run in a high-powered way. However the congregation is very
good at finding essential money if the need arises and are generous in giving through time and
talents.
The PCC currently meets bi-monthly with a Standing Committees in between. It has six elected
members plus those who are ex-officio. Attendance is normally very good. A group meets
regularly to plan worship and other working groups are formed as required.
PARISH STATEMENT OF CHRIST CHURCH, OLDBURY
1. DESCRIPTION OF THE PARISH
The Parish comprises the centre of a small town, six miles northwest of Birmingham, but having
its own traditions quite different from the city. There is a diverse mixture of ethnic groups
including white British and those of Asian and African Caribbean descent, with the latter groups
having become well established over the last 40 years. More recently families from Eastern
Europe have moved into the area.
In 1974, Oldbury became part of the new Sandwell Metropolitan Borough (a merger between
Warley and West Bromwich) and is now in the West Midlands County. Sandwell Council’s
headquarters are situated in Oldbury Town Centre. The population of Oldbury is 10830 (2001)
Housing ranges from pre 1914 to present day houses and flats recently built. Notable buildings
include the Church itself, the Council House for Sandwell, and a Sainsbury's Supermarket.
A Roman Catholic Church, a New Testament Church of God, the Bethel Church, a Spiritualist
Centre and a Gurdwara. There is also a mosque and a prestigious Hindu Temple just outside
the Parish Boundary.
2.
PATTERN OF CHURCH LIFE
Services
Sunday at 11.15 am: Our Eucharist service is in modern language. The 1st Sunday in
each month is a Family Service.
Sunday School is held in school term time on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Sundays.
Baptisms normally take place in the Family Service.
Occasional Offices in the last year
Two Weddings
11 Baptisms
Six funerals
Any Confirmation of candidates takes place with the rest of the Deanery
Music
We have an organist.
We use the Hymn Book 'Hymns Old and New' and use a range of traditional and
contemporary hymns.
The Church Electoral Roll consists of 20 parishioners with a mainly mature congregation,
although there is a range of ages and a good range of people from different cultures and
backgrounds. Our younger members of the congregation bring their children to Sunday School.
The Sunday School has an average attendance of four. The average Sunday attendance is 21.
We have a Church of England (voluntary aided) Primary School very close to the Church. The
School uses the Church for end of term assemblies and join us for special celebrations such as
Mothering Sunday, Harvest Festival and Christmas.
The school also visit the Church as part of their RE Studies.
Christ Church is a traditional church of central churchmanship. It is also the civic church for
Oldbury and Sandwell Council.
3. DESCRIPTION OF CHURCH BUILDINGS AND FACILITIES
Christ Church was consecrated in 1841 to seat about 1200 persons, and set within a
conservation area.
Refurbishment took place in 1991. Sandwell Council and the then Black Country Development
Corporation contributed large sums for this work The western half of the building was divided
into three floors of offices to provide rental income to the Diocese. The eastern half has been
modernised as a church, seating 90 persons, while retaining most of the original features such as
stained glass etc.
As a result of this refurbishment we are only responsible for the maintenance of the interior
fabric of the Church. The maintenance of the outer walls and roof is now in the care of the
Diocese.
The original gallery was altered to form a meeting room which is used by Sunday School, and
some meetings are also held there.
We do not have a church hall, but there is sufficient space by the side of the main seating in the
church to hold small social functions.
The Church is used for Town Forum meetings on some occasions.
The Mayor's Civic Service is sometimes held in the church.
Our clock was refurbished to working order with hour chimes in 2007. The money was raised
by public subscription in the town, contributions from local businesses and the congregation.
The bells have been recently restored by English Clock makers at a cost of approximately
£10,000.
4.
ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE
Due to small congregation numbers and low income of the parishioners, we have difficulty
meeting our financial commitments.
Clergy expenses such as travel and stationery etc are met in full.
PCC meets approximately once each month. We normally contribute to the Diocesan Malawi
Fund and Christian Aid. We contribute to the Children's Society in two ways, by collecting
boxes and by also donating the proceeds of the sale of Harvest Festival produce.
The PCC arrange worship and social events, including a Harvest Supper, a Christmas meal, an
afternoon tea & beetle drive, fish & chips and bingo with good attendance from other churches
and the surrounding community. Good fellowship is enjoyed at these events together with the
added bonus of raising church funds.