Diocese of Liverpool

Review Update

Issue 2: July 2002

DIOCESAN REVIEW - PROGRESS REPORT

Since Bishop's Council agreed the process and timetable for the Diocesan Review lots of different things have been going on. Various working groups have come and gone; others are still working on specific issues. This leaflet aims to explain where things are up to and what will happen next.

The basic financial context of the Diocesan Review remains the same. The basic question it poses also remains the same, namely: 'Can we organise ourselves better for mission?'

Mission and the deaneries

Deanery boundaries

Deaneries have been looking at whether they have the correct boundaries for mission. So far, most are saying 'yes', although one or two parishes want to move into adjacent deaneries.

Deanery mission plans

The main challenge facing deaneries is to come up with a mission plan for the deanery. This has various key elements:

• What are the really good things happening within the deanery which we can build upon?
• What are the gifts and talents of the members of the congregations which help other churches?
• How are we going to reduce our clergy numbers as required by the Review?
• How can we best deploy our Readers, NSMs and OLMs across the deanery?
• How can churches within the deanery help and support each other more effectively?
• Which buildings do we have? Which can be developed, which can be shared and which could be closed?
• How can we build closer relationships with our church schools?

Much of our future mission challenge rests on our ability to share our talents and experiences more widely, and our willingness to learn from and support each other. So how can we take the best of what we have and do more of it (always allowing for different local circumstances)?

At Bishop's Council in September key papers will be presented which aim to help deaneries in this planning process. After this Bishop's Council will be challenging all deaneries to get stuck into the mission planning process and collectively seek God's will for the future, it will be tough, but hugely exciting. Please pray for your Area Dean and Lay Chair as they steer your deanery through all of this.

Finance

2003 budget

This was approved in the June Diocesan Synod. It shows an annual deficit of £504,000 as proposed within the Diocesan Review.

Quota by Potential

The first draft of a revised quota system was presented to Diocesan Synod in June. Various concerns were expressed about the new formula, and Synod asked that we use the autumn consultations to consult parishes about the formula.