Our Church is Your Church

St John’s depends on its congregation and supporters in the community for maintaining its role as the parish church serving the parish of Heaton Mersey. This is how you can help support the church:

Supporting

The church regularly holds fund-raising activities like coffee mornings and fairs. These are not only for its own funds but for national charities, like the Ukraine War appeal in 2022 and the 2023 Turkey-Syria Earthquake Relief. We are longstanding supporters of Macmillan. These are separate and in addition to the charitable donations we make to a range of local, national and international charities, in line with our mission. Our regular coffee mornings are not only important fundraising events but occasions to get to know members of the local community, often boosted by coinciding with the Heaton Mersey Artisan market Activities like Coffee & Conversation and the Wednesday club bring people together, many of whom are not church attenders but simply enjoy the opportunity to meet others and enjoy their company. Look out for when these are taking place and come along and support us.

Taking Part as a Helper

Church members actively support the church in a wide variety of ways through assisting in services as welcomers and readers, serving refreshments after services and keeping the church clean etc. The choir contributes significantly to the quality of services, with members enjoying both singing and the special sense of shared enjoyment derived from collective music-making. Get in touch if you think you can take part. We are also keen to promote the church through an expanded online presence so if you can help with this, please let us know. The Parochial Church Council are volunteers elected annually from church members, playing an important role as our trustees.

St John’s puts on a range of activities and events as part of its goal of encouraging greater use of the church, as well as reaching out to the local community. St John’s tries to be an outward-looking church. As well as Coffee & Conversation and the Wednesday Club we host a monthly Play and Praise for primary school children and their carers. We also collaborate with other churches in the Heatons with Holiday at Home, which offers occasional days out and meals. Each event has its own particular character but they are all open to everyone, not just those who attend the church for worship. All depend on volunteers to set up, promote and host so if you have a talent, we are sure we can find a way to use it. Do not hesitate to contact Revd Liz or the wardens if you think you can help.

Giving

St John’s is an ‘Excepted charity’ (a charity but not registered with the Charity Commission). It costs approximately £1000 a week to run the church, with our contributions to the diocese (the Parish Share), maintaining the building and utilities the major items. Virtually all our income comes from the congregation and fund-raising events, with occasional grants for specific purposes as well as one-off donations. Taking part in these activities is the first step in contributing but as an attender, there are various schemes in place to administer regular giving, including Gift Aid for those paying income tax. For further information please contact Revd Liz or the wardens.

Working Together

St John’s is in the Heatons team, part of the North and East deanery of the Diocese of Manchester. St Paul’s, Heaton Moor, is our sister church and as well as sharing Revd Liz with them. St John’s is active in working with and supporting local organisations like the Rotary club/Lamplighters Wellspring Stockport and Christians Against Poverty. We have strong links with the nearby St John’s Church of England Primary School. Members of the PCC are on the board of governors and children attend services, performances and other events at the church. The school is rated by OFSTED as being ‘Good’ and ‘Outstanding’.  St John's school website can be found here: 

https://www.st-johns.stockport.sch.uk/

A Venue for Your Event

St John’s believes that as well as being a place of worship, we can also serve the local community by making the building available as a venue for events outside services and our own activities. We aim to complement the Heaton Mersey Community Centre in terms of the kind of event we can host: we have held a variety of concerts and performances with capacity up to around 140 seated guests. There is a basic sound system but organisers are welcome to bring their own. A small kitchen and servery allows refreshments to be offered; unlike the HMCC the premises are not licensed. For further information, including charges, please contact the wardens.

Heaton Mersey Community Association

The Community Centre is across the road from the church and was formerly the church hall. It has a large hall with stage and bar that is suitable for a wide range of uses, including dancing and yoga classes and children’s parties. There is another room for meetings and smaller activities. It is managed independently of the church but is linked to St John’s. For further information and bookings see

http://www.heatons-team.org.uk/stjohnsnew/St._Johns_Web_Site/Community_Centre.html

Contact the booking secretary on 07590 057708 or email [email protected].