After working closely together from 2020, Bishop’s Council approved formation of the Oswaldbeck Benefice in early 2022. The Benefice takes its name from the 1086 Domesday Book. There, the area was the Hundred of Oswaldbeck, in the County of Nottinghamshire. The term ‘hundred’ is first recorded in the laws of Edmund I (939–46) as a measure of land and the area served by a hundred court. Bassetlaw was a wapentake (equivalent to a hundred). The wapentake covered an area roughly equivalent to the modern Bassetlaw local government district. The place name Bassetlaw means the hill of the people of Bersa, an early Anglo-Saxon leader.
There are six churches in the Benefice: in the villages of Beckingham, Clayworth, Gringley, Misterton, Walkeringham, and West Stockwith - in north Nottinghamshire. (Walkeringham Parish Church is currently closed.)
Our Benefice is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults from harm. We follow the House of Bishops guidance and policies. Each parish has its own Parish Safeguarding Officer (PSO) with a Safeguarding Co-ordinator from one of the parishes. Our Diocese’s safeguarding pages contain vital links and information, including contacts for the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor who advises our PSOs. If you are concerned that a child or adult has been harmed or may be at risk of harm, please contact the PSO for the individual parish or the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor (southwell.anglican.org/contact-safeguarding/). If you have immediate concerns about the safety of someone, please contact the police and your local authority’s children or adult social care services.