PCC met on 19 June, here is a round up of what was discussed.

New members

Several new members were welcomed to PCC – new list of PCC members will be on display on the board in the porch.

An update from the Eco Group

PCC heard an update from the Eco Group who have been litter picking in the parish – they were noticed and mentioned on the Bearwood Facebook page! Additionally, we took part in the Earth hour, we are close to gaining the silver Eco Church award, our gas emissions have reduced to 5% as a result of the new heating and a new recycling box is currently in the outer porch for hard to recycle objects.

Inclusive Church

PCC agreed to renew Inclusive Church membership.

Finance report

The finance report shows that we are currently running at approx £2,000 deficit each month. It is hoped that reduced heating costs through the summer will reduce this, but it is a worrying situation. If the deficit continues, we may have to draw money from reserves. The Finance group will look at spending and may review hall and church hire fees. Any fundraising ideas welcome. We have been notified of a legacy of approx. £11,000 from the late Douggie Gallaher. The Treasurer has signed and returned all paperwork and requested details of any restrictions on the use of the legacy.

Safeguarding report

The Safeguarding Officer was pleased to report that she has been joined by Mike Baynham who has completed all training. A third person has also been invited to join the team.

Scouts

Julie advised that the District Lead for the Scouting Association had been in touch as they were reviewing all scout groups with low group numbers – St. Hilda’s has only 3 scouts. Several groups in West Mercia have already been closed or amalgamated. In April, we were notified that the group would officially close at the end of April, and during May the scout hut was cleared and keys handed to the Churchwardens. Discussions will take place in the coming months to decide on its future use.

Electoral Roll

Electoral roll figures have now been submitted to the Diocese. We have 53 on the roll, 25 in the parish and 28 outside. A reduction of 30 since the last update.

Church Hall

After receiving a grant from Sandwell Council in 2024 to help with refurbishing and paint costs for the Hall, Sandwell Council have arranged to come and view the newly painted hall and will produce a press release.

Vicar's board

Ian confirmed that Jenni’s name would be added to the Vicar Board the following day. 

Faculty application

The request for permission for a faculty to install an icon in the remembrance corner is ongoing.

Suggestions 

There was a suggestion that we contact the Conservatoire to see if there was any possibility of a student playing at some of our Sunday services, to lighten the load for our current organists.

New cleaner

Julie advised that our new Hall cleaner started at the beginning of the month. A review of cleaning equipment has shown that some does need to be urgently replaced to ensure the Hall is clean for our users.