All God’s people are called to serve in formal and informal church based roles and all are vital to the health and wellbeing of our church communities
Being a church officer is a vocation that carries responsibility and requires commitment.
Churchwarden
Churchwardens are representatives of the laity, supporters of the clergy, officers of the bishop, trustees of a charity, and leaders in mission and ministry, with a special role in leading worship and in vacancies and you will perform a fascinating, vital, fulfilling role in the life of the church.
The role offers you great variety, as well as responsibility, ensuring the PCC cares for and maintains the church, providing support and advice to the parish priest and ensuring necessary safeguarding and administrative duties are carried out. The way in which churchwardens carry out their duties will vary from parish to parish but there are some important legal responsibilities that need to be adhered to. Whilst there is a sizeable practical side to the role, the spiritual, pastoral, and missional elements are hugely important with churchwardens acting as a bridge between laity and incumbent.
Churchwardens are lay parish officials who are elected annually at the Meeting of Parishioners (usually held immediately before the Annual Parochial Church Meeting or APCM). Their duties and responsibilities are set out in the Churchwarden’s Measure 2001 and they are ex-officio members of the PCC.
Church Treasurer
The Treasurer is a highly trusted role which requires a certain level of commitment. You don’t have to be a qualified accountant to become a treasurer, although this could be a help in larger parishes as the size and scope of the role and responsibilities will depend on the scale and complexity of the parish and the role and key tasks of the Treasurer are expanded on in the Treasurer’s Resources section.
PCC Secretary
A PCC secretary’s role is not just about writing minutes and circulating agendas. Although these things are important, it is a key ministry that uses your gifts for administration, organisation and an eye for detail enabling your church or parish to focus on its mission and service. A PCC secretary is often the glue, ensuring that PCC members are well prepared for meetings, decisions are clear so that the right actions are undertaken, correspondence is dealt with graciously and, during a vacancy, the processes for appointing a new minister run smoothly. PCC secretary duties include liaising with the chair of the PCC for meeting agendas, preparation and distribution of relevant documents to PCC members, maintenance and safe keeping of all formal PCC documents, management of the APCM, co-ordination of the PCC’s Annual Report and acting as the conduit for communication between the PCC, diocese, deanery synod, and the congregation.
