News

Notes from the PCC meeting on 16th March, 2026.

Our meeting on Monday was slightly unusual in that all those attending the parish prayer gathering joined us for opening worship. They then went to the vicars’ lounge to pray for the needs of the church, parish and the world.

Along with all the usual reports this meeting featured a guest speaker. Kim Martin, one of our Anna Chaplains, gave us an insight into her role and how the work has snowballed from services in two residential homes to nine or ten throughout the parish. Anna Chaplaincy was formed about 12 years ago and its aim is to provide spiritual support to older people in care home, hospitals, hospices and their own homes. Kim explained how she provides accessible worship for residents including those with dementia and is also involved in end-of-life care. Working under the supervision of Dave and Gareth, Kim is being trained to take Holy Communion and lead funeral services. There are 21 care homes in total in the parish so there is plenty of work for more Anna Chaplains and Anna Friends (who mainly work one to one with the elderly.

If you know someone who could benefit from Anna Chaplaincy or are interested in joining the work, then please speak to Kim, or one of the clergy.

On a serious note: we received a disturbing report from our safeguarding team that there are still people in various roles across the Parish who have yet to complete DBS checks and safeguarding training. This is a matter of concern for us all and the safeguarding team will be contacting those people yet again. If this is you – then please bless this hardworking team by doing what you need to do NOW.

This was our last meeting before the Annual Parish meeting, and soon churches will need to elect/re-elect wardens, PCC members and Deanery Synod reps. Please prayerfully consider if you could fulfil any of these roles if asked, and how you might best support those who are elected to serve the churches.

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Newton Abbot Deanery Synod Report – 10th March.

The Newton Abbot Deanery Synod meets three times a year and there is usually a main speaker.

At the March meeting, Chloe Axford, the Director of Communications and Engagement, came to speak on the topic of ‘Pray Grow Serve 2035’, which is the Bishop of Exeter’s vison for the next ten years in Devon and is based on Jesus’ great commission to “go and make disciples”.

There are five strategic priorities:

Missional Leadership – In a world where the Christian faith cannot be assumed, our Christian leaders need support and resourcing. Hence there is to be a focus on providing training opportunities for clergy and Licenced Lay Ministers (LLM), using up to date material.

Missional DNA – encouraging churches to be outward looking into their communities with resources to equip Christian communities to be missional in their worship, outreach and communications.

Vocations – to establish a vocational culture for lay and ordained through several leadership pathways. Partnering with organisations offering specialist training on various topics.

Children, Young People and Families – Reaching the children and young people with the gospel is vital. Training and developing children and youth workers through various courses. This was a key part of the bid for funding from the central church. (see below)

Mixed Ecology – In order to reach the wider community, we need to provide different ways of doing and being church for which training and webinars are being offered.

All this will cost money, and the Diocese has been awarded an initial grant of £10m from the Church of England’s Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment Board (SMMiB). This includes a bold reshaping of the Church in Plymouth for mission to revitalise the Church in Devon’s largest urban area.

More information can be found on the Diocese of Exeter website, www.exeter.angli can.org/pray -grow -serve -2035

The Bishop of Exeter’s prayer for Pray Grow Serve 2035 is:

God of Mission

Who alone brings growth to your Church

Send your Holy Spirt to help your Church here in Devon:

To grow deeper in faith and prayer

To grow new disciples

To grow leaders

To grow younger and

To grow in joyful service

Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

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Choice Words Bookshop

STAFF VACANCY

Part-Time Sales Assistant 3 days per week

An exciting opportunity to serve God on the High Street at Choice Words, the award winning independent Christian bookshop in Newton Abbot.

The ideal applicant will be:

Friendly and welcoming with strong communication skills
Passionate about great customer service
Well organised, reliable and a team player
Comfortable using computers

Full training will be provided.

Please apply by email: roy@choicewords.co.uk

Good Friday Walk of Witness 2026

This year the Walk of Witness will be somewhat different. Rather than the readings and hymns we've had in past years it will look more like a mini-passion play with the story acted out. There will still be some hymns, but the hope is that the dramatic presentation of the events of that first Easter will draw in many more people to watch and listen and, God-willing, want to know more. It is also shorter... not least because we miss out an initial service in church and start by gathering in Bearnes School playground around 9:45am.

With just over 5 weeks to go, we need to find our actors. Might that be you? If so, you will need to have a great outdoor voice, able to project well and speak clearly and at a good pace. Ideally, you will need to learn your lines off by heart too.

We're looking for the following roles to be filled- with the main speaking roles in bold

Scene 1: Jesus’ Arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane

James, Jesus, Judas and 2 disciples and 2 silent soldiers

Scene 2: Outside The High Priest’s House- Peter’s Denials

Peter, Servant Girl, man by fire calling out from the crowd

Scene 3: Pontius Pilate Palace- The Trial Of Jesus

Pilate, Jesus, Crowd, 2 silent soldiers

Scene 4: At The Foot of an Empty Cross- Post Jesus’ Crucifixion

Mary Magdalene, 2 silent soldiers, Jesus and two other voices shout out from the crowd

We might also need a few more disciples in costumes as extras.

If you’d like to know more, do please get in touch with me (Dave) asap and I’ll send you a script. You’ll also need to be available for a gathering/chat/audition at St Paul's Church on the afternoon of Sunday 8th March, from 3:30pm. That will give us just under 4 weeks until the Walk to get things right... The scenes are short, so that should be enough.

In the meantime, please PRAY… for the right people, good weather, and for many to come and watch and listen and discover the glorious mercy and love of Jesus.

Lunch with God and 321:

After this coming Wednesday (25th Feb) Lunch with God will pause to enable us to join with other Christians at the Lent Lunches hosted at St Joseph’s. These run from 12 noon to 13:30, with proceeds going to support MSF and Embrace the Middle East. Lunch with God will restart on Wednesday 1st April.

Parish Giving Scheme (PGS)

The Parish’s bank makes significant charges for depositing cash, so, if you normally give in cash, it would be very helpful if you could switch to donating through the PGS. If you pay UK income tax, the PGS, enables you to take part in the Gift Aid scheme, which gives the Parish an extra 20% on your donations.
If you wish to set up regular donations through PGS using a paper form, please contact the Parish Office with your details. Alternatively, you could sign up on-line through www.parishgiving.org.uk or go in to the office and fill in the form electronically.
Other options are: giving by using the card machine available in some of our churches, or setting up a standing order from your bank, payable to Newton Abbot PCC, account number 62909168, sort code 30-84-6

Cornerstone

The Parish has just signed up to a new initiative in the Church of England called Cornerstone, which aims to help us manage our finances more effectively and to get better at communicating information across the parish. As part of setting ourselves up on the system, I’d like to ask if you take 5 minutes to complete a short survey.

Each of our 5 churches has its own code number, but it is the same link for each church. Details are below:

St Mary’s, Abbotsbury- 615305

All Saints, Highweek- 615304

St Bartholomew’s, Ogwell- 615313

St Mary’s, Wolborough- 615317

St Paul’s, Newton Abbot- 615319

The link is: https://forms.office.com/e/CysxHx2G9E

All of the results are anonymous and will be automatically collated to build a picture of where we are right now. Thank you.

The Jesus Revolution

For those of you who have a Netflix subscription, can I recommend The Jesus Revolution as a film to enjoy and to stir you to pray. It tells the story of the huge Christian revival that took place in the USA amongst the hippies at the end of the 60s and the start of the 70s. It’s thought to be the greatest spiritual revival in American history. Many thought the dropping out and taking drugs was an act of rebellion, but one young preacher saw their lifestyle as a sign that they were searching for God, but in all the wrong places. It stirred my heart to see God work a revival like that amongst the young people of our town and country. May it do the same to yours!

Car Parking at St Paul’s:

Over the last few months we have noticed an increasing number

of people from outside of our church community are using the car park at St Paul's. This has

meant that those coming for midweek services or events in the hall have found it harder (and

sometimes impossible) to find somewhere to park. We are therefore bringing in a system of

permits for those coming to regular groups so we can monitor the situation.

As long as there are no busy services or large events in the hall, we're happy for church members

to occasionally use the car park when they head into town. But from next week we are going to

ask members of our church family who wish to use the car park in this way, to collect a car park

permit from the office, and to display it in their car windscreen when they park at St Paul’s. You

won't need to do this when you are coming for a service or a church meeting. You will need one

if you're using the car park at other times.

These permits are free and will be renewed every year. Mel will keep a record of your name and

car registration number next to the number of the permit, so we can make sure they're not being

copied!

Christians Against Poverty Teignbridge

One of our Parish mission partners has sent us this request.

CAP (Christians Against Poverty) Teignbridge provides Free Debt Help and personal support for those struggling with unmanageable debt. We are funded and supported by churches across Teignbridge. In December 2024 we provided 14 Christmas Hampers and gifts for CAP clients – for 19 adults and 7 children across Dawlish, Teignmouth, Kingsteignton and Newton Abbot, along with toys provided by Newton Abbot Salvation Army. We’re thrilled that Newton Abbot and Ogwell Parish is now partnering with us in this work.

One of our critical needs is for BEFRIENDERS. Befrienders join the debt coach at client appointments and help support the clients through the debt-help process. This service couldn’t function without the support of befrienders, but we have a real need for more befrienders, especially men. Could you please prayerfully consider whether you could be part of this support team. Thank you. The minimum commitment is only 2 hours/month. You wouldneed to be a good listener, and passionate about supporting those in poverty.

Prayer Support. We also have a Prayer Support Team who meet once a month to pray for CAP clients and the work of CAP Teignbridge. This is invaluable and makes a huge difference. If you would like to join this team, please get in touch. In either case, please contact Tim Wigley, Debt Centre Manager email: timwigley@capuk.org

Used postage stamps.

Please collect up the used postage stamps from your Christmas cards and packages, and let Mel have them in the Parish office at St Paul’s Church or bring them to a church service. They will used to help the charity RNLI.

The Diocesan Prayer Diary

features intercessory prayers for local communities, each day of the month. It includes prayers for parishes, mission communities, clergy and diocesan staff across Devon, along with key dates throughout the year. Click here to read it.

Safeguarding

Many of you may have seen or be aware of the recent media attention around the now former Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and other senior clergy in the Church of England following the publication of the Makin Safeguarding Report. The Makin report, commissioned as an independent review into the Church’s response to the abuses perpetrated by late John Smyth, has highlighted shortcomings by the Church in responding to the allegations and has provided key recommendations to improve safeguarding cultures.

Speaking as the Parish Safeguarding Representative, I can say that as a Parish we are horrified by the abuses carried out by John Smyth and greatly saddened to read that more could, and should, have been done to prevent it from happening.

We want to be a Church and community where everybody feels welcomed and everybody feels safe. We want those who may have experienced (or be experiencing) abuse to be confident in coming forward, knowing they will be listened to and any allegations be treated with the utmost seriousness and concern; whomever the other party may be.

We should not and cannot say this doesn’t impact us as a Parish. Whilst the media has focussed on the senior clergy of the Church of England there are lessons for us in this to. We need to work harder to build a culture which emphasises the importance of safeguarding and which prioritises the voices of the abused, victims and downtrodden ahead of the powerful.

If anybody wants to discuss the events of the last few weeks or would like to discuss any safeguarding issues or concerns they may have please know you can reach out to me, or any of the safeguarding team, at any point. We are here for you and you will be listened to. We cannot and will not be silent on abuse.

Rob (07792081776)

Milk Bottle Tops

St. Luke’s are collecting for the Childrens’ Hospice South West. Please save your plastic tops (not cartons) and send them to the office or leave them in church to be brought to the office. Thank you.

Ben and Family

Ben and Sarah’s new address is The Vicarage, Bridge Street, Uffculme, Cullompton, Devon. EX15 3AX.

Missed some church services?

Catch up on You Tube - same series in each church, or the recordings of talks HERE

Abbotsbury Church YOUTUBE

St Paul's Church YOUTUBE

Parish Office Hours.

Parish Office at St Paul's Church, Devon Square is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. For all enquiries, please phone 01626 211346 or email office@newtonabbotparishes.co.uk

Mel Dunn, Benefice Administrator.