Winton Methodist Church Bournemouth Dorset

Our Mission

Winton Methodist Church MISSION STATEMENT AND STRATEGY 2011

Mission Statement:

Winton Methodist Church aims to be:

· A Community of welcome, sharing & hope

· Where worship enables an experience of God

· Where learning, nurture and exploration of faith is facilitated for all ages

· Where service in the community is offered

· Where lives are transformed and the gospel is shared

The Framework and Focus for the Mission Statement:

All of the following will be within the frame work of working in partnership with others and ecumenically and will provide a general focus for how this may be realised. In addition it is intended that Winton continues to support and develop existing initiatives with our sister Church Victoria Park e.g. stay-a-while, work with youth and young adults. In addition where possible we will engage with and implement policies relating to the environment and disadvantaged groups as well as complying with new disability laws.

A key initiative is to develop the building to facilitate the above and provide support funding (this includes a refurbishment programme and the development of the building by incorporating the building of four flats. We are currently in negotiation with Bournemouth Churches Housing Association 'B.C.H.A.' who has expressed an interest in managing the lease and tenancy of the above. (The income from the flats will contribute to the funding of our mission in accordance with Circuit policy and will enable us to engage with the needs of the community especially in relation to social justice issues and providing support for the vulnerable and dispossessed.)

The Mission statement and strategy will be reviewed annually by the Church Council. Each year the Church Council will identify and implement specific criteria from the Strategic areas linked with the Mission statement.

Strategy Plan for Action of Mission Statement:

1. A Community of welcome, sharing and hope

· To ensure that stewards meet, greet and receive members of the congregation at the beginning and end of worship - A designated steward to just talk to those who are new or on their own could be one option. This could be done before the service; e.g. showing people to seats etc. and during coffee.

· To provide refreshments as part of services and events to facilitate conversation and interaction.

· To offer times of fun where people can get to know one another, invite friends and have pressure free contact with Christians both on and off the premises.

· To provide a strong pastoral support system through pastoral visitors and a part time lay Pastoral worker, in addition to the Ministry team (ordained and Lay)

· To ensure opportunities through fresh ways of Church to experience spirituality and explore a sense of belonging. (interactive services, such as café church, social events with discussion slots, creative worship are all possibilities - time needs to be allocated to thinking through creative options and practical feasibility in relation to the refurbishment)

· To offer prayer groups and places for prayer to complement worship

· To provide a monthly magazine and website which includes a diary of all events

· To develop a Ministry team of ordained and lay people

2. Where worship enables an experience of God

· To continue to build links with the Korean Church that worships in our building on Sunday afternoons and throughout the week

· To provide a variety of styles and genres of worship

· To include traditional hymns, songs, music and silence

· To continue to develop the use of audio visual technology

· To explore possible themed worship and group participation within it

· To develop existing Multiplex services where people can move freely through a variety of experiences of worship (e.g. traditional multi-sensory and interactive etc.)

· To offer reflective spiritual space for quiet contemplation and to develop prayer, praise and spirituality for all; especially new members.

· To continue to provide regular parade services and AAW linking especially with Uniformed organisations (primarily through the work of the Deacon, Youth Worker and Ministry team)

3. Where learning, nurture and exploration of faith is facilitated

· To train and support pastoral visitors and lay pastoral workers in specific areas such as bereavement, listening and sharing skills. (Possibly using the Connexional material for pastoral care)

· To provide badges for all Pastoral visitors and Lay Pastoral visitors to give recognition of them representing the Church when they visit

· To develop new groups and events for younger people through the new Youth worker (to be employed in 2011)

· To continue to provide Sunday Explorers groups for younger children and other groups (through leaders in the congregation and the work of the Deacon and youth worker)

· To continue and expand house groups, bible study, and fellowship meetings

· To provide regular membership classes, and nurture courses e.g. Emmaus and other study material

· To provide creative and contemporary ways of learning and exploration developing the existing 'life, the Universe and everything' film and Culture discussion groups.

· To explore ways of encouraging students to engage with the gospel (possibly with the Chaplaincy at local education establishments)

· To link the spiritual, mental and physical aspects of being human and offer some form of holistic practice which could include meditation and exercise such as Yoga but with a Christian focus and/ or implementing some form of well being programme

· To give opportunity to submit questions and have a panel (possibly ecumenically or even with other faiths) to discuss and debate

· To explore ways of enabling questions and uncertainties to be expressed within a non-judging forum, for non, new and existing members

4. Where service to the community is offered

· To provide a well furbished and pleasant building to facilitate our key partnership groups especially the uniformed organisations and others (such as the Toddler groups, Rehab group, Sure Start Korean Church etc. and seek to establish links between them and the Church.

· To support people in their individual and collective voluntary work (Charitable, school governors etc) Add: This would be done in appropriate ways according to individual situations and needs.

· To explore needs in the community and consider how the Church may meet them

· To open our premises for coffee mornings and events for the community

· To hold social events and meals to which others can be invited

· To provide a prayer box or similar facility where people can place requests for prayer, these would be included in a specific prayer group or possibly in worship, while taking into account confidentiality and permission

· To extend the existing on-line prayer facility and explore other web opportunities e.g. Face book and Twitter (safeguarding procedures must be taken into account)

· To provide a white board or similar where people can make comments or suggestions relating to our worship, service and use of building.

· To develop links with other organisations and ecumenical partnerships serving the community. (To actively engage with local authorities, council etc in relation to community concerns (summarising in brief policies and giving information relating to M.P.'s etc - offering to support them ALL in prayer)

5. Where lives are transformed and the gospel shared

· To provide support for those who seek to share the gospel with others (through courses or testimony in a variety of ways, sharing and raising awareness in worship, in small groups and in prayer - possible prayer triplets or prayer partners - profiles of work, challenges and prayer needs could also be put into the magazine or on church notice boards)

· To build relationships with the community and provide a forum for questions to be asked and faith to be explored

· To continue to develop Multiplex and juice and other such initiatives along with our sister Church Victoria Park This could be done by the new youth worker soon to be employed to work with both Winton and Victoria Park Churches

· To take opportunity through helpers and Ministry team to talk to those who use our premises where possible

· To invite user groups to attend Carol services or special events that are user friendly

· To encourage people to use talents in worship and events (Musical, dramatic, artistic etc)

· To develop outreach work among young people and students supported by the Youth worker and other possibly lay resources.

Adopted April 6th 2011 by the Church Council.

This strategy is open to having additions in accordance with the developing mission of the Church.

 

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Our History

In 1888 in a thatched cottage in Wimborne Road, Winton, Winton Church was born. In the October of the following year the site opposite was bought for £139 and two years later there stood the school-chapel, completed for £185.

Faith grew and in 1896 came the first extensions. By 1905 a new church (pictured) was open.

At this time, just a mile away, another site was for sale for £250. This was purchased and open air meetings were held - weather permitting! This being England, albeit Bournemouth, a roof proved necessary and a small committee was appointed to draw up a 'plan of development.'

Thus it was in 1906, for £1,080, a corrugated iron chapel was erected at the corner of Alma Road and Heron Court Road. The Alma Road society were safe in their "Tin Tabernacle." However, in 1919 a leaders' meeting declared a double crisis - the need for a new building and a permanent Minister.

By 1920 the first plans for the new building had appeared. The stone laying ceremony was in May and in December 1927, after £7,390 had been spent, the new church was dedicated and complete. So by the end of the 1920s there were two Methodist Societies nearby each other creating life, faith and interest in their surrounding areas.

Growth continued and it wasn't long before the community set up a daughter society, with an open-air band, in Ensbury Park.

In 1930 the trustees of the Winton church decided to buy an organ which had been offered to them by Mr John Walton of Branksome Park, for £600. This decision meant a lot of heartsearching as this was a considerable sum, especially as they had to find another £300 to remove and rebuild it. However, the money was raised and they were in possession of a very fine 3 manual J.J. Binns organ. This courageous decision so many years ago enables us now in today's Winton Methodist Church to still possess a very fine organ. Parts of this original instrument remain today, renovated and installed in the Alma Road building.

The Avenue church extended its services to become more of a community centre to its area. Tennis and badminton clubs were organised and the "Avenue Belles" were formed. The "Belles" were to become the "Avenue Players," famous for their Easter plays and later began touring Bournemouth and Dorset with their productions.

After WW2 plans were made at the Avenue to replace the "Tin Tabernacle" and by 1958 the small hall section had given way to modern schoolrooms, a kitchen and an extended Vestry linking the buildings together.

In 1967, the Golden Jubilee of the Avenue church, the site was cleared after the demolition of the "Tin Tabernacle" and plans were made for further future development.

So in 1968 the two societies of Winton Church and the Avenue joined together and the new Winton Methodist Church was formed. With the proceeds from the sale of the site in Wimborne Road we were able to build the 3-storey community centre that stands on the corner of Alma Road and Heron Court Road today.

News from 1969

"When our two societies amalgamated last year, the trustees decided that if at all possible it would be the wish of everybody in the two churches to bring the organ from Wimborne Road to our present church. We were very fortunate that Mrs Ethel Rowley desired to make a gift to the church in memory of her mother and father and agreed that it should go towards the rebuilding of our organ. Messrs. Geo. Osmond & Co. of Taunton have done this and incorporated into it some of the best pipes from the old Avenue organ, together with a new detatched console. The opening recital to be given on July 25th by Dr. Eric Thiman of London is an evening to which many of us in the church have looked forward to and this will be folllowed by monthly recitals by other eminent organists on August , September 17th and October 22nd. Full details of the organ can be read in the Souvenir Organ Brochure, price 2/6d."