THE METHODIST CHURCH BIRMINGHAM DISTRICT
DISTRICT POLICY COMMITTEE

Minutes of District Policy Committee held on Thursday 19th January 2006
at Bromsgrove Methodist Church in the Bromsgrove Circuit.

Present: Revd Bill Anderson (Chair) Mark Aldridge (Secretary), 10 members of the District Policy Committee and 1 attendee.

1 Opening Devotions were led by Revd Bill Anderson reading from Matthew Chapter 2 and a prayer by Sheila Cassidy from Day 19 in the Prayer Handbook.
The Chair thanked Heather Treneman and Bromsgrove Methodist Church for their hospitality.
2 Apologies were received from 4 members and 1 attendees.
3 Minutes The following corrections were made to the minutes of the meeting held on Wednesday 9th November 2005:-
     4.4 Renumber item 4.4 Fresh Expression as 4.5 Fresh Expressions
     10.3 Use of Circuit Advance funds - all references to Schedule 12 to be replaced by Schedule 16.
     13A Methodist Council - Received a report of October meeting prepared by Linda Innes for which she was     

            thanked.
With the corrections the minutes were approved and signed.
4 Matters Arising
4.1 District Web Site
4.1.1 A team of 6 people were still required to keep the “News” and “Events” pages up to date from 1st April 2006. ACTION: Mark Aldridge
4.1.2 The Chair was to provide a thought provoking page for the web site each month.
ACTION: Chair
4.2 Church in Rural Life Officer
Reported that the Chair was in conversation with the Church in Rural Life Officer about the role and responsibilities of the post. ACTION: Chair
4.3 District World Church Links
4.3.1 Noted that the District should be encouraged to seek real life connections with other parts of the world, especially in Africa.
4.3.2 Bethlehem Malikite Church Youth Project was to be pursued. ACTION: John Nodding
4.3.3 The Berlin return visit to Birmingham in 2007 was to be explored further ACTION: Chair
4.3.4 Noted that links had been established with Phillip and Judith Chapman in Sri Lanka.
5. Financial Matters
5.1 Budget 2006/7
5.1.1 Received the following revised 2006/7 budget:-
        District Expenses £64,250
        Sabbatical/Safeguarding £6,962
        Methodist Church Fund £463,868
        Total Expenditure £535,080

        Assessments on Circuits £527,000 (1% increase)
        Sabbatical/Safeguarding from Circuits £7,000
         Interest £1,500
         Total Income £535,500
5.1.2 Agreed to recommend to Synod the revised 2006/7 budget. ACTION: Peter Mills
5.2 Circuit Assessments
5.2.1 Noted that many districts in the Connexion continued to use membership numbers in their formula for calculating the circuit assessments
5.2.2 Reported that the Executive had started the review of the formula for allocating the assessments across the circuits. One scheme being considered was for the DPC to set the District budget which was then sent to the circuits for their Circuit Meeting to agree how much to offer with some discretion. A meeting was then held with two representatives of all circuits, Treasurer plus one other, to finalise the distribution of the budget between the circuits. The Executive was to have further discussions at its next meeting.
6. Vacancies
6.1 Complaint’s Officer
6.1.1 Reported that Rev Ros Murphy had agreed to continue in this role.
6.1.2 Noted that Rev David Hunter had agreed to continue to serve in this role for a seventh year but that a replacement would be required for September 2007. ACTION: Chair
6.2 Lay Employment Secretary
6.2.1 A detailed job description had been circulated to superintendents and circuit stewards.
6.2.2 Noted that it was envisaged that at least two people would share this work across the District. Ideally some experience in human resources work was required.
6.2.3 Noted that dealing with employment issues was becoming an increasing part of the work of superintendents. It was suggested that the District might provide more professional support in this area. The experience of other districts was to be investigated. ACTION: Chair
6.3 Convenor of Grants Committee Reported that a potential convenor been in contact with Ray Lunt and was considering taking on this role. ACTION: Chair
6.4 District Property Secretary Reported Chris Osborn had agreed to be the District Property Secretary with support from the Chair and the committee. ACTION: Chair
6.5 District Safeguarding Officer
6.5.1 Received a role description prepared by Charles Worth which was approved.
6.5.2 Reported that the current chair of the District Safeguarding Group was prepared to take on this role. Agreed to invite him to take on this role. ACTION: Mark Aldridge
6.5.3 Agreed to ask the group to look into ways in which the District could be more pro-active in Safeguarding issues. ACTION: Mark Aldridge
6.6 District Children’s Secretary/Co-ordinator
6.6.1 Received a role description prepared by Charles Worth and previously considered by the Committee in November 2004.
6.6.2 Noted that the District were being invited by the Connexional Children's Section to take part in a consultation event and that until the District had someone or some group to take this up, the District remained unrepresented and unconsulted.
6.6.3 Noted that work with Children and Young People was a local issue and although it was an area in which the church was not always succeeding, it was not clear that this post would enhance Children’s work at a local level.
6.6.4 Noted that the lay workers in the District who were working with Young People were to meet with Charles Worth. ACTION: Charles Worth
6.6.5 Requested that information be obtained of patterns of this work in other Districts.
ACTION: Charles Worth
6.6.6 The need for a person in this role to be considered as part of the District Review.
ACTION: Chair
7 Memorial on Health and Healing referred by Synod
Noted that Rev John Atkinson was in conversation with Rev Peter Hatton concerning the wording of this memorial
8 Grants Committee
8.1 Received a report of the Grants Committee meeting held on 17th January 2004
8.2 Noted that the Connexional lawyers were currently in discussion with the Charity Commissioners concerning the issue of making commitments against future income. The currently legal position being that commitments can only be made against current funds. Grants from the District Advance Fund for future years would only made as an offer of a grant subject to review each year in light of the availability of funds. An agreed form of words was awaited from the Connexion.
8.3 Received details of a District application for a Connexional grant for support of HE Chaplaincy in the District. The application was requesting £16,000 per year for 5 years from September 2006 (this subsumed grants already awarded in relation to Aston University Free Church Chaplaincy). This application included a request for grants from the District Advance fund totalling approximately £90,000 over the same 5 year period
Agreed to authorise this application on behalf of the District.
8.4 Received details of an application for a Connexional grant from the Tamworth and Lichfield Circuit for a parish nursing project. The application was requesting £19,000 for 2006/7 and £18,000 for each of the next four years. The application included a request for a grant from the District Advance Fund of £5,000 per annum over the same period. Agreed to support this application as a pioneering project.
8.5 Reported that the Grants Committee had made the following grants from the District Advance Fund:-
Beginagen Community Project £5,000
West Smethwick Methodist Church - Parlour refurbishment £10,000
Handsworth and Lozells Methodist Youth Work £2,860
Hazelwell Church (Birmingham Moseley Road and Sparkhill Circuit)- equipment for youth work £675
Netchells and Witton Methodist Church (Birmingham Sutton Park Circuit) - work with families and young people            2005/6 £2765
                       2006/7 £4960
                       2007/8 £4960
Bromsgrove Circuit £5000
8.6 Agreed to support a request from the Birmingham Asbury Circuit to underwrite to the value of £18,694, a two year project for a development worker at Lozells in order to release £30,000 of external funding.
9 Ecumenical Committee
9.1 Noted the vacancies of Assistant Ecumenical Officers for Hereford, Coventry and Warwickshire and Birmingham (from September 2006),
9.2 Job descriptions for both District Ecumenical Officer and Assistant Ecumenical Officer would be prepared. ACTION: Hilary Cooke
10 Stationing
10.1 Reported that probationers had been stationed in the following circuits:-
Stratford and Evesham
Bromsgrove
Birmingham Mosley Road and Sparkhill
and that presbyters had been matched to the following circuits
West Bromwich
Birmingham Sutton Park
Birmingham Asbury
but that presbyters were still being sought for
Birmingham Elmdon - Dorridge
Birmingham Moseley Road and Sparkhill - Shirley (1½ positions)
10.2 Reported that the Connexion were short of 50 presbyters this year. A number of issues had arisen from this years stationing:-
Was it right to give the stationing of superintendents priority?
Could circuits work together more creatively to reduce the number of superintendents?
Is there any future in zones within the District?
Can we work more closely with ecumenical partners in sharing mission and ministry?
The Chair would be taking up these and other issues with the superintendents and circuits over the coming months. ACTION: Chair
11 Circuit Stewards Meeting
11.1 Reported that the meeting involving the President and Vice-President had been a big bonus.
11.2 Noted that the District Policy Committee membership was short by two circuit stewards.
12 Methodist Council
12.1 Received a report of December meeting prepared by Linda Innes for which she was thanked.
12.2 Noted that Synod should be made aware of the issues being given attention at Connexional level. ACTION: John Nodding
12.3 Noted that one issue was advice that should be given to circuits on the future use of buildings. The Methodist Council was to return to this issue. It was anticipated that further advice would be issued by the Property Division in due course.
12.4 Recommended to Synod that Linda Innes term as the Birmingham District representative on Methodist Council be extended to four years (i.e. to July 2008). ACTION: Mark Aldridge
13 District Review
13.1 A think tank meeting had been arranged for 25th January 2006 from 7pm to 9:30pm at the District manse. ACTION: Chair
14 Dr Umar Khitab
Linda Innes drew attention to the arrest and possible deportation to Afghanistan of Dr Umar Khitab who had been in Britain since 1999 and had been working as a doctor. Members were invited to write to their MP in support of Dr Khitab.
15 Secretary to the District Policy Committee
15.1 Noted that the Secretary had asked to be relieved of this post due to ill health. A number of different activities had been identified, and steps were being taken to find people to take on these tasks. ACTION: Chair
16 Next Meeting Wednesday 22nd March 2006 at 7pm (with a cup of tea/coffee from 6:30pm) Location to be arranged. ACTION: Mark Aldridge
17 Meeting on 12th July 2006
17.1 Noted that the Chair was to exchange with Rev James (Jim) Tubbs of West Pennsylvania Conference USA from 10th July-21st August 2006.
17.2 Agreed that the Deputy Chair would chair the meeting on 12th July and that Rev Jim Tubbs should be invited to attend.