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PARISH
PROFILE
1 City of Sunderland and the surrounding area 2 The Benifice and Parish of St. Gabriel,
Bishopwearmouth 11 The Vicarage 1 Sunderland is situated on the North East coast of England and is the
largest District of the Tyne and Wear
Metropolitan area, with a population of approximately 280,000. The cities of Newcastle and Durham are
within very easy reach - 12 and 13 miles respectively. Road links with the rest of the country are very good, both the A1
and A19 are close by. The main East
Coast railway runs through both Newcastle and Durham, with a Metro train link
between Sunderland and Newcastle. The
nearest Metro Station (Millfield) to Saint Gabriel’s Church is approximately
10 minutes walk away. London is 3
hours by train from Newcastle. The
extensive and beautiful Lake District is easily accessible being only a
couple of hours by road. There are
International airports at Newcastle and Teesside and ferry links to
Scandinavia, Germany and Holland from Tyneside. Within the boundaries of Sunderland are to be found rolling
countryside, modern developments and leisure facilities. The Northumbrian coastline, which includes Sunderland,
is one of the most beautiful in Britain with miles of golden beaches. Once the largest shipbuilding town in the world and with a large coal
mining industry, Sunderland has had to re-establish itself since the closure
of both these industries in the late 1980s and early 1990s. While preserving the best of its
industrial archaeology, much of the old, outworn dereliction of previous
years has been cleared away in an extensive and continuing programme of urban
renewal. Silksworth, a former colliery site within Sunderland, is the home of
an open-air recreational complex with a dry ski slope, all-weather pitches,
boating and fishing lakes and many more amenities. Golf courses are also available on the outskirts
of the city. The city also boasts the
state of the art Stadium of Light, home of Sunderland Football Club, whilst
at the newly developed Marina there is the award winning National Glass
Centre and the Saint Peter’s Riverside Sculpture Trail. Crowtree Leisure Centre in the city centre once catered for over a
million visitors to its swimming pool and various other facilities. Sadly, however, there is now talk of it
closing due to outdated accommodation.
The Sunderland Health and Racquet Club is a large private leisure
complex with tennis courts, badminton and squash courts, indoor and outdoor
swimming pools, large gymnasium and various exercise studios. Shopping facilities for a wide variety of tastes is available in The
Bridges Shopping Centre within the city centre and the Metro Centre,
Gateshead, the largest shopping centre in Europe, a 30 minute drive away. Exhibitions of Art and Sculpture are held in the remodelled Museum
and the Central Library. The Sunderland Winter Gardens have been re-created
alongside the recently upgraded and re-landscaped Mowbray Park in the City
Centre. The Empire Theatre, which was
one of the first municipal theatres in the country, runs a varied programme
of Opera, Ballet, one night shows, spectaculars and an annual pantomime. Currently being refurbished the theatre
will re-open early in 2005 and will boast one of the largest stages outside
of London, which will enable it to host many of the West End Theatre Shows. There are cinemas, nightclubs, discos and a wide range of
restaurants, pubs and catering establishments. The growth of leisure activities and
expanding University make this an increasingly youthful, vibrant and modern
city. Washington New Town, located within the
Borough of Sunderland, is the home of the Nissan car plant. The ‘Angel of the North’ statue is situated
between nearby Birtley and Gateshead and Beamish Open Air Museum is only a
short car journey away. Educational facilities in Sunderland are excellent with many good
schools, colleges and a University. Sunderland has a rich Christian heritage in Saint Peter’s Church,
Monkwearmouth. One of the oldest
churches in Britain, Saint Peter’s was built in 674AD by Benedict Biscop, a
pioneering monk who was given a grant of land by the Northumbrian King,
Egfrith. Benedict built an important
complex of church and monastic buildings in the Roman style, probably on the
site of a settlement founded by Hilda of Whitby. Glaziers from Gaul (France) created the
windows for Benedict’s church, establishing Monkwearmouth as the birthplace
of British stained glass. Bede began his monastic life at Saint Peter’s at the age of 7. He, of course, grew up to be a gifted
writer who recounted the early history of Saint Peter’s and its sister church
of Saint Paul at Jarrow in his ‘Lives of the Abbots of Wearmouth and
Jarrow’. His ‘History of the English
Church and People’ is a unique account of life in 7th century
Saxon Britain. Bede’s tomb is to be
found in Durham Cathedral. 2 THE BENEFICE Saint Gabriel’s Church,
built in 1912, is situated at one corner of a busy crossroads on the A183 – Chester
Road – one of the main roads leading into the City Centre, approximately one
mile away. Located opposite the church
is the large site of Sunderland Royal Hospital, the main general hospital for
the city. A number of staff from
overseas work in the hospital and regularly attend Saint Gabriel’s for
worship, as do students from the nearby University of Sunderland. Saint Gabriel’s has been home to the annual
Hospital Christmas Carol Service for many years. A wide range of housing is
located within the parish both privately owned and council owned. Schools include Broadway Junior School and
Barnes Infant & Junior Schools, with secondary schools and colleges
located just outside of the parish boundaries. Bishopwearmouth Cemetery,
incorporating Sunderland Crematorium, is only a few hundred yards from Saint
Gabriel’s. Nursing and residential home
accommodation in the parish is located at The Croft Residential Home and
Barnes Court, with Sycamore Lodge Residential Home being just outside the
boundary. Both of these include
residents who are former regular worshippers at Saint Gabriel’s but who can
no longer live alone and who feel at home when they see familiar faces from
the parish and church also living there.
Also within the parish is the Catholic run Little Sisters of the Poor
Nursing Home. A new housing development on
the edge of the parish, Broadway, is now complete and it is hoped to
encourage people who live there to choose Saint Gabriel’s for their regular
worship. Saint Gabriel’s Church is a
Grade II listed structure built between 1909 and 1912 to the design of local
architect, Clayton Greene. It is
predominantly of traditional construction with stone walling surmounted by
roofs that are largely pitched with Westmoreland green slate finish. The church is very
impressive both externally and internally, indeed the aisle is said to be the
longest church aisle in Sunderland!
The building consists of the
main body of the church with the Chancel at the eastern end, which is raised
up above the main floor level. There
are the Clergy and Choir vestries at one side of the Chancel, with the organ
loft and flower room/kitchen at the opposite side. Underneath the Chancel area there is an
Underchurch Hall, Kitchen, Boiler Room and Toilets. Towards the front of the
main area of the church we have the Morning Chapel and at the opposite side
the Baptistry. At the back of the
Church we have the Narthex, which houses the entrances from the north, south
and west. Also situated in this area
is the Church Office, Creche and toilet facilities. Within the grounds of the
main Church are the following buildings:
Building Report – As a church we have a
Buildings Committee, appointed by the At the present time there
are no major repairs or renewals required to any of the property. Future proposals: The Buildings Committee is
seeking financial support through various Grant Aid charities to refurbish
the Church Hall complex to make it more of an energy efficient building. To achieve this the Committee is proposing
to carry out the following works:
Proposals for the
refurbishment of the Morning Chapel are also being considered, e.g. screening
from the main body of the church to enable us to heat it and make it more
comfortable to use for small services. Church services are many and
varied, catering for all age groups.
Music within services varies from traditional to modern led by a
traditional church organ and choir or music group.
* Family Services (including
Church Parade) are held on Mothering Sunday, Harvest and Toy Service
(December). Family Communion is held
on Easter Sunday. ** As many as 250 have been
known to attend special services. Sunday School is held at
10.30am each Sunday (except Family Service Sundays) as follows: Climbers – 3 to 7 year old Explorers – 7 to 11 year old Whizz Kids – 11 years old
upward The children join with the
church congregation towards the end of Holy Communion services for a blessing
at the communion rail. *** Special services are
enthusiastically welcomed, examples of such services held include: Memorial Service – This
service is held every six months and is attended by bereaved relatives and
friends from far afield when the funeral of their loved one has been held
either at Saint Gabriel’s or at the nearby Sunderland Crematorium when our
clergy have officiated. In 2004 fifty
funeral services were conducted at St. Gabriel’s. Renewal of Marriage Vows – A
service was held earlier in 2004 where married couples attended to renew
their marriage vows. This was
extremely well attended by regular churchgoers and even none churchgoers but
where Saint Gabriel’s Church holds a special place in their heart as the
church in which they were married. In
2004 seven couples were married in St. Gabriel’s. A service with local
churches was recently held, when favourite hymns, chosen by the local
congregations, were sung with accompanying music from the local Salvation
Army band – a roof raising and foot tapping experience!! The service was very well attended and
comments made when it was finished included ‘Can we have another service like
this?’ Saint Gabriel’s is part of
West End Churches Together - WECT, formed by local churches of various
denominations (See also Section 9 – Ecumenical Links). Each church takes its turn in holding a
regular joint evening service. Regular evening services are
also held within our Locality, which includes St Luke’s Church, Pallion and
St Mark’s Church, Millfield. Local Church of England
churches also take turn in hosting the annual Confirmation service, which was
held at Saint Gabriel’s in 2004. Many outside organisations
use the rooms attached to the church, including City of Sunderland
Education. A service of celebration
for lifelong learning was recently held where members of the various groups
attended and displayed their creations.
Many of these people do not attend church on a regular basis but found
attending such a service very rewarding. We are always looking for
new ideas for services which will attract a wide range of people from all
walks of life and as such a service for single people has recently been held.
The The Each committee has its own
part to play: Buildings Committee - The Buildings Committee has responsibility
for the maintenance and day to day running of the church buildings and plant
and the formulation of ideas (after consultation with the Local Mission Committee – The Local Mission Vision is
that it is our aim that the whole body of Christ in Saint Gabriel’s will
simply live out our faith every day, 24/7.
We have many areas of outreach and community links from the
neighbourhood who use our premises and we must come to believe as a church
that we have something vital to share.
The mission statement on the front cover of this profile indicates our
belief that we serve a God we can call Our Father, who loves all people
unconditionally. We must nurture what
we already do well and have courage within our faith that the Holy Spirit
will open doors we can pass through with confidence as He enables us. We hope that this prayer is within all our
hearts. Global Mission Committee – The aim of this committee is to keep before
the Church the challenge of worldwide opportunities and responsibilities for
Mission, which and thereby presents a challenge to Saint Gabriel’s and the worldwide
church, peoples of other faiths, governments and non government organisations
which have no faith base. Christian
faith and politics are inextricably intertwined and the Church has a message
to challenge leaders of nations and citizens of the world – ‘We have a Gospel
to proclaim/good news to men (all people) in all the earth’. This means pro-active and creative action
based on a living faith in God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. That’s Global Mission! Youth Committee – The Youth Committee has responsibility for
nurturing the spiritual growth of children and young people within the church
family. It attempts to build bridges
between Saint Gabriel’s and the local community through the church’s youth
based organisations. Members of the
committee are actively involved in a variety of activities for children and
young people outside and/or within the
church and offer their knowledge and skills to develop ideas to stimulate and
encourage the Christian ministry to the young people of the area. Pastoral Care Committee – This group comprises a group of ladies who
are interested in serving the needs of members/friends of the Church. The main aspects of the Group are being
part of the Welcome Team within the church every Sunday which is very
important as it may be the first contact a visitor may have coming into
church. Another aspect is being
willing and able to visit the sick or infirm in their home. The members also help to organise various
activities, e.g. Social Events, Faith Lunches, Coffee Mornings, etc. During the past 12 years, the church has made a firm
commitment to making mission its top priority. The committee structure of the Saint Gabriel’s is used to having a succession of Curates,
(being a training parish) and this role is ably filled by the Rev’d Peter Robson. We have a Non-Stipendiary Minister, the Rev’d June Talbot. We have three licensed Readers – Mrs Christine Rogers,
Professor Malcolm Hooper and Mr David Talbot. We have one Lay Reader in training – Mrs Lilian Clark. Mrs Sheila Johnson is an Authorised Pastoral Assistant. Following a Parish Review in 2002, we have developed lay
ministry involvement in:
A Monday Night Ministry Team mans the Church Office to take
bookings for weddings, baptisms and hall bookings. A willing church member compiles, edits and prints the
monthly church magazine – The Cornerstone – from articles submitted. These magazines are distributed by
volunteers. A small charge is made but
it is subsidised by the inclusion of
advertisements from local businesses. We employ:
There are three study groups, each one having about twelve
members, all meeting on Wednesday evenings:
A Quiet Day is usually held at Shepherd’s Dene, (the Diocesan
Retreat Centre), in the Spring. This
is followed by a Parish Weekend, also at Shepherd’s Dene, in December. There is a small Choir which is augmented at Festival times,
a small Music Group – with a supply of percussion instruments which children
are invited to use during some Music Group led songs during Family and
Baptism services - and a small
children’s choir which sings at some services. A number of social activities are arranged throughout the
year which include faith lunches, monthly coffee mornings, dances, men’s
breakfasts and coach trips by some organisations. The Ladies Fellowship and Make & Create groups meet twice
monthly with the Mothers Union meeting monthly. A book stall is located in church where a variety of books,
greetings cards, small gifts, etc are sold in aid of church funds. There are three Sunday School groups which meet on Sunday
mornings at 10.30am for about thirty youngsters. There are the following young people’s organisations:
In the past we have also held six Alpha Courses, an Emmaus
Course, two Christian Listeners Courses, Lent Groups (attracting 40-50
people), some of which have also been shared with our neighbouring churches,
and an Agape Meal in Holy Week. Much
effort has gone into Christian beginnings and nurture through these courses. A Day Club, in conjunction with Age Concern, provides a
Friday meal and companionship with a monthly Holy Communion Service, a summer
outing and a Christmas Party. Streetcare, an organisation for those adults in the community
who have ‘need’ have a clothing store opening twice a week within the church
buildings and twice a month on Saturday a lunch is provided in the Church
Hall. The volunteers who run the group
include church members. College Courses, attended by many of our church members as
well as members of the community, are held in the Church Hall and Classrooms. Outside organisations hire parts of the premises for their
activities, ie Alcoholics Anonymous, Slimming World, a Kung Fu class and an
Epilepsy Group. We have five teams of flower ladies who arrange flower
memorials for loved ones and who decorate the church for festivals and
weddings. Our locality is in its infancy. Unfortunately, some of the other parishes
do not link with us as they refuse to accept the ministry of women
priests. We do share worship events
with our neighbours at St Luke’s and St Mark’s but they too are having an
interregnum. We have also met with representatives of these two churches to
investigate the formation of a Ministry Development Team. The will is there and we have had a joint We do keep in touch and inform each other of events of
interest that are planned in each parish. St Gabriel’s ecumenical links are extensive. West End Churches Together (WECT) has enabled
close links with other denominations within our Christian faith - Methodist,
United Reform, Roman Catholic, Church of the Nazarene and Salvation
Army. We join each other for services
on a regular basis and have come together for worship in the local park. We have shared resources for Alpha and
Emmaus nurture courses and joined each other on day or weekend retreats. All this has only been possible due to the
close working relationship of our clergy. Saint Gabriel’s Church is financially sound at the present
time with no debt to any outside body. We pay our quota to the Diocese by monthly direct debit and
as a church we feel that this is very important. A large proportion of our church members take Freewill Giving
envelopes with around 60% of these gift aided. As a church we give 10% of our income to other charities. 11 THE VICARAGE The Vicarage is a detached
property located opposite the west side of the Church in its own
grounds.
As our church family enters this period of interregnum, we
are well equipped spiritually with excellent We see the need to build up our outreach into the local
community, especially in areas of youth work.
We pray that the heart of our ministry will be to enable others to
form a close relationship with the God who loves us beyond price and
recognise that faith is a life-long journey within this relationship. To this end a small group use prayer to
intercede for the parish and for specific prayer needs given to them through
the ‘Ask Me’ prayer card scheme operating in church and in several streets of
the parish, thanks to a team of willing distributors. Our church, like many, is failing to reach older teenagers
and the 20-30 year age group. Our
services are low church, evangelical in tone, and we are used to freer
expressions of worship within some services.
We would like to encourage this, making more use of our small music
group and extending its appeal in other services, as appropriate. As previously stated, there is both clergy and lay
involvement in the healing ministry following services of Holy
Communion. Lay people are also
involved in bereavement visiting, administering communion to elderly members
in their homes, small study and nurture groups and preparation for baptism. Some in our congregation would encourage the use of other
spirit led gifts within our regular services, while others prefer more
traditional styles of worship. These
differences have led to our present variation in service styles. The Our church has gradually moved in its attitude to the
community. We see ourselves less and
less as a closed community and are becoming more open in our relationship
with the outside world. This is
important for things like our baptism policy, the things we are trying to do
with our church hall and our relationship with the uniformed organisations. We also see an imaginative use of the year’s special
occasions as the first way for young families in the parish to make
connections with the church. During
the past twelve years, a creative tension between the traditionalists (and St
Gabriel’s is really quite a traditional bunch of people) has been maintained
with the need for change as, under God, we look for ways to extend the appeal
of other forms of appropriate services. Two future essentials in the life of our church:
Last update: 12 July 2005 |
