Churchwardens

Churchwardens are the Bishop’s lay officers responsible directly to her for the life and work of the church in the parish. Responsibilities laid upon them from time to time by the Bishop, or by the Archdeacon and the Area Dean, include ensuring the maintenance of the building, arranging for services to be taken in an interregnum and acting as ex-officio members of the PCC.

The appointment of Churchwardens is governed by the Churchwardens Measure 2001.

Please browse the links on the right hand side of this page to find documents designed to help and support churchwardens. There is a new Churchwarden Handbook coming soon to replace these documents - watch this space. 

Archdeacons' Visitations

Churchwardens and others are invited to attend these services for prayer, worship and the formal admission of Churchwardens.  The visitations will be held at 7pm with the exception of 25 June which will be held at 5:30pm as part of Evensong in the Cathedral.

 

Monday 3 June  Ashford & Maidstone joint archdeaconries, St Mildred’s, Tenterden

Thursday 13 June  Canterbury archdeaconry, Canterbury Cathedral

Tuesday 18 June  Ashford archdeaconry, Canterbury Cathedral

Tuesday 25 June  All archdeaconries, Canterbury Cathedral (Evensong at 5.30 pm)

Tuesday 2 July  Maidstone archdeaconry,  St Michael’s, Sittingbourne

 

These are not ticketed events and there is no restriction on numbers attending.  Churchwardens should attend whichever service suits them best and will receive a warm welcome whichever archdeaconry they are connected with.  It is hoped that the choice of dates and venues ensures that every churchwarden attends a service to be admitted to office.

Please note that churchwardens need to attend one of these services to be admitted. Anyone elected as churchwarden does not take up office until admitted and as you must be admitted before 31 August, please contact your archdeacon’s office if there are exceptional reasons that you cannot attend one of the visitation services above.

Churchwardens must complete and sign the registration cards available at the services.  There is the option to complete the registration (Word format) in advance and bring it with you to the service.  A register of churchwarden attendance will be taken at each service.

Training for New Churchwardens

Dates for churchwarden training are below.  Churchwardens are invited to attend whichever date suits them best and are not confined to the archdeaconry to which they are linked.

Ashford Archdeaconry - Thursday 11 July from 3-5pm, Charing Barn (afternoon tea included)  

Maidstone Archdeaconry - Tuesday 16 July from 6-8pm, Maidstone archdeaconry (supper included)

Canterbury Archdeaconry - Wednesday 17 July from 3-5pm,  St Paul’s Parish Centre (afternoon tea included)

Key documents

Maintenance Booker

Maintenance Booker is a website that gives churches a straightforward way of arranging for companies with the right experience and qualifications to carry out many routine repairs and inspections and help keep the building in good order before small issues become larger problems. Using this website, churches can book gutter clearance and repairs, lightning protection inspection, tree surveys and maintenance as well as asbestos surveys and removal. More services will be added as time goes on, such as stonework and lime mortaring, bat surveys, and grounds and graveyard maintenance.

Page last updated: Monday 18th March 2024 10:28 AM
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