ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT FOR GUILDFORD CATHOLIC PARISH

Transcription

1 ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT FOR GUILDFORD CATHOLIC PARISH ADMINISTRATION FORWARD PLAN 01 JULY JUNE 2016 THIRD DRAFT: 05 June 2015 Chapter Six published on Parish Website 16 July

2 TERMINOLOGY AND ABBREVIATIONS Organisation Name Abbreviation Amalgamated Parish Guildford Catholic Parish GCP Constituent Churches St Joseph StJC St Edward StEC St Mary StMC St Pius X StPC Parish level Finance Committee Parish Finance Committee Church level Finance Committee Church Finance Committee CFC St Joseph s Finance Committee StJCFC St Edward s Finance Committee StECFC St Mary s Finance Committee StMCFC St Pius X s Finance Committee StPCFC Pastoral Council Parish Pastoral Council PPC Church Support Team CST St Joseph s Support Team StJCST St Edward s Support Team StECST St Mary s Support Team StMCST St Pius X s Support Team StPCST People Worshippers in any of the churches Worshippers in any one church Referred to as Parishioners St Joseph s Community St Edward s Community St Mary s Community St Pius X Community Terms of Reference Diocesan financial year (01 Jan 31 Dec) Per year Per month Per week Full time Part time TOR FY p/a p/mth p/w FT PT 2

3 CHAPTER SIX SEQUENCE OF EVENTS Serial Task Target Indicator Responsible Legal Close individual church registrations of baptisms, weddings and funerals; open single Parish registers from 01 Jan End use of individual church seals, using one Guildford Parish seal from 01 Jan Representational Institute one single PPC with elected representatives for each Church Community Institute and define the remits of and individual CFCs. When instructed by Diocese When instructed by Diocese 30 Jun Mid Sep 30 Sep 31 Dec 30 Jun 31 Jul 30 Jun Church and Facilities Administration Establish CSTs 30 Jun 31 Aug Registers closed. New seal made TOR PPC promulgated. Community elections completed. First Meeting completed. Second meeting completed TOR promulgated. First Meeting of completed TOR CFCs promulgated TOR CSTs promulgated. 4 x CSTs established Establish policy for letting halls 31 Jul Policy promulgated on website Establish Hall letting procedures 31 Sep Procedures on Parish website Financial Amalgamate all church and other 31 Dec accounts into a single Parish Account and produce to the Diocese a single set 31 Dec of Financial Statements. 31 Dec Amalgamation complete. Single GCP Financial Statements for Individual church accounts open only for offertory and standing orders / direct debits income Priests PPC PPC Parish priest CSTs CFCs CFCs 3

4 Policy on apportionment of parish and individual church contributions and liabilities from 2016: Stipends Clergy expenses Parish staff Parish facilities Clergy residences Graveyard Construct 2016 Parish Budget: 30 Sep 30 Sep working party report to Church proposals received by Treasurer. 31 Oct Draft Budget complete 30 Nov CFCs approval/ submissions completed. Mid Dec Budget promulgated 31 Dec Single record at Institute a single Parish-wide insurance record. Parish Office Consolidate all offertory collections. 31 Dec System for transfers from Church accounts to Parish accounts instituted Real Estate Rationalise priests residential accommodation: Vine Cottage: St Mary s Presbytery 12 Eastgate Gardens Reconfigure offices: Parish Office St Mary St Edward - 30 Sep 30 Sep 30 Sep 31 Dec 31 Dec Decision on long-term usage. Decision on retention or disposal. Divide residence from offices. East Office: Parish Secretary and PA/Clergy. West Office:, Accountant(s) and Treasurer. Take kitchenette into use. Plan conversion of link building into offices. Configure School Room as office CFCs CFCs Diocese & Diocese St Mary s CFC St Edward CFC 4

5 St Pius 31 Dec Relocate bulk printing facilities Legal Centralise all church archives into one Parish Archive curated by a volunteer Parish Archivist. 31 Mar 30 Jun Consolidate all Foundation Masses. 31 Mar Staffing Establish the long-term paid staffing of central agencies / facilities and of individual churches Real Estate Construct a parish-wide maintenance and improvement plan for all four churches and churchyards Construct archive repository and archivist office 30 Jun 31 Mar 31 Mar Parish Archivist (volunteer) appointed. All archives colocated and indexed. Parish plan produced. Financial income consolidated into stipend account Staff contracts in place Volunteers appointed 31 Mar Plan approved by 30 Jun Convert St Pius X to accept archives 30 Jun Offices constructed Construct offices in St Mary s link building Outreach Define and institute Parish outreach 30 Jun Groups on groups. website Define fund-raising causes. 30 Jun Policy promulgated St Pius CFC Archivist Treasurer CFCs (TBA) St Mary s CFC PPC PPC Annex: A. Proposed Parish Committees Terms of Reference. 5

6 GUILDFORD CATHOLIC PARISH COMMITTEES: DRAFT TERMS OF REFERENCE 1. PARISH PASTORAL COUNCIL 1.1. Canon Law. Canon If, after consulting the council of priests, the diocesan Bishop considers it opportune, a pastoral council is to be established in each parish. In this council, which is presided over by the parish priest, Christ s faithful, together with those who by virtue of their office are engaged in pastoral care in the parish, give their help in fostering pastoral action. 2. The pastoral council has only a consultative vote, and it is regulated by the norms laid down by the diocesan Bishop Diocesan Guidance. There is no Diocesan Guidance for Pastoral Councils at Parish level, but the previous Bishop indicated what he felt his Diocesan Pastoral Council was for, and this might be reflected in the Parish Pastoral Council. I would stress that the work of the Diocesan Pastoral Council is mainly for me. I want to hear what people think and feel. I want to know what are the issues that are facing them and what their struggles and joys are. In that sense it is a consultative body like the Council of Priests; that gives me a feel of the mood, morale and concerns of the clergy Proposed remit of the PPC. To enable the parish priest to gain an overview of the issues facing the parish. To enable the parish priest to gain a balanced view of the issues facing individual church communities. To enable the parish priest to explain to church representatives forthcoming major events, initiatives and diocesan policies, to enable cascading down to individual communities. To aid inter-church communication. To generate parish-wide initiatives in mission, evangelisation, social action and ecumenical co-operation. To generate a parish-wide annual calendar of events. To co-ordinate parish-wide sacramental programmes Membership of the PPC. Ex officio. All clergy, although to preclude the meetings being clergy-dominated the parish priest will nominate who are to attend. Elected. In principle one representative from each Sunday Mass at each church. Tthus St Joseph 3; St Mary 2; St Pius X 2; however to ensure two 6

7 representatives from each church community St Edward will have 2. Nominations should be sought from each Mass community and elections held. The Parish has been nominated as returning officer. Appointed. The parish priest may appoint up to three additional members should he feel that particular additional skills or representation would be advantageous. Parish staff. The Youth and Families Worker will be invited to attend. In attendance as Minutes secretary. Parish. 2. PARISH FINANCE COMMITTEE 2.1. Canon Law. Canon 537. In each parish there is to be a finance committee to help the parish priest in the administration of goods of the parish, with prejudice to Canon 532. It is rules by universal law and by the norms laid down by the diocesan bishop, and it is comprised of members of the faithful selected according to these norms Diocesan Norms. Diocesan Norms are contained in the Parish Administration Manual, which can be accessed on line through the portal of the Diocesan website. They are very detailed Composition of Parish Finance Committee. The parish priest will freely appoint the members of the and its Chairman. The parish priest may freely replace any member at any time. The Chairman should not be a member of the parish clergy. The Diocesan Finance Office must be consulted if there is a need to replace the entire in any one year. The should comprise the parish clergy together with a minimum of three lay people - the gift aid organiser, an accountant or someone with bookkeeping ability and one person with relevant property expertise. A solicitor could advise on legal and employment matters. The is regulated by the universal law and by the norms laid down by the Diocesan Bishop. The composition of the is drawn from members of the faithful selected according to these norms. This core can be expanded on a temporary or permanent basis as required to include, for example, people to take responsibility for fund-raising. The role and inclusion of the gift aid organiser is important. The Inland Revenue now undertakes audits of Dioceses and parishes on a regular basis and any discrepancy found on an initial audit leads to a much deeper investigation and even possible prosecution of the Trustees Duties and Responsibilities of Parish Finance Committee. Can 537: In each parish there must be a finance committee to help and advise the parish priest in the administration of the goods of the parish, without prejudice to Can 532. This also applies to Diocesan parishes staffed by a religious order. The is a consultative body that assists the parish priest. It is expected that all members of the observe the strictest confidentiality. The members of the will also have additional functions, such as fund-raising, gift aid, financial planning in relation to property, etc. It is important that any lay persons willing to offer their services in this way are given full information and understand the 7

8 nature of their responsibilities. The must be consulted over any expenditure in excess of 2,000 and before any application for a borrowing facility is requested from the Diocese. The members of the shall be consulted about applications to the Diocesan Finance Committee for permission: to carry out work costing more than the permitted maximum (currently 7,500) to lease, sell, demolish or structurally alter parish property to appoint approved architects or contractors for any expenditure other than regular running expenditure by a parish in debt - to borrow from the bank, Diocese or other parishes for any specific purpose. The will ensure that any lay staff employed in the parish are, in accordance with Can 1286, paid a fair wage and all civil laws relating to labour observed. In particular tax and National Insurance must be deducted from wages and paid to the State authorities as necessary. All employees should have written employment contracts. See Section 12 on "Personnel". The must ensure that, in accordance with Can 1288, all litigation is avoided and that where this is not possible the permission of the Bishop is obtained. The shall ensure that parish property is well maintained and safe, and due diligence is exercised over all parish assets. The is responsible for re-assessing insurance valuations of properties before renewal. The will have access to all Diocesan procedures and guidelines in connection with finance and property administration. Any parish policies on its financial or property assets must be approved by the Diocesan trustees Duties and Responsibilities of Parish Finance Committee continued The Parish Log of Contacts & Services must be kept up to date. The Inventory should detail all parish owned property. A note should be made of property owned by other residents with a clear distinction between the two. The Parish Inventory should be checked annually. For details of both schedules see Section 9 Equipment & Services. The will have access to the books of account, bank statements and any other documents necessary at every meeting and at other times as necessary. The is responsible for ensuring that full and proper books of accounts are kept in accordance with Diocesan procedures. In addition, a budget must be prepared in advance of the following year, and income and expenditure monitored against it. The annual accounts should be published to the parish and the shall decide on the form in which this will be done so long as they conform to the minimum regulations laid down by the Diocese. The is responsible for ensuring that a copy of the latest Diocesan accounts is made available to the faithful at the back of the church. Minutes of meetings will be kept and will be made available to the Diocesan auditor and the Bishop on his visitation. The name and address of the Chairman of the shall be forwarded to the Finance Office annually Frequency of Meetings. The should meet at quarterly intervals or more frequently if required. A quorum for meetings is the parish priest and two appointed lay members. In addition, the parish priest may call a meeting at any time giving seven days notice Term of Office of Parish Finance Committee. 8

9 The appointment of members should be for three years. A member may be reappointed for a further term of three years. In a parish where there is plenty of lay expertise to assist the priest, members should retire on a rolling basis so that the whole does not retire together. Additional members may be co-opted for a period as determined by the. If, in very small parishes, it is found difficult to find new and competent replacements for those due to retire, the parish priest may use his advisors for longer than the "3 plus 3" years laid down here. But this should occur only in a case of real necessity. The will continue to hold office during a changeover of parish priest. Within six months of his appointment, the new parish priest will appoint a new, which may or may not contain members of the previous Proposed remit of the. It is not yet possible indeed it may prove too unwieldy to amalgamate all of the functions of the exiting church finance committees into one parish finance committee. Until the end of Diocesan Financial Year 2015 the split of responsibilities will be 1. Monitor individual church budgets and expenditure for FY Produce shadow parish budget for 2015 and draft parish budget for Consider and produce consolidated list of contractors. 4. Consider and produce list of common services where bulk ordering and agreements would save money. 5. Produce 5-year estate management plan. 6. Work towards one consolidated accounting system. 7. Produce one set of Parish Financial Statements for the Diocesan Financial Year 01 Jan 31 Dec CHURCH FINANCE COMMITTEES 3.1. The principles are: to devolve to Church Finance Committees control of those items which affect individual churches. to centralise accounting functions at Parish level Proposed remit of CFCs. 1. Set and control Church budget for Produce draft Church budget for Hold quarterly meetings, minutes to be forwarded to Parish Treasurer. 4. Collect and bank income. 5. Authorise expenditure up to 2, Administer Gift Aid. 7. Maintain property and grounds. 8. Set terms of hire for Church Hall. 9. (St Edward only) Administer graveyard. 9

10 10. Assume responsibility for Health and Safety. 4. CHURCH SUPPORT TEAMS 4.1. The principles are: To devolve to the laity responsibility for the security of the church, opening the church for as long as practicable daily. To relieve the priests of administrative preparation of the church for services, including Mass (Sundays and weekdays), and (where possible) baptisms, weddings, funerals, and processions. To recruit and co-ordinate readers, extraordinary ministers, servers, welcomers, flower arrangers and counters. To arrange for the cleaning of church and associated premises. To organise social events to foster a sense of community. To adopt annually a charitable cause for focussed support. To co-ordinate with clergy the preparation of liturgies and music. To organise such other activities as the church community may see fit. 10