Parish Governance
Each parish has a Parochial Church Council (PCC) which acts as the decision-making body for many of the church’s activities. It includes, among others, the Incumbent, a Lay Chair and a PCC Secretary (some also include other parish officers such as Churchwardens and PCC Treasurers).
Many of the roles and functions of the PCC can be found in the PCC Secretaries’ Handbook, below, which gives a clear interpretation of the Church Representation Rules in matters such as Parish Council meetings and Annual Parochial Church Council and Parishioners’ Meetings.
Additional information, including many of the forms set out for financial and safeguarding governance, can be found on the Parish Resources website.
Annual Parochial Church Meetings (APCMs)
Annual Parochial Church Meetings have detailed timings for electoral roll revisions. An easy-to-use planner is available to help you in determining when different aspects have to take place depending on the date of your APCM.
PCC Secretaries & Administrators Conference
Following the continuing success of the PCC Secretaries’ & Parish Administrators’ conferences, we are pleased to let you know that the next conference dates have been confirmed. This will be held on Saturday 22 June 2024, with an online option hosted on Tuesday 9 July 2024. Further information will be circulated nearer the time. There will be contributions from staff at Trinity House who will be there to answer any of your queries regarding your roles as PCC Secretaries and Parish Administrators. There will be additional speakers covering a range of topics from HR and the Safer Recruitment Guidelines to Finance. A copy of the slides and information used at the meeting last year can be found here.
Electoral Rolls and Deanery Representatives
Each year, parishes are asked to review the number of people listed on their electoral roll and confirm their Deanery Representatives on Deanery Synod. Reminders about this are sent from the Diocesan Secretary each year. The forms used for this, and additional resources to help with the process, can be obtained from the Parish Resources website.
Churchwarden Elections
Churchwardens are elected at the Parishioners’ Meeting, usually held at the same time as the APCM. Details of the rules covering Churchwardens can be found in the Churchwardens’ Measure.
Following the election, the Churchwarden Declaration must be signed by the Chair of the meeting and by the elected Churchwarden(s). Churchwardens must then bring the completed Declaration to the Archdeacon’s Visitation Service (see Events Page for dates) to be handed in.
Below are the two documents that are required for Churchwarden election as well as the Declaration, available in Word (fill-able electronically) and PDF formats, for your convenience.
