The Earsham Benefice
Serving the villages of Alburgh, Denton, Ditchingham, Earsham and Hedenham
The Benefice
The Earsham Group of Parishes is situated in the beautiful Waveney Valley in South Norfolk lying close to the small market town of Bungay, and circling it to the North, East and West. We are part of the Church of England and the Diocese of Norwich.
We are a group of six rural parishes serving six separate village communities with a very wide social mix. Each parish has a Medieval Anglican Church and Denton also an Ecumenical Chapel. We enjoy working together as a Benefice while keeping the distinctive natures of our different communities.
The six Benefice churches work together under the leadership of the Rector and the Ministry Team. The team comprises the Rector, the curate, one OLM Priests, three Retired Priest, three LLM's (Readers), a Schools Worker, an Administrator and several Authorised Lay Assistants.
All our churches all Grade 1 listed (top grading) and are all beautiful and special. They are well maintained and looked after and services are held regularly in all the churches.
Our Values
The spiritual care and support of our local community is at the heart of our value system and our churches provide an inclusive pivotal point in the parishes for many religious and secular activities.
By working together as a team we bring many varying gifts and talents to enrich the life of our six parishes. We try to nurture the individual within those communities, sharing their experiences, visiting in time of trouble and giving impartial assistance to those in need.
Above all we aim to live out our faith in our daily lives by meaningfully engaging with the wider communities throughout the Benefice.Out of this foundation the following shared values and their manifestation are key to the life of our Benefice:
- We value teaching and Christ centred preaching in an Evangelical tradition keeping it relevant and practical to help us live out our lives of faith.
- Our extensive Ministry Team, both licensed, and unlicensed are of central importance. They enable us to provide an extensive range of worship and support both to the congregation and the local communities. we believe in all-member ministry.
- We want to reach out to all those in our community and to share the 'Good News' of Jesus Christ with everyone, whether they are old or young.
- We value different expressions of worship through the varied forms of both traditional and modern services.
- We value our local church schools who use our churches for all major festivals throughout the year and are committed to providing weekly assemblies and employing a schools worker.
- Prayer plays a central role in every aspect of Benefice life. We have a Prayer Ministry Team who pray for the needs of the Benefice and run a weekly prayer meeting.
- We look for the gifts of The Holy Spirit within our churches and aim to give people the opportunity to use those gifts.
- We value building relationships through activities in the church and are involved with our communities through many different fund-raising events and functions.
All of these values are only achieved if we work together.
Our Ministry Team
Our Ministry Team consists of
Rector:
The Revd Christopher Hutton
The Rectory, School Road, Earsham, Bungay, NR35 2TF
Tel: 01986 895423
e-mail: chrishutton@hotmail.com
Assistant Clergy:
Revd Sue Cramp
Revd Reg Kirkpatrick (Retired)
Revd Barry Cramp (Retired)
Revd Peter Smalls (Retired)
Curate:
The Revd James Shelton
‘St Felix’, All Hallows Convent, Belsey Bridge Road, Ditchingham, Bungay, NR35 2DZ
Tel: 07949 979717
e-mail: revdjshelton@outlook.com
Lay Ministers:
Mr Christopher Whipps
Mr Philip Edwards (PTO)
Mrs Christine Edwards (PTO)
Authorised Worship Assistants:
(Alburgh) Mrs Lucy Hildreth
(Denton) Mrs Gill Hipwell
(Prayer) Miss Jo Somerfield
