Notes from Parish Consultation on the future of St Augustine Presbytery 20th Jan 2025

Meeting Chaired by Peter Whitington. Consultation began at 7:31pm.

1) Opening Prayer (Fr Martin)

Fr Martin opened the meeting with a Prayer asking for wisdom and guidance for us all.

2) Context of Meeting (Peter Whitington and Fr Martin)

a) Peter Whitington, Chair of the Finance Committee, explained that the purpose of committee which each parish is required to have under Canon Law, is to advise and assist the Parish Priest on financial matters. This pertains specifically to the Catholic part of St. Augustine of Canterbury Church. He also clarified that there is a separate Joint Management Committee responsible for overseeing the joint partnership between St. Augustine’s Catholic and Anglican communities.

b) Peter provided background on the meeting, noting that a letter outlining concerns regarding the vacant Presbytery was shared with parishioners after Mass on Sunday, December 15th. Parishioners were invited to submit written feedback, and four submissions were received in advance of the meeting. He said that the purpose of the consultation is to gather input from a broader group to help guide future decisions. He thanked attendees for their participation and that it would be an open question and answers format.

c) Fr Martin, Parish Priest, then provided further context about the current status of the Presbytery. He explained that the Presbytery has been vacant since September 2024. It had been used for priest accommodation between September 2023 and September 2024, and prior to that, it was rented to New Hall School at periods during the 2022–2023 academic year. Concerns have been raised at the Finance Committee about the ongoing vacancy of the Presbytery. Fr Martin reiterated that this consultation is part of a broader process to explore potential options, one of which includes selling the Presbytery. However, no decisions have been made at this stage.

d) Fr Martin highlighted two main challenges facing the linked parishes. The first is the pressing need to resolve priest and office accommodation, as St. Philip’s Priory has been deemed unfit for habitation due to safety risks. The second is the need to strengthen collaboration between the linked parishes. Some areas, notably the joint sacramental programs and Parish talks, have been successful, other areas, such as developing a stronger cross city Catholic community including Blessed Sacrament Parish, require further development and this will become easier as time moves on.

3) Finance context at St Augustine of Canterbury Church (Chris Thompson and Fr Martin)

a) Fr Martin, explained that currently the three parishes operate as separate bank accounts and financial returns. Currently Fr Damien is living at Holy Name, the parish office is in St Philip's near Our Lady Immaculate, and Fr Martin's accommodation provided by New Hall School. There is £160k owed to the diocese from a loan drawn in 2006. The diocesan levy is 26% on income. This provides a variety of services such as property, finance, safeguarding and HR support and at every level finance is extremely tight. The Diocese has made it clear that Parishes are unlikely to be allowed to increase their borrowing above current levels i.e. no new loans and overdrafts will attract a very high interest rate.

b) Chris Thompson, treasurer, said at St Augustine since recovering from COVID the parish has a surplus of approximately £10k a year. Half of this is used to service the debt, and half into a repairs and renewal fund. In response to a question about the total income of the Church, he explained that approximately £39k is taken in via collections, an additional £9k recovered in Gift Aid, and £7-8k on restricted collections such as second collections and Christmas and Easter donations to the Priests. In response to a question about the recent roof repairs Chris explained the Catholic community contributed significantly to the roof repairs.

- ACTION POINT (1) Finance committee to provide a summary of the accounts for 23/24 available for all

c) This lead to a discussion about the general state of repair of the Church and Presbytery. A representative of the Joint Management Committee present explained that following the Quinquennial and ongoing reports there is work to be done on the Church and "that it is optimistic to say it is in good state of repair." The Anglicans do not have the money to pay for joint works, the ceiling, kitchen and floor in the Church needs work and maintenance. The JMC generally deals with urgent issues, not general upkeep currently, and insurance for the building which has increased considerably. When the catholic community become the sole owners of St Augustine's Church ongoing works which have in the past been borne by two communities will become solely the catholic community's responsibility, once the pending transfer of ownership is completed, increasing expenditure.

d) A question was raised about participation on the finance committee. It was explained that the lay members, of whom there are six at present, are parishioners who have, over the last number of years, been invited by the Parish Priest (at the time of their appointment) to serve on the committee

- ACTION POINT (2) To publish the names of those currently volunteering on the Finance committee.

e) A question was raised about the arrangement with the Church of Our Saviour. Fr. Martin and members of the Finance Committee explained that this remains an ongoing issue, which they hope will soon be resolved between the legal departments of the Catholic Diocese of Brentwood and the Anglican Diocese of Chelmsford. Currently, the Diocese of Brentwood and Chelmsford Diocese is liable for St. Augustine’s Church, while the Diocese of Chelmsford is liable for the Church of Our Saviour. Since 2021, the Catholic community has not been contributing financially to the upkeep of the Church of Our Saviour but still owes £8,000 following the fire since 2021. As the arrangement ends and the two entities become entirely separate, it is anticipated that the Anglican worshiping community will rent space at St. Augustine’s as their financial contribution. The Catholic community will assume full responsibility for St Augustine's maintenance and all costs. It was explained that ending the shared ownership/management arrangements of both the sites are expected to be broadly neutral in terms of transfer values.

f) It was acknowledged that ownership resolution of St. Augustine’s Church is a prerequisite for addressing maintenance issues. The Anglican community has limited fundraising possibilities at this stage.

g) A parishioner suggested that further money could be raised by the community for the church through legacies and stewardship Sunday. Additionally a suggestion was raised about changing bank accounts to avoid charges, however Fr Martin explained that was a diocesan decision, beyond the remit of himself or the finance committee.

-ACTION POINT (3) To consider how to promote further financial support from Parishioners for the Church.

5) Renting out the Presbytery (Parishioner discussion and Fr Martin)

a) A parishioner suggested that renting the Presbytery should be explored as an option to retain it as an asset. They noted that New Hall School had previously rented the Presbytery. Fr. Martin confirmed this, explaining that New Hall was a good temporary option at the time, allowing the Presbytery to remain occupied. The school paid £1,500 per month, covered additional costs, and handled some maintenance. They also did not require a letting agent and were amenable to leaving on short notice.

b) Currently, a local estate agency has estimated that the Presbytery could be rented for approximately £1,700 per month. However, due to the age of the building, certain works would need to be completed, requiring additional investment to bring the property up to rentable standards. This includes immediate work on the kitchen, addressing the poor state of repair of the windows and commissioning an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) to identify further requirements or exemptions and electrical works. The costs associated with renting, including management, insurance and compliance with landlord regulations were highlighted. Many reputable firms would consider 15-20% of rental income plus VAT their fee for a fully managed rental service. The estimated £1,700 is a gross figure, and deductions for these expenses would need to be considered.

c) Some parishioners expressed that renting the property would be a preferable interim solution. This would allow time to address broader issues concerning priest accommodation and the potential sale of St. Philip’s and Parish Partnership plans. Renting was viewed by some as a convenient stopgap while continuing to consider whether selling the asset of the presbytery was viable, and potential rental income could offset the debt. It was highlighted that necessary renovations would most probably cancel out any net income to the parish for two years. In context recent renovation costs at Holy Name's property were £60k to raise it to a rentable standard.

6) Selling the Presbytery (Parishioner discussion and Fr Martin)

a) In response to a question, Fr. Martin confirmed that in any sale of diocesan property, 95% of the proceeds would be allocated to the Parish, with a 5% levy retained by the Diocese.

b) A parishioner noted that selling the Presbytery could allow the Parish to immediately pay off its debt to the Diocese, rather than over the next 15 years. This would also provide cash flow to maintain the church building and address immediate maintenance issues. As well as providing potential capacity for increased mission expenditure.

c) Another parishioner raised the possibility of using the Presbytery as both priest and office accommodation. In response, Fr. Martin clarified that the premises would need extensive remodelling work and Canons of the College of Consulters had stipulated that priests must reside near Chelmsford city centre and the Parish office to fulfil their pastoral responsibilities effectively.

7) Wider Mission of the Church across Chelmsford (Parishioner led)

a) A suggestion was made to explore other uses for the Presbytery, such as providing a base for youth coordinators or supporting the pastoral mission of the Church. It was noted that broader pastoral considerations could help enrich the parish communities and strengthen their mission.

b) A parishioner expressed concern that financial considerations appeared to be the primary driver in the decision about the Presbytery's future emphasising the need for a wider discussion about the Church’s mission in Chelmsford before making wide ranging decisions including the presbytery. It was suggested that no action should be taken until a city-wide parish partnership review is completed, highlighting the importance of addressing the broader, holistic context through Parish partnerships.

8) Concluding Open Questions and remarks (all)

a) In response to raising funds for maintenance and renovation Fr Martin confirmed that four written submissions had been received in advance of the meeting. He checked with two attendees their points had been covered and they confirmed they had. He then reviewed the other two submissions, noting that the only other point raised was that Priests should not have to live with each other.

b) A parishioner expressed concern that it was disrespectful to sell the property after it had been bought for the Parish years ago.

c) Fr Martin confirmed that a new loan from the diocese was no longer an option as the diocese is in a considerable building maintenance deficit.

d) Peter asked those still present whether they would support moving forward with exploring selling the Presbytery, or retaining for now. The majority wanted further information about costs involved in potentially renting the property.

-ACTION POINT (4) Further clarity regarding potential costs and income of rental and selling would be beneficial to decision making.

e) Fr Martin raised that due to the considerable amount of work involved in rental both initially and ongoing, volunteers to help manage the process and property would be necessary. Fr Martin asked who may be willing to help with the running of the presbytery.

-ACTION POINT (5) An appeal to be made for volunteers for a working group to take forward the option of retaining the Presbytery and renting it out.
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Peter closed the meeting at 9:10pm with Fr Martin concluding in leading all in a Glory Be prayer.