Association
for the Propagation of the Faith (APF Red Boxes)
To be a Christian is to be a missionary. The APF supports
the work of spreading the Gospel throughout the World.
A large number of parishioners have Red Mission Boxes at
home, and fill them with all their loose change. The money
is then collected and the Red Mission boxes emptied twice a
year, by a small team of volunteers.
If you would like to take part in the scheme and receive a
Red Mission Box, or if you could assist the volunteer
counters, please
Contact: Tina Howley on 020 8286 6574
Building Maintenance
A stitch in time saves nine. Our buildings need to be
regularly maintained. Some of the maintenance has to be
done by expert contractors, but some can be done by
volunteers. A team of parishioners keeps an eye on the
Parish Buildings and their maintenance, and schedules and
prioritises works to keep everything in good condition.
Cleaning
Church Cleaning is done by a four teams of volunteers on a
weekly basis. There is lots of dusting, hoovering and
polishing to be done.
The Parish Hall is cleaned professionally each week,
particularly because of the need to care for the dance
floor. This is paid for out of the income from Hall Lets.
Although everyone who uses the Hall is responsible for
leaving it more tidy and clean than they found it!
Finance
The Parish Finance Committee (a statutory requirement under
Canon Law) advises the Parish Priest on the prudent running
of the Parish. It assists him to compile reports and
budgets, and co-ordinates any major fundraising projects.
Gift Aid
The Weekly Offering Collection is the primary income of the
parish, and has to pay for all the expenses of running the
Church and Parish. If you pay income tax you are encouraged
to join the Gift Aid Scheme where by the simple use of a
weekly donation envelope the Parish is able to claim back
from the Inland Revenue the tax you have already paid on
your donation, at no cost to yourself.
Grounds
Maintenance
Do you have green fingers, our Parish Priest doesn't!! We
have wonderful grounds, with lots of grass and flower beds.
It all need tender loving care on a regular basis. Maybe
you live in a flat or only have a small garden at home,
don't let that hold you back, you will be very welcome to
look after some of our grounds.
Heating
We are lucky to have quite effective heating which is
relatively maintenance free (it is serviced on an annual
basis under contract), but that still leaves a need for
someone to set the timers and check the thermostats.
Laundry
Each week there is Church Laundry to do. Altar cloths,
purificators, lavabo towels, and every so often the priests
and altar servers albs.
Notice
Boards
There is one large portable board and smaller fixed notice
boards in the Church lobby to advertise activities in the
parish in particular, and the diocese in general. Please do
ask permission before putting any notice up, so that we can
co-ordinate the limited space available.
Contact: Liz Tye on 020 8393 9398
Parish
Newsletter
The
Weekly Parish newsletter is the basic vehicle of
communicating parish information and notifying parishioners
of events. It is available in printed form in the Church
after the Sunday Masses and can also be sent to
parishioners by email each week. If you would like to
receive the newsletter by email you can subscribe online or
please send an email to the Parish Office and
we will make sure you are subscribed.
Additionally if you’d like an item to be included in the
newsletter you need to supply the notice to the Parish
Office by Wednesday midday. Items are included or may be
edited at the discretion of the Parish Priest.
Contact: Vera Parfitt (Parish Office) on 020 8397 4499 or
email the Parish Office
Repository
The Repository is our Holy Shop. It is staffed by
volunteers and is opened before and after the Sunday
Masses. The Repository keeps a stock of Catholic devotional
items, greetings cards, and candles. At various times of
the year the Repository stocks seasonal items, such as for
Christmas, Easter and First Communion.
Weekly
Offering Collectors
At Sunday and Feast day masses 2 to 4 collectors circulate
the baskets through the congregation during the offertory
to collect parishioners’ offertories in the form of loose
cash or gift aid. The baskets are taken up to the altar for
later counting and banking. Collectors sometimes carry out
special collections at the end of mass.
Weekly
Offering Counters
Churches cannot run without money, and each week this has
to counted, bagged up and banked.
