East Vale becomes the first Ministry Area in the Diocese
East Vale Ministry Area officially became the first Ministry Area to be inaugurated in the Diocese of Llandff.
Incorporating nine former parishes from the Vale of Glamorgan, the East Vale Ministry Area has brought together rural and urban parishes into one cohesive group.
Anna Cory, Ministry Area Treasurer, says: “East Vale has existed as a group of parishes working together since 2005, so it’s been a slow evolution. We’ve built mutual trust over many years, and it makes sense to join together to share resources.”
Introducing Ministry Areas is happening across Wales as the Church in Wales adapts to changing attitudes to church attendance. Churches must adapt in order to thrive and find news ways to extend its mission and ministry to new audiences.
Anna has seen the benefits of collaborative working. “Having a ministry team brings different skills and experience to the Ministry Area and has meant we were better able to cope with periods of interregnum - when churches are in between vicars."
The process has not been without its challenges, however. “Understandably, people are afraid of losing their churches, communities and identities by being part of a Ministry Area. But worshipping together during Covid really helped everyone get to know each other and feel part of a collective entity.”
Anna also has a piece of advice for parishes who are being incorporated into Ministry Areas – don’t feel you have to give everything up. “I’d recommend that churches find a balance between the things that you do as individual churches and what you do collectively.
“That way each church is supported but when you come together you form something so much bigger than the sum of its parts.”
What is a Ministry Area?
Ministry Areas are large parishes led by a team of clergy and lay people who draw on each other’s strengths to increase the impact of the message of Jesus.
Ministry Areas are a return to a more collaborative way of working to enable God’s people to work together effectively and creatively for church growth. They will help to establish a stronger Christian presence in our communities, and enable us collectively to do more, today and into the future.
Watch the video below to find out more about Ministy Areas. Visit out Ministry Area page to learn more about how Ministry Areas will help further embed our vision.