West Swindon and The Lydiards Church Partnership

Appendix 3. Standing Orders.

The standing orders document the division or responsibility between local and central, and document how we make decisions. Much learning, experience and gracious compromise is incorporated here.

Though these sections are part of our constitution, they are defined by us and reviewed at Annual General Meetings of the Partnership, which is where changes can be made. They are not subject to external review.

1. Purpose of Partnership Council.

• 1.1 Regulatory.
  • To be the Trustee body of the Church Partnership and the principal representative body of the Partnership’s membership.
• 1.2 Oversight.
  • To encourage and promote the spiritual life and mission of the Church Partnership; and support the Staff Team and Local Church Leadership Teams.
• 1.3 Governance.
  • To co-ordinate the main events, activities and governance processes in the life and work of the Partnership.

2. Principal Functions.

• 2.1 Regulatory.
  • Facilitate the formal links between the Partnership, the Sponsoring Body and the Parent Bodies, concerning major issues affecting the Partnership, in accordance with the Partnership Constitution.
  • Oversee and review the appointments / licences of Ministers in Pastoral Charge of the different churches in collaboration with the Sponsoring Body, and in accordance with the normal practices of the Parent Bodies.
  • Appoint other members of the Staff Team (ordained and lay, paid and unpaid).
  • Monitor arrangements for managing the resources and organisation of the Partnership – its people, finance, administration, buildings and facilities. Ensure legal and regulatory compliance requirements are met where appropriate.
• 2.2 Oversight.
  • Prayerfully discern and evaluate the vision and strategic direction of the Partnership, in accordance with the Declaration of Intent, and Annual Goals agreed at the Annual General Meeting.
  • Encourage and promote Partnership strategy for mission.
  • Lead and support the processes of review and change, necessary to maintain the mission thrust of the Partnership.
  • Encourage and support the life and mission of the Local Churches.
  • Develop links with selected external partners and other local churches.
• 2.3 Governance.
  • Establish Partnership-wide policies, strategies, programmes and events in collaboration with the Local Churches; oversee their operation.
  • Discern, develop and encourage gifts and specialist areas of ministry – for use in the Partnership’s mission and ministry, eg leadership, evangelism, pastoral care, children’s and young people’s ministries.
  • Oversee the work of the Standing Committee.
  • Co-ordinate internal and external communication for the Partnership, administration and publicity.

3. Term of Office

• 3.1 The Council is appointed each year at the Partnership Annual General Meeting, including ex officio members and members nominated by Local Churches in accordance with the Constitution.
• 3.2 Previous members are eligible for re-appointment or re-election.
• 3.3 Maximum length of service as an Officer or member of Standing Committee is three years, unless specially extended by agreement of the Partnership Council.

4. Officers

• 4.1 At its first meeting each year following the Partnership Annual General Meeting, the Council shall elect a Chair and Vice Chair from among its members (Sect 8.3). All members shall be eligible to stand for election to either role. Both of these posts will have a Job Description in order to guide both the appointment and execution of the job.
• 4.2 The Council may also elect other officers at its discretion.
• 4.3 Officers may stand for re-election, but normally stand down after a maximum period of 7 years’ continuous office.

5. Membership and Voting

• 5.1 In accordance with Section 8 of the Constitution, membership of the Partnership Council shall comprise :
  • Members of Partnership Staff Team (Sect 8.1)
  • Three representatives of each local church, appointed by Local Churches (Sect 8.1), preferably being members of the Local Church Leadership Team/Committee and certainly members of the Partnership.
  • The Partnership Secretary and Treasurer, both elected at the Partnership A.G.M.. (Sect 8.2) Job Descriptions for these posts will guide both the appointment and evaluation of performance of these Officers.
  • Any co-opted members.
• 5.2 Each member above shall be entitled to cast one vote on any proposal or decision of the Council.

6. Co-option

• 6.1 The Partnership Council may co-opt additional members who have special expertise in or knowledge of matters under discussion, in order to assist its work. Co-options may include people from outside the membership of Partnership in appropriate circumstances.
• 6.2 Casual vacancies on the Council arising during the year may be filled by co-option, until the next Partnership Annual General Meeting.

7. Meetings

• 7.1 The Partnership Council shall hold an Annual General Meeting, normally in March each year (Sect 8.5). This is an open meeting publicised to all members. A report shall be given by the Chair and Secretary, and the Partnership Accounts for the preceding calendar year shall be presented for approval by the meeting.
• 7.2 A Special General Meeting of the Partnership, to undertake specific items of business, may be called by a decision of the Partnership Council or of its Standing Committee, or by the Sponsoring Body. A minimum of 2 weeks notice of a Meeting shall be given by the Secretary.
• 7.3 The Council shall meet at least four times each year in addition to the Annual Meeting (Sect 8.5). All other members of the Partnership may attend, and speak by invitation, but may not vote.
• 7.4 A meeting agenda approved by the Chair shall be published to Council members at least 7 days before each meeting.
• 7.5 A representative of the Sponsoring Body shall be invited and encouraged to attend meetings as an observer.
• 7.6 A person appointed to take minutes shall attend the meetings, normally the Partnership Administrator.

8. Confidentiality

• 8.1 Since meetings of the Partnership Council are open to attendance by any member of the Partnership, matters discussed do not qualify as confidential, unless the Partnership Council elects to declare by vote that a particular part of the meeting shall be regarded as confidential. The Council may also vote to go into closed session at this point, and ask non members of the Council to withdraw.
• 8.2 If the Council decides that any part of the proceedings shall be ‘confidential’, then everyone present is bound not to communicate anything about that part of the meeting either verbally, electronically or in writing to anyone else. A record shall be kept of these confidential proceedings by the Minutes Secretary, and Minutes distributed separately of the discussion in confidence, for clear and separate approval by the Council at the earliest convenient date.

9. Quorum

• 9.1 In order that any meeting of the Partnership Council may proceed to transact business, it must be quorate according to the following criteria:
  • one third of the elected local church delegates (or a named substitute for that meeting) shall be present, AND
  • at least one member of those members of the Staff Team who are Ministers in Pastoral Charge shall be present.
• 9.2 In the absence of a quorum, or if a meeting under way becomes inquorate, the Council may meet (or continue to meet) for discussion only, but may not make any binding decision.

10. Standing Committee

• 10.1 At its first meeting following the AGM, the Council shall appoint a Standing Committee to transact business between full meetings of the Council, and to undertake other delegated responsibilities. In appointing the Standing Committee, the Council shall have regard for nominations made by the Local Church Committees at the AGM.
• 10.2 The Standing Committee shall then serve until the appointment of a new Standing Committee at the first meeting of the Council after the AGM in the following year, to ensure continuity of operation.
• 10.3 See separate Standing Orders for Standing Committee for further details of role and responsibilities.

11. Other Working Groups

• 11.1 The Council may appoint and dissolve other working bodies and groups at its discretion, to undertake work on its behalf in pursuit of the Partnership’s mission (Sect 8.4). This may include groups to undertake a specific task or project, or representative groups of members from the Local Churches, sharing in a common area of the Partnership’s life and work.
• 11.2 All working groups shall operate to terms of reference agreed by the Council, and provide reports as required to the Council or the Standing Committee.

12. Finance

• 12.1 The management of all finances shall be in line with the recommendations and requirements of the Charity Commissioners
• 12.2 The Partnership Annual Budget and Annual Accounts shall be prepared and managed by the Partnership Treasurer, in consultation with the Officers, the Council and the Local Church Treasurers.
• 12.3 All funds managed by a Local Church shall be consolidated in the accounts of the Partnership.
• 12.4 The approval (signature or other acceptable concurrence) of two signatories shall be required for disposal of any funds, one of which will normally be that of the Partnership Treasurer.

13. Other functions and responsibilities

• 13.1 In addition to the functions identified in Sect 2 above, the Partnership Council shall:
  • elect or appoint a Partnership representative to the Swindon Churches Together Council, and approve Local Churches’ nominations to representative bodies of the Parent Bodies (11.1).
  • nominate representatives on other appropriate external bodies as requested.
• 13.2 The Partnership Council shall oversee the governance arrangements and operation of the Partnership Constitution.
• 13.3 The Partnership Council shall initiate any review of the Constitution or of the Declaration of Intent.
• 13.4 Any other Business agreed by the Partnership Council at their meeting.

14. Accountability

• 14.1 The Partnership Council shall be accountable to the Annual General meeting of the Partnership and to the Sponsoring Body.

15. Amendment to this standing order

• 15.1 Amendments to these Standing Orders in relation to the working of the Partnership Council may be made by a simple majority of those present and eligible to vote at the Annual General Meeting, or at a Special General Meeting called for that purpose.

16. Dissolution

• 16.1 The Partnership Council may dissolve only in response to a decision of the Sponsoring Body

Additional Standing Orders for Anglican Parochial Church Council

17. Parochial Church Council

• 17.1 Only Anglican members of the Partnership Council can be members of the Parochial Church Council.
• 17.2 All responsibilities of the Parochial Church Council are delegated to the Partnership Council except as follows:
  • Applications for faculties for alteration of Anglican church buildings of St Mary’s Lydiard Tregoze, All Saints Lydiard Millicent and Holy Trinity Shaw, and the churchyard at Hook, shall be approved by the PCC. Faculty Applications are to be signed by the relevant church’s churchwardens, but if there are none, or numbers insufficient, then churchwardens of other partnership churches can be asked to ‘act’ on that churches behalf.
  • The PCC shall be consulted about any proposed sale, demolition or purchase of an Anglican owned house for its clergy.
  • The PCC shall commission and receive a copy of the Quinquennial Report by the appointed church architect on each Anglican owned building, and is responsible through the Local Church Committee for carrying out the recommendations.
  • The PCC shall be consulted about any Anglican pastoral scheme which would affect the Ecumenical Parish (Partnership); eg change of boundaries, changes in the group or team ministry. The PCC shall meet and discuss any proposed changes with a member of the Diocesan Pastoral Committee.
  • The PCC shall maintain the Electoral Roll of the Parish (Partnership) as defined in the Constitution .
  • Lydiard Education Trust
• 17.3 The PCC shall liaise with the Diocesan Synod and Deanery Synod.
• 17.4 The PCC shall appoint Foundation Governors to Church of England Schools within the Partnership area.

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