Parish Church

THE PARISH CHURCH OF ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST, THORPE MANDEVILLE

Banbury Lane, Thorpe Mandeville, Banbury OX17 2EY

Our church is one of eight churches in the Chenderit Benefice with the rector, the Reverend Nick Leggett, living in Middleton Cheney.

Church Opening:
Unfortunately it is not possible to open the church every day. If you are visiting the church and would like to ensure it will be open, please telephone Maurice Cole - 01295 711042.

RECTOR (Contact for weddings, baptisms and funerals):
The Reverend Nick Leggett, Tel: 07925 419068 Email: leggett1uwe@yahoo.co.uk

CHURCHWARDENS:
The church is currently operating without churchwardens.

Church services:
A monthly Holy Communion service is normally held at Thorpe on the first Sunday in addition to the festival services.
FORTHCOMING SERVICES:.
1 December: Holy Communion service, 11.00am, Father Nick officiating.
18 December: Carols at the Three Conies, 7.00pm, Father Nick officiating.
24 December: Carol Service, 6.00pm, Father Nick officiating.
25 December: Christmas Day Holy Communion service, by extension, 11.00am, Paul Franklin officiating.

You will be most welcome at these services; there is no need to have been confirmed. Wheelchair ramps are available for all steps.

The Book of Common Prayer service is provided at our Holy Communion services. The church is a corporate member of the Prayer Book Society.

A bi-monthly Pews News newsletter is issued by email showing all services in the benefice together with a message from Father Nick and some news items. If you would like to be on the email distribution list, please contact Maurice Cole (01295 711042).

Church features:
The church building dates back to at least the early 14th century and it has Grade I listed building status. Features include a saddle-back tower roof, an impressive early 17th century monument to the Kirton family, a 14th century wall painting and attractive 19th century scholastic stained glass windows. There is a splendid ancient yew tree in the churchyard being well over 1,000 years old.
There is little doubt that the formative years of the puritan pioneer Rev'd John Mayo were in Thorpe Mandeville. Rev'd Mayo became the first pastor of the Second Church in Boston (The Old North Church) in 1655 and he was appointed to the Board of Overseers of Harvard College.

Maintaining our church:
Villagers have maintained our church for nearly 1000 years and hopefully we will do the same for future generations but it is currently a struggle. The upkeep of the church is entrusted to a team of parishioners constituted as the Parochial Church Council (PCC). Responsibilities include the running and maintenance of the building and churchyard as well as funding the clergy. Finance is a main concern of our PCC. All parishes are required to fund the upkeep of their church buildings and the provision of clergy, the latter being assessed within a Parish Share assessment. We receive no financial support from the Church of England. Our church is therefore dependent on donations from parishioners to keep the church open. We struggle to find sufficient funds, not meeting the requested Parish Share in recent years. The shortfall was £2,388 in 2023 and £2,268 in 2022. A substantial shortfall is anticipated for future years. Basic annual running costs total circa £9,000 including the requested Parish Share. A copy of the latest annual General Account is displayed in the church porch.

If you would like to contribute to the upkeep of our church, either by a single payment or annually, the PCC would be most appreciative. Please contact the rector or treasurer, Maurice Cole. The PCC has charitable status enabling tax refunds to be made under the Gift Aid scheme. If your focus is on the maintenance of the church building in its beautiful setting, separate funds are held for both the the fabric of the church and churchyard maintenance.

There have been thefts from local churches. An attempted theft of lead at our church left damage to the roof. If you see questionable activity at the church please check with a churchwarden as soon as possible and record the vehicle registration.

Foodbank Scheme
The Chenderit Benefice operates a foodbank. If you would like to donate food, please leave it at the Rectory, 17 Astrop Road, Middleton Cheney, OX17 2PG and contact Father Nick if you would like further information (07925 419068).

Church registers:
The church registers date from 1559 to the present day. If you require information from the registers further details can be found at the following website summarising the history of the parish: www.thorpemandeville.com

Safeguarding:
The PCC places great importance on Safeguarding matters and it's policy supports the Promoting A Safer Church initiative. The Diocesan Safeguarding Officer is Victoria Kellett: phone, 01733 887040 or email, safeguarding@peterborough-diocese.org.uk . The PCC's Safeguarding Officer is Sandy Cole: phone 01295 711042. Further details are displayed at the church.

The information on this page has been provided by Thorpe Mandeville Parochial Church Council.