Under rules 4.2(1) and 4.2(2) of Schedule 1 of the Parish Administration Ordinance 2008, a person cannot take part in or be counted for the purposes of a quorum at the annual general meeting of parishioners of a church unless the person has first subscribed the following declarations –

• I am a member of the Anglican Church of Australia.

• I have been baptised.

• I am not less than 18 years of age.

• I have usually during 3 months within the past 12 months attended services of public worship at Engadine and Heathcote Anglican Church.

• I do not claim to be a parishioner of any other church or parish of the Anglican Church of Australia.

• I have not voted at a general meeting of parishioners of any other church or parish of the Anglican Church of Australia within the past 3 months and I do not intend to vote at a general meeting of parishioners of any other church of the Anglican Church of Australia within the next 3 months.

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The parish council is the governing body for the financial and property affairs of the parish.

The parish council consists of:

• The minister,

• The three wardens,

• An additional 3, 6 or 9 people elected at the Parish AGM, and

• One additional person appointed by the minister for every three elected at the AGM (if he chooses to do so).

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Responsibility

As the governing body for the church, the parish council determines matters of policy, authorises payments and approves budgets. These functions includes activities such as:

• Fixing the stipend, allowances and benefits of the ministerial staff,

• Conferring with the minister on the work of the church and making recommendations regarding ministry within the parish,

• Providing oversight on parish building projects and other property-related matters such as leases,

• Directing the expenditure or investment of any surplus funds the parish may have,

• Appointing a qualified person to audit the parish accounts, and

• Determining and facilitating the parish’s charitable and mission-related support.

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Whereas the minister is responsible for the spiritual wellbeing of the church, the wardens’ responsibilities are more practical or administrative in nature – generally relating to the church’s property and finances. These include (but are not limited to):

• The maintenance, security and good order of church property and grounds, including heritage considerations where relevant.

• Granting licences for non-church groups to use church property subject to appropriate conditions.

• Ensuring appropriate financial administration of all money and property of the church, including procedures for collecting and recording offertories and keeping proper accounting records.

• Taking out any required insurance for paid parish workers beyond those policies already administered by the Property Trust.

• Preparing financial statements and accounts, having them audited and providing them to the church’s AGM.

• Convening annual and other general meetings in conjunction with the minister.

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You're not alone...

The good news is you don’t have to perform all of these activities yourself! While you are responsible for ensuring these (and other) things happen, you can arrange for others to carry them out on your behalf. This will be particularly important for wardens of larger churches.

One of the functions that is regularly delegated is the role of treasurer. If one of the wardens is not willing to act in this role, they may appoint another (appropriately qualified) person to act as treasurer with the approval of the minister.

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Decision making process

Each church (or parish if administered as a whole) has three wardens and, ideally, decisions will be made unanimously. However, if one warden is unavailable or disagrees, a decision may still be made by the remaining two.

The parish council is responsible for determining matters of policy. So, if the parish council has adopted a policy on some matter, the wardens will need to operate within that policy (e.g. counting and banking the offertory, or licensing use of the hall to community groups).

The parish council is also responsible for approving the budget and authorising payments. Therefore, the wardens will also need to carry out their financial responsibilities within the limits set by the parish council.

So, while the wardens are responsible for ensuring many important things take place, most significant decisions will, in practice, be made in conjunction with the minister and the parish council – both of which will hopefully prove to be a wonderful source of godly wisdom, experience and expertise as you collaborate on a whole range of matters.

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Parish nominators are lay members who represent the parish in the decision making process that takes place to appoint a new rector, should a vacancy arise.

The parish can nominate up to five parish nominators, who sit on a Nomination Board – the body ultimately responsible for making a recommendation to the Archbishop. The other members of this board include:

• four diocesan nominators (two lay, two clergy) appointed by the Synod, and

• the regional Bishop or Archdeacon (who chairs the meetings of the board).

Parish nominators are not involved in the appointment of any other clergy or parish officers, just the rector.

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Clause 36 (2) states if there is currently a vacancy in the office of Rector (there is an Acting Rector appointed or the Archbishop has recently accepted the resignation of the Rector), the nominators elected at the time the vacancy was declared remain in office until a new Rector has commenced. This means there is no need for the Annual General Meeting to elect parish nominators unless one of the nominators has resigned.

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Date: Due for re-election 2025.

Synod Representatives are elected for the term of a Synod (three years). The 53rd Synod started last year and those elected at the 2023 AGM will continue until 2025.

You may need to elect Synod Representatives this year if you have any vacancies or are required to elect representatives due to parish re-classifications or amalgamations. If a representative no longer wishes to be a Synod Representative, clause 18(b) of the ordinance requires that they resign by giving a written notice to the Parochial Minister, and the Parochial Minister needs to notify the Registrar (clause 19) of the resignation by email.

The election should be in accordance with the Synod Membership Ordinance 1995. Clauses 5A and 6 of the ordinance provide the privacy consent and declaration that needs to be collected and retained by the Rector.

A Parish is eligible to elect two lay representatives (clause 10) and Provisional Parishes (clause 11) are eligible to elect one lay representative.

Source: Synod Membership Ordinance 1995

Warden

The Parish Administration Ordinance, rule 3.1(1)(i) or rule 3.1(2)(i) provides for the notification of the name of the person appointed by the minister as a Warden. Rule 3.15 indicates this appointment occurs within 7 days before the election of the Wardens. However, if the minister does not make the appointment at that point in time, he then needs to comply with rule 2.13(3) - as soon as possible after the meeting.

Parish Councillors

Rule 3.16 provides for the appointment of one parish council member by the minister for every three determined to be elected by the AGM. Rule 3.16(2) indicates that the right to make an appointment under sub-rule (1) lapses if it has not been exercised within 28 days after the AGM.

Safe Ministry Rep

Safe Ministry Representative: Safe Ministry to Children Ordinance 2020]

The appointment of Safe Ministry Representatives is not dealt with at the AGM.

If you currently have a vacancy this needs to be dealt with promptly. The minister with the concurrence of the parish council must appoint a safe ministry representative under clause 17 of the Safe Ministry to Children Ordinance 2020. Clause 18 lists the qualifications for a safe ministry representative. Clause 17(4) deal with the appointment being revoked or when a representative can no longer hold this position.

Information about the role is available to assist the parish in recruiting for this role on the Safe Ministry website. If you have any questions you can submit a request for the Safe Ministry Parish Consultant on the Safe Ministry contact page.

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