Deanery Synod Meeting of the new Triennium

Dear all

Welcome to everyone elected at this year’s APCMs to represent their parish on the Lancelot Andrewes Deanery Synod of Southwark and Newington!

Our first meeting of the new triennium is on Thursday 24 September at St Paul’s, Lorrimore Square, SE17 3QU. Evening Prayer will begin at 6.30pm, and we will finish by 9pm. There will be refreshments!

Lay representatives are asked to arrive by 6.15pm for a short, separate meeting of the House of Laity to elect our Lay Chair for the new triennium. The election will be chaired by a lay representative appointed by me as Area Dean. Any member of the House of Laity may stand for election and may propose or second another lay member. Please send nominations to me by Thursday 17 September, giving the candidate’s name, their agreement to stand, and the names of a proposer and seconder. Further nominations may be made at the meeting. If only one candidate is nominated, that person will be declared elected unopposed; if there is more than one candidate, the House of Laity will vote.

The date of our deanery synod is especially appropriate: we meet on the eve of Lancelot Andrewes’ feast, 400 years after his death in 1626. Andrewes was closely associated with Southwark and is buried in the Cathedral. The Cathedral is marking the anniversary on 26–27 September with worship, music, exhibitions, tours and a lecture by Rowan Williams. Details are available here.

As this is our first meeting, we will also appoint a Secretary and Treasurer, elect our Standing Committee and confirm the membership of our Deanery Leadership Team.

Voting in the General Synod election opens on 21 September, so that will be an important focus. We’ll look at what General Synod does, the candidates standing and how we can make an informed choice.

I have also attached the new Deanery Synod Model Rules 2026–2029, approved by Diocesan Synod in July. Every deanery has been asked to adopt them at its next meeting, so we will be invited formally to do that. Please have a look at them beforehand, but one new rule that I want to draw your attention to defines the safeguarding responsibilities of Deanery Synod members and requires safeguarding to be a regular Agenda item. All members are expected to have completed the Church of England’s Basic Awareness, Foundation and Raising Awareness of Domestic Abuse training, with the appropriate refresher training undertaken every three years. Many of you will already have completed this through your parish role. We will explain the requirement at the meeting; in the meantime, please check whether your training is up to date.

As we begin this new triennium, we will take the opportunity to thank two people who have contributed enormously to our deanery life. Bett Llewelyn has served us with great generosity and care as Treasurer and, after many, many years, will eventually be putting away the calculator and chequebook. Keith Potter has been a deanery stalwart and fountain of procedural knowledge for years, serving as Lay Chair and latterly as Deanery Secretary. We are deeply grateful to them both, and I very much hope they will be able to join us so that we can thank them properly.

The agenda is attached.

Please reply to this email by Thursday 17 September:

• to say whether you can attend;
• to submit any nomination for Lay Chair; and
• to let us know if you would be interested in serving as Secretary, Treasurer, or as a member of the Standing Committee or Deanery Leadership Team.

We look forward to seeing you on the 24^th September!

Kind regards,

Fr John Carruthers
Area Dean

Akin Akinwunmi
Lay Chair Lancelot Andrewes Deanery of Southwark and Newington