Church Explorers Week 2024

Join us over May Half Term to explore your local church like never before! With a variety of activities to suit all ages and interests, we really hope everyone from our local community will pop in to learn something new about us.

Across the week we will have history, crafts, music and nature all in our activities. Check out the timetable of events below:

All Week – Outdoor nature trail

Tuesday 28th May – 10-1pm HERITAGE CRAFTS IN CHURCH for all the family

Tuesday 28th May – 7:30pm STAINED GLASS RESTORATION TALK with our conservation glaziers

Wednesday 29th May 11-3pm – OPEN CHURCH for visits during the day

Thursday 30th May 7pm – ORGAN RECITAL by Vernon Hoyle

Easter 2024

Join us this Easter at Hatfield St Lawrence Church as we remember the death and celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

There are lots of opportunities for you to join in our worship this Easter, including services in all different styles or worship. 

Sunday 17th March – 9:45am

Cafe Church Easter Special – our informal, all-age cafe church service will be exploring the topic of Easter through drama, crafts, cake and chat.  All welcome

Sunday 24th March – 10am

Pet Palm Sunday – our annual pet blessing service where you can bring a pet or cuddly toy.  Donkey visitors may come at the end of the service. 

Thursday 28th March – 6:30pm

Maundy Thursday Communion 

Friday 29th March – 1-3pm

Reflections at the cross – a Good Friday service of readings and reflections. 

Sunday 31st March – 10am

Easter Sunday Holy Communion – bring flowers to add to our flower cross display. 

Parish Profile Approved

Our first step to appointing a new incumbent here at St Lawrence Church has been completed by our PCC (Parochial Church Council) in partnership with the Diocese of Sheffield. The Parish Profile, a document which outlines what we are looking for and the particulars of the role here in Hatfield, was approved by the PCC at their February 2024 meeting.

Those interested can view the document below, or two physical copies are available to view at the back of church.

parish-profile-finalDownload

Support our Youth, Children’s and Families Worker in 2024

Dear Friend,


As we start the New Year, I wanted to update you on what has been going on in my position as Youth, Children’s and Families Worker at St Lawrence Church in Hatfield. I am now in my fifth year here in Hatfield and I am thankful that the PCC have continued to support me in this role by making Children and Young people one of the mission action plan priorities.


My plans for 2024 are to continue our weekly, fortnightly and monthly activities (Little Lions Toddler Group, Hatfield Heroes Youth Group, Pre-loved Uniform Bank and Cafe Church) whilst also doing outreach into local schools, holiday activities and one-off activities for our community. My big aim for this year is to increase the volunteer team and improve discipleship so that our activities are not as reliant on just me going forward. Here is a snapshot of what I got up to last year:


2023 – A summary…..


JANUARY – Breathe Deep Youth Event
We started the New Year by taking a group of 7 young people and 3 grown ups to the youth development day at Sheffield Cathedral, giving many of them a first experience of corporate worship with other young people.

FEBRUARY – Mental Health Prayer Spaces in school
We set up prayer spaces at Travis St Lawrence Primary School for child mental health week that the children could access during lunchtimes.


MARCH – Easter activities in schools
I took the Holy Week Chalk Prayer path out on the road to 4 local primary schools, as well as running Easter escape room workshops for Year 7 and 8 at Ash Hill Academy.


APRIL – Pet Palm Sunday (with a Donkey!)
To celebrate Palm Sunday we invited pets into church, with the exciting addition of a donkey joining us afterwards. Ethel the chicken was mostly well behaved….


MAY – Toilet Twinning Success
Our youth group finished fundraising to twin the toilet in the Barn with one in another country, the last one that needed to be twinned across all of our buildings.

JUNE – HOPE Doncaster Weekend
Our youth group joined with others across Doncaster to take on a weekend of social action in their local community, and were visited by Mayor Lee


JULY – Home Educators Morning
We hosted our first ever morning for home educated children and the grown ups, offering grave rubbing, church floorplan activities and the chance to explore our beautiful building.


AUGUST – Spies R Us Summer Club
We hosted a weeklong summer club for families where they learnt spy skills as well as bible stories. We ended with an inflatables afternoon inside church due to the rain!


SEPTEMBER – Launch of Café Church
We launched our brand new informal service that is accessible to all ages and incorporates different styles of worship.


OCTOBER – Jesus Christ Superstar Trip and Wild Away Day
We took the youth group to see Jesus Christ Superstar at Hull New Theatre and also a group of children to the Centenary Project’s wild away day at Kingswood where they did zip sliding and other activities.


NOVEMBER – Police Car Visit
Our friendly PCSO visited Little Lions Toddler Group and let them all sit inside his police car! The toddlers very much enjoyed pressing all the buttons and making the sirens go off.


DECEMBER – School Services for Christmas
Three of our local primary schools hosted Christmas concerts and services in church, with visits to two more schools made too. Over 3000 visitors to church for schools and family services in December.


As always, I would love most of all if you can pray for me and the work here in Hatfield. Our vision is to see the numbers of children and young people actively involved in church double, but to do this I need help. So please pray that volunteers increase and that we are able to disciple the people that God brings to us well. Please pray for God’s wisdom on which activities to pursue and which opportunities to pass by so that me and my team do not burn out.


If you would like to support me financially you can do so via the ways detailed below. To be able to continue in my post I need ongoing funding. A regular monthly donation is the best way to do this, and you can restrict your giving to be used towards my salary costs. One-off gifts are also appreciated and will help me be able to continue my ministry here at St Lawrence Church in Hatfield.


Thank you for your support
God Bless
Rachel Ridler

HOW TO GIVE FINANCIAL SUPPORT
Cheque: made payable to “St Lawrence Church”
Bank transfer or standing order: Please use the following details
Account Name: St Lawrence Hatfield PCC
Account Number: 31267655
Sort Code: 40-44-14
Reference: CPW

If you would like to give in another way then please contact rachel.ridler@centenaryproject.org.uk

Bronze Eco Church Awarded to St Lawrence Church

It is with great joy that we are able to announce that Hatfield St Lawrence Church has been awarded Bronze Eco Church status in recognition of the work that we have done to care for God’s earth in many different categories. Huge thanks to the team, lead by Glenys Mashford and Chrissy Grindle, who have worked tirelessly over the past few years to keep Eco Church high on our agenda and in all our decisions as a church. 

Here are some of the things that have been implemented to help us achieve this award:

  • Including topics on looking after God’s creation in our worship and teaching, including our youth group.
  • Reviewing craft materials used in our children’s ministry to ensure more natural materials are used and crafts are more easily recyclable.
  • Refreshing of our recycling station in the church porch and having two bins inside to aid in the separation of recyclable and non-recyclable waste.
  • Using LED lightbulbs where possible in all of our buildings.
  • Monitoring our energy usage and heating of our Grade 1 listed building.
  • Rewilding parts of our churchyard to be more friendly to local wildlife
  • Installation of bird feeders in the churchyard
  • Engaging with global issues through twinning our toilets in the Church, Barn and Parish Office.
  • Having regular articles on eco friendly tips in our church magazine and newsletter.
  • Encouraging our hospitality team to reduce waste by only bringing the food that is needed, following the principles of LOAF and composting coffee grinds.
  • Changing our cleaning products to eco friendly ones and purchasing fairtrade tea, coffee and sugar where possible.
  • Undertaking wildlife surveys in our churchyard and installing a hedgehog hotel.
  • Organising local litter picks with our Hatfield Heroes Youth Group and for families to take part it.
  • Organising events that encourage people to get outside and enjoy God’s creation such as our Garden Party, Yard Sale Trail, Chalk Prayer Path and Hatfield Monopoly.
  • Running a Uniform Bank to encourage the recycling and reuse of school uniform locally

If you would like to know more about Eco Church please visit A Rocha’s website, or speak to Glenys or Chrissy. They would welcome more members of the Eco Church team to work towards our Silver Award, and to encourage all members of our congregation and community to look after God’s creation.