Celebrating Family Diocesan Projects: Diocese of Wrexham 

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The Diocese of Wrexham has received a grant of £67,500 over three years from the Celebrating Family Fund to employ a development worker to foster a sustainable Marriage & Family Life Ministry across the diocese.  

Formerly part of Menevia Diocese, Wrexham Diocese was established by decree in 1987 and comprises 6 Counties in North Wales and the district of Montgomery in Powys, Mid-Wales. 41 Parishes and 18 Catholic Schools (14 Primary, 3 Secondary & 1 Independent) serve a Catholic population of over 39,000. The diocese is a mixture of urban and rural with several major population centres as well as more sparsely populated outlying communities.

The Diocesan Marriage and Family Life Commission is created

In October 2000, at the Diocesan Pastoral Congress, the subject of marriage and family life was high on the agenda.  The Congress’s final report recommended that the diocese do more to support couples and families by establishing adequate marriage preparation services; helping to strengthen family spirituality; developing parenting skills programmes and fostering an inclusive and affirming attitude to all families.  The Diocesan Marriage and Family Life (MFL) Commission was subsequently created in September 2001 to oversee the delivery of these commitments.  Around that time the diocese’s first voluntary MFL Worker was also appointed.  Roberta Canning worked tirelessly, until her retirement in 2007, developing a range of family based initiatives including parenting support programmes and the annual diocesan MFL Fun Day – still an important event in the local social calendar. 

‘Sustainable Support Service For Marriage and Family Life in the diocese’. 

Since Roberta’s departure, Family Life Ministry (FLM) has continued in the diocese.  But without the requisite human and financial resources, the Commission have been unable to create the kind of committed, parish-based and centrally supported network of volunteers that they had originally envisaged - local leaders who would inspire other families to offer support and services to each other  Consequently the MFL commission has been unable to achieve their original intention of providing a, ‘sustainable support service for Marriage and Family Life in the diocese’. 

The Teaching Church Must Be A Listening Church’

This was of concern to Bishop Edwin Regan, as demonstrated during Wrexham’s Listening Day in Llandudno in June 2004 (the Bishops' national consultation with families in England and Wales – Listening 2004: My Family, My Church).  Bishop Regan stated that, ‘the teaching church must be a listening church’ and said that the issues raised by the consultation process needed to be examined in detail because they impacted fundamentally upon societies’ way of living as a Catholic community.  Those issues included families wanting more open and welcoming parishes, greater support for parents as the first educators of their children and practical support for all families, regardless of their circumstances, ‘from the cradle to the grave’.

A New Pastoral Development Worker For The Diocese 

When the diocese was offered the opportunity to apply to the Celebrating Family Fund (created in response to Listening 2004) for the resources to employ a dedicated Pastoral Development Worker, the diocese jumped at the chance.  The funds were awarded but personnel changes and several unproductive advertising campaigns have impeded the recruitment process.  However in January 2011 the MFL Commission was delighted to announce the appointment of Margaret Hinton as their new Pastoral Development Worker.  A nurse for over 30 years; Margaret has a great deal of experience working with people. She has supported vulnerable adults, children, and their families and in her nursing role has mentored student nurses and care workers. Margaret is married, with two grown up children; is an active member of the Blessed Sacrament Parish in Connah’s Quay and a member of the diocesan choir. Margaret will be supported in her work by Celebrating Family Project Manager, Tony Ellis and MFL Commission member, Pauline Stanway.  

Objectives For The Next Three Years

For the next three years Margaret will be engaging, equipping and encouraging a network of parish-based volunteers to roll out a range of programmes across the diocese including the three Celebrating Family themes- Everybody’s Welcome, Home is a Holy Place and Passing on the Faith, which form the bedrock of the bishops’ national strategy for supporting family life: Celebrating Family: Blessed, Broken, Living Love. One of Margaret’s first priorities will be to make contact with the parishes, audit existing services and re–energise the work that has already begun on the Celebrating Family initiative.  She will also be looking to recruit volunteers across the diocese and will provide them with the necessary training and support to take forward the initiatives of Bishop Regan and the MFL Commission, in partnership with local clergy.  Margaret is keen to build positive relationships with the other Diocesan Commissions also offering support to families and will actively communicate with the diocese at large via The Link, the Diocesan website and Parish newsletters.  In the longer term Margaret will seek to develop closer ties with the diocesan schools. 

The Diocesan Advent Family Day

Later in the calendar year, Margaret will help to organise the 2011 Diocesan Advent Family Day – following on from 2010’s very successful event which saw local families making Advent wreaths, Christmas cards and decorations and taking part in a family focused Mass. 

The Celebrating Family Fund will finance Margaret’s role until January 2014.  For more information on Marriage and Family Life work in the Diocese and the Celebrating Family Project please contact Tony Ellis or Margaret Hinton.

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