Vicar’s Report to the Ministry Area Council | February 2026
Time flies when you are having fun or so people say. As I approach nearly a year in post, it is a good time to begin to reflect on what I have learnt, what you may have learnt (about me), and where we are going next as a MA (united parish). But that is not the substance of this report.
Prayer
I would like to introduce an hour a week where people are invited to pray for growth of the church either in a church or at home, silently.
Prayer is a hallmark of who I am as a vicar. It is part of our breath as Christians.
Independence or Interdependence
I do think we need as a MAC to take courageous steps towards greater interdependence. This is particularly the case in outreach. We are committed to working with two primary schools. Whilst I am energised by schools’ work, it is not the remit of the vicar alone or those from the MA that serve as foundation governors. There are other areas of mission that we would work well together in. This breaks down barriers. Of course, Bags of Love is one example of where we work well co-operatively. I think Lent and Holy Week present opportunities for being together. The reality is that in travelling distance our churches are not far apart.
Finance is always the thorny topic. All our resources belong to God and we are his stewards. The MAC is called to grapple with the fact that we are not representatives of a particular church but trustees of the whole. This does not mean we do not speak on behalf of a place, but rather we raise things on behalf of whilst listening to other places that we, as a MAC, are responsible for.
One of the surprises to me in my first year is the limited amount of fundraising we do as a MA. I came from Bro Madryn, which was not blessed with reserves, and lived hand to mouth. Throughout the year 8-10 fundraising events were planned together with a Gift Day. Money could not be spent without it being raised. I think in 2024 it was the only MA that had a surplus on the year. I believe fundraising that is always missional could be something we do together.
MAC
I have no desire to increase the amount of MAC meetings. We meet 4 times a year with an additional brief meeting at some point before the Vestry to receive the accounts.
In addition, I am planning to hold termly meetings that focus on specific things. One will be arranged to look at the system we are using for our accounts and another to look at safeguarding.
Still Listening
In my 20th report there will still be a section on this. I hope to continue listening more importantly outside of our church family as inside it.
Reimagining
I have two giftings. I am brave enough to articulate them. I am a teacher and an evangelist.
I like talking about Jesus. It is not a bad thing for a vicar or indeed for any Christian. It is why I go to lots of community events. Many of you will have heard of the Pirate Carol Service held in Gyffin. It was different. Some of the carols were rewritten and the readings taken from the Pirate Bible. I understand that there were concerns about this, but no one approached me directly, so I made no comment. It was a one-off event and attracted people who do not usually darken the door of a church. It was conducted respectfully and the Christian message for Christmas was preached and practiced. In the Summer, I went and blessed the estuary as part of the River Festival. I long for us all to take any and every opportunity we have to talk about Jesus. The festivals of the church are good opportunities for both upfront and quiet evangelism.
I am a particular kind of teacher. I love history and enjoy making the Bible accessible to those who come to church and those who do not. There is excellent work done in the Life groups, and also in the new Walking Further group, but I long to do a couple of bible studies and in a number of places do some sort of question-and-answer sessions about our faith.
Regular things
In addition to my duties on a Sunday and a Wednesday morning.
I am in Ysgol Porth y Felin every Monday morning from 09:30-11 (2 assemblies and then time with the ALN Unit) and in Ysgol Llangelynnin every Tuesday morning from 9:30-10:15ish. I am a governor of both schools. I do a week’s worth of assemblies in Ysgol Aberconwy every term plus an additional visit to 6th form.
We have re-started a Family Service in Conwy. This is in its early days.
I try my best to be at community events and make sure I have coffee in various public places in the united parish.
I am committed to being involved in the Telford celebrations in Conwy and in the anniversary celebrations of the Llanbedr and Tal-y-Bont community hall.
Working with St John’s in Conwy
I am exploring doing a joint after school club in Ysgol Porth-y-Felin with St John’s and a youth club held in St John’s. There has been an open meeting held with 49:13 which is the organisation led by Andy and Rachel Hughes (formerly of Urban Saints).
There is a meeting between some of the leaders of St Mary’s Conwy and St John’s on 13 February.
Mission
We know that we need to have a mission plan. It is one of the three plans that the MAC should have in place. In my first meeting with you, a ‘wish-list’ was produced in terms of bullet points. I then invited those who had contributed to the list to set out their thoughts more fully. I am afraid there has not been a stampede to do so.
As I love creating space for people to think about the Gospel, I propose to use the last weekend of October 2026 as an invitational time where there will be a number of events for people to invite friends and neighbours to. To that end, I have invited already:
Sian Wyn Rees, Head of Bible Society Wales
Mandy Bayton, Director of Mission, Diocese of Swansea and Brecon
Jon Stockley, Lead worker, CVM Cymru
Bishop John Holbrook, retired Bishop of Brixworth
Manon Ceridwen James, Dean of Bangor
And others to come and lead a series of specific events for and with us. I hope such an idea meets with your approval and you will help me promote it.
Finally…
I have recently re-trained to be a Section 50 Inspector. One of the questions our church schools are asked in a church inspection is this one: what impact does the collective worship of the school have on the school community? The school is required to give evidence of the impact of worship on pupils and staff and the wider school community (parents, governors, carers and the local community).
I wonder what we would say if we had to answer the same question about the worship that takes place within our churches.
Kevin Ellis
3 February 2026
caruconwy.com 