Revision of Church Electoral Roll
Ahead of the APCM, scheduled for 28 Apr 2025, we will be carrying out a full renewal of the Electoral Roll. Please see the official notice below, which will also be displayed at our buildings.
The collation of a new electoral roll occurs every 6 years and was last conducted in 2019. In the intervening years the roll is revised.
A form for addition to the electoral roll can be submitted here.
Or please contact the church: [email protected], 01753 883311.
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The Parish of St James, Gerrards Cross with St James, Fulmer
Notice is given
that under the Church Representation Rules a new Church Electoral Roll* is being prepared. Every person who wishes to have his or her name entered on the new Roll, whether it is entered on the present Roll or not, is requested to apply for enrolment not later than 6th April 2025.
The new Roll will take effect on 14th April 2025.
The new Roll will be published by the Parochial Church Council [on the church noticeboards] for at least 14 days and a copy of the Roll will be available for inspection on a reasonable request being made to the Council.
Under the Church Representation Rules any lay persons are entitled to have
their names entered on the roll if the person —
(a) is baptised,
(b) is aged 16 or over, and
(c) has made one of the following three declarations and duly applied for enrolment.
The first declaration is that the person is a member of the Church of England or of a Church in communion with it and is resident in the parish.
The second declaration is that the person is a member of the Church of England or of a Church in communion with it, is not resident in the parish, but has habitually attended public worship in the parish during the preceding six months.
The third declaration is that the person is a member in good standing of a Church which is not in communion with the Church of England but subscribes to the doctrine of the Holy Trinity and is also a member of the Church of England and has habitually attended public worship in the parish during the preceding six months.
Application Forms for enrolment can be obtained via the link above, or from the Church Office.
In order for a person to be entitled to attend the annual parochial church meeting and to take part in its proceedings, an Application Form for enrolment must be returned by the date shown above for the ending of the revision of the Church Electoral Roll by the Parochial Church Council.
Any error discovered in the Roll should at once be reported to the Church Electoral Roll Officer via the church office: [email protected], 01753 883311.
Electoral Roll: What is it and who is it for?
Governance in the Church of England
The Church of England doesn’t operate a formal membership. However, for the management of voting at the Annual Meeting, and the right management of representation within the Church of England structures (deanery, area, diocese and nationally) each local church is to keep an Electoral Roll.
Being a member of the Electoral Roll entitles you to vote at the church’s annual meeting where, amongst other things, church council members are elected as well as representatives within the Church of England structures.
The size of the Electoral Roll affects how many representatives can be elected to those structures.
As a church that is concerned for the spiritual health of the Church of England, and as a church that wants to continue to “contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints” Jude 3, we think it is important that everyone who is a member of Saint James is represented on the Electoral Roll.
Membership of your local church
The Church of England set out that membership of the Electoral Roll is based on
- Whether or not a person is baptised
- Whether or not a person is habitually attending public worship in the parish.
These are helpful criteria, but can be more fully explored.
Baptism, in the Church of England, has the expectation that those baptised will “learn to know God in public worship and private prayer, follow Jesus Christ in the life of faith, [and] serve their neighbour after the example of Christ” (see the Baptism Liturgy).
Our expectation is that the ongoing life of a believer is to attend public worship regularly so that they grow in knowing God, and that they will also be committed to personal private prayer. It will necessarily follow that they will want to follow Jesus and be obedient to his commands, which will include not giving up meeting together, loving other believers in active community together (being church) and loving the world around us (evangelism and care).
If I want to know, am I a member of Saint James, I could ask myself
- Am I committed to attending church as part of my normal weekly habit?
- Do I want to get to know God better as he’s revealed in the person of Jesus?
- Do I depend on God in prayer through Jesus?
- Am I committed to loving other believers?
- Am I committed to sharing the good news of Jesus?
So, as you consider joining the Electoral Roll you will be making declarations about having been baptised, and about habitually attending public worship in the parish. It’s worth noting that in the first part of the second declaration it is implicitly understood that someone resident in the parish and who wants to be part of the Electoral Roll is someone who’s regular habit is to attend church in the parish, Rev. Dr. Ian Paul has written helpfully about this here. To habitually attend church would mean that it is your normal habit to attend each week.
