Synodical Government Measure 1969

Part IIIE Deanery Synods

MembershipE

19(1)A deanery synod shall consist of a house of clergy and a house of laity.

(2)The members of the house of clergy of a deanery synod shall consist of—

(a)the clerks in Holy Orders beneficed in or licensed to any parish in the deanery;

(b)any clerks in Holy Orders licensed to institutions in the deanery under the M1Extra-Parochial Ministry Measure 1967;

(c)any clerical members of the General Synod or diocesan synod resident in the deanery;

(d)such other clerks in Holy Orders holding the bishop’s licence and resident or working in any part of the deanery as may be determined by or in accordance with a resolution of the diocesan synod.

[F1(e)one retired clerk in Holy Orders who has attained the retiring age within the meaning of the M2Clergy Pensions Measure 1961 at the relevant date, chosen in such manner as may be approved by the bishop by and from among the retired clerks in Holy Orders who have attained that age at that date, are resident in the deanery and are not licensed to any parish in the deanery or to any institution therein under the said Measure of 1967.]

[F2(2A)Where an extra parochial place is not in a deanery it shall be deemed for the pruposes of these rules to belong to the deanery which it abuts and if there is any doubt in the matter a determination shall be made by the bishop’s council and standing committee.]

[F3(2B)For the purposes of [F4paragraph (2)(e) above] the relevant date shall be the 31st December in the year immdiately preceding any eleciton of the parochial representatives of the laity, and as soon as possible after that date the rural dean of the deanery shall inform the bishop of the number of clerks in Holy Orders who are qualified for membership of the deanery synod by virtue of that sub-paragraph.]

[F5(2C)Not later than 1st July following the election of parochial representatives of the laity to the deanery synod the secretary of the said synod shall send to the diocesan electoral registration officer appointed in accordance with rule 23A of these rules a list of the names and addresses of the members of the house of clergy, specifying the class of membership, and shall keep the said officer informed of subsequent changes in membership.]

(3)[F6Subject to the provisions of rule 1(3)] the members of the house of laity of a deanery synod shall consist of [F7the following persons, that is to say]—

(a)the parochial representatives elected to the synod by the annual meetings of the parishes of the deanery;

(b)any lay members of the General Synod [F8a diocesan synod or an area synod constituted in accordance with section 17 of the M3Dioceses Measure 1978] whose names are entered on the roll of any parish in the deanery;

[F9(c)if in the opinion of the bishop of the diocese any community of persons in the deanery who are in the spiritual care of a chaplain licensed by the bishop should be represented in that house, one lay person, being an actual communicant member of the Church of England of eighteen years or upwards, chosen in such manner as may be approved by the bishop by and from among the members of that community]

[F10(d)]such other lay persons, being deaconesses or . . . F11 lay workers licensed by the bishop to work in any part of the deanery, as may be determined by or in accordance with a resolution of the diocesan synod.

(4)The house of clergy and house of laity of a deanery synod may co-opt additional members of their respective houses, being clerks in Holy Orders or, as the case may be, lay persons who shall be actual communicant members of the Church of England of [F12eighteen years or upwards]:

Election and choice of membersE

20(1). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F15 The parochial representatives of the laity elected by annual meetings shall be so elected every three years, and shall hold office for a term of three years beginning with the 1st June next following their election.

(2)The numbers to be so elected from the several parishes shall be determined by resolution of the diocesan synod not later than the [F1631st December] in the year preceding any such elections, and those numbers shall be related to the numbers of names on the rolls of the parishes as certified . . . F17under rule 4 and provision may be made by the resolution for the separate representation of a district for which there is a district church council.

(3)Not later than the 31st December in the year preceding any such elections, the secretary of the diocesan synod shall certify to the secretary of each parochial church council the number of such representatives to be elected at the annual meeting of the parish and inform him of any provision for the separate representation of such a district as aforesaid and shall send to the secretary of each deanery synod copies of the certificates and information relating to the parishes of the deanery.

[F18(4). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F15 Any person to be chosen as mentioned in rule [F1919(2)(e) or]19(3)(c) shall be so chosen every three years and shall hold office for a term of three years beginning with the 1st June next following the date on which he is so chosen.]

[F20(5)]A resolution of the diocesan synod making provision under paragraph (2)(d) or (3) [F21(d)] of the last preceding rule for the membership of the clerks in Holy Orders or the deaconesses or lay workers therein mentioned may provide for the choice by a class of such persons of some of their number to be members, and for the term of office of persons so chosen.

[F22(6)]The diocesan synod shall exercise their powers under this and the last preceding rule so as to secure that the total number of members of any deanery synod in the diocese shall not be more than 150 and, so far as practicable, shall not be less than 50:

20AE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F24

Variation of Membership of Deanery Synods by SchemeE

21(1)If it appears to the diocesan synod that the preceding rules in this Part relating to the membership of deanery synods ought to be varied to meet the special circumstances of the diocese or the deaneries and to secure better representation of clergy or laity or both on the deanery synods, they may make a scheme for such variation, and, if the scheme comes into operation under this rule, the said rules shall have effect subject to the scheme:

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F25

(2)Copies of every such scheme must be sent to members of the diocesan synod at least fourteen days before the session at which they are considered, and every such scheme shall require the assent of the [F26house of bishops and of a two-thirds majority of the members of each of the other houses] of the synod present and voting.

[F27(3)A scheme approved by the diocesan synod as aforesaid shall be laid before the General Synod.

(4)If a member of the General Synod gives notice in accordance with the Standing Orders of that Synod that he wishes such a scheme to be debated, the scheme shall not come into operation unless it is approved by the General Synod.

(5)If no notice is given under paragraph (4) of this rule with respect to any such scheme, or such notice having been given, the scheme is approved by the General Synod, it shall come into operation on the day after the end of the group of sessions during which it was laid before, or approved by, the General Synod or on such date as may be specified in the scheme.]

Representation of Cathedral Clergy and LaityE

22(1)Any diocesan synod may provide by scheme for the representation on such deanery synod as may be determined by or under the scheme—

(a)of the dean or provost, the residentiary canons and other ministers of the cathedral church of the diocese, or any of them; and

(b)of lay persons who

(i)in a parish church cathedral are on the electoral roll prepared under rule 1(1); or

(ii)in any other cathedral are declared by the dean to be habitual worshippers at the cathedral church of the diocese and whose names are not entered on the roll of any parish.

(2)Paragraph (2) of the last preceding rule shall apply to schemes made under this rule.

ProcedureE

23(1)The diocesan synod shall make rules for deanery synods which shall provide—

(a)that the rural dean and a member of the house of laity elected by that house shall be joint chairmen of the deanery synod [F28and that they shall agree between them who shall chair each meeting of the synod or particular items of business on the agenda of the synod.];

(b)that there shall be a secretary of the deanery synod;

(c)that a specified minimum number of meetings shall be held by the deanery synod in each year;

(d)that on such matters and in such circumstances as may be specified in the rules, voting shall be by houses, but that otherwise decisions shall be taken by a majority of the members of the synod present and voting;

(e)that there shall be a standing committee of the synod with such membership and functions as the rules may provide;

(f)that the synod shall prepare and circulate to all parochial church councils in the deanery a report of its proceedings;

and may provide for such other matters consistent with these rules as the diocesan synod think fit.

(2)Subject to any such rules, the deanery synod shall have power to determine its own procedure.

[F29 Diocesan Electoral Registration Officer]E

23AIn every diocese, there shall be a diocesan electoral registration officer who shall be appointed by the bishop’s council and standing committee of the diocesan synod and who shall record the names and addresses of all members of the House of Clergy and House of Laity of the deanery synods in the diocese in two registers (in these rules respectively referred to as “the register of clerical electors” and “the register of lay electors”); the members co-opted to the house shall be listed separately in the appropriate register.