Thurstable and Winstree Team Ministry

serving the parishes of Tolleshunt Knights with Tiptree, Great Braxted, Copford, Easthorpe, Messing, Inworth,
Layer de la Haye, Layer Breton with Birch, and Layer Marney

The 'Layer' Parishes: Layer de la Haye • Layer Breton with Birch • Layer Marney

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Welcome

C of E logo The three 'Layer' parishes serve the Essex villages of Layer de la Haye, Birch, Layer Breton, and Layer Marney. We are part of the Church of England and our parishes are situated in attractive rural settings, just south of Colchester.

Our parishes are within the 9-parish Benefice of Thurstable and Winstree. The Layer parishes work closely with the parishes of Copford and Easthorpe. The other four parishes in the benefice are Tolleshunt Knights with Tiptree, Great Braxted, Messing and Inworth.

We welcome everyone who would like to join us for our services of worship, or our social events, regardless of the stage he or she has reached on their own spiritual journey. Meeting and worshipping together are essential parts of christian faith and life.

On this website you can find a range of information about our parishes and their activities.
Lower down this page are links to the main pages on the site, each with a brief explanation of content.

St John the Baptist, Layer de la Haye - The Sanctuary

Benefice Clergy

Team Rector: The Rev'd Anne-Marie Renshaw, who has overall responsibility for leading ministry in the benefice.

Team Vicar: The Rev'd Jackson Crompton-Battersby.

Associate Priests: The Rev'ds Liz Barnes, Christine Eaton, Christine Newmarch, Ruth Hatchett and Michael Hatchett.

Baptisms, Weddings and Funerals

To discuss a baptism, wedding or funeral please contact the Team Rector, The Revd Anne-Marie Renshaw.

Useful information for those considering a wedding in any of the churches in our benefice can be found on the page Wedding Information for Enquirers

News (see also our Forthcoming Events page)

Weekly Newssheet for Week Commencing Sunday, 3rd December 2023

The newssheet (in PDF format) for the benefice's nine parishes for the above Sunday can be viewed and/or downloaded by using this link: Weekly Newssheet.

Our Churches Open for Private Prayer

Our churches are open for individual private prayer (except during services) as follows:

St John the Baptist, Layer de la Haye: Open daily from 10:00am to 4:00pm.

St Mary the Virgin, Layer Marney: Open daily from 10:00am to 4:00pm.
If you would prefer to visit Layer Marney Church at a quiet time, please see the entries on our weekly news sheet under 'Coming Up This Week' to check when the church will be busy. In addition, other activities may also be taking place during the week when we are preparing for wedding ceremonies and other services.

St Michael & All Angels, Copford: Open daily from 9:00am to 4:00pm.

St Mary the Virgin, Easthorpe: Open daily from 10:00am to 4:00pm.

The above days and times are those effective as at March 2023.

Church Giving

Thank you to everyone who continues to give to our churches, by whatever means: it is much appreciated.

If you would like to help us with our costs by setting up a standing order or making payments direct (e.g. through internet banking) to one of our bank accounts, please contact your PCC Treasurer for the information you will need. (For Layer de la Haye parish this is Mrs Anne Hughes (01206-734168))

If you wish to make payments to the church of St John the Baptist, Layer de la Haye, whether by cheque, standing order or direct debit, please note that the name of its bank account is now St John the Baptist Church, Layer de la Haye.

Safeguarding Statement

We are committed to Safeguarding children and young people and vulnerable adults.

The PCCs have adopted the Church of England’s policies and best practice on safeguarding which may be found on the Church of England’s website: www.churchofengland.org/more/safeguarding

Details of our Parish Safeguarding Representatives are:
Layer de la Haye: Anne Hughes, Tel: 01206-734168; Email: info@mrsmushroom.co.uk
Layer Marney and Layer Breton with Birch: Judy Bancroft - Tel: 01206-330067; Email: jimmy.bancroft@btinternet.com

Site Map

Services of Worship: Normal times and places of Sunday and weekday services.
Forthcoming Events: Forthcoming events and dates for your diary
The Churches: Locations and brief histories of our three churches.
Ministry Team & Church Officers: The clergy and key office holders.
Wedding Information for Enquirers: Useful information for those considering a wedding in any of the churches
in our benefice of Thurstable and Winstree, including the 'Layer' churches.
Praying & Prayers: An introduction to prayer, with a selection of prayers.
Confirmation: The step of Christian commitment.
Parish Magazines: Our regular monthly publications.
Church Histories: Histories of our churches available here as downloads.
Layer de la Haye Bells: The bells at St John the Baptist and the restoration completed in January 2001.
Layer de la Haye Church Guide: A brief descriptive guide for visitors to St John the Baptist.
English - Nederlandse vertaling - Übersetzung Deutsch - Français
The Fallen of the Layer Parishes in Two World Wars: The names, and some biographical details, of those from the parishes of Layer Marney, Birch, Layer Breton and Layer de la Haye who fell in two World Wars.
Data Privacy Notice: The Data Privacy Notice of the Parochial Church Councils of the nine parishes in the Thurstable and Winstree benefice. The Notice has been prepared and issued in compliance with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation.
Links: Links to other websites.

Further Afield - Our Parishes in Context

Our parishes are in the Witham Deanery.

Witham Deanery is in the Diocese of Chelmsford. To learn more about our large Diocese which stretches from heavily populated East London to quiet rural Essex villages, visit the Chelmsford Diocesan Website.

Diocesan Bishop The Rt Revd Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani Bishop of Chelmsford	Area Bishop The Rt Revd Roger Morris Bishop of Colchester
Archdeacon The Ven Ruth Patten Archdeacon of Colchester	Area Dean The Revd Simon Garwood Witham Area Dean