A CHURCH in Peasedown St John has appointed a new families pastor to join its staff team and to support its growing outreach and community engagement work in the village.

St John’s Church, known for its focus on running person-centred community projects, has welcomed Claire Carr to take up the new role.

Claire, known already to the church community through her work as the assistant worship pastor and finance officer, is a qualified primary school teacher and worked for many years at schools around Bath.

She said: “Having attended as a parent and part-time employee at Little Ones, St John’s weekly pre-school group, I know how valuable the service is and want to keep it going. After speaking with the church leadership about expanding their support for children and families, I decided to accept the offer and become the church’s new Families Pastor.

“What I’m looking forward to most is getting to know families in Peasedown St John and providing a space at Little Ones where parents can feel seen, heard and supported and the children happy and engaged.”

As St John’s new families pastor, Claire will be running the Little Ones group for parents and pre-school children on Friday mornings from 10 am to noon at St John’s Church.

Curate at St John’s Church, Rev Rachel Howlett, said: “We’re looking forward to supporting Claire in her new role as families pastor at St John’s Church. he comes with a wealth of experience and knowledge as a former Primary School teacher and as a mother too looking after her own three children!”

For details about St John’s Church and their work in the community visit www.stjsgroup.church, or contact the operations manager Rob Bubyer by emailing [email protected] or calling 07973 972018.