Gold EcoChurch Award for The Priory Church of St Mary, in Usk
The Priory Church of St. Mary, Usk, in the diocese of Monmouth has become the diocese’s first Gold EcoAward Church.
The award was given by the Christian conservation charity A Rocha UK, and reflects St. Mary's commitment to walk in step with nature and put caring for God’s creation at the heart of all that it does.
St. Mary’s has improved its lighting to an energy efficient style and usage, created and adheres to a comprehensive land management plan, only uses fair trade products, and ensures that its worship and comprehensive diary of events are all in line with its eco desires and credentials. The churchyard is a haven for native species of flora and fauna, and there is extensive recycling, reducing, and re-using of items involved in every part of church life.
The church community led by Carol Southwell our “Eco Lead”, works in partnership with other local groups to ensure that every part of church and community life considers the environmental impact of its actions, and takes creative and thorough efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of the church and ensure that God’s creation is treated with care and respect.
The assessors particularly commented on the team approach that the church demonstrated, with people focusing on property, worship, the churchyard, the church decorations, community connections, the toddler group, and many other parts of church life all taking responsibility for a cohesive and integrated approach. They also expressed excitement at the plans the church community has to continue to improve the eco credentials of the church.
Rev’d Sally said “Under Carol’s watchful care we have been able to live out our Christian faith in ways that give glory to God, whilst also demonstrating good stewardship of all that he has entrusted into our care. We continue to strive for a world where humankind shows respect for nature, and does its utmost to use and share our resources fairly and wisely, just as God has asked of us. This has been a whole church effort and we are delighted to have achieved so much, with plenty more still to do”.
The Priory Church of St. Mary would like to thank A Rocha UK for their ongoing encouragement and support, ensuring that the environment and its care is front and centre in all aspects of the congregation’s faith and Christian living.
A Rocha UK is a unique Christian nature conservation charity, mobilising Christians and churches to care for the natural world. They run conservation activities on our own reserves and advise a network of conservation partners across the UK; they equip and inspire Christians to enjoy, nurture and defend nature; and they run the Eco Church and related eco denominational schemes. arocha.org.uk
Eco Church is a free online award scheme for churches of all denominations in England and Wales, launched by A Rocha UK in 2016. The Eco Church initiative helps churches link environmental issues and their Christian faith and respond in practical action in the church, people’s lives, and the local and global community. It has awards at three levels (bronze, silver, and gold) and considers how the environment is addressed within 5 key areas: worship and teaching, buildings and land, community and global engagement, and lifestyle. Eco Church helps churches of all shapes, sizes and traditions along the journey of caring for the environment - from making church land wildlife-friendly to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, from integrating praise for creation into worship to speaking up for governments to act. The scheme is growing rapidly, with over 8,500 registered churches and over 4,000 awarded churches to date. ecochurch.arocha.org.uk
