Church

Safeguarding Concerns or Allegations

If a child or adult is in immediate danger of significant or serious harm, please remove yourself from any danger, then immediately contact the emergency services by calling 999.

The diocesan procedure for responding to a safeguarding concern or allegation can be downloaded by clicking here https://d3hgrlq6yacptf.cloudfront.net/5f3ffda5728e0/content/pages/documents/initial-response-to-a-safeguarding-concern-or-allegation-210923.pdf

The Diocesan Safeguarding Team must be contacted within 24 hours of the concern or allegation.  

Please ring 024 7652 1345 

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The Church is located at the end of Church Road, Baginton. CV8 3AR

Full details about the church, worship and special occasions can be found on the accompanying pages

Funerals and Memorials

Gift Aid

Special Occasions

St John the Baptist History

Worship at St John the Baptist

Contact Details for the church: –

Reverend Petrica Bistran 07572 193260 or email  revpbistran@gmail.com

Churchwardens – Dawn Richardson 024 7630 2667 and Catherine Weston 024 7767 6157

N.B. These telephone numbers are ONLY to be used for matters relating to the Church.

Please note that the church cannot be contacted using the contact form on this website.

Funerals

Funerals

If you have to arrange a funeral, you have a number of choices, which a Funeral Director will put before you. If you decide that you would like a Christian minister to preside at the funeral, you may want to ask for a funeral in church or at a crematorium or cemetery, or a funeral beginning in church and ending with a committal at a crematorium or cemetery. The service in church allows you more time and you may wish to consider that.

If you or the person who has died is not a member of the Church of England, it is possible to have a Christian minister of a different denomination to preside at the service even if is held in church.

When we are notified of a funeral, we will meet you to discuss your needs and to offer you support in your bereavement. It is helpful to both you and to us if we can be contacted as soon as possible, before the date and time are fixed.

Memorial Services
If you wish, a memorial service can be arranged to take place on a different day from the funeral, or on the anniversary of a person’s death, or at any time you feel may be suitable.

Burial in the Churchyard
All of our three churches have what is called “open” churchyards. This means that, if someone dies who is resident in one of the parishes at the time of their death, their body may be buried in the churchyard. This right extends to people who are not Christians, and also applies to cremated remains.

Ashes may not be scattered in the churchyard.

Memorials in the Churchyard
Before you decide to place a memorial in one of the churchyards – a plaque, headstone or vase – you must supply the Rector with a specification. This will usually be done by the stonemason you have engaged, but the Rector is happy to have a preliminary discussion with you before you see the stonemason. The Rector is allowed to approve only certain types of stone, shapes and sizes of memorial and colours of lettering, and is not permitted to allow any design or picture on the stone other than a small plain cross.

If you want something outside the limits of what the Rector may allow, then it is possible to apply to the chief legal officer of Coventry Diocese – the Chancellor – for permission.  People have been successful in the past, but please note that there is no guarantee that the Chancellor will approve your application.

Contact Details for the church: –

Reverend Petrica Bistran 07572 193260 or email  revpbistran@gmail.com

Churchwardens – Dawn Richardson 024 7630 2667 and Catherine Weston 024 7767 6157

Please note that the church cannot be contacted using the contact form on this website.

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Gift Aid

If you pay tax, you can increase the value of your gift at no cost to yourself by signing a Gift Aid form which we can supply. This enables us to claim the tax you have paid back from the Inland revenue, an extra 25p for every £1 you give.

If you are a 40% tax payer, you can reclaim higher rate tax on everything you give.

Gift Aid can apply to all money you give to the church except for loose cash. If you give cash, we can still claim back the tax you have paid if you use the envelope scheme or the yellow Gift Aid envelopes in the pews.

Standing Order
This enables you to decide how much you want to give each month and when you want to give it. The church knows how much it is getting, which helps us to plan our budget.

Envelope Scheme
We supply you with weekly envelopes to put into the collection plate when you come to church.

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Contact Details for the church: –

Reverend Petrica Bistran 07572 193260 or email  revpbistran@gmail.com

Churchwardens – Dawn Richardson 024 7630 2667 and Catherine Weston 024 7767 6157

Please note that the church cannot be contacted using the contact form on this website.

Special Occasions

Baptism

If you live in one of our three parishes and would like to have your child baptized, please call the Rector to arrange a meeting. This will usually take place at the Vicarage in Ryton. He would like to see both parents if possible, and the child too!
If you live outside Baginton, Bubbenhall and Ryton, we may be able to baptize your child with the agreement of the church in the parish where you live.

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Confirmation
Many of us were baptised when we were babies or small children. When we are baptized, promises are made on our behalf by our parents and godparents. Later in life, we may want to make those promises for ourselves as grown-up Christians. At a special service, the Bishop hears us make our promises, lays his hands on us and prays that we will have the strength to keep the promises we have made. This is called Confirmation, and after it we are admitted to receive Holy Communion. In preparation for Confirmation, there are about a dozen weekly sessions of about an hour each at which we learn more about the Christian faith. These Confirmation classes are held about once or twice a year depending on the demand, either at Ryton Vicarage, or in one of the churches, or in someone’s home.  If you are interested please contact the Rector.

Weddings
If you decide to get married in church, there are certain rules that must be followed.

You must have some connection with one of our three churches. If one of you lives in one of our parishes, or if one of you is on the church Electoral Roll, you are entitled to get married in that church. If you have some other connection with tone of our churches that you think may entitle you to get married there, please contact the Rector to discuss the matter.

If one of you has a former partner still living (in other words, you are divorced), that does not necessarily mean that you may not get married in church, but we would want to talk to you before a decision could be made. Again, please contact the Rector to arrange a meeting.

We can arrange a wedding within a month if we have to, but the earlier you get in touch with us the more likely it is that you will get the date and time that you want.

Service of Prayer and Dedication
(Sometimes called a “marriage blessing”). If you decide to get married in a Register Office, or to marry abroad, you may wish to arrange a service of Prayer and Dedication afterwards. This may take place in church or elsewhere and may be as elaborate or as simple as you wish.

Renewal of Vows
Sometimes couples like to renew their marriage vows on an anniversary or following some important event in their lives. Again, we can arrange these in church or elsewhere.

Other Occasions
If you are temporarily or permanently unable to get to church and you would like us to bring you Holy
Communion in your home, please contact us.

If you or a friend or relative is ill, do let us know. We will add your name to our prayer list in church, and you may want to arrange for us to visit.

We have blessed houses when people have moved into them or following a burglary or a fire, we have dedicated places of work and vehicles, fields, allotments, gardens and crops and we have held church services celebrating significant anniversaries of village clubs and organizations. We believe that God is interested in every aspect of people’s lives, and we would be honoured to be a part of your family occasion or group celebration.

Contact Details for the church: –

Reverend Petrica Bistran 07572 193260 or email  revpbistran@gmail.com

Churchwardens – Dawn Richardson 024 7630 2667 and Catherine Weston 024 7767 6157

Please note that the church cannot be contacted using the contact form on this website.

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St John the Baptist History

Situated in the heart of Warwickshire, the whole of the village and its church are within Warwickshire Green Belt. The church stands on a plateau 70 feet above the River Sowe to the north and is somewhat on the edge of the village, which was originally grouped near it but has now spread down the hill towards Coventry. It is one of the oldest inhabited places in the country.

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The story of the village and the church revolves largely around the three families which held the manor for long periods of time -the Ensors and Herthills, the Bagots and the Bromleys. All three families have left something important still to be seen in the church. The Domesday Book, although recording Baginton under the name of “Badechitone”, does not mention a church.

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In 1285 the first parish priest, Thomas de Dunton, was appointed by the Prior of Kenilworth – a list of incumbents, recorded by Dugdale, in his Antiquities of Warwickshire, first published in 1656, is given on the wooden tablets in the chancel.

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From 1981 Baginton parish was part of the combined benefice of Stoneleigh with Ashow in the Deanery of Kenilworth then, from 2002 was combined with Ryton and Bubbenhall in the Rugby Deanery and the patron of the combined benefice is now the Bishop of Coventry and Lord Leigh jointly.

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Contact Details for the church: –

Reverend Petrica Bistran 07572 193260 or email  revpbistran@gmail.com

Churchwardens – Dawn Richardson 024 7630 2667 and Catherine Weston 024 7767 6157

Please note that the church cannot be contacted using the contact form on this website.

Worship at St John the Baptist

Our Village Service is led by members of our congregation and is a “Service of the Word”. It follows a regular format which provides the opportunity for lay people to lead fellow church members in worshipping God using an approved format. This includes prayers, hymns, readings from Holy Scripture, a talk and an authorised creed stating our beliefs. Towards the end of this service we are joined by the Sunday school who share with us their learning for that session. Other services are described under the Regular Services section below.

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Sidesmen and Sideswomen
At our church we like to extend a warm welcome to everyone joining us for worship at Sunday services. Each year volunteers are authorised to undertake this important job which includes preparing the church for worship, welcoming people to the services, taking the collection and conducting people to take communion.

Servers and Chalice Bearers
A small team of members of our congregation are licensed by the bishop and trained to assist at the altar and to help serve the wine during communion services.

Readers and Intercessors
Many members of our church are regularly involved in leading worship either by reading from the Bible or as intercessors who lead the congregation in prayer. Preparing and leading the prayers is an important part of all our services and guidance is available. New volunteers for both roles are always welcome.

The Choir
Our organist chooses the music and manages the choir who lead the singing during church services. We are  always looking for new talent to join our established choir and like to learn new hymns to enhance our worship.

Bell Ringing
Although we have only two bells they are rung regularly to call people to worship and to celebrate after weddings. 

Refreshments
After most services we finish our time of worship in fellowship over a cup of tea or coffee when we enjoy the opportunity to have a chat.

Sunday School
Our Sunday School meets each month during our Village Service. It is led by Mrs Catherine Weston who provides interesting activities for the children related to the theme of the adult service.

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Regular Services
The first Sunday of the month: 10.00am United Service*
The second Sunday of the month: 4.00pm Family Service
The third Sunday of the month: 10.00am Holy Communion
The fourth Sunday of the month: 10.00am Village Service (LayLed)

The fifth Sunday of the month: 10.00am United Service*
Extra services also take place to celebrate the principal feast days of the Church’s calendar as well as our patronal feasts.
*On the first and fifth Sunday of each month the parishes in our benefice come together to celebrate a united Holy Communion. Each of our churches take it in turns to host this service. Details are advertised on the notice board outside the church.

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The Village Service: This is a relaxed, lay-led service that provides a warm, informal space for all who come. It’s designed to be a welcoming environment where people can gather, reflect, and pray together, regardless of their background or previous church experience. The service is simple, unhurried, and filled with the warmth of community, making it an ideal space for those who are looking for a more approachable and accessible way to worship. Everyone is encouraged to come as they are and take part at their own pace.

The Family Service: Our Family Service is an all-age worship experience designed to be inclusive and engaging for both children and adults. With fun and interactive activities for young ones, as well as opportunities for reflection and prayer, it creates a vibrant atmosphere where all generations can connect. The service is designed to make families feel at ease, and noisy children are always welcomed here! It’s a joyful, energetic service that helps everyone, regardless of age, explore their faith together as one church family.

The Celtic Service: Rooted in Celtic spirituality, this service offers a creative and imaginative way to reconnect with God. Drawing from ancient traditions, the Celtic Service invites us to explore our faith through music, poetry, silence, and moments of reflection, helping us to deepen our relationship with God in a unique and meaningful way. It’s a space where we can all belong before we believe, creating an atmosphere of inclusivity and openness. The service is perfect for those looking for a contemplative and spiritual experience, inviting each person to find their own connection with God, no matter where they are on their journey of faith.

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Contact Details for the church: –

Reverend Petrica Bistran 07572 193260 or email  revpbistran@gmail.com

Churchwardens – Dawn Richardson 024 7630 2667 and Catherine Weston 024 7767 6157

Please note that the church cannot be contacted using the contact form on this website.

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