Notices
Prayer Point and Prayer Day
Prayer points for December are here.
Church of Scotland Day of Prayer is on November 29.
The Day of Prayer has been planned as a way to console Church members after the difficulties of recent years, and through praying together to inspire renewal throughout the Church. You can find a wide range of materials here.
We will be livestreaming the first hour (11am–12noon) and the final hour (7–8pm) of the day. So, if you're not able to join in person, you can still be part of this time of prayer and worship from wherever you are. Links to livestreams can be found on the same page.
Placement Supervisor Training 2026
Any Minister can apply to be considered for participation in Supervisor training, as long as they are serving in a context which enables them to work with a ministry Candidate as they carry out one of their mandatory placements with them. As such it is generally only open to those serving full time as ministers of word and sacrament.
Prospective Supervisors are required to contact the Faith Action Training Team via the email address, MinistriesTraining@churchofsoctland.org.uk , expressing their interest. They will then be invited to the Church of Scotland Learning platform space dedicated to Supervisors in order to view a short introductory video and access the application form. In order to seek presbytery approval, those applying are required to submit their completed application form to the committee in their presbytery which is responsible for oversight of ministry training. Fully signed off forms should be emailed to the Faith Action Training Team.
The attached document lists the competences that a placement Supervisor would be expected to have, some of which will be developed during the training. The attached document gives the proposed dates and also provides a summary of the training process.
Treasurers Hub Volunteers, we're looking for you!
We want to create a Treasurers Hub to support and advise congregations in our presbytery.
It is a free service to congregations within the Presbytery bounds under the auspices of the NENI Presbytery. The service will be provided by competent, experienced personnel on a voluntary basis and is intended to be available within normal ‘office’ hours and congregations seeking to use the services of the Hub must understand there is no mandatory obligation on the Hub to provide the service at any given time.
Purpose of the Treasurers Hub
- Knowledge base for inexperienced/new Church Treasurers
- Coaching, mentoring, guidance for inexperienced/new Church Treasurers
- Shared resource for Churches unable to fill Treasurer vacancies
- Minimize Church financial spend on outsourcing
- Increase consistency in preparation and presentation of accounts
If you are ready to help, feel free to approach mikeleys41@gmail.com with note of your interest to be involved. Thank you!
Service of Induction - November 27, 6:45pm
And Presbytery meets at 6.45pm on Thursday 27th November at West Gordon Parish Church (Alford) for a Service of Induction of Rev Jeliase Mutimbairi.
Please do make every effort to attend these special services.
LAST CALL REFUEL sub-group
CSI is looking to organise a sub-group to liaise with Clèir Eilean ì to have a Church of Scotland presence at this festival. If you are being nudged to be involved, contact ABender@churchofscotland.org.uk
Opportunities to Participate in the Church Nationally
Dear fellow members of the Church of Scotland,
The Church is going through a time of significant change, locally, regionally and nationally.
The people who make the decisions about the Church nationally include staff, those who attend the General Assembly, and those who, between times, make time to participate in a national group or committee. The Nomination Committee now needs your active support to find the right people to serve on these groups and committees.
Maybe you, or someone you know, have the potential to rise to the occasion. We are looking for people with vision and determination, who are willing to help our Church in the years ahead as we work our way through the challenges and the necessary restructuring to make the Church of Scotland fit for the future. A short video, accessible here, explains the process in further detail.
Those who wish to serve are invited to complete an online nomination form, accessible here on the Church of Scotland website, with someone – from their local congregation or Presbytery – saying they support the nomination. We ask you to complete the form because the more relevant information we have, the better we can do our job of placing people on the various groups and committees. If you encounter any difficulties in completing the form, you may wish to seek assistance from a trusted individual, such as your Minister.
Serving nationally is a good way of getting to know the Church better and engaging with others from across the country and beyond. While it needs commitment and can be demanding, it is a real opportunity to extend one’s Christian service and witness.
It should be noted that, due to the high expectations placed on Candidates in Training, Probationers and Ministers in their first year following ordination, they are not normally invited to serve on committees.
Nominations must reach us by Sunday 18 January 2026. We will treat the forms confidentially and consider them carefully. We meet on Thursday 5 and Friday 6 February 2026 and those selected will then be contacted. This is to seek permission from the individual for their name to go to the General Assembly in May 2026 for approval. Appointments commence after the General Assembly.
Not everyone will be asked to serve, or sometimes they may be asked if they are willing to serve on a committee or group other than those they have mentioned on their form.
We are keen to receive nominations from a broad representation across the church and depend on you and others spreading the word and actively encouraging involvement.
Any queries on the nomination process should be emailed to nominations@churchofscotland.org.uk
Ministries (formerly Leadership) Safeguarding Training (from 121 Safeguarding Service) - new dates added
Here are the links for further dates for Leadership Safeguarding Training:
Ministers for the purposes of the Safeguarding Training Learning Pathway means parish ministers, Interim Ministers, Transition Ministers, auxiliary ministers, probationers, OLM, readers, locums and Armed Forces chaplains.
Retired Ministers who do not have a current role need not attend.
Individuals must have attended Introductory and Advanced training prior to this module which is the last in the training pathway. We would ask that these training courses have been completed within the past 3 - 5 years. Refresher training thereafter is mandatory every 5 years (only the highest level previously attended, which would be Leadership training).
If your presbytery requires face to face training for Leadership Safeguarding Training, please don’t hesitate to fill in the form here and we will do our best to accommodate.
Resources
New College Courses for the Church Community
As part of the work of New College to resource the Church of Scotland and beyond, the School of Divinity offers a range of short courses for lay and ordained people. While the courses are open to everyone, they are particularly aimed at those in churches who seek to develop their understanding of Christian theology, worship and mission.
https://divinity.ed.ac.uk/news-events/short-courses-for-church-people
Interest and queries: Rev Dr Alexander Forsyth aforsyth@churchofscotland.org.uk
Introduction to Suicide Prevention
These are online sessions via Teams open to anyone who in Aberdeen City or Moray. Dates are:
19th November
11th December
13th January
This link will take you to booking.
Wave After Wave
Providing a compassionate response following suicide bereavement.
The next face to face date is at Aberdeen Health Village on 25th November. This session was fully booked but we’ve been able to open up a few more spaces and added a waiting list.
There will be another face to face Moray date coming up and will be added to this booking link once dates are confirmed.
Download the poster here.
Seeds for Growth – Funding Opportunities for 2026
Seeds for Growth exists to support the numerical and spiritual growth of the Church through fresh expressions of mission and ministry. The fund offers three levels of grants — from small-scale, one-off missional activities to larger, longer-term projects that can develop new worshipping communities or revitalise existing congregations.
This year, the smaller grants (up to £1,000) may be particularly useful for congregations who are:
- Beginning to explore new or contextually relevant forms of mission;
- Hoping to undertake community listening or audit work; or
- Wanting to pilot a local outreach or engagement event.
If your congregation is thinking about developing a missional idea, community project, or new form of worship, Seeds for Growth could be a great fit. You can find full details and the application process here:
🔗 Seeds for Growth – Church of Scotland Grants and Funding
If you’d like to talk through whether your idea might be eligible or how it could align with Presbytery priorities, please get in touch with Natasha Hepburn.
Employment Law Workshop Series
The Presbytery of the North East and the Northern Isles is hosting a four-part online series with David Di Paola, Solicitor – Church of Scotland Law Department.
Session 1: Employment, Recruitment & Contracts (18 Sept, 11am)
Learn best practice in recruitment, interviews, job offers, and contracts.
Thursday 18 September 2025, 11am
Online via Zoom
Register here
Session 2: Absence Management (30 Oct, 2pm)
From sickness policies to return-to-work processes, explore how to manage absence fairly and lawfully.
Thursday 30 October 2025, 2pm
Online via Zoom
Register here
Session 3: Staff Handbooks & Policies (20 Nov, 11am)
What should every staff handbook include? From health & safety to grievance procedures, get the essentials right.
Thursday 20 November 2025, 11am
Online via Zoom
Register here
Session 4: Grievance & Disciplinary Training (11 Dec, 11am)
Learn how to handle grievances and disciplinary issues fairly and consistently in this practical session.
Thursday 11 December 2025, 11am
Online via Zoom
Register here:
Here is the pdf of the poster.
Worship Leading and Preaching Courses
The University of Aberdeen has launched two updated courses to help church members develop skills in worship leading and preaching.
The two courses will commence as follows:
- Leading Worship – 26 January 2026
- Preaching – 20 April 2026
Both courses are six-weeks in duration involving recorded lectures, live online tutorials and online material.
The system is set up so that the individual will be charged a £50 fee to be paid at time of registration by credit card, and then they also provide confirmation of what their church and then presbytery are contributing and their contact information so that the invoices are sent to those two organisations.
Feel free to download poster 1 and poster 2 for your churches.
Here is the link to register for both courses.
Funded places available for church growth - LyCiG conference
The Seeds for Growth programme has been seeking to identify ways to support congregational revival. Evidence has demonstrated that one of the most effective approaches is from the “Leading your Church into Growth” (LyCiG) process.
LyCiG offers a non-denominational, accessible, inspiring, and enabling conference for everyone who wants to see numerical and spiritual growth in their congregation. Research has found that Church’s whose leaders attend a LyCiG course typically grow their congregation by 10% within one year, and meaningful contacts with young people by 18% in the same timeframe.
Seeds for Growth now has funding available (on a first come first served basis) to support fifteen congregations to attend the forthcoming conference taking place in Swanwick, Derbyshire from 2nd - 4th February 2026. More information is available here: www.leadingyourchurchintogrowth.org.uk/.
Places at LyCiG conferences fill quickly and if you are interested in attending, please contact Grants@churchofscotland.org.uk to confirm we still have funded places. When applying to us for funding please also email this address stating:
- your congregation and presbytery
- your booking confirmation from LyCiG
- the number of places you have booked on the course (min 3 max 5 and inclusive of your minister/Interim Moderator/Locum)
- confirmation from your Session Clerk that the Kirk Session have been consulted and give support for this application
- confirmation you have support of your Presbytery in making this application
- your estimated travel costs (at 25p per mile if travelling by car)
- the costs of any overnight accommodation, if required for the evening before the conference the congregational bank details for Seeds of Growth to make payment to
Seeds for Growth funds revitalisation in our own congregations and will cover all reasonable transport, accommodation, and course costs for the first fifteen congregations applying to us for funding.
Read Jamie Milliken's reflections on attending the conference here.
Vacancies
Ministry Assistant for the West Mainland
Ministry Assistant for the West Mainland (Charge 1)
Orkney Islands Church of Scotland
Part Time 9 hours 22 minutes per week (0.25FTE)
Salary £7,383 to £8,347 per annum
Ref: M01/25
Could you be part of something different? We have an exciting opportunity for a motivated and enthusiastic individual to use their gifts, skills and experience to make a difference to the lives of the people in our parishes and communities.
We are looking for a Ministry Assistant who will concentrate on the first Mark of Mission to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom, with the postholder largely focusing on Sunday work.
The successful candidate will have significant recent experience in leading worship and preaching with a good knowledge and understanding of congregational life of the Church of Scotland or be willing to learn. The candidate must be a committed Christian with an active Church connection (Genuine Occupational Requirement in terms of the Equality Act 2010) and have a relevant qualification in theology/pastoral care/counselling or similar, or significant, relevant and recent work experience in the area.
It is essential you have the right to work in the UK before applying to work with us. You will be asked to provide proof of your eligibility to work and remain in the UK if you are invited to attend for an interview.
For a full job description and details on how to apply, please click here.
Closing date: At present there is no closing date set and the post will remain open until further notice.
Events
Turriff Community Singers Concert - November 27
Online Launch Concert for We're the Land of Scots - 28th November, 11 am
We’re the Land of Scots is a new children’s Scottish national anthem celebrating all things Scottish. From bairns up to grannies, coast to coast and in-between we can help each other and celebrate belonging here together.
Follow the link to book!
Quiz Night - November 28
Keith Silver Band Concert - November 30
Theology and Music Conference - 12-15 January 2026
The Scottish Church Theology Society Conference 2026 invites you to gather at Stirling Court Hotel for an inspiring exploration of the rich intersection between theology and music. This annual event brings together renowned speakers, scholars, musicians, and church leaders to share insights, experience, and creativity.
Across four days, participants will enjoy a vibrant program of keynote talks, interactive workshops, and lively discussions. Whether you are a theologian, musician, clergy, student, or layperson, the conference is designed to deepen your appreciation for the theological dimensions of music and to equip you with fresh ideas for worship and ministry.
• Keynote presentations by leading thinkers and practitioners
• Practical workshops for worship and music ministry
• Opportunities for discussion and networking
You can find more information here.
Inverurie and District u3a - 13 January at 10.30am
Inverurie and District u3a goes live on 13 January at 10.30am in St Andrew’s Church Hall, Inverurie.
If you are retired or no longer in full-time work, u3a is meant for you. It brings together people who want to learn new skills and share their knowledge and interests with others. Members can join in a range of activities and share experiences in the company of new friends.
What is u3a?
Meetings are held each month with a guest speaker, to which all members are invited. More importantly, members meet in special interest groups, with topics decided by, and led by, the members themselves. The number and range of subjects is limited only by their imagination and the choices they make.
Founded by the Third Age Trust, it has branches all over the country, with links through a Scottish network to share information and ideas. Each branch is managed locally by its own members to organise groups and events.
What happens now
If you are interested in anything from photography to philosophy, crosswords to cooking, archaeology to arts and crafts, walking to talking, or just want to meet with new people to share ideas, we would like to invite you to our inaugural meeting to find out more. It takes place on
Tuesday 13th January at 10.30am in St Andrews Church Hall, Inverurie
You will be very welcome!
Don't forget to send your news to doskolkova@churchofscotland.org.uk