Growing in the Love of God

The Upper Wylye Valley Team

Welcome to the website of the Upper Wylye Valley Team. Whether you live here in this delightful part of Wiltshire, visit it for family, social or business reasons or are thinking of moving here I hope you will be struck by the friendliness of the people and the sense of community provided by our villages, the rural nature of our lives and the church - among the many other experiences here.

This site aims to inform and interest you, and to guide and lead you through our various parishes, activities and opportunities and I hope you enjoy the journey across this rich tapestry of life. The heart of our message is encapsulated in our Mission and the Vision set out below and all the links you will find on the site either lead from those or to them.

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Priest in Charge for the Upper Wylye Valley Team

moreley

Revd. Alison Morley was raised on a small-holding in a rural area of the Isle of Wight and finishedschool there in 1985. She is married to Philip, a Plant Scientist, and they have three children, each ofwhom she schooled at home until the age of 16. Their elder daughter, a land agent, is married to another land agent and they have a young daughter. The younger daughter is at university in London,and their son is studying to be a horse trainer. In 2000 she was called to ministry in the Methodist Church, initially as a local preacher, and studying part-time at STETS in Salisbury for a theology diploma [with merit]. From 2008 she was the Minister of four churches in Wiltshire, two of which were rural; and she studied successfully for a MA part-time at Sarum College between 2009 and 2013. She entered the Church of England and was ordained Deacon in 2013 and Priest in 2014. She became a Curate with Revd. Canon Paul Richardson in Devizes in 2013, and has been seconded, while seeking an incumbency, to the Calne and Blackland Team to assist in rural ministry. In her spare-time she is studying a part-time PhD in Practical Theology at university.

It is clear that Alison has a strong vocation for the sacramental life of the Church of England, and is dedicated to pastoral care of people of all ages and worship in rural parishes. While home educatingher children on the Isle of Wight she gathered a group of over 60 families all engaged in home education, who worked together, with her leading, to ensure an excellent education and social life for their children. She has experience of leading a number of Methodist congregations, and the administration involved in a multi-parish benefice does not present any major challenge to her. She strongly believes that teams of rural churches, such as ours, can flourish. She enjoys rural recreations that include horse riding and dog walking, and her family is her greatest joy.

Richard Southwell, as the chairman of the Team Council, sends this message: ‘We are very fortunate that Alison Morley has found us. We are grateful to all those in the Team who have been involved in the process to advertise, attract and select candidates for this post, to everyone who has held the ring during the Vacancy and, latterly, to all those who prepared for, and helped host, Alison Morley’s visit. This has truly been a ‘team’ effort and we have the best of all possible results to celebrate. The focus for our prayers now shifts from our Team and its needs to Alison, Philip and their family as they settle in here.

Latest News from the Blog

Taize Service

29 August 2017

The Taize Service is a serene half an hour of contemplative prayer, meditation and song in a church lit with candles. Let yourself unwind and gently reflect on your past, enjoy being in the moment and revitalise your spirit. Every 1st Sunday of the month at the beautiful St James Church, Tytherington.

Heytesbury Bell Ringing Day

15 August 2017

Come and have a go at bell ringing on Saturday the 9th September at Heytesbury Church. Doors open at 9.30am – 4.30pm and you are welcome to come and ring the bells, enjoy tower tours and refreshments. Do join us for what will be an entertaining and informative day. We look forward to seeing you…

Bug Hunters

31 July 2017

Dearest Bug Hunters – sorry for the little pause BUG Hunters is BACK with our first meet of the summer being held next Thursday afternoon – at Bunters – where we are kindly able to use their sculpture (scraptor) garden in pursuit of bugs! Carrying out Opal’s bug hunt. Please see details below and kindly…

A Teddy Bear Tea

26 July 2017

Musical Toddlers – Summer finale – “A teddy bear tea!” What an amazing finish to our last Musical Toddlers of the summer. By kind invitation of Belinda and Richard Southwell we were lucky enough to have a teddy bear tea in the very beautiful gardens of Upton Lovell Manor. A heavenly location blessed with sunshine…

Team Service 30 July 2017 Boyton

13 July 2017

The Team Service on 30th July 2017 at Boyton at 10am will be using the Order of Service from the Iona Community in Scotland. This Ecumenical liturgy is deeply connected to creation and care for each other and is refreshingly different and deeply reverent. Do come and be part of this special service. (Quiet activities…

Pet Service

27 June 2017

It is a privilege and an honour to announce that we have a renowned and much loved writer who has written a report on the Pet Service which took place last Sunday. Some will know him from the Parish News where he has his own column “Turbo’s Tales’s”. A huge thank you to Turbo I’m…