About Church Union
The Presbytery Plan
In 2021, the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland decided to take radical action in response to falling numbers of ministers, a decline in membership and a drop in income both nationally and locally. Presbyteries were required to produce a five-year mission plan to ensure congregations are properly equipped to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and to serve their communities for the coming decades.
In this area, the Presbytery Mission Plan specifies:
- The three formerly separate congregations of Portland, St Meddan’s and Troon Old will unite to form one new Troon Church.
- The new church will be served by a ministry team built around two full-time ministers.
- Portland and St Meddan’s sanctuaries* are to be retained for worship.
- Troon Old sanctuary* is to close for worship.
- Three sets of halls are required for mission (see Q&A).
- The future of Troon Old halls is subject to a feasibility study (see Q&A).
- There should be provision for a “Local Mission Church” in north east Troon.
* sanctuary = main church
Our Vision for Troon
The new Troon Church of Scotland will serve the whole town of Troon, aiming to fulfil the Five Marks of Mission…
The mission of the Church is the mission of Christ:
- To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom
- To teach, baptise and nurture new believers
- To respond to human need by loving service
- To seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and pursue peace and reconciliation
- To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth.
Troon Church of Scotland will be served by a ministry team comprising two full-time Ministers of Word and Sacrament, a part-time Ordained Local Minister (when available), and a locally-funded children/youth/family worker.
Congregational life will continue to centre on Sunday morning worship. Beyond that, the availability of two full-time ministers and well-equipped, flexible, spaces will enable new patterns of worship and opportunities for fellowship and discipleship to be offered, while maintaining pastoral care, chaplaincies and long-established relationships with local groups and organisations.
Led by the ministry team, the congregation will explore fresh expressions of church life and other forms of outreach and service to the community. God willing, we will share the good news of God’s love in word and action, touching lives and making a difference in Troon and beyond.
Union and Beyond
Church union is a complex and lengthy process. On the legal side of things, church law required a document called the “Basis of Union” to be prepared and approved; other formalities were required to comply with charity law. All three congregations voted to approve the Basis of Union on 10th March 2024, and the Union happened officially on 1st July 2024.
Practically, there are many, many aspects of everyday church life which must be merged. Although much has already been achieved, some of that work will take months to finish and is still ongoing.
And, emotionally, members face the challenge of adapting to a changing congregational community – simply putting names to new faces is a challenge in itself. The journey has begun and, despite the strangeness of the experience, there is a strong streak of willingness to move forward together with hope for the future.
The Basis of Union Explained
The Basis of Union is 5 pages long, consisting of a main section and three further sections that deal with specific matters:
Basis of Union (main section)
The main section of the Basis of Union on page 1 specifies key aspects of the new church, including
- Name
- Places of worship
- Parish area
- Type of governance (Kirk Session)
- Ministry arrangements
- Manses
Local Mission Church
The “Basis for Local Mission Church” section on page 2 makes provision for Troon Church of Scotland to have a centre of worship in the expanding neighbourhood of North East Troon.
Team Ministry
The “Basis of Team Ministry” on pages 3 to 5 defines how the proposed Team Ministry will operate.
The core of the Team Ministry will be two full-time ministers. They will be supported by an OLM (Ordained Local Minister) and a locally-funded children/youth/family worker.
Reviewable Charge
Team Ministry is new to the Church of Scotland and Troon. There will be regular reviews to ensure that this arrangement is meeting the needs of the parish.
The “Basis of Reviewable Charge” on page 5 explains how reviews will be conducted and sets a standard review period of five years.
Some Questions and Answers
Why are Portland, St Meddan’s and Troon Old Parish Churches uniting?
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This is just one part of major change happening across the whole Church of Scotland nationally. See The Presbytery Plan above.
The decision to unite all three Church of Scotland congregations in Troon was taken by the Presbytery of Ayr in 2022 and is now an established part of the Presbytery of the South West Mission Plan.
What is the date of union?
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The new Troon Church of Scotland came into being on 1st July 2024.
How will two ministers work?
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The team ministry actually has three ministers!
The two full-time Ministers of Word and Sacrament (their official title!) will have the same status and work together to meet parish needs. The posts are essentially interchangeable, except that one minister will moderate the Kirk Session and the other will chair team ministry meetings. It is hoped to call two ministers with complementary skill sets and gifts of ministry.
The Ordained Local Minister (OLM) is also a minister of Word and Sacrament, who gives of their personal time on an unpaid part-time basis.
When will ministers be appointed?
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All three legacy congregations were vacant, so two new full-time ministers will need to be called.
The search for new ministers will be led by a Nominating Committee, which was elected by the congregation on 29th September 2024. It could be several months before suitable candidates are identified and nominees are selected.
The Ordained Local Minister (OLM) is appointed by Presbytery, subject to a suitable OLM being available and a role being clearly defined.
Which manses are being kept?
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Both of the full-time ministers will be provided with a manse.
It has not yet been decided which, if any, of the present three manses will be kept.
Although there are still rules about minimum number of rooms, there is increasing concern about energy efficiency. So it is entirely possible that these three large Victorian houses may be sold and two modern energy-efficient manses acquired.
Is “Local Mission Church” the same as Meadowgreen?
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At the time of its writing, the Presbytery Mission Plan envisaged that St Meddan’s outreach in Meadowgreen would be developed into a standalone Local Mission Church. Circumstances have now changed, and due to a change of ownership of the Meadowgreen Centre, worship there cannot continue under the auspices of the Church of Scotland.
Our vision of mission for the expanding neighbourhood of North East Troon continues and the provision of a Local Mission Church is retained in the Presbytery Mission Plan and Basis of Union.
Why is St Meddan’s charity number being kept?
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Under charity law, union is considered to be a merger of charities, and it is customary to retain one of the existing numbers.
The Church of Scotland Law Department advised that retaining St Meddan’s charity number helps avoid any question that grant funding recently received by St Meddan’s from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Historic Environment Scotland might have to be repaid. Other grant repayment conditions still apply for a number of years and these will be kept under careful review by the new united Kirk Session.
What halls are we keeping?
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Portland, St Meddan’s and Troon Old church halls are all heavily used, mostly at the same time (for example, the Boys’ Brigade uses all three sets of halls on Friday evenings), and Presbytery has therefore decided that three sets of halls are necessary for local mission in Troon.
That decision complicates Presbytery’s other decision to close Troon Old sanctuary for worship, and the General Trustees of the Church of Scotland commissioned a feasibility study to be carried out to determine if the Troon Old sanctuary can be separated from Troon Old halls. The study concluded that although the buildings could physically be separated, its recommendation was we should sell the site (sanctuary and halls) as a whole.
The question of accommodation still has to be resolved, and the Kirk Session has appointed a team to consider its options and engage with the community groups who have expressed an interest in acquiring the property.