Parochial Church Councils
What are Parochial Church Councils and how are they constituted?
Parochial Church Councils (PCCs) are creatures of statute. They were set up originally by the Church of England Assembly (Powers) Act 1919 and in 1921 PCCs replaced vestry meetings for most purposes. Their composition is regulated now by the Church Representation Rules, which are created and amended under the Synodical Government Measure 1969. Their powers and duties are to be found mainly in those rules, in the Parochial Church Councils (Powers) Measure 1956 and elsewhere, piecemeal, in other statutes, measures and Canons.
Although they have identifiable constitutional features, they do not individually have their own constitutions. The members of a PCC are treated as Charity Trustees for most of the purposes of charities legislation, and their proceedings are required to be conducted in accordance with the rules and minuted. Membership of PCCs is restricted to those on the electoral roll of the parish. |
