About Us
Oasis Hub Bath is an inclusive, progressive church and community charity.
The Oasis vision is for community – a place where everyone is included, makes a contribution, and reaches their God-given potential. Watch the video below to see how our community members describe what Oasis is to them…
Our Vision and Values
Oasis UK is inspired and motivated by the life, teaching and example of Jesus.
It informs our radically inclusive ethos and drives our passionate belief that each human being is equally important, has intrinsic God-given worth and is uniquely valuable. We hope that our five ethos values (or behaviours) of inclusion, relationships, equality, hope and perseverance permeate everything we do and are obvious wherever and whenever you encounter Oasis. Our five ethos values are;
- A passion to include everyone
- A desire to treat everyone equally, respecting differences
- A commitment to healthy and open relationships
- A deep sense of hope that things can change and be transformed
- A sense of perseverance to keep going for the long haul
Our Church
Hay Hill Baptist Church has been in existence since 1869. In 2018 we made a big move by becoming a church-led Oasis Community Hub, and we renamed as Oasis Church Bath to reflect this. Joining Oasis was a collective decision as a community, and the result of a long journey exploring both our place and calling in the city, as well as our evolving progressive and inclusive theology.
There are loads of churches in Bath, so what makes Oasis Church Bath different? As an Oasis Church that’s a part of the Oasis Church Network, we have four characteristics which, when combined, we think make us distinctive. Scroll down to read more.
Full inclusion.
As a church, we’re committed to being a place where everyone is included and can make a contribution. That means our goal is always full inclusion, especially in relation to the LGBT+ community. Sadly, the church is often a place where those of us who define as LGBT+ are excluded, rejected and discriminated against, and we’re determined to be different. The love of God compels us to welcome and celebrate anyone, regardless of their gender identity or sexual orientation. We’re proud to have LGBT+ people involved at every level of what we do, including senior leadership.
Of course being an inclusive church isn’t just about sexuality or gender identity, and we’re passionate about growing in all areas of inclusion. We hope to make changes to our building to allow it to be more accessible in the near future, and we also try to provide a diversity of experience on a Sunday, knowing that one set service style doesn’t suit everyone.
An open, progressive theology.
Progressive Christianity is an evolving branch of the Christian faith that values the love of God, the inclusion of all, the ongoing transformation of self, a non-literal application of the bible, social justice, learning from other sources of wisdom and caring for the earth. Whilst we value difference and welcome people with all kinds of theological beliefs, as a leadership and as part of Oasis, we are moving in a progressive direction and we hope you see that lived out in all we do, from Sunday services and how we treat one another, to our community projects and partnerships.
A commitment to social justice.
We believe everyone should be able to reach their full potential, and we do whatever we can to enable that. That’s why we deliver and host a range of community projects and activities through our charity, Oasis Hub Bath. To find out more about what projects we’re currently involved in, check out our projects page.
An informal church service style.
We believe church should be a place where you can come as you are. So you don’t need to dress up or know anything before you come – we’ll explain what we’re doing during the service and how you can participate. We always have coffee, and sometimes pastries too! To find out more about what we do on Sundays, visit our Sunday services page.
Staff and Governance
Oasis Bath is led by a team, or to be more accurate several overlapping teams. Trustees are appointed by the membership of the church to provide oversight to all of the Hub’s activities and hold legal responsibility. A Hub Leader employed by Oasis Community Partnerships on behalf of the Bath Hub works with steering groups providing day-to-day leadership alongside a wider staff team.
Hub Leader: Jo Dolby
Staff: Claire Henwood (Community Worker), Ian Spence (Assistant Church Leader), Elayne Morgan (Hub Team Administrator), Claire Shelswell (Hub Admin Assistant), Mark van de Woestyne (Caretaker).
Trustees: Jo Rich (Chair), Dave Vernalls (Treasurer), Rob Trickey (Secretary), Lyndon Hughes.
Church Steering Group: Claire Shelswell, Stephen Henwood, Lea Lawton, Rob Trickey, Jo Dolby, Ian Spence.
Hub Development Group: Jo Rich, Lea Lawton, Beth Hamilton, Sara Reynolds, Pete Hamilton, Jo Dolby.
Our leadership is also accountable to the membership of the church, which is part of the Baptist Union of Great Britain.
To find our more about Oasis UK, visit www.oasisuk.org, or watch the film below.