ordinands
Supporting the well-being of clergy and encourgaing vocations to lay and ordained ministry I have had the privilege of fostering and encouraging the vocation of numbers of people including those called to authorised lay ministries and have supervised and trained context-based ordinands and curates.
Working as a Training Incumbent and Area Director of Ordinands while serving as a suburban Vicar also taught me about the pressures of carrying extra-parochial responsibilities alongside parish ministry.
It is vital that Synod, and our ordinands, are properly resourced theologically, including in our finances – this is not a distraction from ‘real issues’, but vital in ensuring that our discussions and decisions are rooted in Scripture and Christian tradition.
Serving on Synod would also allow me to represent the voices of ordinands in national debates.
A deep understanding of the vocations process as an Area Director of Ordinands and Examining Chaplain in the Diocese of Southwark, and what matters to those going through the process.
The fall in the number of ordinands is largely attributable to those who may have a vocation walking away from it because they fear for their health and happiness if they follow it.
I have served on diocesan synods, been an Area Dean in Winchester, worked as an Assistant Area Director of Ordinands and served as a training incumbent.
- Previously a Vocations Advisor and Assistant Director of Ordinands
24, I’ll always want the church to do more to nurture ordinands that are young, diverse, well trained, and well-resourced to work alongside all their fellow ministers.
the more likely they are to decline.” (From Anecdote to Evidence, 2013) THE CHURCH'S EXISTENTIAL CRISIS 27% Fall in full-time stipendiary positions 40% Church closures in top 10% deprived parishes 25% Decrease in new ordinands (2020-2025) 35%
ordinand-centred training to reverse the loss of institutional confidence and ensure ordinands are supported as they need not as budgets dictate.
• to ensure that ordinands are mission-oriented: well-trained and equipped to preach the
Vocations: During the last Synod we have moved from an improving and healthy position on new ordinands to a situation of serious concern.
More funding for clergy in general, and for ordinands in particular has been offered but there is work yet to do to fully secure this.
In the next Synod there is likely to be a major review of funding to TEIs and the challenge of how to balance distinctive traditions, with comprehensive preparation for a changing Church of England, and falling numbers of ordinands.
I teach a good number of women ordinands and many of them are concerned about whether they will face difficulties in ministry on account of their gender.
I raised up ordinands, trained curates, planted a new congregation, led two major building projects and served as Area Dean and on diocesan bodies including Bishop’s Council and the Crown Nominations Committee.
and administrative pressures on our parishes and to help secure an effective pipeline of increased numbers of well-trained ordinands and clergy;
After acting as ADDO for Young Vocations in York, I am now a Bishop’s Adviser assisting in the discernment process for ordained ministry, and it has been a joy to support several ordinands and curates on placement.
Better support for ordinands and lay ministers, from low income households and parents.
Alongside parish ministry, I serve as an Area Director of Ordinands, on Diocesan Synod and the Diocesan Council of Trustees.
I have been a training incumbent to three curates and journal tutor to licensed lay ministers and ordinands.
During my time on Synod, I have: challenged inconsistencies in safeguarding practice, including DBS checks for PCC members, because safeguarding should be robust, fair, and consistent wherever you serve spoken about the financial pressures facing ordinands, including the “missing month” between training and first stipend championed working-class vocations advocated for parish ministry reported back regularly on Synod debates and decisions, because national decisions must always be grounded in the realities of parish life My experience so far Member of General Synod since 2025 Recently trained as a Pastoral Supervisor for clergy Teacher of the LLM optional module on Creative and
At Synod, I have voted for increases in clergy stipends and the restoration of clergy pensions, and I have spoken about the financial pressures faced by ordinands.
Former Assistant Diocesan Director of Ordinands,
I am an Assistant Diocesan Director of Ordinands,
Aberdeen to Pontypridd to Godalming, two of whom are ordinands.
I’ve served as an Assistant area director of ordinands in Kensington episcopal area and am currently serving as an ADIME in Southwark.
Please see the Save the Parish manifesto for thriving parishes: https://www.savetheparish.com/general-synod-manifesto-2026/ I stand with STP’s aims for the next Synod: fund the priests our parishes need, creating manageable clergy jobs; spend parish share on parish ministry; improve clergy wellbeing; train ordinands properly without skimping; adopt a charter to support church volunteers; make church closure harder than survival.
- Equipping the church, especially our ordinands.
However, as I have found myself having conversations with various young leaders suggesting that the ordained role in the Church of England isn’t for them not because they don’t feel called, but its shape doesn’t serve their age, stage or background, I feel especially drawn to support ordinands.
I’d advocate for the discernment process to become less of a barrier, and for more than sufficient training, so ordinands feel supported and well-equipped when they enter curacy.
younger ordinands who are already sensing a call to full-time ministry.
It is a joy to discuss vocation with prospective ordinands and Lay Ministers.
Although Living in Love and Faith has formally closed, important questions remain, including whether clergy, ordinands and those exploring vocation can be in same-sex civil marriages, and whether the Prayers of Love and Faith can be used in standalone services.
I would seek to focus the attention of the national church leadership on increasing the supply of ordinands, properly resourcing rigorous initial theological education and sharpening the focus on clergy wellbeing.
While in London I also served as Director of Ordinands for the Willesden Episcopal Area of the Diocese of London, was a Director of Post
Working with ordinands as they respond to God’s call on their lives is a delight and a privilege.
We have been able to grow steadily and strongly, playing our part in establishing ministries, raising up lay leaders and ordinands, and revitalising several other local parishes.
By encouraging new ordinands, supporting proper training, and improving existing clergy well-being with a new covenant of care, the Church can supply our parishes with priests long-term.
I am mixed-race and was a founding member of UKME Ordinands and Curates.
I have served various capacities in London Diocese: as an Area Dean, as an Area Director of Ordinands, as Director of Mission for the Willesden Area, as a Chair of two new C of E Secondary Schools, and founding Chair of Ealing Foodbank.
Clergy wellbeing and Lay ministry It’s no secret that morale amongst clergy is low and the number of ordinands is suffering as a result.
don't think hope means simply trying harder to kind of Church we are preparing today's ordinands preserve everything as it is.
The decisions made in this next quinquennium - be it stewarding our resources and finances well, ensuring greater clergy welfare and growing an increased number of ordinands, improving our safeguarding, or simplifying our structures - will have significant impact on the future of our beloved Church of England, as we seek to turn the tide and see our churches full of life and hope for all.
I spoke in debates on young people’s voices; PLF, the support for ordinands and the future of work in an increasingly technology-driven society.
I don't want another generation of LGBT+ ordinands wondering how honest it is safe to be; gay clergy editing their lives for fear of the consequences; or LGBT+ young people wondering whether the Church's welcome really includes them.
Diocesan Director of Ordinands; former
Outside of parish ministry, I have been involved in mentoring other clergy, both from this diocese and others, and I also teach a module on Leadership at St Hild’s College, predominantly to ordinands.
I care about the future of ministry formation — TEIs are under pressure with fewer ordinands, rising costs and struggles to meet the demands of the church as well as ensuring well rounded formation.
I have taught at a TEI, mentored ordinands and understand the importance of theological and spiritual formation.
Ministry and Ordinands
The number of ordinands has fallen significantly, and Dioceses continue to enlarge their benefices.
Our Diocese is growing, and the number of potential ordinands is increasing year on year, yet access to theological training for those in this diocese is complex and costly.
Anti-racism and unconscious bias are topics which should be integral to the training curriculum for ordinands. ● Inclusion in the widest sense: I long for church to be a place where every person, regardless of their gender, ethnicity, ability, social class or sexuality, feels equally welcomed and empowered to serve God.
47% of all stipendiary priest are over 55; only 37% of all active clergy are in stipendiary roles; there are more clergy of 75 and over than under 50; and there was a 23% decrease in new ordinands between 2020 and 2023.
Their role is pivotal (even if they’re not universally appreciated), so I’m concerned about the decline in numbers of ordinands and by the pressures faced by clergy.
Ordinands
I care deeply about strengthening the pipeline of ordinands and leaders who will serve the Church in the years ahead.
Another crisis is the collapse in the number of ordinands.
Since 2018 I have served on the Council of a Theological Education Institution (TEI), which trains ordinands offers courses and qualifications in theology and pastoral ministry for students of all ages and stages.
As a Council member for a theological college training Church of England ordinands, I see a range of factors affecting the confidence of those currently in training, as well as those considering ordination.
Diocesan Director of Ordinands
I have taught ordinands and other students in Cambridge, Canterbury, and Oxford, and have a particular interest in bringing theological and spiritual insights to a broader audience both through my writing and my speaking.
I work closely with several TEIs by sending ordinands to them and regularly taking on placement students.
This ranges from first conversations about vocation with students, to creating two internships for those in discernment and supervising placement ordinands, to representing the College as patron in appointments to our 69 livings.
an Associate Diocesan Director of Ordinands a member of Bishops Council, Diocesan Synod, and the DAC each demonstrating my strong commitment to the wider life of the Diocese.
According to the Church of England 2016 report, Going Deeper, “an increase in clergy is associated with the likelihood of growth in attendance, while a decrease in clergy is associated, on average, with a decline in attendance.” Yet only 37% of all active clergy are in stipendiary roles, and there has been a 25% reduction in new ordinands between 2020 and 2025.
and two Diocesan Ordinands, the most recent for the past 13 years.
I am currently the Dean of Church Planting at St Hild College where I train Anglican ordinands and Baptist ministers-in-training, and deliver other programmes that support the dioceses of the North and the Church of England nationally.
I see it in the ordinands I train and the clergy I mentor.
I have served on the vocations team as a vocations advisor and then an area director of ordinands and on Diocesan Synod (2021-2024).
At Cuddesdon, I gained the respect of ordinands ranging from traditional anglo-catholics, to liberal catholics and conservative evangelicals.
I have taught ordinands in both full-time, residential and part-time training pathways and believe both can positively shape a vocation for a life-time.
Finally, during the last quinquennium, I asked a total of twenty-one written questions at General Synod ( the equivalent of Parliamentary Questions ) on the following subjects: The folly of closing the churches at the beginning of lockdown; the imbalance of power and resources between diocese and parish when a church is threatened with closure under the existing and proposed Mission and Pastoral Measure ( in parallel, I sat on the Reference Group for the revised Mission and Pastoral Measure ); the eye-wateringly high staffing and refurbishment costs of Lambeth Palace; the paucity of spending on training of new ordinands; the amount of time wasted by bishops in the House of Lords; the ruinous cost and lunacy of trying to achieve net zero by 2030 and the burden, which this places on parishes; the fact that so few dioceses use Total Return Accounting ( thereby increasing the financial burden on parishes of parish share ); the non-validity of the Church’s Vision and Strategy ( it was never voted for by General Synod and yet it is depriving principally rural parishes of vicars and stipendiary boots on the ground ); what percentage of the Church Commissioners’ total assets come from parochial endowments, which were seized in 1976 ( for the first time, the written answer to this question established that it is 19% ); concerns about increasing centralisation of Church governance and control of funding; how significant amounts of money are being diverted away from the parish in order to finance episcopal vanity projects; and seven questions about Project Spire and slavery reparations.
▪Establish a charter of care for clergy ▪Train ordinands properly, not cheaply
It is the duty of the Church of England to reciprocate and put a great deal more heft – especially financial – into the theological education and ministerial formation of future cohorts of ordinands.
As an Assistant Director of Ordinands, I am keenly aware of the challenges facing theological education and formation, as well as those which confront folk who are discerning God’s call to ministry and considering how they will negotiate an uncertain future.
Alongside that, I welcome the recent steps to increase clergy stipends and pensions provision and to prioritise attracting and training more ordinands to help fill the large gap that has been opening up as the large number of retirements continue.
The number of new ordinands is not keeping pace with the number of clergy leaving.
ordinands and remove financial and other barriers preventing people from answering God's call to ministry.
I personally hold a traditionalist understanding of holy orders and want a vibrant future for clergy, ordinands and parishes who share it.
I also sincerely want ordained female colleagues to thrive in their ministry as priests and bishops – as I hope my friendships, working relationships and commitment to the formation of female ordinands have demonstrated.
My experience as a theological educator, supervisor of ordinands, and training incumbent has deepened my heart for calling, forming, and retaining priests.
During my ordination training I sat on the National Ordinands Association board, where we addressed inconsistencies in financial/maintenance support across the TEIs leading to financial hardship for some.
I would tell ordinands that the adventure of Christian ministry and priesthood was one of the most exciting journeys upon which you could embark.
But I now find myself reminding ordinands that they must really be sure they are called to this particular ministry — because, in the face of the pressures of contemporary ministry, that deep assurance of vocation may be all that can sustain us in the increasing burdens of ministry.
I am determined to play my part to ensure that the new working groups deliver the freedom for clergy and ordinands to enter marriages to people of the same sex without penalty, that the current unjust (and unenforceable) restrictions on so-called ‘standalone’ services of blessing be withdrawn, and that the Church of England begins the steps towards equal marriage in church during this quinquennium.
We must encourage vocations to ordained ministry and ensure ordinands receive the training and financial support they need.
Laity need to find new ways of supporting parish clergy, continuing ministerial education – and supporting more ordinands!
of Ordinands and Vocations, Diocese of
Ordinands Association Representative
Clergy Health and Wellbeing - I am committed to enhancing the health and wellbeing of all in ministry from the discernment process, training pathways of ordinands and lay leaders, and the support and development of ongoing ministry.
While the number of ordinands is recovering, it remains below the number of clergy leaving ministry, making it difficult to fill parish posts even when there is funding (as encountered in our own diocese).
I’d like Synod to take steps to improve the quality of theological and biblical education for lay people, ordinands in training, and clergy.
I like to see others grow and have trained a curate and have had many ordinands on placement.
Alongside parish ministry, I am an Associate Diocesan Director of Ordinands, a member of Diocesan Synod and the Diocesan Giving Steering Group, and a clergy representative and Standing Committee member on Deanery Synod.
Diocesan Director of Ordinands,
Yet TEIs are under increasing pressure, and ordinands frequently have comparatively little contact time for theological education.
I have served as governor for primary schools in urban and rural settings, was on the committee for the Ordinands’ Association and involved in extensive constitutional reform there.
Other stuff I want to get stuck into includes the significance of Church Schools, clergy retirement provision, vocations and the importance of proper theological training of ordinands and curates, and the rights of private patrons.
I often suggest to ordinands and curates that they consider Cathedral ministry.
I currently serve as Bishop's Adviser on Vocations, National Mentor for Ordinands, safeguarding trainer, trainer in Christianity as a Global World Faith (CGWF), unconscious bias trainer, and Executive Secretary of the Association of Pakistani Anglican Clergy (APAC), which I co-founded with the Archdeacon of Doncaster.