deaneries
To continue to consult with Church Members and Deaneries to inform the positions I should
The national church, dioceses and deaneries are important structures, but they are ultimately structures that should serve the local church.
A joy of my roles is spending time listening to clergy, lay leaders and deaneries.
Served in Guildford Diocese for 18 years, in three deaneries.
I’ve been a lifelong member of the Church of England, and I’ve attended several churches (one ecumenical) in East, West and Tynemouth Deaneries as Janet took up different posts.
As a Rural Dean, I believe in strengthened deaneries as places where dioceses can gather,
Due to my computational modelling for the Diocesan Synod Parish Share Review Group, they have been able to develop a just system of parish share for 2027, awaiting discussion with Deaneries:
With over 30 years of ministry as a parish priest and archdeacon in rural and urban deaneries I have a wide experience of the challenges facing the Church of England today.
Over many years she has worked hard to connect our deaneries with the diocese.
Since I arrived in Peterborough diocese I have been privileged to support parishes, deaneries and individuals as Bishop’s Adviser for Liturgy and Worship; assisting with cover in parishes of varying churchmanship across the diocese from Brackley to Rutland has given me additional insight into the everyday challenges and joys of ministry in all sorts of contexts.
My background in communication gives me strong skills to process lots of information and distil it into messages which I have been honoured to bring in my reports to deaneries.
I have valued helping clergy, deaneries and diocesan bodies understand and engage with the work of Synod.
For 33 years, and until recently, I had worked or lived in all but one of our deaneries.
and Ledbury deaneries, and I am vice-chair of the Diocesan Board of Finance, chair of the Diocesan Property Team, and a member of Bishop’s Council.
I believe that more resources should flow directly to parishes, deaneries, and local mission initiatives.
It is the way that ministry and mission happen in the Church of England, and individuals belong to parishes far more than to deaneries and diocese.
As a passionate layperson, I have been privileged to contribute to a few parishes that I have worshipped in within Bradford Episcopal area, Deaneries and their Standing Committees, Diocesan and Bishop’s Council over the years.
In the last five years, I have sought to widen and deepen my understanding of our Diocese through visits to churches across several of our deaneries, by serving on Bishop’s Council, and in reviewing data to help draw up the Statement of Needs which played a part in the process by which we recently welcomed +Sarah as Bishop of Ely.
relationships between parishes, deaneries and the wider Church, and will be such an important aspect of the work of General Synod in the next Quinquennium.
If I am re-elected, you can count on me to continue working hard, diligently attending debates and using my vote wisely, as well as producing reports for the relevant deaneries.
Deaneries and Diocese, we must be transparent, honest and beyond reproach in the way we conduct our affairs.
Those elected should carry the concerns, experience and questions of parishes and deaneries into Synod, but should also report back on what Synod is doing and why.
One useful role for Synod members, I believe, is to help ideas and experience travel between parishes, deaneries, dioceses and the national Church.
parishes and chaplaincies, our Deaneries and ‘marks of mission’.
Why I am asking for your vote I offer long experience of governance, finance, education, housing, homelessness services and parish life, together with a deep knowledge of the diocese and its deaneries.
I will listen to clergy and laity, to parishes and deaneries, to our communities and to those whose voices are too often unheard.
I would like be a channel of communication between General Synod and the synods of the Diocese of Exeter and deaneries in the Diocese, including my Deanery (Ottery) of which I am the Treasurer.
Over the years I have lived and worked in every archdeaconry and four of our deaneries (Isle of Wight, Fareham, Portsmouth, Petersfield).
Deaneries Network.
and locally I have sought to strengthen deaneries, encourage good governance and ensure that parish voices are heard.
supporting the work of deaneries across the Church.
I will remain accessible to deaneries and parishes and continue to represent you with integrity, independence and experience.
My aim would be to bring wider issues into sharper focus at grassroots level with reference to the Diocese of Norwich, among the benefices, deaneries, dioceses and chaplaincies.
My commitment to you if elected Strong and regular engagement (including consultation), with all Southwark Deaneries between sittings of the Synod.
As a general rule, people are not converted to Christ in deaneries or dioceses – and not through hierarchs or experts – but in local churches where believers bear witness to the grace and truth of Jesus, and are led by able pastors who preach “the pure Word of God” and duly minister the Sacraments (Article XIX).
Parishes are struggling and this means more listening to each other and more working together within deaneries.
It should set out how national money reaches parishes with fewer hoops and more transparency; how funds are shared equitably between and within dioceses, deaneries and churches; how allocations and evaluations are published in full; and what Synod’s formal role in the funding framework is going to be.
I am interested in how local churches, deaneries, and diocesan structures can work together well, so that national and diocesan strategy genuinely supports the life and mission of the local church.
I have also sought to consult and communicate as widely as possible, in local churches, in deaneries and through my blog.
Across the Diocese of York, my role as Discipleship Adviser gives me the privilege of working with churches and deaneries in many different contexts, geographical settings, and traditions.
I've also reported to 4 other Deaneries which have not had a resident member of GS – I've been to 29 Deanery Synods since 2023! page 1
We do not need forced, top-down cuts; we need active, supportive deaneries and dioceses which facilitate the worship and mission of God’s people in Cornwall and the parishes should be given the means to operate effectively, freed from fears of either over-regulation or competition for resources.
As a member of General Synod, I hope to represent the people of Suffolk being mindful of the many parts of our diocese – from our coastal, to our rural, and our urban deaneries.
The urban community in Luton where I live, worship and work is very different to villages in deaneries like Sharnbrook or Buntingford with their own challenges.
My involvement in leading leadership development courses across deaneries reflects my conviction that we must equip lay leaders while sustaining vocations to the priesthood.
National Church initiatives should be communicated through dioceses, deaneries and parishes with clear invitations, practical resources and simple routes for congregations of different sizes to participate.
How I will serve if elected I will make myself available to deaneries and parishes who want to brief me or challenge me.
I have enjoyed reporting back to Diocesan Synod and my link Deaneries and discussing Synod with you.
During my ministry I have been privileged to officiate and worship in churches across the whole spectrum of Anglican churchmanship and I have always been able to work well across deaneries, diocesan synods with colleagues and Christians of all traditions.
I will work with General Synod and our Deaneries and Parishes in Newcastle Dioceses to advance a culture and environment in which there are no impediments to people engaging in journeys of faith: ‘Make level paths for your feet, so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed’ (Hebrews 12:13).
Thank you for all you do in serving our churches and deaneries across London.
I am passionate about seeing the Church work together in mission and evangelism across parishes and deaneries to make Christ known.
Resourcing parishes and deaneries, particularly around finance, parish share and vacancies.
I have initiated and driven forward changes, such as the reinvigoration of Deaneries within the Diocese of York, a process that I kick-started 15 years ago.
If elected to General Synod, I will be happy not just to liaise with selected Deaneries, but also to come as a visiting preacher, sharing my experiences of the Synod and my vision for Lay Ministry within the body of the church.
To this end, I support steps being taken to plant new churches in or near new housing developments, and the national church’s work with mapping experts to ensure that data on planned new housing development are readily available to dioceses, deaneries and parishes across the country.
Strengthening Our Connections: Deaneries and mission partnerships should be hubs for mutual support and resource sharing, never a tool for frontline cuts.
I know, not least from personal experience, the current threats to parishes, the ways in which deaneries can be beneficial to parishes rather than a burden, and the growing strengths of our own diocese.
The comparatively recent reorganisation of our diocese into fewer deaneries seems to have received a mixed reception.
I am especially keen to ensure that the Archdeaconry of Aston also has a strong voice advocating for it at synod as it has its own gifts and wisdom to offer the national conversation e.g. from Rural North Warwickshire and outer estates in Aston and Sutton Coldfield ad Colesworth and Polesworth deaneries, and a different kind of rural and also highly diverse inner city presence and engagement parishes in Yardley and Solihull.
I have been active on PCCS and Deanery Synods in both Greater Dudley and Malvern and Upton Deaneries.
Represent and give voice to the experiences of people, parishes and deaneries across the Diocese of Worcester.
Dioceses serving their deaneries and parishes.
After twenty-five years of lay and ordained leadership in a variety of contexts across five deaneries, I know Coventry Diocese well.
The continual amalgamation of parishes (and deaneries) stretches our clergy too wide.
I offer myself as your lay representative for the Diocese of London to the General Synod — rooted in long service across our parishes, deaneries, and schools.
largest, most diverse deaneries in the diocese; working with clergy and lay teams; building consensus across different traditions; and bringing local concerns to diocesan and national bodies.
I trained at STETS and have served parishes in Christchurch, Lyndhurst and now Bournemouth deaneries.
Funding for mission should be based primarily on priorities identified by parishes and deaneries.
General Synod needs to use its oversight to embrace the changing landscape of local ecumenical relations and speak up for their value, to help parishes and deaneries nurture or rekindle these relationships in a spirit of shared Christian faith and mission.
• Collaborate with other representatives to report back to deaneries and the diocese;
Peter is a member of the Southwell and Nottingham Diocesan Advisory Committee on Church Buildings and sits on the Bishop’s Council so is well aware of the issues facing the finances of parishes and deaneries.
Synod works and take my responsibility to report to deaneries seriously.
Talk of a ‘mixed ecology church’ means ongoing dialogue within parishes, deaneries, the wider Diocese and the national church, as the whole Church of England seeks to work together
Strategies, legislation and policies eventually land in dioceses, deaneries and parishes, where real people have to make them work.
deaneries strong and avoiding heavy central admin burdens.