Although I was born and grew up in Essex, I lived and served in Huddersfield for nine years, and I have come to know and love the North of England. Two of our children were born here. The North is diverse, rich in heritage and culture, yet is too often overlooked and underresourced.
As with prayer and evangelism, my commitment to the North flows directly from God’s vision for a renewed humanity and a healed world. Working for the common good is not separate from the gospel; it is one of the ways the gospel takes flesh among us. This means listening deeply to communities, standing alongside those who feel forgotten, and working in partnership with people of other faiths and with all who seek the flourishing of our shared life.
Central to this is Faith in the North – a renewed commitment to the spiritual and missional life of the Church across the Northern Province. Faith in the North is rooted in prayer: calling the Church to become a deeper house of prayer, attentive to God’s purposes for this place and time. It is expressed through storytelling: sharing, with humility and hope, the good news of Jesus Christ and the stories of lives and communities being transformed by God’s grace. And it looks to the future through church planting: nurturing new worshipping communities so that more people, in more places, can encounter Christ and find a home in the Church.
Across the Northern Province, there are areas of profound need, but also extraordinary possibilities. I seek to be a faithful voice for the North – encouraging prayer, enabling evangelism, supporting church planting, and advocating for a fairer sharing of resources and investment – so that the liberating good news of Jesus Christ may be lived and proclaimed, and so that all may share in the common good.
Bishopthorpe Charitable Partners’ Trust
The Bishopthorpe Charitable Partners’ Trust is an exciting new grant-making charity, established to support the vision, work and mission of the Archbishop of York across the Northern Province of the Church of England.
It exists to enable the personal priorities of the current and future Archbishops of York to be realised within the 12 dioceses of the North of England.
The charity is led by a board of trustees drawn from right across the Province, and who oversee the day-to-day running of the charity. Each brings their local knowledge and considerable experience to bear on how best to support the Archbishop’s ministry with Charitable Partners willing to offer their prayers, talents and financial resources to assist this important work.
You can learn more and see how you could support the Trust.