Following recommendations in the From Lament to Action report, the House of Laity of General Synod is seeking nominations of UK Minority Ethnic/Global Majority Heritage people for co-option to the House of Laity. There will be five members co-opted for the remainder of the quinquennium, and they will be a full member with speaking and voting rights. As co-opted members of General Synod they will also be ex-officio members of Diocesan and Deanery Synod and their PCC. Further information can be found in the document Co-option of UKME/GMH people.

Please do share this with anyone that may be interested in joining as co-opted members and meet the criteria:

• UKME/GMH people
• on the roll of a parish or on a cathedral community roll, or confirmed as worshipping in a diocesan mission initiative
• aged 18 or over
• an actual communicant (having taken Holy Communion on at least three occasions in the last 12 months)

They will need to complete the nomination form and submit a personal statement of up to 2 sides of A4, as well as a photograph. They will also need to consent to the Privacy Notice. Nominations must be returned to synod.cooption@churchofengland.org by midday on 25 April.

Please contact Sian Kellogg, Executive Officer (sian.kellogg@derby.anglican.org) for more information.

The count of votes for the election of members to General Synod for the Diocese of Derby took place on Thursday 14 October 2021 and have now been verified.  The Presiding Officer is pleased to announce the following candidates are elected to the six places available (three for the House of Clergy and three for the House of Laity as per GS 2214) for the term 2021 to 2026: 

House of Bishops:

As a diocesan bishop, Rt Revd Libby Lane is a de facto member of General Synod. 

As well as the archbishops and diocesan bishops, there are five suffragan bishops - none of those elected are from this diocese.

Election results with a breakdown of the elections in stages can be found here.

About General Synod

The proctors and members represent the concerns of your community and our diocese at a national level by being on General Synod, the legislative body of the Church of England. 

As a member of general Synod, they have a say in national legislation that affects all parts of the Church of England. They can also raise issues and contribute to debates on social and policy matters.

The General Synod has three Houses:  Bishops, Clergy and Laity. Diocesan Bishops are automatically members of Synod by virtue of their office. In addition, each province of the Church of England elects two Suffragan Bishops from each Province. Each diocese is allocated a number of seats in the Houses of Clergy and Laity – the number of seats varies according to the size of each diocese - for the Diocese of Derby there are six seats. 

Clergy:
Any member of clergy who holds ecclesiastical office in a diocese or cathedral or who has permission to officiate can stand in an election to the House of Clergy for their diocese. Clergy representatives (known as “Proctors”) are elected by their peers, i.e. other clergy persons in that diocese. 

Laity:
To be elected to the House of Laity in the Diocese of Derby, a person must be a communicant member of the Church of England, at least 18 years old and have their name on the parish roll or on the community roll of Derby Cathedral. In certain circumstances, members of a Bishop’s Mission Order can also stand for election.

Local contact:
Please feel free to get in touch with any questions by emailing presidingofficer@derby.anglican.org

More information:

>> Full details about standing for election to the General Synod

>> Stand for Synod Promotional Flyer

>> Bishops letter re. General Synod elections 2021

>> 2021 General Synod Elections Timetable