Items filtered by date: August 2025
>> Download a printable map of Peak Deanery here (suitable for A4 and A3) JPG
>> Download a printable map of the Archdeaconry of Derbyshire Peak and Dales from this page.
Welcome to the Peak Deanery.
We are part of the Derbyshire Peak and Dales Archdeaconry.
Archdeacon: The Ven. Nicky Fenton - nicky.fenton@derby.anglican.org
Acting Area Dean: Revd Dr David Mundy - dhmundy@btinternet.com
Assistant Area Dean: Revd Louise Petheram
Assistant Area Dean: Revd Mark Griffin
Lay Chair: Nikki Goodhew
Deanery Synod Meetings 2025
Wednesday, 2 July 2025
Wednesday, 12 November 2025
Peak Deanery Benefices
- Bakewell, Ashford in the Water with Sheldon and Rowsley (Parishes of Bakewell; Ashford in the Water; Sheldon; St. Catherine, Rowsley) (to include Over Haddon)
- Baslow and Eyam ((Parishes of St. Ann, Baslow; Eyam) (including Foolow)
- Beeley and Edensor (Parishes of Beeley; Edensor)
- Buxton with Burbage and King Sterndale (Parish of Buxton with Burbage and King Sterndale) (This parish includes Harpur Hill St James, Buxton St Mary the Virgin and St Anne, Burbage and King Sterndale Christ Churches)
- Chapel-en-le-Frith (Parish of Chapel en le Frith)
- Charlesworth and Gamesley (Parish of Charlesworth and Gamesley) held in plurality with 7.
- Holy Trinity Dinting Vale (Parish of Holy Trinity, Dinting Vale) held in plurality with 6.
- Edale (Holy Trinity, Edale)
- Fairfield, Peak Forest and Dove Holes (Parishes of Fairfield; Peak Forest and Dove Holes)
- Glossop (Parish of Glossop)
- Hadfield (Parish of St. Andrew, Hadfield)
- Hathersage with Bamford and Derwent, and Grindleford (Parishes of Bamford and Derwent; Grindleford Saint Helen; Hathersage)
- Hayfield and Chinley with Buxworth (Parishes of Hayfield; Chinley with Buxworth)
- Hope, Castleton and Bradwell (Parishes of St. Barnabas Bradwell; Castleton; Hope)
- Longstone, Curbar and Stoney Middleton (Parishes of All Saints, Curbar; Longstone, St. Giles; Stoney Middleton) (including Wardlow)
- New Mills (Parish of New Mills)
- The White Peak Group (Parishes of Taddington; Monyash; Hartington; Chelmorton; Biggin; Earl Sterndale)
- Tideswell (Parish of Tideswell) (to include Wormhill, Cressbrook and Litton and Millers Dale)
- Whitfield (Parish of Whitfield) (This parish includes the Churches of St James and St Luke)
- Youlgreave and Middleton, Stanton-in-Peak and Birchover (Parishes of Birchover; The Holy Trinity Stanton-in-Peak; Youlgreave and Middleton)
- Buxton, Trinity Church (private Trinitarian Chapel) which is not a Benefice or Parish but is within the Peak Deanery and whose Clergy are Licensed by the Bishop of Derby)
Capable buildings enable discipleship, mission and ministry.
Buildings are a positive asset when they are fit for purpose, but conversely, can feel like an anchor, stopping a PCC and congregation from fully embodying it’s discipleship, mission and ministry.
When buildings are fit for purpose…
- They play a key role in Transforming Lives, by acting as the stage for people’s major life events.
- They play a major role in Growing Church by providing a sanctuary of peace, a space to worship God, and a place to teach and inspire.
- They play many roles in Building Community - meeting place, polling station, community hub, food bank, spiritual resource centre, to name just a few.
A sustainable and relevant church building will potentially look very different from parish to parish, but working towards a Local Building Development Plan will give the PCC an opportunity to consider all the options and in turn, help reset or strengthen the connection between:
- The church building and the vision of the PCC and congregation.
- The church community and wider parish community
Creating a Local Building Development Plan is one way that can help you:
- Identify or reaffirm the core vision and ministries of the PCC and congregation in relation to your local context.
- Assess the current attributes and elements of the building.
- Determine what the building needs, to support your vision & enable discipleship, mission and ministry within your local community.
- Prioritize the changes needed and identify the resources required.
The very simple 4 step toolkit is something a PCC can use on its own or in concert with other resources. However, it should always involve the wider parish community beyond the four walls. Rmember, a church building is not a clubhouse, but a parish’s place of gathering, worship and sanctuary.
Here is the link to the Local Building Development Plan Tool
Canon Carolyn Lewis has been invited by the Rt Rev Libby Lane, Bishop of Derby, after consultation and agreement, to lead the work of Derby Diocesan Board of Education for an interim period, initially for a year from September 2021.
Carolyn is currently Diocesan Director of Education in Leicester, and will undertake this new role in addition to her role in the Diocese of Leicester. She will become one of the first Executive Diocesan Directors of Education (DDE) in the Church of England, and this is a pioneering step for both Derby and Leicester’s education teams.
Through this partnership working both dioceses will be exploring how to be innovative in supporting their respective Church school families and in placing schools at the heart of the Church’s mission. This is an exciting opportunity for both dioceses and shows commitment to our values of generosity and creativity.
Bishop Libby said: “ Our Church Schools are examples of the good news of the Kingdom of God: their work and life are at the heart of the Diocese of Derby. I am delighted that Carolyn has agreed to take on leading our Board of Education through this next season, sharing her experience of leadership and passion for Christ across both the Diocese of Derby and the Diocese of Leicester.”
Having grown up in Warwickshire, Carolyn began her teaching there before moving to schools in Leicestershire. Carolyn has been the DDE in the Diocese of Leicester since 2014. Before that she was a headteacher in a Voluntary Aided primary school supporting a rapid journey of improvement there.
During this time, her leadership extended to executive headship, working with a Teaching School and inspecting for Ofsted and SIAMS.
Carolyn is supported by her family; husband Seth, two boys and Rosie the cockapoo. Having been to university in Wales and being married to a Welshman, life is infused with a Celtic flavour – namely Welsh rugby, RS Thomas, singing and holidays in Wales!”
On hearing of her new role, Carolyn Lewis commented: “I cherish my vocation as Director of Education and feel extraordinarily privileged to be supporting the work of Church schools across both the Diocese of Derby and the Diocese of Leicester.
"When I was a headteacher at a Church school, after some years I was asked to be an executive headteacher and lead another school. As I took on that particular professional challenge, I wondered what might be lost. Yet, I was surprised by the fact that over time, both schools gained so much from this way of working. And so, I am excited at the possibilities for what this partnership may bring.
“For Church schools to be distinctively Christ-like is a challenging task for school leaders, governors and clergy. Please pray for me and the DBE teams as we work to encourage and inspire our schools – now across both Derby and Leicester Dioceses - to meet that challenge with courage and conviction.”
I felt God speak to me through song
John Ferguson: ordained deacon in June 2021 - to be ordained priest in July 2022
My name is John, and I live in Overseal, a village at the very south of the Diocese near Swadlincote. I’m looking forward to being ordained to work in the parish of St. Barnabas’, Derby, as a Self-Supporting Minister (SSM). As a SSM I will continue to work full time as an IT Manager for a well-known discount retailer.
I grew up in a small village near Blackburn, Lancashire and started attending church at a young age with my sister. We were drawn in by the vibrant Sunday School and by the time I moved away from home to attend University, I was a leader in the Sunday School and a member of both the music group and PCC.
I moved to Derby in 2005 to study Computer Networks at Derby University. On leaving my previous Church, our curate put me in touch with St. Peter’s and this has been my home for nearly 16 years.
During my time at St. Peter’s, I have held various roles: a Youth Leader, a Home Group Leader, a member of the PCC and a member of various working groups. I have also been involved in several outreach activities such as Recharge (church in a pub) and Alpha Café (a social event around the Alpha course). But my primary role was as a Worship Leader. It is from this that my journey to ordination started.
As a child I learnt to play the Piano and was a member of the school choir. I still enjoy playing the piano and singing today.
It was during my time at St. Peter’s that I developed my ministry as a Worship Leader. Part of this development involved attending the Mission Worship Conference in Eastbourne every couple of years. In November 2017, while at this conference, I felt God speak to me through song. I came away with a deep desire to grow deeper in my faith through study, but resisted the call to ordination.
In September 2018 I started a part-time course at The Queen’s Foundation in Birmingham. It wasn’t long before my cohort were encouraging me to consider ordination and a few weeks later God spoke to me again. This time it was through a vision (but it still involved a song) and the rest, as they say, is history. I was fortunate to be able to remain at Queen’s to complete my training.
In my spare time, other than music, I enjoy Scuba Diving. This has taken me to some wonderful places, and I especially enjoy diving in the Red Sea. Recently, my experiences diving have led me to make small changes to minimise my impact on the environment.
I’m still working out what ordained ministry will look like for me, I’m sure it will involve music in some way. But I also feel the fact I will be staying in secular employment could be key, helping to bridge the gap between secular and sacred.
Favourite Hymn – There’s too many to choose from, but Stuart Townend’s In Christ Alone has always had a special place in my heart “for I am his, and he is mine, bought with the precious blood of Christ”
Favourite Bible Verse – John 1:1-5 (if it needs to be 1 verse, then John 1:1) “In the beginning was the Word”
For the first time, you can now see the inside of All Saints' Church in Mackworth, which was devatated by fire in December.
The images show the scale of the destruction caused by the heat and flames of the blaze.
Whilst the tower was largely unaffected, the nave and chancel were almost completely destroyed, including the roof.
However, a number of artefacts survived and some of these have already been sent to experts for restoration.
The work has also revealed a crypt that was not known about.
Revd Jacqueline Stober, vicar of All Saints, said: "Although the destruction is devastating, we also have to be thankful for what is left.
"The work that has been carried out to clear the debris and salvage those artefacts that survived is remarkable.
"Some of the silver, the chalices that we used to use in Holy Communion, have survived.
"The archaeologists have found the four-foot silver cross we used to have on the altar in the chancel and the wedding registers have also been found (they were in a safe) and although they are a charred mess and didn't survive very well, they have been sent to a specialist who will be able to recreate them.
"It's great to see that there is still some of this building that we can do something with - and it will still be a place of worship in another thousand years."
The images of the church's interior follow months of clearance work and the stabilisation of the site - phase one of the project.
The next phase will be to make the building watertight and the PCC will be seeing presentations from contractors in the coming weeks.
Most of the funding for the work carried out so far has been provided by the church's insurers, Ecclesiastical.
Claims Director Jeremy Trott said: "The money is there to rebuild the church, but it's obviously up to the PCC to decide what they do and don't want to do."
It is hoped all the work might be complete by Christmas 2023.
Bishop Libby is supporting Christian Aid Week by taking part in the 300,000 steps for May challenge - and invites you to join her!
The idea is simple: take 300,000 sponsored steps across the month of May to raise vital funds for communities battling the worst of this climate crisis.
The challenge clocks in at just under 10,000 steps a day and you can do the challenge alone or with a team, supporting each other to reach your goal.
Whether you decide to walk, jump, skip, hop or run your steps is completely up to you!
Bishop L:ibby said: “Together with my family, I’m supporting 300,000 steps for May challenge for Christian Aid.
"Through this event, we get to enjoy the benefits of better physical and mental health and enjoy our local communities and countryside but, most of all, we hope to raise awareness and encourage people to contribute to Christian Aid’s fundraiser to raise vital funds for communities battling the worst of this climate crisis.”
For more information, see the Christian Aid website.
Thy Kingdom Come is a global prayer movement that invites Christians around the world to pray for more people to come to know Jesus. What started in 2016 as an invitation from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York to the Church of England has grown into an international and ecumenical call to prayer.
Plans are underway for the 7th annual Thy Kingdom Come - occurring from Ascension to Pentecost.
Thy Kingdom Come takes place from 26 May to 5 June 2022.
Visit the Thy Kingdom Come website at www.thykingdomcome.global
The Diocese of Derby has welcomed two key appointments to help shape diocesan ministries as we look to the future.
The Revd Dwayne Engh joins as the new Ordained Ministries Development Officer and Jo Henderson-Merrygold is the new Lay Ministries Development Officer and Warden of Readers.
Jo writes:
I have come into this role to champion, celebrate, and enable lay ministries across the diocese.
I am a Methodist Local Preacher and lay theologian, who is just putting the finishing touches to a Biblical Studies PhD at the University of Sheffield.
These experiences have built my passion for lay ministry – and I look forward to opportunities to celebrate its diverse forms.
My own experience includes pioneer projects, mission enabling, chaplaincy, and lay pastoring. I have already been warmly welcomed by the Readers and am grateful for their understanding of a Methodist in the mix!
I am looking forward continuing to get to know those currently serving in lay ministries: to hear your joys and successes, challenges and learning points.
I plan to work with colleagues across the diocese to celebrate our achievements – big and small – and to share the wealth of our experiences with one another.
In fact, I hope to host a festival of lay ministries as soon as possible.
I trust and pray that this will increase our confidence in what we are already doing, give us opportunities to develop further, and encourage others to offer their gifts and skills too.
Then, alongside colleagues in the Discipleship, Ministries and Mission Team, I will continue to resource and enable these ministries to grow and flourish.
In the meantime, if you have any queries don’t hesitate to get in touch: jo.henderson-merrygold@derby.anglican.org.
Dwayne will be looking after IME2 (curate training) and CMD (continuing ministerial development).
He writes:
I was born in Vancouver but raised mostly in Calgary (Canada) – and have been blessed with a wide range of opportunities/previous careers as a composer, conductor, percussionist, and educator (both secondary and post-secondary in Calgary, Shanghai, and London).
I have been in the UK since 2009 and was ordained in 2015 in the Church of England, having trained to be a priest at Westcott House.
My previous dwelling place was in the Diocese of Coventry, where I was vicar of St Mary Magdalen Church, Chapelfields.
Within the wider diocese, I was on Bishop’s Council and Diocesan Synod.
Additionally, I was an Assistant Diocesan Director of Ordinands and the Ministerial Development Associate, supporting clergy training in that diocese.
I also love being a Spiritual Director and accompanying people on their journey with God.
My last service in Coventry was Easter Sunday and I’m already missing presiding/preaching.
I’d love to get to know the diocese better and offer myself as cover (up to twice a month at most) if anyone needs to take time off or people are in vacancy. Please feel free to contact me if you might be interested in that!
I appreciate the warm welcome I’ve already received since I’ve moved into Derby and look forward to serving the people of this diocese with you!
You can contact me by email: dwayne.engh@derby.anglican.org
“Things are not good at all. People are dying due to lack of oxygen and hospital beds. Corridors of hospitals are full. The poor not even getting an ambulance to take their dead to do the last rites. Many are just burning them on roadsides. Scary and terrible times. Please pray for us. Our hope and trust are in the Lord alone. Please convey my regards to all my Derby friends.”
Message from the Church of North India in Delhi.
The Bishop of Repton, the Rt Revd Malcolm Macnaughton, has dedicated a prayer station in Derby Cathedral which will be a focus for prayers for the people of India, who are suffering devastating consequences of the coronavirus pandemic.
Churches in Derbyshire, including the Diocese of Derby, have strong links with the Church of North India, particularly with Kolkata.
Bishop Malcolm was joined by the Sub-dean of Derby, Canon Elizabeth Thomson, and Revd Anita Matthews, who chairs the partnership between Derbyshire Churches and The Church of North India.
Bishop Malcolm said: “The Diocese of Derby has, for a long time, had strong links with the Church of North India and schools there and it is heartbreaking to hear some of the stories coming from the people and regions we are connected with.
“The problems there at the moment are huge – they are sometimes institutional and structural, but they are also deeply personal. Hearing of people dying and having to be cremated at the roadside is horrific, particularly when India has done so much for other countries in helping to produce vaccines.
“This terrible situation is one that is moving people of all faiths to pray. We pray that God will bring resurrection and hope and life, and freedom from this horrific pandemic very soon.
“And we want people of Indian heritage here in Derby and Derbyshire to know that we stand in solidarity them in prayer for their friends and families in India.”
The Revd Anita Matthews has visited parts of the Diocese of Kolkata on a number of occasions.
She said: “The accounts I have been sent are truly heartbreaking – not least because, although it is affecting the whole of Indian society, it is, as ever, the poorest of the poor who are suffering the most because they can’t afford to access any kind of medical care.
“It is our colleagues in the Church of North India who are trying to reach out to those people to offer some kind of support and hope by providing vaccination programmes and food for families who have lost loved ones and have no income, or because they are in lockdown and cannot work.
“Some of the messages I have received from our long-standing friends and ecumenical partners in India have summed up the desperation there – and yet in the midst of it, they are saying ‘We pray for you in Derby and Derbyshire’ and that they place their faith in God alone. That faith is absolutely extraordinary.”
The prayer stationat Derby Cathedral features messages from people in India and some beautiful Indian cloths, fashioned by Indian artists and craftspeople, depicting the Last Supper and the Crucifixion.
Canon Elizabeth Thomson, Sub-dean of Derby said: “We are aware of how important it is to have a place of prayer in the city at this time, and we are aware of how very multicultural the praying life of the people who come into the cathedral is.
"So, in a time when people can feel very cut off and unable to help, we wanted to say that there is a space where you can come to say a prayer and be connected with other people who are doing the same.
“We invite people of all faiths and none to visit and take time to pray in Derby Cathedral for the people of India – not only those who are worst affected, but those who are also helping to give comfort, hope and support.”
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Developing a culture of generosity is not only crucial to encouraging giving, it’s also what we are called to do.
We believe in a generous God who calls us to share that generosity with the world around us and the impact of that generosity will been seen in many different ways.
To cultivate generosity in our church community there are four areas we should focus on, and they form the acronym IDEA.
Click on the links below to find out more about each of these areas:
- Inspire people through generous leadership and celebrating generosity within the life of the church.
- Disciple members, through resources, teaching and learning, so people can grow in an understanding of God’s generosity towards them, and how they can live generous lives.
- Embed generosity in the life of the church, in its plans, services and ministry and weave it into everything the church does.
- Activate generosity, by providing opportunities for people to grow in generosity and apply what they have discovered.
