6 March

The Revd Dr Michael (Mike) Firbank stood down as Area Dean of Mercia, Diocese of Derby, from 4th March 2025. He continues in post as Vicar of the benefice of Gresley.

The Revd Sam Mackie, Assistant Curate in the benefice of East Scarsdale (Team Ministry), Diocese of Derby, has been appointed LGBTQ+ Chaplain in the parish of St Alban Westcliff- on-Sea and St Mark Southend-on-Sea, Diocese of Chelmsford. Sam’s last day in post will be 18th March, with their new role starting on 19th March 2025.

The Revd Stephen (Steve) Short, Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of Foremark and Repton with Newton Solney, and the benefice of Willington, Diocese of Derby, has also been appointed Area Dean of Mercia. Steve started in post on 4th March 2025.

27 February

The Revd Janet Turville, who holds Permission to Officiate in the Diocese of Lincoln, has been appointed Vicar of the benefice of Wirksworth (Team Ministry), Diocese of Derby. Janet will be licensed on Monday, 31 March 2025 at 7 pm at St Mary's, Wirksworth by the Bishop of Derby assisted by the Archdeacon of Derbyshire Peak and Dales, subject to all legal and safeguarding requirements being fulfilled.

14 February

The Revd Canon Anthony (Tony) Kaunhoven, Vicar of the benefice of Bakewell, Ashford in the Water with Sheldon and Rowsley, Diocese of Derby, has also been appointed Priest-in-Charge of the parish of Longstone St Giles, within the benefice of Longstone, Curbar and Stoney Middleton in the same diocese. Tony will be licensed to this post on Tuesday, 25 February 2025 at 7 pm by the Bishop of Repton assisted by the Archdeacon of Derbyshire Peak and Dales.This post will run concurrently with Tony’s present post, thus his last day in post at Longstone St Giles will be 18th May, with his retirement taking effect from 19th May 2025.

The Revd Phil Mann has announced his resignation as Priest-in-Charge of the parish of Allenton and Shelton Lock, within the benefice of Pride Park, Wilmorton, Allenton and Shelton Lock, Diocese of Derby. Phil’s last day in post will be Saturday, 22 February 2025. Phil will continue as Pioneer Minister of Derby St Werburgh’s BMO and Priest-in-Charge of Mackworth St Francis.

The Revd Jeff Golding, Assistant Curate in the parish of Allenton and Shelton Lock, has been appointed Priest-in-Charge of the same parish. Jeff will be licensed on Sunday, 23 February 2025 at 3pm at St Edmund’s Allenton and Shelton Lock by the Bishop of Repton assisted by the Archdeacon of Derby City and South Derbyshire.

13 February

The Revd Bryony Taylor, Rector of the United Benefice of Barlborough and Clowne, Diocese of Derby, has also been appointed Assistant Area Dean of North East Derbyshire. Bryony started in post on 10th February 2025. 

6 February

The Revd Canon Julian Hollywell has announced his resignation as Assistant Curate (Minister Responsible) of the parish of Derby St Andrew with St Osmund, within the benefice of Pride Park, Wilmorton, Allenton and Shelton Lock, Diocese of Derby. Julian’s last day in post will be 16 February 2025. Julian will continue as Vicar of the benefice of Spondon and Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of Chaddesden St Philip with Derby St Mark in the same diocese.

The Revd Canon Anthony (Tony) Kaunhoven, Vicar of the benefice of Bakewell, Ashford in the Water with Sheldon and Rowsley, Diocese of Derby, has announced his retirement. Tony’s last day in post will be 18th May, with his retirement taking effect from 19th May 2025. Tony will be appointed Canon Emeritus of Derby Cathedral in retirement.

The Revd Ian Jarvis, Curate of Penge Christ Church with Holy Trinity (Rochester) 1963- 1967, Curate of Bilston St Leonard (Lichfield) 1967-1971, Vicar of Lozells St Silas (Birmingham) 1971-1976, Vicar of Chaddesden St Mary (Derby) 1976-1995, Vicar of Newhall 1995-2002, who retired in 2002 and held Permission to Officiate in the Diocese of Derby 2002-2022, died on 18th January 2025. The funeral will take place on Monday 24th February at 11.15 am at St Mary’s Chaddesden, followed by a private committal.

The process for the appointment of the next Archbishop of Canterbury is underway and, a key part of this, is the extensive consultation exercise that will take place in February and March. Wherever you are based, your views matter. 

The themes that emerge through this consultation will sit alongside the ‘Statement of Needs’ produced by the Diocese of Canterbury, as well as other information provided by the National Church and Anglican Communion, in informing the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) of the needs of the mission of the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion. 

Jonathan Hellewell (the Prime Minister’s Appointments Secretary) and Stephen Knott (the Archbishops’ Secretary for Appointments) would like to hear from you on three key questions:

1.What are your hopes for the ministry of the next Archbishop of Canterbury? 

2.What gifts, qualities, skills and experience do you believe the next Archbishop of Canterbury should have? 

3.Do you have any names that you wish the Crown Nominations Commission, nominating the next Archbishop of Canterbury, to consider? 

This consultation closes on 31 March, so please ensure your response is submitted by that date. Your feedback will play a vital role in shaping the decision-making process as we seek God’s guidance on who should be nominated as the next Archbishop of Canterbury.

All comments received will be shared between the two Appointments Secretaries.

Ways to Submit Your Views

1. Online submission: Complete the consultation form by clicking the link below: https://www.churchofengland.org/ABC106Consult

2. Postal submission: You can also send your response by post to the address below:

Canon Stephen Knott
Archbishops’ Secretary for Appointments
Lambeth Palace
London, SE1 7JU

Why Your Input Matters
This is a unique opportunity to help inform the Crown Nominations Commission nominating the next Archbishop of Canterbury. We encourage individuals and communities across England and the Anglican Communion to take part. Every response helps us understand better the qualities that the next Archbishop should have to lead the Church in the years to come.

Learn More
For more details on how the next Archbishop of Canterbury is appointed and the role of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC), visit our CNC appointment process page.

If you would like, please hold this important process of discernment – and all those involved - in your prayers: 

Heavenly Father,
shepherd of your Church,
send us a faithful pastor
to lead with wisdom, courage, and love,
proclaiming your Gospel,
celebrating the sacraments,
and guiding your people in unity and truth.
Strengthen your Church, we pray,
and direct us in your ways;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

This Lent we are encouraged to put down deep roots of hope by connecting with God who is with us at all times.

The Church of England’s Lent theme for 2025 is Living Hope.

In Lent we journey with Jesus on the difficult and thorny road that leads all the way to the cross on Good Friday – and beyond, to the transformation of Easter Day.

God invites us to bring to him our own journey through everyday life. In the disappointment of daily setbacks and the pain of deeper hurts, we discover that God is present with us. And God promises a future where all things are healed and made new.  

Living Hope offers us the opportunity to deepen our hope in God and be part of what God is doing to bring hope in the world.

Alongside a printed reflection booklet, the everyday faith app and daily emails there are a range of new resources available for churches, schools, families and individuals available from churchofengland.org and logo and branding items for the resource hub on achurchnearyou.com

A special webinar hosted by the national team will be held on 5 February please click here to register. 

Christ Church in Belper

We are looking for an organist or an organist / music director, to join them in the next few months. We have a traditional SATB choir and anybody interested in either post should initially contact Andrew Pollett, via email pollettaj10@gmail.com or by phone on 07970 498 171. The choir sings at the 11am Sung Mass on Sundays and rehearses at 7pm on Fridays. There are occasionally additional services, such as Choral Evensong, weddings and funerals. The post will attract RSCM rates of pay, subject to negotiation.

Closing date: 31 March 2025

30 January

The Revd Julian Penfold, Assistant Curate (Associate Priest-SSM) in the benefice of Alfreton, the benefice of Riddings and Ironville and the benefice of Somercotes, Diocese of Derby, has announced his resignation. Julian’s last day in post was 31 January 2025.

The Revd Dr Gillian White will be licensed as Assistant Curate (SSM-known as Associate Priest) in the parish of Fairfield, within the benefice of Fairfield, Peak Forest and Dove Holes, Diocese of Derby, on Sunday 16 March at 11 am at Charles, King & Martyr, Peak Forest by the Bishop of Repton.

23 January

The Revd Philip Bosher, Vicar of the benefice of Winshill and Bretby and Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of Stapenhill Immanuel, Diocese of Derby, has announced his retirement. Philip’s last day in post will be 31st May, with his retirement taking effect from 1st June 2025.

The Revd Dr Gillian White, Assistant Curate (Pioneer Priest-SSM) of Tideswell, Diocese of Derby, has been appointed Assistant Curate (SSM-known as Associate Priest) in the parish of Fairfield, within the benefice of Fairfield, Peak Forest and Dove Holes, in the same diocese. Gillian will be licensed on Sunday 16th March at 11 am at St Peter’s Fairfield by the Bishop of Repton.

16 January

The Revd Karen Bradley, Rector of the East Scarsdale Team Ministry and Area Dean of Hardwick, Diocese of Derby, has stepped down as Area Dean of Hardwick. Her last day in this role was 31st December, 2024. The Venerable Karen Hamblin, Archdeacon of East Derbyshire, will be the interim point of contact until such time as a permanent appointment is made.

The Revd Christine French will be licensed as Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of West Hallam and Mapperley with Stanley, Diocese of Derby, on Sunday 26th January at 4 pm at St Wilfrid’s West Hallam by the Bishop of Repton assisted by the Archdeacon of East Derbyshire.

 The Revd Elliot (Malcolm) Duthie, Curate of Eccleston St Luke (Liverpool) 1966-1969, Malaysia 1970-1975, Priest-in-Charge of Bootle St Leonard 1976-1978; Vicar of the same benefice 1978-1981, Vicar of Charlton Kings Holy Apostles (Gloucester) 1981-1994, who retired in 1994, and held Permission to Officiate in the Dioceses of Gloucester 1994- 2000; Exeter 2002-2005 and Derby 2006-2018, died on 10th December 2024. A service of thanksgiving will take place on Friday 24th January at 1.30 pm at St Barnabas’ Derby.

A memorial service for the Revd Simon White, who died in November 2024, will take place on Saturday, 15 February at 2 pm at St John the Baptist Tideswell.

The Revd Phillippa Taylor will be licensed as Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of Boulton St Mary, Diocese of Derby, on Sunday,9 March at 3 pm at St Mary’s Boulton by the Bishop of Derby assisted by the Archdeacon of Derby City and South Derbyshire.

9 January 

The Revd Rachel Burdett will be licensed as Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of Belper Christ Church and Turnditch, the benefice of Hazelwood, Holbrook and Milford and the benefice of Ambergate and Heage, Diocese of Derby, on Tuesday 18th February at 7 pm at St Luke’s Heage by the Bishop of Repton assisted by the Archdeacon of Derbyshire Peak and Dales.

The Revd Christine French, Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of Kirk Hallam and Assistant Curate (Associate Priest) in the benefice of Ilkeston St John, Diocese of Derby, has also been appointed Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of West Hallam and Mapperley with Stanley in the same diocese.

Christine McMullen, the Diocese of Derby's former chair of the House of Laity, has been awarded The Canterbury Cross in this year’s Lambeth Awards, in recognition of her exceptional service to both the Diocese of Derby and the Church of England for over 40 years. 

The Bishop of Derby, The Rt Revd Libby Lane said: “Christine has been an extraordinary servant of Christ and His church.

"I am delighted her contribution over so many decades and in so many spheres has been recognised and celebrated in this way.

"Her faith and sense of duty have sustained and equipped her to serve at a local, diocesan and national level. 

"In the Diocese of Derby, she has been an advocate and champion of lay voice and ministry especially in rural contexts. For 40 years, she has held licence and now has permission to exercise ministry as Reader, for two decades she served as Chair of the House of Laity for Diocesan Synod and is a member of the Bishop’s Council. For many years she held the roles of Deanery Lay Chair, School Governor and Business Committee member. She has also sat on the Vacancy-in-See Committee and acted as Warden of Readers.

"Christine has been Diocesan President of the Mothers' Union, National Vice Chair for the MU and member of the Central Council at Mary Sumner House, London. Christine was the manager of Salcare before, in 1994, she became lecturer and then Vice Principal at the Northern Ordination College, where she taught Pastoral Studies, Human Relationship, Ethics and New Testament Greek. Christine was subsequently on the Governing Council of Trinity Theological College Bristol. 

"Whilst a member of the General Synod Christine was a member of many committees and working parties, including at Ministry Division considering Clergy Stipends and working conditions.  She was a member of the working party on The Family which produced its report in 1995. She was the founder member of WATCH which campaigned for the ordination of women first as clergy, then the Episcopate.

"We are deeply grateful to Christine for the generous ways she has used her gifts and experience for God. We congratulate her on being awarded the Canterbury cross.”

On receiving the award Christine said: “I was not very excited when I read the email offering me the Canterbury Cross. I thought it was just a hoax! 

"I decided I had better check so I phoned Bishop Libby to ask her if it were genuine, and when the Bishop stopped laughing, she reassured me it was true and I had better send a reply!

"This was a few weeks ago and the hardest thing has been not able to share the news!

"What I have done with my life is based on the support of my friends and what my family taught me - to trust God, to be kind, to look into people’s eyes when talking  to them and to listen carefully to what they are saying ( and not saying) without making judgements.

"There was a lot of noise round our family table, my mother was a great giggler, and my father was quieter but had a canny eye for the idiosyncrasies of people in everyday life and had a great gift for doing things in his own way, and my children were unbelievably honest. I owe a lot to them.”

Congratulations to Christine on this amazing achievement!

The carol ‘It came upon a midnight clear’ is not my favourite, but two of its lines always jump out at me.

The first is the reference to John Milton’s ‘Paradise Lost’ – where  Milton’s ‘wandering steps and slow’ in the carol become the ‘painful steps and slow’ of humanity struggling under ‘life’s crushing load’ along a ‘climbing way’. 

For many that’s just how they will be feeling as this Christmas approaches.

Whether it’s personal problems, local, national or global politics, whether it’s the cruelties of war in Europe, the Middle East, or Africa, or whether it’s our painfully slow response to the climate emergency, we feel ill-equipped to face such challenges.

None of us as individuals, and none of our national or global institutions – including the church – seem up to the job. 

But it’s a different line of the carol that intrigues me most, from the first verse of the carol ‘the world in solemn stillness lay’.

It is that sense of waiting, of longing, longing for a story to be told and a song to be sung that cannot come from inside ourselves, but which, once heard, we find irresistible.

Those three words stand out – world – solemn – stillness: 

This ‘world’ – reality as we know it is a planet set in one huge galaxy within an expanding universe 15 billion years old, where against extraordinary odds life came to be, evolving over time to produce humans capable of researching and reflecting on the meaning of existence.

It is a world of intricate beauty and variety, nature terrifying in its capacity both for destruction and for renewal.

This same real world we know as the place of our human struggle – and it is the world which ‘God so loved’ that he ‘sent his only begotten Son.’ (John 3.16)

John unfolds the astonishing mystery that the very sense and meaning of this vast universe is fully expressed in the one born in Bethlehem and crucified at Calvary. The Word, the one who gives meaning to it all, made flesh, made accessible, recognisable to us. One of us. One with us. 

Solemnity follows. ‘The world in solemn stillness lay….’  For all the welcome festive jollification of food and drink and presents and merriment, the incarnation of the word of God is serious stuff.

Our journey through Advent helps us explore some solemn themes – not least the four last things, Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell. Change the language if we must, but these themes serve as the writing on the wall to much of our way of life. ‘Weighed in the balance and found wanting’ (Daniel 5.27) is not a text with which to point the finger at others, it stands as a warning to ourselves.

We could and should be better than we are.

And if the future is to be better, so we must be.

The solemn truth is that in Jesus God did not reach out from afar to touch the world to make it better, he became one of us, ‘making himself nothing, taking the form of a servant.’ (Philippians 2.7)

Let’s not bypass the solemnity of Advent. 

Then, at last, comes ‘stillness’. 

Not a soporific stillness, but the stillness of waiting in anticipation.

Alert.

This is how we are to await the song of God’s love, the song of the angels.

It is an uncomfortable waiting, because we know we are not ready.

And we know that however much we know already, there is so much more to be discovered, so much more to learn.

When I pray, it is when the words and busy thoughts give way to this stillness that I know God is doing what only God can do. On God alone my soul in stillness waits…. (Psalm 62.1)

Rowan Williams writes in his book ‘Being Disciples’ about how birdwatching is a bit like prayer.

A twitcher will watch and wait in stillness for that ‘Kingfisher moment’ when a glorious flash of blue and orange shoots by.

Such are those moments when we begin to see and know and love the God who always sees and knows and loves us.

So worth waiting for. 

I waited recently not to see a Kingfisher, but a Bittern – rarer still, but spectacular not for its outstanding colours, but for the camouflage that makes it almost invisible amongst the reedbeds.

Hiding in plain sight.  

Open our eyes, O Lord, that we may see the wonders of your love. Amen. 

Notification of pending faculty petition for Buxton St Mary the Virgin, dated 29th November 2024

See attached Form 4a (PDF)

If you wish to object to any of the works or proposals, you should write giving reasons for your objection to:

The Diocesan Registrar at 1 The Sanctuary, Westminster, London SW1P 3JT  

Derby.registry@1thesanctuary.com

so that it reaches the Registry no later than 21 days after the day of this notice (ie by 20th December), stating your name and postal address, and whether you live in the parish and/or your name is entered on the electoral roll of the parish or any other capacity in which you write.

Archdeacon Nicky preached at the Safeguarding Sunday service at Ashbourne on Sunday 18 November 2024

As we gather here today on this Safeguarding Sunday, our hearts and minds can’t help but be troubled and heavy in the light of the findings of the Makin Report.  We are shocked and disturbed by the long-maintained conspiracy of silence about the heinous abuses of John Smyth. We are ashamed of the institutional failures of the Church of England and many of its senior clergy.

 As Archbishop Justin has resigned and prepares to step down, we can’t help but wonder what comes next? How will we continue to learn from the mistakes of the past?  What might the future of the Church look like?

 The prophet Jeremiah tells us that God’s plan is always to give us a future and a hope. The two Bible readings we’ve read today help us to think about what that future and that hope might look like and how we might contribute to bringing God’s plans and purposes to fruition.

God’s desire is that all people might know his love and come to live within his kingdom. The kingdom of God which is good news for all. The way into that kingdom is open for all who will enter by putting their faith and trust in Jesus, the one who died that we might have life. 

In our liturgy, we sometimes talk about Jesus’ death as opening his arms for us upon the cross – a gesture of welcome, invitation and drawing us in. When you watch a priest presiding at the eucharist, the sleeves of our vestments look very much like wings. That is imagery which the psalmist picks up in our first reading today, Psalm 91:1-4.

God offers us the opportunity to live within his kingdom, to find shelter under his protection. To lean upon his strength, and rest in the shadow of his wings, to be truly and deeply safe and secure. God’s kingdom sets us free from anything that would enslave us as God’s perfect love casts out our fear and helps us grow into wholeness and fullness of life. God’s desire for us is that we will flourish and thrive and become the people we were created to be.

Our Diocesan Vision is nothing less than a vision of the kingdom of God. In our different roles and responsibilities, we are seeking to be good news for all the people God sends our way. In all our churches across the diocese, we are creating safe spaces where people can flourish and thrive and live out their God-given calling. Knowing that we are loved beyond measure by God in Christ, we are learning to love without measure or restraint.

As we reflect on the faithfulness of God and remember with gratitude all he has done for us, our love for him grows, our relationship with him deepens and that love overflows into service of our local contexts. And when we see things around us that are not how God wants them to be we try and find a way to speak out and challenge injustice. And as we do that, other people are impacted and affected and we pray that as they encounter Christ in us and between us and through us, that they too will become disciples and their lives are transformed by Christ.

Today as we gather, it is good to remember that the work we do in safeguarding is absolutely central to all we are and do and to helping our churches reflect the life, values and vision of God’s kingdom. 

Thank you for the part that you are playing. It is good that our amazing safeguarding team are here today and we thank God for the faithful and diligent way in which they serve us. But, as we all know, safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility- though without some really committed volunteers who are willing to devote their time, energy and focus their ministry around this area, our churches would be less safe and people would be at risk.  

The work that our churches are doing in safeguarding is often unseen and unnoticed. No-one knows how much time is spent updating Parish dashboards. No-one (other than our trainer Nick Harding) sees the thousands of individuals sitting on their laptops completing their training. No-one is there in the middle of the night when you can’t get to sleep because something traumatic has occurred and you’ve been part of the Case Management Meeting trying to find ways of moving forward. 

But God sees all those things. His arms of love surround and enfold you, his wings are spread over you giving you protection and shade. His strength helps you to stand and be strong. He catches your tears in a bottle and treasures it for ever. So you are never on your own – God is always with you and has promised to never leave or forsake you. His grace is sufficient, his power is perfected in weakness and his mercies are new every morning for great is his faithfulness.  And can I encourage you to allow our Safeguarding team to help and support you too for that is what they are there for. And as well as that professional help and support, can I encourage you to offer peer support to one another through the PSO network and make the most of the resources available to you.

Part of being human is accepting that no-one is perfect, we are all fallen, we all make mistakes, we all need help and we all need God’s forgiveness. As we remember with gratitude all who work within our churches supporting the work of Safeguarding, we pray for the ways in which we as individuals, and our Church as an institution, has failed in our duty to protect people.  And failed in our calling to love as we have been loved and provide a safe place for all to thrive. We need to learn from those failures and do everything in our power to move forward in the way God wants us to be.

For those who have been the cause of pain, we pray that the love of God will show them the error of their ways and grant them the grace to repent and change, and opportunities to atone and make amends, where that is appropriate and possible. And for all perpetrators we ask that God will convict them of their sin and change their hearts. 

And as we close, I invite you to hold before God all survivors and especially those who have suffered as a result of the failings of our Church. Each one is a unique individual made in God’s image, known and loved by God, infinitely precious and treasured by him. Let us commit ourselves to praying for them, for their healing and protection and that they might encounter the love of God and find safety in the shadow of his wings.