Items filtered by date: December 2015

Ordained deacon on 2 July 2023

Hi, I’m Emma and I will be serving my curacy at St Peter's, Littleover with Blagreaves.

I grew up in a Christian family so have always known Jesus and had a faith.

This has been further strengthened and confirmed within me through different experiences over the years, so that it has become vital to me, and I am passionate and excited to share this faith with others.

I have just finished two years studying with St Mellitus College East Midlands in Nottingham. Here I have completed a degree in Theology, Ministry, and Mission, having completed the first year with All Saints college and he Diocese of Derby before going to BAP.

I have loved learning, and discussing ideas and concepts with others, but not the essays so much!

I feel called to ordination as I believe God has called me to serve his church.

When I was younger, I had a few years away from church and a period where I was angry with God. But when I resolved this and returned to him, I was filled with such a passion and love for the church; a passion to see people’s lives transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit, and to see the church grow and thrive.

I am always disappointed to hear stories of church decline, and of churches being closed, and I long to see this being turned around, and for the church in this country to be renewed. As part of this I am very keen on church planting and new ways of being church that are relevant and engaging.

I moved to Derby in 2017 as part of the team planting a new congregation into St Werburgh’s church in the city centre. I was the Operations Manager here for four years before leaving to train for ordination.

For my placement church as an ordinand, I joined the team who moved from St Werburgh’s to St Francis in Mackworth, to revitalize that church, and to work with the existing congregation.

I am single, and I enjoy reading, going to the cinema, and meals with friends.

I also love visiting National Trust places, so Derby is a great location for exploring from.

Ordained deacon on 2 July 2023

I felt called to ordination when I was 21 in my final year at university studying neuroscience.

At the time I’d hoped to become a psychiatrist or do research to help enable people to become the fullest versions of themselves they could.

Becoming a priest very much felt like an extension of the hope I’d always had for my life: to see people flourish.

I’m particularly passionate about diversity in the church and seeing people who think differently and have had different experiences of life come together in community.

I’d love to see more of those not currently represented in church leadership supported to offer the gift of who they are. 

My husband Jack and I are both from North Devon but have been involved in church planting in the midlands in recent years before my training for ordination at Trinity College Bristol.

I’m very excited to begin ordained ministry in Chesterfield at St Thomas Brampton.

Ordained deacon on 2 July 2023

Hello to you all!

I’m Nicholas, the soon-to-be curate of the Benefice of Buxton with Burbage and King Sterndale.

I grew up by the coast in the West Country but have spent the last eight years living in Northamptonshire. Since September 2020 I have been studying and training for the ordained ministry at St Mellitus College (East Midlands centre) in Nottingham following a contextual training pathway, which has seen me spend three days a week working in a parish in Wellingborough, and three days a week studying.

My journey to ordination started in 2006 when I spoke with a vicar about having a feeling of being called to something.

I wasn’t sure what I was called to, but he seemed sure that it was ordination.

I decided he was wrong and spent some time doing youth work and trying to avoid any talk of ordination.

To my surprise people asked me if I’d considered being ordained in various places and situations. When working for a wholesaler in Exeter, when attending a church service whilst on holiday in Cornwall, or chatting with a stranger during breakfast in Wetherspoon’s… It seems that there is no hiding from God and his call!

I came to faith in a non-denominational church and have journeyed with the Church of England through its various traditions.

I believe that God calls each of us in our diversity to serve in many and varied ways, and that a part of my ministry is to encourage, enable, and empower others in their calling.

I will be moving to Derbyshire with my partner, Michael, and we look forward to exploring the Peak District together.

We love all the creative and different ways churches are engaging with their parishes and beyond.

Our vision is The Kingdom of God, Good News for All and it's great to see how so many churches in the Diocese of Derby are sharing stories of their success in achieving transformed lives through growing church and building community.

Here are a few that have caught our eye recently:

Why posting event flyers and posters on social media is a really bad idea…

So the date for the event is set, someone has put posters around the village and now you want to get the message out there on social media.

Surely the thing to do is post the flyer on Facebook and Instagram, right?

No!

Posters advertising events on social media never do well, and there are two good reasons why.

First, you need to make your event discoverable and searchable in as many ways as possible. But when you simply upload a flyer to Facebook, what actually happens is that effectively it disappears... all Facebook sees is a photograph of your poster.

That means it doesn't know what your poster is all about and so it doesn't know whom to show it to!

That in turn means that people cannot search and find it and your event won’t show up in local searches looking for events.

So it’s highly unlikely anyone will come across it – unless they are a follower of your page (and it is already well known that Facebook doesn’t show your posts to ALL your followers).

Too hard to read

The other reason is that, in this digital age, event flyers don’t belong on Instagram or Facebook.

With so much information now being uploaded to the internet, people don’t really stop to read blocks of text.

Social media is made up of platforms that are, in the main, visual and what you need is something that ‘stops the scroll’ and lets people see that your post is worth pausing for.

A flyer packed with text isn’t going to do that.

And imagine how small all that text looks on a mobile phone screen! Remember, most people who use Facebook and Instagram view them on mobiles.

So what should we do?

Use Facebook Events!

Yes, there’s a special feature in Facebook that is designed for promoting events! (It’s free, by the way.)

It’s a little bit more effort than simply uploading a poster, but Facebook Events have the potential to be seen by many more people and, importantly, they are searchable.

They are also included in local lists of events. See some examples here.

Another nice feature of Facebook Events is that people can click to say they are interested or even that they are going. This can encourage others.

On Facebook Events, you could use the artwork from a poster to illustrate your summer fair or concert, for example, but you’d be better to use a striking image from last year’s event together with an engaging caption about the forthcoming event.

>> See Facebook's guide to creating an event

When wording the information (and this applies to all platforms) remember to start with the information people NEED to know. What is important to THEM (not to YOU).

Don’t try to fit in every detail.

What’s the headline?

Is it catchy enough to stop the scroll?

The rest of the details can follow but you MUST grab people’s attention first.

Take a look at the image at the top of this page - that was enough to get your attention and draw you in... there's no detail, just a headline. Keep it simple!

If you know how to use Instagram Stories, try using those. Stories are perfect for promoting events because you can talk about the event multiple times without it living on your feed forever.

Plan ahead - Reach Out!

The earlier you can get your event on Facebook Events the better.

Not only will it give you more time to promote, but your followers will be able to look at what you have coming up and plan accordingly.

Also, don't confine your event promotion just to Facebook. 

Spread the word about your event across all your social media channels and your website. Your Facebook Event can serve as the information hub where people can learn more and get specifics.

Time to stop using those flyers on social!

Ordained deacon on 2 July 2023

I am excited to be joining Revd Adele Barker as Assistant Curate in the benefice of the White Peak Group and the benefice of Youlgreave, Middleton, Stanton in Peak and Birchover. 

I am married to Guy, and we have 3 adult children, a daughter-in-law who is also a curate in Doncaster, a soon to be daughter-in-law and a very well-loved and spoilt 10-year-old sprocker spaniel. We are also expecting out first grandchild in the autumn so have much to look forward to. 

Before sensing that God was calling me to ordained ministry in the Church of England, we lived in Taunton, Somerset where I worked as Director of People for a hospice.

Before this we lived in Castle Donington so in many ways are returning to a familiar and well-loved part of the country. During our time in Taunton, we were part of a large and lively village church on the edge of the town.

For the last two years, I have been studying full-time for the Diploma in Theology, Ministry and Mission at Trinity College in Bristol, where I have also played an active part in two wonderful and very different church communities in Clifton. 

Ordination was not something I had considered for myself - I had been praying for some time that God would show me where he wanted me to be for the next stage of my life, and about ive years ago I experienced a distinctive answer to those prayers when I had a strong sense, a sort of ‘settled knowing’, that God was directing me to consider ordained ministry in the Church of England. The two-year discernment process was a wonderful time of deepening my faith and knowledge of myself and our faithful God.

I am so excited about learning from and serving the people in the White Peak and Youlgrave Benefices - I love being outdoors; walking, off-road running and cycling are some of my favourite things to do so I’m very much looking forward to exploring the wonderful hills and countryside of the Peaks and catching up with old and not-so-old friends who live nearby. 

The Church of England’s National Giving Team made 50 contactless giving devices available to parishes in the Diocese of Derby for free and this week they have been distributed ready for immediate use.

The National Giving Team recognises the many new challenges which influence our ability to sustain Gods work in our parish churches.

As we evolve into a cashless society, parishes need to consider the various methods available to allow generosity.

Steve Johnson, Living Generously Advisor for the Diocese of Derby said “This is an amazing opportunity to enable church visitors to support the ministry in our parishes, whether they are members of the congregation, attending a special event, or just taking some quiet time in your church, a contactless giving device allows their generosity to become a reality. God calls everyone to be generous. Generosity through contactless donations enables transformed lives, a growing church, and the building of community. The Kingdom of God – Good News for all”

Quotes from the Diocese of Derby Digital Contactless Donation Device Rollout 2023

Representatives from St Helen’s Etwall said "I just wanted to thank Steve for a very well-prepared session, you've done a great job here! We were impressed by the device, ease of use and functionality…The great news is that it can be left in church, plugged in permanently".

Representatives from All Saints Youlgreave said "A huge, huge thank you for organising today. I was so excited to pick up the device and it is so easy to manage. I cannot believe all the campaign pages and screens were set up for each church! Just in time for well dressings too which is just amazing! This is such a wonderful way for small churches in parishes to help themselves grow financially and with the sharp decline in cash in recent years, such a wonderful and timely grant to support parish churches like our beautiful church here in Youlgreave. I know it will do wonders for our fundraising and the sustainability of the church in the future.

For more information on contactless giving and living generously, please contact Steve Johnson, Living Generously Advisor at steve.johnson@derby.anglican.org or 01332 278151.

Anne Sherwood, church warden at St Philip’s Chaddesden has received the “Community Hero Award” at the Derby Volunteer Awards on Thursday, 1 June 2023.

She received the award for her tireless work each week as the church warden and chief caterer at St Philip’s, and community shop volunteer at the Aspire Community Alliance at St Marks Derby.

Anne is a key part of the church community. You can find her providing meals and caring for the those who visit the community café on Thursdays, serving breakfasts on one Saturday each month, supporting school events, running toddler and craft groups and assisting other groups who use the space and need a hand, such as Derby County Community Trust and Derby Adult Learning Service.

She pours her heart and soul into the community and without her so much would cease to function.

Anne said, “I am so pleased to accept the award and share it with my colleagues in Aspire (St Mark’s) and at St Philip's. Five hundred years ago, St Teresa of Avila wrote, ‘Christ has no body on earth but yours.’ and so challenged Christians to demonstrate God’s love through personal service to others. Volunteering provides opportunities to pay back a lifetime of blessings, but it is certainly not one-sided. It’s a social experience working alongside others and supporting each other to achieve results. Volunteering can be FUN. – Try it!”.

Revd Sarah Watson, Area Dean for Derby City Deanery and Enabling Minister for St Philip’s Chaddesden, said “I am absolutely delighted that Anne has won this award. She really is an unsung hero who gives so much to this community as an outworking of her faith in Jesus. In her acceptance speech she spoke of the teams she works with; this is a real example of the Body of Christ in action, all playing their part in seeing lives transformed and touched by the Kingdom of God”.

The event took place during Volunteers Week 2023 and was presented by Community Action Derby and Derby Volunteer Centre in partnership with Derby Homes.

>> Learn more about Community Action Derby

>> Learn more about St Philip’s Chaddesden

 Photos taken by S.H Photos and used by permission of Community Action Derby. 

29 June

The Revd Mina Munns will be licensed as Priest-in-Charge of Derby St John the Evangelist, Diocese of Derby, on Thursday 27th July at 7 pm at St John’s Derby by the Bishop of Repton assisted by the Area Dean of Derby City. 

22 June

The Revd Phil Mann, Pioneer Minister of Derby St Werburgh’s BMO and Priest-in-Charge of Mackworth St Francis, Diocese of Derby, has also been appointed Priest-in-Charge of the parish of Allenton and Shelton Lock (within the benefice of Pride Park, Wilmorton, Allenton and Shelton Lock)

The Revd Jeff Golding, Assistant Curate of Derby St Werburgh’s BMO, Diocese of Derby, will transfer his curacy and become Assistant Curate in the parish of Allenton and Shelton Lock (within the benefice of Pride Park, Wilmorton, Allenton and Shelton Lock)

Phil and Jeff will be licensed to their new posts on Sunday, 25 June 2023 at 2pm at St Edmund’s Allenton and Shelton Lock by the Bishop of Derby assisted by the Archdeacon of Derby City and South Derbyshire.

The Revd Chris Neilson will be licensed as Interim Priest-in-Charge of the benefice of Whitfield, Diocese of Derby, on Monday, 21 August 2023 at 7pm at St Luke’s Whitfield by the Bishop of Derby assisted by the Acting Archdeacon of Derbyshire Peak and Dales.

19 June

The Revd Dr James Hughes, Vicar of Duffield and Little Eaton, Diocese of Derby, has also been appointed Area Dean of Dove and Derwent. James will take up this appointment from Friday, 1 September 2023.

The Revd Jonathan Page, Vicar of Belper Christ Church and Turnditch, Priest-in-Charge of Hazelwood, Holbrook and Milford and Assistant Area Dean of Dove and Derwent, has also been appointed Acting Area Dean of Dove and Derwent with immediate effect. Jonathan will step down as Acting Area Dean with effect from Friday, 1 September 2023 and also resign as Assistant Area Dean from this date.

The Revd Stella Greenwood, Priest-in-Charge of Etwall and Egginton and Assistant Curate (Minister Responsible) of Dalbury, Sutton on the Hill and Trusley, has been appointed Assistant Area Dean of Dove and Derwent with immediate effect.

1 June

The Revd BJ Facey, Vicar of Chellaston, Diocese of Derby, has announced her retirement. BJ’s last day in post will be Friday, 28 July 2023 with her retirement taking effect from Saturday, 29 July, 2023. BJ will be staying in the diocese in retirement.

↓ Download Archdeacons' Visitation News 2023 [PDF]