finances,mission,young people,youth,youth ministry

I am standing for election to the General Synod because I believe I can bring
both experience and a fresh perspective to the work of our Church. I am soon
to graduate from Newcastle University with a master’s degree in music, and
have been a church musician since the age of 14.
Since 2021, I have had the privilege of serving as a member of the Bishop’s
Council. Over these years I have gained first-hand experience of the
opportunities and challenges facing our diocese and wider church, and of the
importance of listening carefully, working constructively with others, and
seeking practical ways forward even when opinions differ. I would now value
the opportunity to bring that experience to the wider life of the Church of
England through the General Synod.
At 22, I would also bring a perspective which is still relatively uncommon
around the tables at which decisions about our Church are made. I do not
claim to speak for all young people, but I do know what it is like to be a
young person trying to find a place within the Church today. I believe that
the voices of younger Christians need not simply to be heard when we discuss
youth ministry, but to be part of the conversation about the Church's
worship, mission, finances, structures and future as a whole.
I am also engaged as Choirmaster at Chester-le-Street and Director of Music
at Whickham, and have played the organ at sundry other churches. This has
given me first-hand experience of the remarkable variety of worship within
the Church of England, and of the different communities and traditions which
make up our Church. I value that diversity greatly: it enables people of very
different backgrounds and temperaments to find a place within the same
Church. I would therefore want to approach the work of Synod with a
particular concern that, in seeking to shape the Church's future, we preserve
and strengthen that breadth of welcome.
I thus feel well suited to be able to be elected to General Synod and to
further the work of the church in that capacity. I would be glad of the
opportunity to devote my time and industry to this work.
I would be honoured to have your support.