General Synod Election Candidates 2026

GENERAL SYNOD ELECTION 2026 • HOUSE OF LAITY • DIOCESE OF OXFORD
Helen Savage
HELEN SAVAGE
Standing for the House of Laity, Diocese of Oxford

[email protected]

PUTTING THE PARISH FIRST

I am standing for General Synod on a Save The Parish platform because I believe that every
parishioner in England should have access to parish ministry and pastoral care.

ABOUT ME
My own experience of the Church is rooted in parish life. I have served on my PCC for 20 years, including five
years as Churchwarden, and am now PCC Secretary at my rural village church in Flaunden, Herts. I am also a
member of Amersham Deanery Synod and Oxford Diocesan Synod.
Having worked as a solicitor before getting married and raising children, I had to see the big picture while also
keeping an eye on detail and being mindful of cost; skills which have served me well in my work in the church.
I have helped the PCC through major projects including a modern church room, a new organ, and recently raised
£30k for roof repairs. When my children were younger, I ran Sunday School and wrote and directed Nativity
plays. During our current vacancy, I find visiting clergy to take services and organise sidesfolk and our Holy
Dusters.

WHY AM I STANDING?
I am standing because I want to push for a church which values the ordinary, faithful work taking place across the
country every day of the year.
I believe that the CoE is at its best when it is rooted in the communities it serves: when the church door is open,
the bells are ringing, where people are welcomed to worship, children are baptised, couples are married, the
bereaved are supported and Christians gather together in joy and faith. I was horrified when churches were forced
to lock their doors during the pandemic.
Yet many parishes are being asked to do more with less. Clergy are increasingly stretched across multiple
churches, while congregations face growing financial and administrative burdens. My village church is
experiencing its third vacancy in ten years, placing additional strain on volunteers and local clergy and inevitably
weakening congregational life.

THE PARISH TEST
How will this help the Church's parishes fulfil their mission?
I will apply this simple question to every decision at General Synod.

GENERAL SYNOD ELECTION 2026 • HOUSE OF LAITY • DIOCESE OF OXFORD
Helen Savage

MY PRIORITIES

1. Strengthen parish ministry

I want the Church to make sustaining and renewing parish ministry a priority, including increasing the number of
clergy serving in our parishes. Priests need time to pray, teach, and become rooted in the communities they serve
and to go out and spread the gospel.

1. Spend the Church's money wisely

National and diocesan expenditure should be carefully scrutinised. New projects, programmes and posts should
have clear objectives, and we should be willing to ask whether existing initiatives have delivered what was
promised. Less bureaucracy and more ministry!

1. Trust local churches

There is no single model for successful ministry. What works in an urban parish in Oxford may not be right for a
rural village in Buckinghamshire, a market town in Berkshire or a new community in Milton Keynes. Greater
recognition of the contribution made by volunteers, churchwardens, and PCCs.

1. Listen, engage and speak clearly

General Synod must address difficult questions about doctrine, worship, finance, governance and the future of the
Church. Christians will conscientiously disagree. I promise to listen carefully, treat those with whom I disagree
with respect, and say clearly what I think, aiming always for pragmatic and prayerful solutions. Good decisions
require open debate, proper scrutiny and mutual respect.

I want to stress that this is not a campaign for one tradition or one section of the Church, or just my parish church!
The CoE and the parish belong to us all - Evangelical, Anglo-Catholic, High Church, middle-of-the-road and
everything in between. I know my concerns are shared by many across the Deanery and the Diocese (and I’m sure
across the country).
I strongly believe that the church should welcome everyone and be a safe space for all, but that does not mean
affirmation for everything. Also that the CoE should not be making vast financial atonement for unproven past
sins.
If you have any questions you’d like me to answer, I’d be delighted to hear from you – [email protected]

PARISHES ARE THE HEART OF THE CHURCH
I will always put the Parish First
The Church of England has an extraordinary inheritance: a network of parish churches providing a Christian
presence in communities throughout the country. But that inheritance cannot be taken for granted.
I want to see a Church which has a FUTURE: which has confidence in its parishes, invests in its clergy and gives
local churches the freedom and resources they need to flourish.
If elected, I would work constructively with others, scrutinise decisions carefully and, above all, make sure that
the voice and needs of our parishes are heard.

I would be very grateful for your support and, in this preferential election, for a
first or high preference vote. Thank you!

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