General Synod Election Candidates 2026

Election Statement – Revd Dr Coleen R Jackson, Curate, Portsdown and
Purbrook

I am pleased to provide an election statement in support of my ‘nomination’ to
represent the clergy of Portsmouth Diocese at General Synod. I am currently
coming to the end of my curacy in the parish of Portsdown and Purbrook. Having
lived the majority of my life in London, I moved south to Hampshire in 2000 and
came to live on Hayling Island in 2014. I am single and have two very
mischievous miniature schnauzers called Barnabas and Jasper. My leisure
interests are wide and varied, but I particularly enjoy painting, playing golf and
gardening.

Now retired, I had a background in education, where I held senior positions in
universities and schools before becoming a Director of my own company and a
consultant for the Department of Education. In addition, I set up Waverley Abbey
as a Christian College for CWR in Surrey to accredit their counselling and pastoral
courses. Much of the last decade in my career was spent working on behalf of
our government to advise Ministries of Education and private education
companies on aspects of leadership and transformational change. In giving
something back to education and attempting to make a difference, I am involved
with a national and international Christian Education Trust. I remain an examiner
of postgraduate programmes and Chair doctoral vivas for universities.

In the past, I have worked alongside Church House and the National Director of
Education to set up a verification process for accredited courses for dioceses,
which included advising Portsmouth and Winchester Dioceses on programme
accreditation. I have worked with Chichester Diocese as Bishop’s representative
on the Diocesan Board of Education. My intention would be to bring my
experience and skills from my background to navigate the national debates and
committee work.

My interest in General Synod began many years ago when, as Deputy
Headteacher, my school in Bermondsey was due to become the first C of E City
Technology College. General Synod had to agree that one of its schools could
change status in this way, and I attended Synod to hear the resolution and
witness the vote. At school level, the Governors’ meeting finished at 3 am, but
Synod went through the process much more quickly, I am pleased to say! I have
listened with interest to the various debates at Synod as reported back by our
reps at Diocesan Synod and have felt a calling to be part of the team that
represents our Diocese. I am motivated to serve at a national level at Synod to
shape future discussion and lead to the continuance of unity in the Church of
England.

Within the church, I have always played a full and active part in leading small
groups, worship, preaching, leading prayer groups, PCC member and
churchwarden (for over 13 years in Southwark and on Hayling Island) and more
recently in fulfilling a ministry journey that began over 35 years ago. In 2020, I
was licensed as a Licensed Lay Minister (LLM or Reader), serving the Blendworth,

Chalton and Idsworth Benefice and occasionally preaching at St John’s Rowlands
Castle. In 2023, I was licensed as a self-supporting minister (SSM) and became
curate at Portsdown and Purbrook.

During this time, I was instrumental in setting up Anna Chaplaincy in our
Diocese, which has gone from strength to strength and provides spiritual support
for those older in age in our communities. This allowed me to give presentations
at various Deanery Synod meetings or groups of churches and see how this work
was developing. Having developed and led the training, I met many lay and
ordained people across the Diocese and appreciate the time and energy they
give to this ministry. Alongside my parish ministry, I have served on Deanery
and Diocesan Synod and Bishop’s Council. I am also part of a team looking at
Self-Supporting Ministry in our Diocese, which accounts for 32% of our clergy
numbers. This is a growing feature of ministry in the Anglican Community,
especially for those serving in parishes where they do not live.

Virtually all of this year I have spent in a parish with a vacancy, which has given
me valuable insight into how parishes cope during this time and perhaps some
of the difficulties they face in the 21st century when having to follow rules
developed last century. I am hopeful that this, along with some other archaic
practices, can be addressed under the guidance of our current archbishop. These
and other topics mean raising issues that are relevant to underrepresented
groups in our churches. Having had much life experience from my profession
and my roles within the church, I know I can contribute to the various debates
at Synod, alongside bringing a sense of reality from someone with their feet on
the ground who is not afraid to raise and address issues of concern.

From what you have read so far, I am sure you will have gleaned some of the
areas that I care about – the spiritual support for those older in age, how children
and young people are involved in ‘church’, developing individuals to take on roles
within the church in voluntary or paid positions, and how we serve out in our
communities through mission outreach, which is likely to change the whole
notion of ‘church’. I am also interested in the well-being of clergy serving
multiple churches and, indeed, the thorny issue: do we have too many churches,
which may mean redefining parishes to continue to serve local needs.

I know some can define the moment that they became a Christian; for me, God
has always been in my life, guiding, supporting and caring for me. He has
provided me with some amazing mentors along the way who have helped shape
the person I am today. In the fullness of my faith, I love the liturgy of our
traditional services and equally love the freedom of a more evangelical stance.
From the silent retreat to being part of the 20,000 worshipers at New Wine, God
has always answered my prayers. From doing mission on the streets of
Wimbledon or working alongside the mission teams in Rwanda or Norway, I have
enjoyed the richness of God’s world. If successful, I would hope to bring the
wealth of my experience to the discussion and debate at General Synod in
supporting you all.

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