Oral Answers to Questions

Anne-Marie Trevelyan Excerpts

Thursday 21st February 2019 Commons Chamber

The right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners was asked—

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan (Berwick-upon-Tweed) (Con)]

1. What recent assessment the Church of England has made of the effectiveness of its recruitment of clergy to rural parishes.

[The Leader of the House of Commons (Andrea Leadsom)]

With permission, Mr Speaker, as an ex officio member of the Church Commissioners I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Second Church Estates Commissioner.

The Church of England has over 10,000 rural churches and 45% of those who attend church go to rural churches. The Church supports these rural churches through its dedicated national rural officer, who provides advice, consultancy and training for dioceses. The Church has recently launched a new recruitment portal which currently displays all jobs in 30 of the 42 dioceses, enabling clergy to sort jobs by postcode and categories.

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan]

As rural parishes go, the parish of St Mary on the island of Lindisfarne, Holy Island, in my constituency must be one of the smallest, most rural but most magnificent. It has a permanent population of only 200 people but, living in the cradle of British Christianity, it has hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. So will the Leader of the House join me in welcoming to her post, and with an outreach vocation, the Reverend Canon Dr Sarah Hills, our new vicar of St Mary, Lindisfarne?

[Andrea Leadsom]

I understand that the religious community on Holy Island was founded by an Irish monk called St Aidan in 635 AD. I certainly welcome the Reverend Dr Sarah Hills to her post and wish her well with her ministry. She brings with her considerable experience from Coventry cathedral, where she led the international reconciliation team.