Ministry Leaders

Matthew is a Chaplain in the Army, currently serving as Padre with 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, based in Windsor.  He is married to Marion, and they have 4 children – Chloe (19), Gregory (17), Barnaby (15) and Timothy (10).  Together with Marley the dog, and Tiger & Thor the cats, their family home is in Taunton, Somerset where Matthew was a School Chaplain, before becoming a Padre. It was in the Army that Matthew developed a passion for skiing (both Alpine and Nordic) and he was Regimental Skiing Officer.

Chris and Claire have been married for 33 years and have 2 daughters and 2 grandchildren. 
Chris became a Christian in 1982 at St. Helens, Bishopsgate and since they have been active members of Frinton Free Church. Chris and Claire both regularly play in the worship band where Claire leads and Chris plays the cello. Chris also leads a weekly House group Bible studies, and together have both led youth work.

Nigel’s Christian journey began over 40 years ago. He is married to Val and they have both been involved in Church life in areas such as Dorset, London, and Suffolk. Nigel loves leading worship from the keyboard and teaching and pastoral roles are at the heart of his ministry. He was also inducted as Minister of Canford Heath Baptist Church in 2014.

Fiona and Doug live in the west side of Edinburgh, where they attend St Paul’s and St George’s church. Doug is involved with the worship and loves teaching God’s Word, Fiona works for Edinburgh City Mission and enjoys cooking for different church events.

Helen and Tim are both lecturers at Moorlands College where Helen oversees the postgraduate programmes and Tim looks after the foundation year. They have both worked overseas but are now happily settled in Bournemouth, where they are both very involved in their local church.

Jonny Abbott is the Student Pastor at St Aldates, a church in heart of Oxford which sees many Students discover what it means to be formed by Jesus, for a life of purpose (staldates.org.uk). Jonny is married to Chloe, of whom he proposed to on top of Becca Red in the 3 vallees!

Nick is married to Pam, father to two grown-up sons and now a grandfather! Formerly a Mathematics teacher and then IT Manager in commerce, Nick is currently the Team Pastor at LOVECHURCH in Bournemouth. Nick and Pam love the outdoors, sunshine and the sea and enjoy a glass of wine or a good cup of coffee.

Ben grew up in Portsmouth, and currently lives in a village near Cambridge, where he has been working as a youth minister for St James Church. He sees it as a great privilege to have so many opportunities to share the good news of Jesus with children, families and young people through his ministry at Sunday services and youth groups! He loves all kinds of sports and has studied Theology.

Tony & Christine Patching live in Bournemouth and love nothing more than walking in the nearby Purbecks and the New Forest. They have a love of Greek islands and have visited many of them over the years. They originally met as holiday reps in Spain and have many years of experience organising groups. Together they attend St Clement’s Church in Boscombe where they are involved in various activities.

During their time in the French Alps, Tony and Christine will be looking at the theme “Looking at God & ourselves through the Psalms and Proverbs”.

James and Melanie have shared a life of faith for 40 years. They have been involved in St Mary’s Longfleet since 2004 which is large Anglican church in Poole. James is on the regular teaching team and they jointly lead a Life Group. They both enjoy studying the Bible and finding creative ways to communicate its message in a way that is relevant for 21st century living.