The Deanery in Detail

THE DEANERY

“We are the Church of people and place, not just congregations and parish church.”
(Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell)

We are trying to make this a reality in Abbeydore Deanery which covers a large part of South-West Herefordshire numbering 35 churches and 32 parishes. Our Deanery operates as a Group Ministry and we operate on a principle of collaboration between clusters of parishes supported by a team of leaders, both layand ordained. Our vicars have been commissioned as Rural Pioneer Priests,  sharing their time between ministry and mission.

DEANERY DETAILS

The Team

The current team of Rural Pioneer Priests are Rev’d Vicki Burrows, Rev’d Luci Morriss, Rev’d CateThomson and Rev’d Simon Lockett. (Find out more about them on our Meet the Team page!)
They work as part of a wider Deanery Leadership Team which also includes:Rev Jane Rogers (Co Rural Dean), Bill Giles (Lay Chair), Geoff Holder (Self-supporting Curate), Nigel
Sellar (Treasurer) and Anne Lloyd (Coordinator).
There is then a much wider team, too many to name, which includes retired clergy,
local lay worship leaders, missioners and pastoral visitors together with the many
churchwardens, other officeholders and volunteers who collaborate together for
mission and ministry in this area.

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THE DEANERY SYNOD
This is the decision-making body for the deanery. It meets at least twice a year, usually as part of a larger meeting which we call The Gathering. The Deanery Synod is made up of representatives
from each parish within the deanery.

Deanery Synod/Gathering Dates for 2026/2027 are:

November 2nd 2026 – 7pm – Kingstone Village Hall
Tuesday 18th May 2026 – 7pm – venue to be confirmed.
Saturday 9th October  2027 – 9.30am for breakfast!

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THE JOINT COUNCIL

Abbeydore Deanery is the first Deanery in Herefordshire to form a Joint Council, andpossibly the first in England!
The Joint Council members are a mixture of lay representatives from each benefice and members of clergy who, together, are responsible for planning mission and ministry across the deanery.
They meet at least 3 times per year. At each meeting, key points are identified for sharingacross the deanery.

In 2026 these have included
● Reviewing the Mission Action Plan
                              ● Recruitment drive for Joint Council membership

● Seeking external funding
● Safeguarding training and hubs/dashboards
● Planned Diocesan Restructuring
Joint Council Meeting Dates for 2027 are:
Tuesday February 16th 2027
Tuesday June 15th 2027
Tuesday September 14th 2027