The Church of England in Suffolk welcomes a new member to its leadership team with a focus on strengthening engagement and growing partnerships with congregations and communities across the county.
Tim Holder starts his role as director of engagement in early March with the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich.
Tim, who lives near Ipswich, said: “I am a Suffolk boy and have always said that, no matter how special our county is in so many other ways, it is the people who make this such a great place to live, but sadly not for us all. Suffolk is a caring county and I’ve seen that clearly demonstrated so many times, especially by the many who volunteer day in day out within their local community. I am a Christian and have a personal faith, and I’m very much looking forward to bringing this more to the fore in my professional life. For many years I have seen so many people creating projects and giving their time to help people, quietly motivated by their faith and often supported by their local church. I’m particularly looking forward to helping this work grow and make an even greater difference to the lives of local people.”
Ahead of commencing work, Tim has started visiting volunteers that are making a real difference including a visit to St Thomas The Apostle church in Bramford Lane, Ipswich.
St Thomas’ have a food bank every week, helping up to 50 people with 12 volunteers, hold youth activities weekly for up to 30 young people aged 11 to 19 years old, and have a well-being café weekly where people can drop in for support every Thursday between 11am and 2pm.
“After spending only a short time with Rachel and the team, I could so clearly see how passionate they are about caring for people of all ages and backgrounds in and around their church community and, in particular, how much their group of young people value being a part of church activities,” he said.
“The team really listening, try hard to understand the challenges and provide a stimulating and safe space for young people to be. It’s really precious work and brings stability and much needed hope to often fragile lives that are really only just beginning.”
Mr Holder has during his career to date worked for the East Anglian Daily Times, The Times and Sunday Times, within the voluntary sector in international development in Africa, India, Bangladesh and Latin America before returning to Suffolk nine years ago as Director of Development and Communications at Suffolk Community Foundation.
He said: “During my recent time with the foundation, I’ve been working with some many dedicated people who wanted to make a difference in Suffolk and I’m really excited to bring my existing knowledge and experience to the diocese. I saw the need in Suffolk a long time before Covid 19 and the cost of living crisis made an already difficult situation worse. More people than ever before are living in poverty, experience isolation, poor mental health or are struggling with addiction or abuse.
In recent times I have seen hope slipping further away in people’s lives. What we all need to focus on is building hope, it’s absolutely crucial and the best way to demonstrate faith is through positive action. The Christian organisation I am a personal and now professional part of, is an incredibly valuable structure and resource within the county.
It remains the largest charitable organisation in Suffolk. I am excited to be part of a team at a time when it is even more crucial to look outwards, engage even more with a wider cross section of our society in order to make a deeper and more sustainable difference,” he said.
The Rt Rev Martin Seeley, Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, said: “I am thrilled that Tim is joining the diocesan staff in this key role. Tim will bring to this post his love of Suffolk and love of the Church, as well as his huge experience with the Suffolk Community Foundation.
“In this role he will support parishes and congregations in their community outreach, and help the story of our churches’ pastoral and community work be more widely known. I am looking forward to working with Tim as we seek to show and share God’s love in Suffolk.”
Gary Peverley, Diocesan Secretary, added: “Tim is well known across Suffolk to many and brings a wealth of experience and talent to us.
Tim joins us at a time when the diocese is even more focused on supporting our parishes and communities, and his involvement will help us more effectively contribute to the work of our clergy, congregations and partners as they reach out to their communities to meet local needs. It’s a part-time role four days a week, and one that has been vacant for sometime, so I’m really excited to appoint Tim and am looking forward to working with him at this challenging time for so many.”