Speakers

Adams, Holly

Holly is the Evangelism and Contemoporary Culture Officer in the Connexional Evangelism and Growth Team. She works collaboratively across the Connexion to equip all Methodists for authentic, confident evangelism, and to deliver training pathways for people called specifically to ministry as Evangelists. Holly has worked previously in church engagement with the Church Urban Fund, a charity which equips churches for social action, and in church development for Canterbury Diocese. 

Adcock, Gail

Gail is the Family and Intergenerational Development Officer in the Connexional Children, Youth and Family Team. Her role is to explore ways to do ministry with families and in intergenerational contexts that further develops best practice in churches and communities. Gail is the course leader for the Family Ministry Certificate at Cliff College. She is also author of The Essential Guide to Family Ministry, published by Bible Reading Fellowship, 2020.

Ampaw-Farr, Jaz

Jaz is an award-winning speaker, teacher of teachers and everyday hero who is passionate about enabling others to show up as their 'full-fat selves' and bring about positive change in the world. She also co-hosts the Hope and Anchor podcast with our very own Trey Hall. You can view Jaz's TEDx talk and hear some of her amazing story here.

Attwood, Eunice

Eunice is the Church at the Margins Officer in the Connexional Evangelism and Growth Team. She brings over twenty years’ experience of ordained diaconal ministry from a variety of contexts, including theological education and city- and town-centred ministry amongst marginalised and vulnerable communities, where she helped start and grow many fresh expressions of church. Building on the biblical connection between evangelism and social justice, Eunice is helping to start a movement of new Christian communities led by people experiencing economic marginalisation. 

Byass, Becca

Becca is the Northern Public Engagement Officer for the Methodist-founded relief and development organisation, All We Can. She's passionate about the ways in which All We Can helps us all engage in social action globally, tackling things like the impact of climate change, injustice and poverty, as well as what it means for human beings to flourish and live their best lives. She has a background in social care, working with older people in residential homes, and has spent time as the Wellbeing Officer for the Nottingham and Derby Methodist District and as a chaplain for MHA. 

Finch, Matt

Matt is the Pioneering and Church Planting Officer in the Connexional Evangelism and Growth Team. He works collaboratively to develop and implement a Church-wide strategy for New Places for New People, developing leaders and pathways that promote experimentation, multiplication and growth. His previous appointment was as a Methodist minister in the St Neots and Huntingdon Circuit, where he established a café church, a contemplative community and new patterns of children and families ministry.

Fishburne, Andy

Andy is one of the Discipleship Development Officers in the Connexional Evangelism and Growth Team. He helps people to grow deeper into their Christian faith through worship, learning, service and evangelism. He supports churches to become communities of discipleship. Andy was a Methodist minister in the Isle of Man, where he pioneered new forms of digital worship. Before candidating for ministry he taught Physics in high schools for twenty-one years, where he developed a love for using creative visual aids for teaching.

Fuller, Penny

Penny is the Connexional Children, Youth and Family Team Co-ordinator. Her specialist experience is children’s spiritual and faith formation, the participation of children in the full life of the church and their discipleship journey. She is also the Moderator of Children’s Ministry Network, an ecumenical body of churches and parachurch organisations involved in children’s and family ministry. Penny volunteers in her local Methodist church and is a Girls' Brigade Leader.

Garr, Junior and Band

Junior Garr will be with us, along with a band, including some members of the amazing choir he founded. The Spirituals are a London-based choir that love to reimagine spiritual anthems to commemorate Black history, music and culture, highlighting injustice and inspiring people to take action. You can see a preview of their incredible talent here:

Hall, Gary

Revd Dr Gary Hall is a Methodist presbyter, teacher, and researcher at the Queens Foundation, sharing responsibility for the teaching, oversight and stationing of Methodist student ministers, and supervision of research work. As Coordinator of the international Partnership in Theological Education, he is responsible for the international work in ministerial training and development, primarily with colleagues in Sri Lanka and Rwanda. Gary's previous roles have included training mission partners in transition to and from the UK, circuit ministry in Leicester and Leeds, working as a schoolteacher, engineer and farm labourer, and living with the Taizé community. Gary has a particular interest in the twentieth-century American Trappist, Thomas Merton. 

Hall, Trey

Trey Hall is the Director of Evangelism and Growth in the Connexional Team. Trey is a Methodist pioneer, church planting strategist, and evangelist. Since 2000 he has established and led churches in the United Kingdom and the United States, served as Mission Advisor for the Birmingham District of the Methodist Church in Britain, and coached scores of practitioners renewing inherited forms of church or launching fresh expressions of church.

Hart, Thomas

Thomas Hart is the Methodist Youth President for the 2023/4 Connexional Year. Tom was brought up a Methodist, becoming a member when he was 14, and later a youth steward at his church and a congregational representative. He is a member of the National Methodist Youth Brass Band and is planning to take a degree in popular music after his presidential year. Tom also enjoys travel and learning about different cultures and lifestyles. 

Hulme, Sarah

Sarah is the National Rural Officer in the Connexional Evangelism and Growth Team. She works collaboratively with rural leaders to expand a confident and vibrant Christian presence in rural communities. She works ecumenically with colleagues at the Arthur Rank Centre and also with the Joint Public IssuesTeam to advocate for the complex social issues these diverse rural communities face.

Jambawo, Vincent

Revd Dr Vincent Jambawo is the Superintendent of the Stockton Circuit in the Darlington Methodist District. Vincent is a transformational leader whose circuit team has been part of the Transformational Leadership Learning Community for the past year.

Jarvis, Abi

Abi is one of the Discipleship Development Officers in the Connexional Evangelism and Growth Team. She supports churches and Christian communities to thrive through a culture of discipleship and disciple-making, by encouraging a holistic approach to Christian life including worship, social action, family life, the workplace, evangelism and more. Previously Abi equipped Christians in public leadership roles, as well as encouraging churches to support the leaders in their congregations, at the Evangelical Alliance. Before that she worked in campaigning, policy and prayer at International Justice Mission.

Johnson, Ali

Ali is the Digital Evangelist, dividing his time between the Connexional Evangelism and Growth Team and Cliff College. At Cliff he works to help the college focus on equipping the church for evangelism and mission, through the use of digital media.  Ali's previous appointment was as the Associate Pastor at SwanBank Methodist Church. He was a key member of the team that led the Natwivity and EasterLIVE social media campaigns and also developed the digital content of the Mothertown Passion, a modern day passion play in Stoke-on-Trent. 

Johnson, Neil

Revd Dr Neil Johnson is a Methodist pioneer minister based in Birmingham. He runs regular 'street banquets' for people who are experiencing homelessness. You'll hear more about this ministry of radical hospitality over the course of the weekend.

Mansfield, Ali

Ali is a Methodist pioneer who started Horrabridge Love Your Neighbour Methodist Church. A parent and former teacher, Ali began by gathering parents for mutual support, which led to parenting courses, Alpha courses and home groups. BLESS is now their core value, which stands for Be with them, Listen to them, Eat with them, Serve them, Share our story with them. Ali and the team are invited to chat on the local radio, lead Table Talk at the local pub, run youth outreach, and host community parties. A particular favourite with the community is the cupcake nominations where people who need to know they are loved, receive a cupcake on their doorstep with a simple message based on Ephesians 3:16 telling them that they are loved for no reason other than being who they are.  

Nash, Emma

Emma is the Mission and Community Engagement Officer in the Connexional Evangelism and Growth Team. She helps churches move towards health and growth by equipping congregations to build deep relationships in their communities, and by equipping leaders to get the right things done. Emma is a Baptist evangelist and minister who has worked ecumenically in different church and mission settings, always asking ‘who is God calling us to reach and how might we best do that?'

Norman, Lynne

Lynne is the Mission and Community Engagement Development Officer in the Connexional Children, Youth and Family Team. She leads on work that helps to inspire and equip children and young people to be activists, volunteers, campaigners, peace-makers and project-starters. This includes supporting children and young people in communities of practice, working with the Social Justice Youth Reps, liaising with strategic partners such as JPIT, All We Can and Christian Aid and representing Children, Youth and Family on key Methodist steering groups. 

Pimlott, Nigel

Dr Nigel Pimlott is an officer in the Learning Network with decades of experience in pioneering youth work. Nigel is passionate about helping others thrive and flourish so that we all might experience shalom. He is an experienced coach with a particular interest in leadership development and enabling transformation in the world God loves. He has a particular heart for pioneering new forms of Christian community for the times we live in.

Prowting, Meg

Meg is the Youth and Young Adult Development Officer in the Connexional Children, Youth and Family Team. She develops and facilitates projects, events and programmes for young people and young adults, to enable them to grow in discipleship, participation and leadership. She supports, develops resources and delivers training for those who work with young people. Meg oversees the Youth Reps programme and the Leadership Year, and she is involved in the development and delivery of the 3Generate event. 

Wilde, Ruth

Ruth is a lay pastor at a URC/Methodist church in Redditch and a tutor in disability inclusion at Northern Baptist College. She was previously the National Coordinator of the charity Inclusive Church. She has also worked in other capacities in the church world, for example for the Student Christian Movement and Community Peacemaker Teams. Ruth is editor of the Inclusive Church book, ‘How to Build the Church of the Future’ and blogs on inclusive evangelism at https://ruthwildetheology.co.uk/