Ordinations 2025

George Brett 

George became a Christian in his teens going on to study Theology, Music and Worship at university. The call to ordination originally came twelve years ago while working as a music director at a church in London, and prior to ordination training at Trinity College, Bristol, he was working in the technology industry. George is passionate about Christian engagement in the arts in worship and mission, the power of the blessed sacrament, and the Christian call to environmentalism and liberation of the oppressed and marginalised.  

George is married to Katie, (also an ordinand) and together they have two boys. He enjoys poetry, art, music, motorcycles, board games and cooking. 

George will serve his curacy in the parish of St Andrew’s, Kettering. 

Jess Cotton 

Jess's varied faith journey has seen her serve as a children and families worker and as a licenced Reader and she enjoys setting up pioneering projects to share the good news and be a loving witness.  

Having worked as an accountant for 20 years in the NHS, church and charity sectors, she retrained as a social worker. More recently Jess has worked in community projects combining her interests and experiences to meet local needs with social action and loving service. She trained for ordination at Rippon College, Cuddesdon. 

Jess is a proud mum of two children with a son who is 18, getting ready for university, and a daughter about to start her A-levels. Jess loves being out and about in nature, walking, running, taking in the views and enjoying the countryside or sea air. 

Jess will serve her curacy in the parishes of Wellingborough All Hallows & All Saints. 

Carol Deamer 

Born in Luton, Bedfordshire Carol moved to Wellingborough in 1988 with her young family, and from the moment she walked into St Barnabas Church, she knew it was the place God intended her to be.  

Carol worked as a Teaching Assistant in an infant school for more than twenty years, until retirement four years ago and also ran Bible-based after school clubs and prayer spaces at lunchtimes. She was licensed as a Reader in 2011, but, in the years following she felt an increasing call to ordination, She finally decided to follow that calling and has been studying at St Mellitus College in Nottingham for the last year, on the Caleb course. 

Carol has three grown up children, two of whom are now married, and one granddaughter. In her spare time she enjoys walking in local country parks, reading, embroidery, and playing with her granddaughter. 

Carol will serve her curacy in the benefice of Wellingborough St Andrew & St Barnabas. 

Helen Halson 

Helen became a Christian in her twenties and at an Explore Day in 2017 she was shocked to discover a call to ordained ministry. Helen’s discernment pathway was complicated and in 2020 she trained as a lay minister alongside her career in NHS Primary Care. This gave Helen her first taste of theological study and she found it a fantastic grounding for future study. 

Her ordinand training pathway was a two-year, full time, context-based diploma in Theology, Ministry and Mission with St Mellitus College at their Nottingham Centre and Helen felt this worked well as she could spend lots of time gaining practical experience in parish ministry alongside her studies. 

Helen lives with her husband James and their dog, Lady. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking, gardening and spending time with family. 

Helen will serve her curacy in the benefice of Abington. 

Hilary Halstead

Hilary retired as a GP in 2015 after working in the same practice for 28 years and being senior partner for 7. She was licensed as a reader in 2013 and has enjoyed 12 fruitful years in Reader Ministry including running a Tiny Tots group and coordinating an outreach 4pm service called Peter’s Praise. However, Hilary always felt that her ministry was incomplete and has felt called to ordination over the years, but life circumstances have got in the way. After finding out about the Caleb Stream at St Mellitus College via her son, she feels that it has been the perfect fit and given her a sense of completeness that feels very right.  

Hilary is married to Peter and they have three adult children, one granddaughter and another on the way. She loves to spend her spare time walking her dog Lara, exploring the countryside, knitting and making lace. 

Hilary will serve her curacy in the benefice of Weston Favell. 

Angie Kennedy 

Prior to starting her ordination training, Angie worked for the local, Northamptonshire based charity, C2C Social Action in a leadership capacity and before that founded the charity Baby Basics, Northampton as part of her Lay Ministry training. She then went on to study for three years at St Mellitus College. 

Angie has a passion for bringing the Good News to those on the fringes and is looking forward to spending time in the local library and coffee shops, getting to meet those who live in the parish, when she starts her curacy. 

During her spare time Angie enjoys spending time with her family and friends, eating and drinking coffee. She also enjoys building Lego and doing sudoku puzzles. 

Angie will serve her curacy in the Kingsthorpe Benefice with Malcom Arnold Academy. 

Alison Long 

Alison has lived in Rutland for the last 27 years and has been a member of Oakham All Saints for much of that time, holding the role of Sunday School leader and Church Warden as well as training as a Spiritual Director before starting the discernment process in 2021. She has been training for Ordination at St Hild in Sheffield and has thoroughly enjoyed her time there, finding the residential weekends at The Community of the Resurrection in Mirfield a real blessing. 

Married with three children and a dog, Alison enjoys walking in the countryside, spending time with friends and family, cooking and going to the gym.  

Alison will serve her curacy with the Oakham Team Ministry and with Launde Abbey.

Madeleine Morris 

Madeleine’s roots are in Rutland where her dad’s faithful ministry as a parish priest provide her first and enduring inspiration. She studied Theology in Durham before moving to London to train as a nurse with a career spanning hospital, community and prison settings. Upon moving back to Rutland, she served as a Lay Pastoral Minister and more recently as an Ordinand within the Oakham Team Ministry.  

Madeleine trained at St Hild College and credits becoming a wife and a mother for preparing her for ministry in ‘ways I couldn’t have imagined with all its joys and challenges’. 

Married to Richard with two school-age children and two cats, Madeleine enjoys baking and reading and is looking forward to meeting and getting to know new people when she begins her curacy. 

Madeleine will serve her curacy in the Welland Valley Benefice. 

Nat Stiles 

Nat worked in farming before swapping her wellies for theolgoy books. ‘Having dyslexia made school a bit of a struggle, but I found my escape and my connection with God out in His creation, where no one expected me to read or sit still!’ 

Her ministry journey began in 2019 when she became a children and youth mission enabler as part of the Gen2 apprentice scheme. She completed her theology degree at Ridley Hall, Cambridge as part of the apprenticeship before transitioning from her children and youth role to fully focus on her ordination training. 

Nat is married to Pete and together with their two daughters they live on their family farm along with many pets ranging from two pet cows to a hamster, and many in between! 

Nat will serve her curacy in the benefice of Geddington with Weekley.

Nigel Clent

Nigel spent most of his working life as a taxi driver, which he used more recently as a way to communicate his faith to others. This continues to be his passion, bringing God into the ordinary, in a language that can be understood to anyone that will listen. Married to Jayne for thirty-four years, Nigel came to faith with her through the Alpha course. They have two daughters, and time with God and family is of the most importance to them, along with spending time with friends, preferably involving food and long walks with the dog.

Nigel is serving his curacy in the benefice of Towcester w Caldecote & Easton Neston & Greens Norton & Bradden.

Rachel Cooley

Rachel was born in Northampton and worked in the mental health sector before studying at St Mellitus College.  She has a great love of the outdoors and walking pilgrimages in particular. Alongside this she also volunteers at the University of Northampton as a Chaplaincy Associate. Being passionate about pioneering and parish ministry, Rachel is keen to proclain the Good News in a variety of different contexts and feels a strong pull towards administering the blessed Sacraments and preaching the Word. She enjoys Rugby and supports the Northampton Saints. 

Rachel is serving her curacy in the Spencer Benefice.

Saji Dominic 

Saji was brought up in a traditional Catholic family.  At fifteen, he realised his calling and joined the seminary and became a member of a religious community called the Rosminians. After completing his philosophical and theological studies, he was ordained priest in 2010 and served for two and a half years in India before being invited to Cardiff to work in Rosminian parishes. During this period, he reflected on his vocation, realising a call to family life and took a leave of absence from priestly life where he worked as a prison officer. During this time he shared his intention to serve the Lord within his married life with his wife Manjila, and began to explore the Church of England, worshipping at St. Botolph’s Church in Longthorpe.  

Saji is grateful for all the blessings he has received from God including his wonderful family. He is looking forward to continuing his ministry and serving God and His people in this new chapter of his life.

Saji is serving his curacy in the parish of St Botolph, Longthorpe.

Newton Gatambia Kibiringi

It was while Newton was a youth minister in Werrington Parish Church that he sensed the calling to ordained ministry which led to his training at Trinity College, Bristol.  Alongside ministry, he enjoys being a family man, interacting with people while out and about and loves to both play and watch football.  

Newton has found serving the Lord as a Deacon in Weldon, Corby a joy and has deeply valued the opportunity to lead people in worship and preaching as well as being part of baptisms, weddings, and funerals which he describes as a ‘great honour’. 

Newton is serving his curacy in the benefice of Weldon & Deene. 

Robert Seaman

Robert worked for the United Reformed Church at their head offices near Kings Cross in London for 22 years prior to answering his call to ordination and undertaking his training at at Trinity College, Bristol, as a dispersed learner. During his weeks at home he spent 3 days working alongside Revd Dawn Airey at Gleneagles Anglican Church. He loves sports,  reading, writing poetry and keeping busy. He has a good, if dry, sense of humour and loves journeying with people. 

During his curacy in Werrington, Peterborough Rob has enjoyed engaging with and encouraging people of all ages and barely a day passes where he is not mindful of the privilege of his calling. 

Robert is serving his curacy in the parish of Werrington. 

Huw Yardley

Huw left a 27-year career as a House of Commons Clerk to follow his calling to ordination. A lifelong Anglican, Huw is strongly committed to the role of the parish church in bringing loving service and the good news of Jesus to the whole people of a place. His greatest joy is sharing the Eucharist as part of a faithful community who love God and he enjoys the full breadth of church traditions, feeling the Spirit at work as much in the beauty of choral evensong as in lively contemporary worship. He enjoys watching rugby, reading and cooking, is married to Fiona, a university lecturer and they have 3 grown up children. 

Huw is serving his curacy in the benefice of Broughton w Cransley & Mawsley.