Walking with you
Within Project Violet there was the recommendation to have a women’s ministry advisor in each association. We recognise that for some associations this is not always possible, not all women will relate to the women in their patch. To create diversity of voices in advice below is a list of female Regional Ministers who are willing to be approach by anyone regardless of association geography. We are also available for association teams to work with in creating a broader experience for the women in their association.
Revd Lisa Kerry BD Hons, MTh
Lisa is the Regional Minister Team Leader for the Central Baptist Association. She has served in Baptist Churches in Leigh-on-Sea, Shenfield and Croxley Green and as a Chaplain for Havens Hospices in Southend-on-Sea. Lisa is currently studying for a part-time PhD with Bristol Baptist College, looking at professionalism and Baptist ministry. Prior to training for ministry Lisa was a Registered General Nurse and worked in Oncology, Gynaecology, End of Life Care and Interventional Radiology. She has been married to Alan for 36 years and they have two grown up daughters, two sons-in-law and one grandson with another grandchild on the way!
Contact Lisa: lisa.kerry@centralba.org.uk
Revd Clare Blatchford
Claire is a regional minister in the Eastern Baptist Association, and based in South Essex. She is married to Colin who has three grown up children, who are all married. She was previously married to Clive who died from kidney transplant complications during her final year at Spurgeon’s College.
She has a passion for people to discover who they are in Christ and loves to hear stories of what God is doing, as well as going to the gym and watching a Disney film!
Contact Claire: Claire.blatchford@easternbaptist.org.uk
Revd Clare Hooper
Clare is the Regional Minister Co-Team Leader and is a Children, Youth & Families specialist. She brings 30 years of youth work experience into association life and maintains that good youth work is a good way of working with all people, regardless of their age. She is also a tutor for children, youth and families at Bristol Baptist College and facilitates the children, youth and families round table for Baptists Together. She has a passion for holding spaces so that all voices can be heard and
facilitation that encourages the participation of everyone. Clare loves nothing more than pottering around her Potting Shed in her spare time.
Contact Clare: c.hooper@scba.org.uk
Revd Linda Donaldson
Linda is the Regional Minister Team Leader for the Northern Baptist Association, She was born and brought up near Edinburgh, Linda has worshipped in NBA churches since 1986, working first as a physiotherapist, mainly in Newcastle, before being called to Baptist Ministry and serving in two of our NBA churches, and also as Northern Baptist College Hub Tutor the last 5 years.
Linda’s passion is to see God’s people released, enabled and equipped to take up their part in the God’s mission. She will be supporting churches, ministers, and pioneers in the south of the association and have oversight of settlement, Ministry and formation and is excited by the opportunity to embed the NBA Vision and values alongside Revd Johnny Pozzo, the NBA Team & Trustees.
In her spare time, Linda enjoys hanging out with friends and walking with her Yorkshire Terrier.
Contact Linda: linda@thenba.org.uk
Revd Lucy Wright
Lucy is one of the regional ministers for London Baptists. She oversees 60 churches in the Northeast and East District of London and heads up the Ministerial Recognition Committee. Lucy moved to London in 2009 where she ministered at Worcester Park Baptist Church, Surrey, and then moved in 2018 to become the minister at Eltham Park Baptist Church near Greenwich in London. Originally from Chippenham in Wiltshire, she studied Theology at Bangor University in North Wales, and then completed her ministry formation with further studies at Bristol Baptist College.
Contact Lucy: Lucy.wright@londonbaptist.org.uk
Revd Gale Richards
Gale is currently a part-time regional minister with the Eastern Baptist Association, an Ecumenical Canon at Ely Cathedral, Chair of Churches Together in Cambridgeshire, and an associate chaplain at Anglia Ruskin University.
She was recently awarded her PhD from the University of Aberdeen for her thesis on womanist perspectives for the renewal of Baptist church practices.
Contact Gale: Gale.richards@easternbaptist.org.uk
Revd Mary Moody
Mary is a married, a mother of two neuro-diverse young adults and have been a Baptist minister since 2007. I was sole pastor of a small but big-hearted church in the home counties for 15 years and am now part of the CBA regional team, with particular responsibility for small/nimble churches and mission. I’ve got lots of experience of juggling ministry with caring responsibilities. I also recognise autism/ADHD traits in myself and have read widely around autistic theology, developing my own strategies for ministering authentically and flourishing as an autistic woman.
Contact Mary: mary.moody@centralba.org.uk
Revd Jane Henderson
Jane is Regional Co-team leader for the NWBA. She specialises in helping churches to change, and has established a group of Transitional Ministers who work with churches to help them in their mission and to find sustainable ways of being church. She has a background in HR, Organisational and Leadership development, and thought she'd left all of that behind when she came into ministry, but God had other ideas - who knew?! She lives in Cheshire with her husband and two cats and sometimes wishes she hadn't given her adult sons as much encouragement to spread their wings around the world. Jane loves anything art or craft and finds creativity a helpful way of connecting to her Creator.
Contact Jane: jane@nwba.org.uk
Revd Hayley Young
Hayley is the co-team leader of Southern Counties Baptist Association. She has a passion for facilitating people’s gifts in ministry and mission. And for churches to engage in hospitality as a way of mission as well as releasing pioneers and new forms of church, onsite and online. Hayley uses social media as a way of communicating the roles she has. She started training at Spurgeon’s College at the age of 21, and has ministered in 3 different churches (including coastal, urban and a Local Ecumenical Partnership). She has experience of developing and transitioning churches and associations to be flexible for the modern world we minister in. She has served in South Wales Baptist Association as a Missional Lead and as the Transitional Strategic Leader of the Northern Baptist Association, as well as being Baptist Together President 2022-2023.
Contact Hayley: h.young@scba.org.uk