A mission-hearted minister has been appointed to lead ministry training in the Diocese of Carlisle, the Church of England in Cumbria.

The Rev Paul Dunthorne will take up the post of Principal of Initial Ministerial Education (Phase One) in January 2020. He will move to Cumbria from his current role as Dean of Licensed Ministry Training for the Diocese of Winchester.

Paul, aged 56, said: “It is always an immense privilege to serve those whom God is calling into licensed ministry. It is even more exciting to be asked to do so in an area like this, full of pioneering mission and ministry developments alongside diverse communities and stunning natural beauty.”

As Principal of IME1, Paul will join the God for All team which supports and resources the county’s ecumenical vision and strategy that “….every person in Cumbria of all ages and backgrounds will have an opportunity to discover more of God and God’s purpose for their lives, so that they will discover more of Jesus and the Good News and become followers of Jesus within a Christian community.”

He will oversee training of the Diocese’s ordinands and trainee lay Readers and will work with an expanding number of self-supporting ordained ministers, with the number of salaried vicars in the diocese forecast to reduce from around 100 to 80. Paul will also be involved with a new Northern Centre for Pioneer Mission, a recently-launched collaboration between the Diocese and Church Mission Society.

Paul brings to the role many years’ experience of ministering across the country in different contexts, both urban and rural, including having served as a curate in a semi-rural village, as vicar of four small Rutland villages and from 2006 to 2014 as Team Rector of the Ledbury Team Ministry in the Diocese of Hereford, which covered 16 small villages centred on a market town.

He added: “In a fast-changing world, people and communities still need to discover the good news of Jesus, and God’s purpose for their lives.That’s what motivates me in ministry, and what calls us to shape all that we do around mission, developing new, creative forms of ministry to enable the mission of the whole people of God, whether lay or ordained, stipendiary or unpaid, and across both the deeply rural Lakeland communities and the urban centres of Carlisle and the West coast.”

Paul, who is married to Julia, with four adult children, came to faith when he was 18 years old.He was ordained in 1991, having previously studied law at King’s College, University of Londonand in Paris, then completing articles as a solicitor. From 1995 to 1997 he also completed an MA in Theology at Durham University.

The Rev Canon Prof Robert Hannaford, Director of Ministerial Formation with Cumbria Christian Learning said: “I am delighted that Paul is joining our team. He will strengthen considerably the team delivering education and training for ordained and lay ministry within the county and diocese.

“His wide experience as a parish priest, especially his experience in rural ministry, combined with his considerable background and skills as a theological educator will enhance our capacity to grow and develop this aspect of our work.”

Welcoming the appointment, the Bishop of Penrith and Executive Chair of the God for All team, the Rt Rev Dr Emma Ineson, said: “I am so pleased that Paul is coming to join the God for All team to oversee the important aspect of our training and equipping people for ministry in the church.

“He comes with an impressive track-record in both parish ministry and theological education, and I am very much looking forward to working with him as we take forward and refresh the vision to equip and grow the church in Cumbria.”