Schools 140 Founded 23 January 1914 | Parishes 463 Bishop Stephen Cottrell Phone +44 1245 294400 | |
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Churches 588 (As of August 2014) Suffragans John Wraw, area Bishop of BradwellPeter Hill, area Bishop of BarkingRoger Morris, area Bishop of Colchester Address 53 New St, Chelmsford CM1 1AT, UK Profiles | ||
The Diocese of Chelmsford is a Church of England diocese, part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers Essex and the five East London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Havering, Newham, Redbridge, and Waltham Forest (most of which made up the historic county of Essex), and is co-terminous with the boundaries of the Catholic Diocese of Brentwood. It is divided into three episcopal areas, each with its own area bishop. The Diocese covers a region of around 1,500 square miles (3,900 km2) and has a population of more than 3 million; it has 463 parishes and a total of 588 churches; it is the second largest Anglican diocese in England.
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The Diocese was created on 23 January 1914, covering the entire county of Essex and that part of Kent north of the River Thames (North Woolwich), which had previously been part of the Diocese of St Albans.
The Diocese of Chelmsford is Europe's premier region for regeneration. The Thames Gateway, the M11 corridor and Stansted airport, Harwich seaport and the main site for the London 2012 Olympics are all located within the Diocese.
Organisation
The diocese of Chelmsford is overseen by the Bishop of Chelmsford. Since the area scheme was created in 1983, the diocese has been divided into three episcopal areas which are overseen by an area bishop. The diocese is divided further into archdeaconries, each divided into a number of deaneries.
The suffragan See of Colchester was created in 1882 (for the Diocese of St Albans until 1914), Barking in 1901 (also for St Albans), and Bradwell in 1968.
Bishops
Alongside the diocesan Bishop of Chelmsford (the Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell), the Diocese has three area (suffragan) bishops: John Wraw, area Bishop of Bradwell; Peter Hill, area Bishop of Barking; and Roger Morris, area Bishop of Colchester.
There are also some retired bishops living in the diocese who are licensed as honorary assistant bishops: a retired area Bishop of Bradwell, Derek Bond, has lived in Saffron Walden since 2007 and Trevor Mwamba, Team Rector of Barking and former Bishop of Botswana was licensed as an honorary assistant bishop at diocesan synod on 9 November 2013.
Alternative episcopal oversight (for parishes in the diocese which reject the ministry of priests who are women) is provided by the provincial episcopal visitor, Norman Banks, Bishop suffragan of Richborough, who is licensed as an honorary assistant bishop of the diocese in order to facilitate his work there.