Christmas was given an additional sense of expectation for two clergy who were offered Archdeacon’s posts in Lichfield Diocese following a selection process at the end of last year. Candidates were invited to be considered for both posts.
It can now be announced that The Revd Canon Elizabeth Jackson is to be the next Archdeacon of Walsall and that the Revd Nick Watson is to be the next Archdeacon of Salop. They will both commence their ministry on Sunday 4th May 2025, when they will be installed at 3.30pm Choral Evensong at Lichfield Cathedral.
Commenting on these appointments The Rt Revd Dr Michael Ipgrave, Bishop of Lichfield, said: “We have found two remarkable priests who have a variety of gifts and experience that will make them effective, pastoral and mission-minded Archdeacons. They are an excellent fit for the journey we want to take towards the goals we have set for our diocese for the next five years and beyond.”
Archdeacon of Walsall
The Revd Canon Elizabeth Jackson is coming to Lichfield Diocese from Oxford Diocese where she has been Associate Archdeacon of Berkshire since 2020.
Growing up in Lincolnshire, she trained in public accountancy after school and worked in the public and health sectors. While raising her family, she became a Reader (licensed lay minister) in 1996 and within a few years was exploring her vocation to priesthood. During this period, and through her ordination training in the East Midlands Training Course, she took on a succession of employed church roles in family and youth work.
She was ordained priest in 2011 in Lincoln Diocese. Her experience in different types of ministry have included different church traditions too. The thread visible through her ministry is a passion for social justice and for seeing and seizing opportunities to build the ‘Kingdom of God’ in new and old places, drawing people into new and refreshed living for God.
Her ministry has had a strongly entrepreneurial edge: she has established new congregations and worshipping communities, including Cantonese-speaking missional communities in Berkshire. Her vision extends to ensuring that these new ventures are given sustainable foundations. This often involves making partnerships with parts of the community such as businesses, other voluntary agencies and local authorities that can help make this a reality. In Coventry, she established a restaurant for Syrian refugees where they could practice skills, learn new things and learn English at the same time, combining entrepreneurialism with a heart for social justice delivered though Christian ministry.
Canon Liz said: “I look forward to coming to the Wolverhampton Area where I long to support parishes in becoming ever more effective as disciples of Christ and as agents of change in their communities. They already have much to offer. I want to build on that.”
The Rt Revd Tim Dr Wambunya, Bishop of Wolverhampton said: “Liz Jackson brings extensive mission experience and strong administrative leadership to her new role as Archdeacon of Walsall. We are excited to welcome her to the Wolverhampton Episcopal Area team in the Lichfield Diocese where her gifts and skills will be warmly embraced. May God bless and support her new ministry among us.”
The Rt Revd Steven Croft, Bishop of Oxford said: “Liz has been a great gift to the Area Team in Berkshire and to the wider Diocese of Oxford. Liz has both a wider strategic vision and an eye for detail together with a willingness to grasp nettles when required. Liz brings a passion for justice and for the marginalised to everything she does and will flourish in her new role”
To relax, Canon Liz enjoys cooking and gardening, writing poetry and short stories, unleashing the power of Excel and playing board games.
Archdeacon of Salop
Ordained in 1992, The Revd Nick Watson is no stranger to Lichfield Diocese, having been Team Rector of Wednesfield from 2009 to 2021 and Rural Dean of Wulfrun from 2014. With experience in rural ministry as well as towns and cities, he is well placed to be the next Archdeacon of Salop. Since 2021 he has been Area Dean of Manchester South and Stretford, looking after 35 parishes there, “Half an Archdeaconry,” he observes.
Originally from Winlaton, Co Durham, Revd Nick’s life journey has been largely ‘in the footsteps of St Chad,’ he says light-heartedly, but more deeply disclosing that the Northumbrian saints are still a significant influence on the Christian faith he discovered as a student in Cambridge through a combination of a Franciscan Chaplain and a university mission.
In Manchester Diocese he was significantly engaged with their transformation programme and travelled the journey from old to new with his deanery. With recognised coaching gifts and a calm presence, he is known for offering incisive challenge in a supportive manner, stock-in-trade for Archdeacons.
Revd Nick is therefore no stranger either to supporting transformation in parishes. He said: “I believe passionately in the local church as the place where people meet most richly with God, the community in which they grow most fully and the means through which God blesses those around them. I look forward to supporting the churches of Salop as we live out our vision and travel towards our goals.”
The Rt Revd Sarah Bullock, Bishop of Shrewsbury, said: “Revd Nick’s listening and coaching abilities offer much to making our vision a reality in North Shropshire in a more rural and mixed urban setting. It is good to welcome him back to Lichfield Diocese.”
The Rt Revd David Walker, Bishop of Manchester said: “We’ve been hugely blessed by Nick in his time in Manchester, and will miss him enormously. His ability to engage with clergy and lay people from all traditions, and to help them grow in mission and ministry, will serve him very well as Archdeacon.”
In his spare time, Revd Nick enjoys photography and playing the guitar and is, like the new Archdeacon of Walsall, a fan of board games.
Image of Canon Elizabeth Jackson - Steve Buckley/Oxford Diocese