Dean of Guernsey steps down from his General Synod role
DEAN OF GUERNSEY the Very Rev. Tim Barker has decided to step down from his role at the General Synod after 20 years serving both Guernsey and his former diocese.
His first experience of this gathering of Church of England representatives was during his time as a member of the Diocese of Lincoln in 2000, where elections for clergy and lay people to represent the region took place.
After serving Lincoln from 2000 he was not re-elected in 2005.
However, he was returned to the synod later that year in a by-election and after that stayed as the Lincoln representative until he moved to Guernsey in 2015.
The Channel Islands’ arrangement is for the deans of Jersey and Guernsey to represent both islands alternately and it was by chance that when Mr Barker arrived in Guernsey it was the island’s turn to send its dean to the synod.
It was beneficial all round: ‘I knew a lot of people and a lot of people knew me and that was quite good for the Channel Islands,’ he said.
He served an extra year as a result of the pandemic, but this year will see Jersey’s dean, former St Martin's rector the Very Rev. Mike Keirle, becoming the islands’ representative.
After 20 years, though, Mr Barker said it was time to step down. ‘I will miss it but I think I’ve done my bit, as they say, and I think it’s really important that Mike has the experience.’
Coincidentally, this year will also see the retirement of Guernsey’s lay church member on the synod, Jurat David Robilliard, and he too has served for 20 years.
‘David has done a very remarkable stint,’ said Mr Barker.
Members of synod can be invited to serve on a range of sub-committees or working groups to explore various issues that are later voted on by all the members.
Mr Barker said that during his time he had worked on reviewing the clergy’s terms of service and marriage law reform in England in the mid-noughties, which came in useful when it came time for the matter to be debated in Guernsey.
Most recently the major change has been the synod passing a law – what it calls a measure – to transfer the jurisdiction of the Channel Islands from Winchester to Salisbury. While this was passed by synod in February, it was delayed in the islands because of the latest lockdown.
Most people will not notice much difference once this change takes place.
‘But I think it’s very important that we have a connection with the wider Church of England and we’re very happy that we can make a contribution to life there, but day-to-day much of the organisation and administration is done on the island and we are financially self-sufficient.’
He and Mr Keirle and a small group might be going to Salisbury for the official hand-over and he was looking forward to formally welcoming the Bishop of Salisbury to the island.
Since the recent meeting was his last, he was disappointed that it ended up being held via Teams, even though he had managed to get to London. ‘I was sitting in the office of the Bishop of Norwich. It was fine, but it would have been much nicer to have been with people.
‘I would have liked to say goodbye to some people.’
