Bishop of Salisbury to retire
The Right Reverend Nicholas Holtam is stepping down after ten years
Last updated 2nd Feb 2021
The Bishop of Salisbury, the Rt Revd Nicholas Holtam, will retire on the July 3rd, a month short of his 67th birthday.
He will have been Bishop of Salisbury for a decade, leading a diocese that covers most of Wiltshire, Dorset, Poole and parts of Bournemouth, and says taking the role has been "a privilege and a joy."**
"In present circumstances, the timing of my retirement has not been an easy decision to make, but it feels right to me and to those I have consulted. The impact of the pandemic is going to be felt for a long time. The Diocese is developing a Mission and Pastoral Plan and we have an agreed financial framework with which to face the future with confidence."
He's praised colleagues but says now is the right time for a new Bishop to lead the Diocese of Salisbury;
" When the pandemic subsides, the scale of what faces us will benefit from a new Diocesan Bishop with whom to make decisions about the future. "
Bishop Nicholas also praised the "energy, variety and resourcefulness of our churches, chaplaincies and schools" describing them as "just three of the reasons why being the Bishop of Salisbury is a joy."
GRATEFUL FOR SUPPORT OF WIFE
There's a touching tribute to his wife, Helen, who, has played a key role in supporting raising tens of thousands of pounds for the Sudan Appeal.
"When we came to Salisbury in 2011, Helen, my wife, had just retired as a Maths teacher. She has supported me particularly through hospitality and fundraising in The South Canonry and in the beautiful garden, notably running the Sudan fete. She has maintained her Quaker membership at Salisbury Quaker Meeting throughout our time here. She established a weekly origami workshop for prisoners at HMP Erlestoke selling their cards to raise funds for prisoner rehabilitation. Helen has been a major part of what I have been able to do and I am grateful for her and our family's support. We look forward to retiring to Brighton to be closer to our children and grandchildren."
Bishop Nicholas is a Patron of local charities including Alabaré, The Footprints Project and, with Helen, of Children's Chance.
Nationally, since 2014 he has also been the Church of England's lead bishop on the environment and chairs the Environmental Working Group.
THANK YOU
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, today thanked Bishop Nick for his work.
“During Bishop Nick’s tenure as lead bishop for the environment, his moral clarity and Christ-centred vision for the Church’s role in tackling the climate crisis have shown themselves time and time again. We are all the beneficiaries of his leadership, and I give thanks for the legacy he leaves: from the Church’s first ever Green Lent campaign, to initiatives aimed at helping parishes reduce their carbon footprint. Most enduringly, I hope, we have Bishop Nick to thank for a landmark General Synod motion in 2020 setting a target of net zero across the whole Church by 2030. "
“I am deeply grateful to him for his tireless work and colleagueship as a fellow bishop, and for leading the Church’s Environment Programme through a time of enormous growth. Both he and his family will be much in my prayers as he prepares for the next stage of his ministry, as will everyone in the Diocese of Salisbury as they prepare to say farewell to Nick in the summer.”
LAST SERVICE
Bishop Nicholas hopes to preside at the ordinations of deacons and priests at the end of June and his last service in the diocese will be Evensong in the Cathedral on Saturday the 3rd July.
His replacement could be appointed in the autumn
The Bishop of Sherborne, the Rt Revd Karen Gorham will be the acting Bishop of Salisbury.