The Methodist Church and the United Reformed Church have jointly appointed a new clergyman to the position of Rural Consultant. Rev Graham Jones will lead the Churches in his new role that will last for a six year period.
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Rev Jones will step into his new position from 1 January 2006, and will be based at the Arthur Rank Centre in Stoneleigh – which is the HQ of the Royal Agricultural Society of England.

Currently, Rev Jones is the Chaplain at the University of York, and is minister of an Anglican Methodist Local Ecumenical Partnership in the York South Circuit.

The post of Rural Consultant will give Rev Jones the responsibility of offering and encouraging rural congregations to engage more closely with their communities, and to increase their confidence in doing so.

The aim of taking up his new post will be to allow the rural voice to be heard in both the Methodist Church as well as the United Reformed Church. It is hoped that this will enable both denominations to give significant and effective contributions to the development of government rural policies.

Rev Jones commented on his new appointment by saying, “I am excited by the challenges facing rural communities in Britain. I want to be able to play a significant and distinctive part in the work of the Arthur Rank Centre as it continues to make its contribution to developing and implementing rural strategies in the churches and in wider society.”