The Reverend Chris Worsley will be supporting parishes across the Diocese of Worcester as they seek to become Kingdom People.

She has been appointed as the diocese's new Kingdom People Development Officer and was licensed for her new role at a service for Authorised Lay Ministers in Worcester Cathedral on Sunday.

Over the next two years,Reverend Worsley will work to establish and train a support network for parishes across Worcestershire and Dudley as they implement Bishop John Inge's vision for churches to develop themselves as Kingdom People.

Bishop Inge said: "This appointment is a crucial one in enabling our 'Kingdom people' vision to become a reality. Chris will help the people of our churches become beacons of God's 'Kingdom values' of love, compassion, freedom and justice in their communities.

"These are the values of God's kingdom and it is our happy task to do all we can to make them prevail. Chris's great gifts and very relevant experience make her the perfect person for this role."

Rev Worsley comes to Worcestershire from the Diocese of Ely where she was Ministry Officer with particular responsibility for the development of Lay Ministers. She has also worked in parish ministry and as a hospice chaplain, and was made a Canon of Ely Cathedral.

She hopes to build on this experience as she starts work training facilitators in the Diocese of Worcester to accompany parishes on their journey to become more focused on God's Kingdom.

She said: "Much of my previous role was about working alongside parishes and I really enjoy working with churches to develop a vision of how they can best serve God in their communities.''